Fabulous story Tony, my sympathies for the dramatic ending though, not good!!

90-mile beach is a bit of a misnomer. Some think it was named due to the practise of rearing cows at the north end of the beach. There were many settlers arriving in the south engaging in the harvest of Kauri sap, liquid gold in them days. To feed these ravenous ramblers, the cows had to be walked from the top to the bottom of the beach. As we all know, cows travel 30 miles per day. The trip took 3 days. You do the math. As it happens the beach is actually about 64 miled long, so your speedo isn't far off 😀

As it happens 90-mile beach, Te Wharo-oneroa-a-Tohe, is named after Tohe, one of the descendants of the famed explorer Kupe. He came to Hokianga and later returned to Hawaiki. Many place names in the Far North record the gardens or actions of Kupe during his time there.

Here's to a speedy recovery and I hope you're up to many more adventures soon.