Holiday time.

Time to chill out and put the feet up, right?

Well, not for Kerry Davis it wasn’t.

Kerry – who has Nga Puhi and Ngati Manu ties – is a fourth year Tikanga Maori ordinand at St John’s College.

He’s also a former diplomat (he served in Papua New Guinea, Japan, the Solomon Islands and New York) and a regular sub-3:30 marathon man. He’s keen on keeping fit, in other words[1].

So for his holiday break this year, Kerry decided to do something different.

He pedalled out from the front gates of St John’s College on December 23 – and rode back in again on New Year’s Day, having taken in Cape Reinga along the way.

Up the western roads of Te Tai Tokerau, and back down the east, a round trip of 920km in nine days of cycling.

Whew.

His Hillary Step

So why did he do it?

Well, for starters, he had space. Kerry's whanau often spend Christmas with family overseas. This year they agreed that Kerry would stay back, and they'd stay in touch by Facebook.

Then there was the fact that the ride was just there, beckoning. A bit like Mt Everest beckoned Sir Ed.

Then, there was Bishop Jim’s White’s kayak journey from Mission Bay to Oihi in 2014. That inspired Kerry.

Even for a guy of his capability, though, the ride wasn’t plain sailing.

When he hit the hills that come one after the other on the last 30ks before Cape Reinga, for example, that was his Hillary Step – the last stretch that pushed him to the ragged edge.

But at about 6:15pm on December 27 (after a 112km slog from Kaitaia, and a flat tire at Te Kao) he made it to Te Rerenga Wairua, the leaping place of the spirits.

“And our spirits did leap!” says Kerry.

Team Haerenga

Te Miri Bevan and Brigitte Te Aweawe-Bevan – who are Kerry’s contemporaries at St John’s – were there to celebrate and pray with him.

They'd leapfrogged him all along the way. Te Miri and Brigitte are both from Te Upoko o te Ika – they have Rangitane ties – and their drive was a great way for them not only to support Kerry (and to make friends with his whanau and church whanau) but also to enjoy another part of the motu.

So what did Kerry love best about his haerenga[2]?

“Seeing how beautiful our land is. You see so much more when you are not rushed and able to travel at a slower tempo.”

And with all those hours in a bike saddle – what was going on in Kerry’s head?

Practical things, of course – staying safe, managing the ride.

But prayer too. Prayer for the pastorates, among other things. And praise. Heaps of that.

“I felt this constant sense of gratitude,” says Kerry, “that God had blessed me with the opportunity to undertake this ride.”

Remembering a less comfortable journey...

When the going was tough, Kerry would savour a scripture that’s always motivated him. “I can do all things,” says Philippians 4:13, “through Christ who strengthens me.”

Kerry would sometimes contemplate another Christmas journey, too:

“There was a young woman, some 2000 years ago, who at an advanced stage of her pregnancy rode on a donkey’s back from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

“What’s four hours in a bike saddle – with the manaakitanga of whanau and friends to come in the evening – compared to that?”

Kerry pulled into the St John’s College driveway on New Year’s Day.

The next day, he peddled another 72kms from St John's College to Hoani Tapu in Drury, returning via Te Karaiti Te Pou Herenga Waka in Mangere.

He tackled that final leg so that his ride would include all eight pastorates in Te Hui Amorangi o Te Tai Tokerau.

It was quite some ride.

[1] Kerry was also a member of the St John’s College ‘For the All the Saints’ team that participated in 2014 Oxfam 100km Trailwalker event.

[2] Journey.