Back to Reality

Well it had to come to an end sometime. The last part of our travels was spent in Hong Kong which we explored for 4 days. It's still as hectic as I remembered it back when I was here 4 years ago.
Next time I come here it'll be to stay in a hotel on Hong Kong island - after 4 days of getting harassed by hustlers trying to sell me a suit, handbags or a Rolex watch in Nathan Rd I felt like jumping into the harbour :-) Kowloon is the cheaper area but it lacks the style and variety of eating places and bars that can be found in Lan Kwai Fong, Wan Chai or Soho.
We took the ferry to Mui Wo to meet up with the bus to the Big Buddha and Po Lin Buddhist monastery. It was quite a cooler day-about 18c but chilly in the wind. The ferry took about 30 minutes and then a hair-raising bus ride through the hills of Lantau Island for 50 minutes.
The Big Buddha was amazing - the monument sits on top of the mountain looking out over Hong Kong and the Pearl River delta. Inside there's an actual sacred artefact - a fragment of bone that belonged to the Sakyamuni Buddha. When he was cremated his remains were distributed to temples all over the world - it's claimed that the relic on display inside this bronze Buddha are genuine remains.
Two weeks later this all seems like a distant memory - it's now back to the world of reality & work. Sounds like nothing's changed out there on the road either - I heard the cops had taken over Martians cafe in Deans Marsh last Sunday & were going through every bike that went past. My source told me the cafe was empty except for 3 bike cops doing what cops in Victoria do - lucky he didn't end up shot or tazered - I thought, it would have been ironic if I'd gone out for a burn on my first ride & had the welcome back to "the place to be"... now here's your fine :-(

Doc Martin

I've arrived in Port Isaac in beautiful North Cornwall. It's a little fishing village that's well known by fans of the TV show Doc Martin as Port Wenn. Last night, sitting in an old smuggler pub with oak beams and a roaring fire with a pint of local cider and a plate of fresh haddock, it felt like i was in heaven :-)
There's lot of fans of the TV show wandering around taking photos and with filming for the new series about to commence in 2 weeks time its going to get very busy.
Today it was the quest for the holy grail and following in the footsteps of King Arthur we visited Tintagel Castle - legend has it that this is Arthur's birthplace.
The castle is perched right on the edge of the cliff and archeological evidence has shown that a celtic encampment was here in 500AD - about the time that Arthur ruled and fought against the Saxons.
I'm nipping around in a little Peugot 308 diesel but would love to be on these roads on Trumpy - they are absolutely fantastic bike roads. I've seen quite a few Street Triples flying past having fun on the twisty, winding roads. Instead of kangaroos to watch out for its deer - they wander wild and there's warning signs that they're on the roads. There's also badgers - they're about the size of a wombat.
There's ice cream with clotted cream on top, cornish pasties the size of dinner plates and everywhere has fish & chips with mushy peas on the menu - a very healthy diet!
This is definitely cider drinking country - one pub I went into asked me if I wanted a normal cider or the one that would ensure I couldn't stand up after I drank a pint!
It's a beautiful part of the world & the only regret is not having a bike to ride on these awesome roads - even the guy that owns the B&B I'm staying in is an old sportbike rider & tells me the roads are sensational on a bike.
Next stop is St Austell in the south and maybe a visit to the Eden Project or the Lost Gardens of Heligan. Not long & we'll be back in Australia - first thing I'll do is plan my next trip back to this beautiful island.

Life in the ole blighty

Well it's just over a week now that we've been back in sunny England. The weather's been chilly but beautiful blue skies & sunshine every day - just like the Spring days I remember.
The little country lane ways in the Cotswolds have come to life with daffodils, snowdrops & crocus flowers. I just wish I had Trumpy over here - the roads are unbelievable. Twisty & hilly with great surface and no speed cameras!
They've even taken speed cameras off the motorways as they reckon they were too dangerous - people were too busy watching out for speed cameras instead of concentrating on the road. Driving down the M5 doing 150 km/h its a regular occurrence to have cars pass us in the outside lane.
One thing you wont see over here is beaten up old cars - the government provided a grant for people to scrap their old polluting cars & buy newer emission reduced vehicles. For years the UK has had a policy whereby every car has a roadworthy conducted annually - called an MOT. It's another level of safety that makes sure vehicles on the road are safe.
I've started looking into buying a bike over here & letting a friend keep it for me until I can come back again - might be good for riding up to the Liverpool ferry to the Isle of Man. A bloke mentioned to me today that an old bloke he knows is selling a BSA Goldstar that he's had for years - might be going for a good price.
Bikes are generally cheaper than Australia - especially Trumpy's. I saw a 2005 Speed Triple with all the extras for $7k - it was a lovely bike & would be awesome on these roads. A Ducati 848 costs about $550 for the week to hire - that includes tax and fully comprehensive insurance - not bad!
It's definitely the best time to come over to the UK for a visit - the weather is warming up, the days are getting longer and the seaside towns are still free of the holiday crowds they get in the summer months. Over the course of the week we've visited Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Avon and Gloucestershire - every one of them providing a history lesson going back to the 14th & 15th century, after all, this is the land of King Arthur & the knights of the round table.
Today we had a beautiful 12c day in Weston Super Mare - sitting on the pier eating cod & chips is hard to beat. Then a clotted cream ice cream - all very healthy I'm sure :-)
Next week it's off to Cornwall and the home of Doc Martin - Port Issac. I've also had a tip to stop at an old pub on the way - a place called the Highwayman on Dartmoor - apparently it'll give us an experience I wont forget!
I'm looking forward to a few local ales when I get into Cornwall - I've tested a few scrumpy ciders and they definitely hit the spot...
So, this week Bristol, then Cornwall and back to Hong Kong next Sunday.

Just flew into Hong Kong

Well its 1:45am in Australia & 10:45pm here in Hong Kong - we've just arrived in Hong Kong airport and have a couple of hours before we board for the second torturous leg of the journey to London.
It's an amazing airport, built on a bed of rock formed from demolishing two adjoining islands. The mud on the sea bed had to be removed before the foundation rock could be laid - it took two years for dredgers to suck up all the sea bed silt. It's an impressive site with a terminal that stretches 1.8km. I know all this cause I watched a documentary on the plane!
Best part of this airport is that it has free internet, is spotlessly clean and has fantastic public transport into the city. It's even got a public transport ticketing system that works!
The journey from Melbourne took about 8 hours - feels ok for the first 2-3 then there's just no comfortable position that can be accommodated in that tiny space called a seat. We had access to the business class lounge but it was like taking a toy away from a child when we had to board economy :-) It was good to catch up on some movies & watch the entire first series of The Office again.
So, now its onward to London & 10c...

Arrow Exhausts on the S3

Well, I took the plunge while the AU$ was looking good against the US$ and bought a set of Arrow exhausts for my bike. It was an awesome buy from www.pure-triumph.com in Florida with a saving of nearly $500!!
Once I got them in the mail I couldn't wait to get them on - but one problem - they needed a new tune loaded on the bike's ECU!
So, I rang around and the advice from the service department was that I needed to leave the bike in the workshop for a day!
My intention was to fit the exhausts at home, then ride in and get the tune loaded on Saturday morning!
Eventually, I ran out of time with Xmas fast approaching and lots to finish at work before the break.
Then I started doing some reading on the Triumphrat.net forum (brilliant site for all things trumpy) and found out about a program called TuneECU - it's a free program developed by a couple of guys in Europe that provides access to the bikes ECU - it's brain.
All it needs is an interface cable that just happens to be the same one used by Volkswagon and Audi for tuning cars.
So, straight on to eBay I bought a cable for $20 and downloaded the program with the tune for the Speed 3 with high arrow exhausts.
It was as simple as they said on the forum!! Remove the light fuses, attached the cable to the bike from the computer, turn the bike on, run the program on the laptop and update the new tune - easy! The main thing is to make sure the battery is well charged beforehand.
TuneECU also comes with lots of diagnostic and test options as well as the tuning features. It's all provided free with the option to donate via Paypal to the developers to help them refine it even more. They provided a huge range of tunes for all Triumph motorcycles with lots of support from engineers around the globe.
Once all was loaded and a quick visual inspection, I took off for a burn - what a difference the arrows make to mid-range!
It didn't seem too different to the bottom end though the front does seem to pop up a lot easier now! The weight is the other major difference - the arrows drop a couple of kilos of the bike weight for sure.
I've kept the baffles in the exhausts for now and they still seem to bark... taking them out is simply a case of removing a circlip. If you're looking for anything Triumph then I'd highly recommend puretriumph.com. The customer service is fantastic and Mike (the manager) makes purchasing online simple.
Only one thing I'd recommend to anyone fitting arrows - make sure you put a medium threadlock on the bolts that attach the carbon bracket to the bike - one of mine came loose & took off on my first big ride!

Happy New Year 2011

Well another Xmas has passed by and it's time for all the life changing & good living things we promise to do every year...
It was a great Xmas - we actually saw snow and didn't even have to travel to the UK!
We had a quick visit to beautiful Bright - a quick break before the Xmas rush. It was very cold and wet with lots of flooding but snow was the last thing we expected to see.
On a wet night sitting at the brewery sipping a few of the local ales I heard the guy from the local ski hire shop say there was a metre of snow on Mt Hotham.
At first I thought it was the Bright Ale kicking in but when I heard it again I thought, "I have to see that"!
As we sat huddled under heaters at the Bright brewery chatting about the good old days the ski hire bloke was talking about snow-boarding on Mt Hotham the following day - no way, this is Xmas in Australia when the temperatures are in the top 20's!
So, up to Mt Hotham the next day it was!
The fog was as thick as pea soup, a sheer drop over the side with no barriers - it must be scary in the depths of winter when on the orange poles in the sides of the roads are visible to mark the edge of the road.
We kept on going & what a surprise when we started seeing cars coming the other way with snow on their windscreen! Then we reached Mt Hotham resort - unbelievable!! The snow had drifted on the sides of the road to almost a metre deep.
Quickly we stopped the car on the side of the road (tested the abs brakes) and jumped out into the snow like 2 kids at Xmas... the way we knew it - it was awesome - 2 weeks from Xmas and here we where in snow - in Australia!
The weather remained miserable until it was our last day when it got into the top 20's.
We made up for it by visiting a few wineries and the Mt Buffalo berry farm is a must stop if your up that way - they have a small vineyard and their 9 year old Shiraz at $20 a bottle is a good buy. Next time I'm buying a box of it!
Last year was a quiet one for getting out on bike trips & 2011 might be the same. We're off to England & Hong Kong this year and a new contract that might involve a bit of travel - we'll see.
Hope everyone had a great Xmas & New Year - see you on the road.

Adelaide - quick visit across the border

A good opportunity came along a couple of week-ends ago to take a trip across the border to South Australia & visit Pete & Leone. It doesn't seem that long ago that they were locals but now they've settled into life in the city of churches - Adelaide.
We decided to drive across and took the most direct route through Horsham & Bordertown & planned to arrive about 3pm - it took us 9 hours in the end with a few stops on the way.
The thing that stood out was the difference in road surface quality when crossing from Victoria - it was like going from a dirt track to a graded road! The roads in Victoria are a disgrace compared to South Australia's smooth cambered surfaces!
You can tell when you've crossed the border without looking at the signs!
In fact, the roads in Victoria were so bad that I had to replace all the headlight bulbs when I got home as the vibration from the ruts had broken all the filaments - the high tyre pressure put into the new tyres when they were put on the week before didn't help!
Leone & Pete are well settled into the more laid back life over there and Pete's having a great time exploring the twisties in the Adelaide Hills.
We took a trip up through the hills and as well as the awesome roads, scenery & wineries, there's a great chocolate and cheese factory at Woodside. We walked away from the chocolate factory with a couple of bags full of goodies!
On the way through Woodside another treat for the boys - a BMW 1000RR came up behind us & shot past - one beautiful bike - looked & sounded awesome. I think I want one...
We got back to P & L's place in time to listen to the prison show on the radio - yeah they have a show where prisoners make radio requests and leave messages for their wives - some very interesting messages on there!!
One other very noticeable thing about South Australia is the absence of sneaky revenue raising speed cameras.
In fact, the location of all police speed cameras is published in the newspapers as a deterrent to wannabe speedsters - pro-active policing to stop accidents before they happen - unlike Victoria where they worry that the road fatalities are increasing but still catch people after they've been speeding so they can collect the cash!
Adelaide's got a very different feel to any of the other cities I've visited - feels more like a big country town although new development is going on quite a lot so that could change. They're big into recycling with purple water taps on all new development indicating recycled water for use on the garden.
Port Adelaide resembles Geelong in some ways with the old wool sorting sheds - most of these are being converted with coffee shops, cafes & bars turning it into a cool place to hang out.
It was another 9 hour drive back & we did some good deeds helping Belgian tourists to understand how to use a phone card on the way.
The Bordertown bakery is a great place to stretch & have a home made soup or a pastie. The place is a tin shed built around the old brick police station which is still preserved inside.
Next time I get over there it'll be on the Speed 3 to sample those Adelaide Hills twisties on 2 wheels. Pete's hooked up with the local Triumph riders group - they sound like a great bunch & will be coming over to the NSW Rally in April next year - should be a good rally.

Saturday Ride & lunch at Otway Estate Brewery

I heard from a mate during the week about a week-end trip he goes on every year. He gets together with a few friends & they do an annual pilgrimage to a little pub in a place called Koroit. I looked it up on Google maps & its just outside Warrnambool. Anyway the pubs called Mickey Bourkes and they reckon it's the best Guinness in Victoria!
Unfortunately, I already had a lot on for the week-end so wouldn't be able to sample the Guinness but could join them for a ride on Saturday.
After a warm 29c day on Friday it wasn't surprising to wake up to hear rain bouncing off the roof - typical Victorian weather! Luckily, it didn't last long & I was soon joining the others waiting for me at the Fyansford hotel. There were quick introductions & a scan of the bikes that included a couple of BMW GS's, a couple of 675 Triumph Daytona's, a KTM RC8 and my mate on a GS500F he'd borrowed for the week-end.
We took off heading for our lunch stop at a brewery on the Cape Otway road. I'd been down that road many times but never spotted a brewery! Right on lunch-time we pulled up at Otway Estate Winery and Brewery - what a great spot. We sat out on the deck overlooking the lake with a small vineyard in the background - heaven! The lunch menu was exceptional & a few of us sampled the amber nectar brewed on the property - only one glass but enough to have us wanting more! The organic cider was good too!
After lunch the fun began on the Cape Otway road to Lavers Hill. I was tailing the RC8 getting into the groove - the road was perfect. Lavers Hill came too quickly & it was time for me to leave the others and head home via Apollo Bay and the Great Ocean Road.
I wished I was going with them to that little pub in Koroit - sitting by a big fire with a pint of Guinness was very appealing. However, it wasn't to be & I took off for a bit of fun on my own as I wound along the valley and down to the ocean views of Apollo Bay. That's one of the best roads in Victoria on a bike.
It was all fun until I got to Lorne & then it was road-works, rock-slides, traffic and double white lines! Every time I ride on the Great Ocean Road I swear it will be my last - it's the worst road on a motorbike - the views are awesome but aren't so good when stuck behind a bus spewing diesel fumes into your face or tourists stopping suddenly to take a photo of the waves!
Next year, I won't be riding back on my own - I'm planning to throw the bags on the back & get to that little pub for a pint of stout by the log fire.
It was a great ride with awesome company and a great variety of bikes and experience. My mate that borrowed the GS 500 F had a quick burn on one of the Daytonas & loved it - looks like another Triumph will be on the road next year but he's actually thinking of a Street Triple R.
If you're on the Cape Otway road make the brewery a place to stop - you won't regret it!

Summer's almost here again...

Well it's been a long Winter this year, or at least it feels that way for me anyway. I just don't know how I survived living through those Winters living in the UK with minus temperatures & riding bikes in Levi jeans and a Wrangler jacket! Now it's thermal underwear & I'm still freezing - must be getting old!

It was good to get a text from Muz a few weeks ago to let me know there was a ride to Deans Marsh with Olly & a few of the lads.
I heard Martin bought a new Duke & it great to catch up & hear how the new bike matches his other pride and joy - the Street Triple.

They told me about the recent trip to Rawson with the Berwick club and unfortunately it had again resulted in disaster with one of the guys coming off on a wet corner and going through a fence - he survived but with few broken limbs. Apparently they rode on farm roads that had so much cow manure that Martin had a top dressing for his roses when he washed his bike at home!
It was good catching up with Andy - he's off to Tassie again in November to the Ross Rally.
This morning a took a quick burn over to Deans Marsh to catch up with Mick. I'd just changed to oil & filter on the S3 & it was good to hear that engine humming with some beautiful new syrup lubricating the pistons. It should hum even more when I get those arrow pipes on there!

As usual there was a good show of bikes at Martians & after a quick coffee we got on the road to Lorne with Cape Patton our destination.
The Great Ocean Road was it's usual self with tourist buses everywhere - even had tourists getting their photo taken by our bikes when we pulled up!
The scenery's great but the roads terrible - water over the road on corners and huge potholes where you just don't need to have them when you're on 2 wheels. It was still good to get out & get into some corners.
I was hoping to see a whale or two but the only ones I saw were on those tourist buses!!
We had an encounter with a Daytona 675 SE on our travels - beautiful bike with an underseat arrow pipe - sounded absolutely awesome!
Mick's Daytona looks great with some new accessories - double bubble screen, high pipe, seat cowl.
Mick mentioned there's a trip being planned to Bright on the Cup week-end - sounds like a great idea.
We're off to Adelaide to catch up with the nuke red S3 so won't be around - maybe we'll get a chance to get up there before Xmas - gotta be one of our favourite bike riding spots.
Hope to see you on the road...

What's been happening...

Well it's been a while since I got to do any updates on the blog - lots of distractions have kept me away from getting out on the Speed 3 and there's been little time for sitting down in a quiet corner to update the blog!
First of all the big surprise that Pete & Leone have gone off to Adelaide to live - it all happened so quickly and they moved over there last week - all our best wishes go with them & hopefully we'll catch up with them often when they journey back to the police state for a visit... Then I started job hunting when my contract finished & then I completed an audio production course at RMIT on the week-ends - its been a bit crazy!
But just before the madness kicked in, a few of us took a trip to Castlemaine for the week-end. It was that week-end when the hail the size of golf balls hit Melbourne!
Malcolm looked like he'd come back home as he rode along on "Mr Bloor" (his new S3) - he loves it! Luckily we didn't get any of the storm & spent the afternoon sitting outside a cafe in the main street sampling local wines and trying out a few beers.
The accommodation was perfect - a big old guesthouse walking distance to the main street.
There were bunches of wild grapes and figs in the back garden - the grapes were lush & Vicki made delicious jam out of the figs when we got back.
The bikes even got their own shed for the night!
On the way back we stopped in Daylesford just as the gay festival was getting underway - lots of beautiful people and plenty of queens! He/she had a particular interest in motorcyclists - think it might have been the leather!!

The following week-end I went back up to Bright to fly ultralights & we met up with Vicki & Mick.
What a night we had on the Friday we arrived - we ended up in the Wandiligong pub at an open mic night. The price for that night was paid dearly the next day...
We went out last week-end to the Khan Curry Hut with Mick & Vicki to say farewell to Pete & Leone (we were in Bright on the week-end they had their farewell). I'd definitely recommend it if you are into Indian food - service and meals were excellent.
But apart from that life's been quiet on the bike front. I'm not sure what's happening with the local RAT now - there seems to be a lull in interest at the moment! Interestingly, I was walking past Peter Stevens Triumph in Melbourne a couple of weeks ago and the RAT guys were gathering for the Sunday ride - looked like there was a few of them getting together. See you on the road...

Castlemaine Weekend - Saturday 6th March 2010

The labour day long week-end's coming up soon so we had a chat last Thursday night about the next overnight trip.
It had been rumoured that Petersborough was the destination but there's been a change of heart and Castlemaine is where we're heading on Saturday 6th March.
Accommodation is the Campbell St Lodge - a historic building close to the town centre. Cost is $95 for a double room & there's secure parking for the bikes. I spoke to Irene who was really helpful & told me there's lots going on that week-end - even heard there's a classic bike rally nearby in Maryborough.
Contact number is 03 5472 3477 & they know us as Geelong Triumph group.
Details of departure & route to come later.

Gone but not forgotten!

It was sad news earlier this week when we heard that Stefan had lost his life last Saturday afternoon in a fatal bike accident on the Moriac Road.
We'd known Stef for almost 3 years and although he often drove us mad, he was a likable character. There was always a new bike on the go or some customization happening - like when he sawed the ends off the mufflers on the bonnie!
There were memorable times with Stef but the one that sticks in my mind is when we all stayed in Harrietville in Nov 2008.
On the way there he got hit by a peregrine falcon. His description of him pulling that bird off his jacket always had us in hysterics!!
Then he left Waz out in the middle of Falls Creek with a flat tyre & when we asked him "What were the last words you said to Waz?" he paused, thought & said "C' Ya"!
There were many laughs with Stef and I'm sure none of us will ever forget him. He went out the way he'd have wanted it.
His funeral's on Friday at the United Church, 195 Ormond St, East Geelong - 2pm. C' Ya Stefan!

Plans for week-end trip = Labour Day weekend

I had a couple of interesting photos sent to me by Leigh a couple of weeks ago. Sounds like he was cleaning up his computer and came across some old photos from some of the early RAT ride days & trips.
I remember both trips when the photos were taken - one of them was particularly memorable as we experienced our first flying VFR and a group of bike riders that had more faith than we had! That was the trip to Rawson - after all the events of the previous day when one of the blokes from Berwick wrote off his VFR we were hits with high winds and a gum tree across the road - I remember Leigh looking at me, pointing up to the sky & saying "He did this"! The guys from Berwick had just earlier gathered us in a huddle before we left Rawson to say a prayer!!

The second photo was from a trip to Halls Gap - Murray was out trying to impress the roos... he got more than he bargained for!! We've had a couple of good trips to the Grampians over the years.

The next long week-end public holiday is over the Labour Day week-end in March (6, 7 & 8). So, a few of us had a chat about where we could go when we met at the Wharfshed on Thursday night. First choice was Port Fairy - but the music festivals put a stop to that idea - So plan is to ride down to Petersborough on the coast just beyond Port Campbell and stay Saturday and Sunday nights. We'd do a ride on Sunday - maybe further down the coast or inland up towards the Grampians. Pete's getting some details of accommodatioin & I'll post it here soon.

Sunday ride day - 31st Jan - Plan is to meet at Texas in Mercer at 9am & ride via Deans Marsh, Forest, and Mertons Track to Lavers Hil & then down to Apollo Bay for lunch.

I had a good ride last Sunday with Pete, Murray & Martin - the roads were crazy but it was good to get out for a quick burn. The Ocean Road just isn't the place to go on a m/bike anymore - speed limits, crazy drivers and cyclists make it an obstacle course for motorcyclists!

First ride of 2010 - Happy New Year

Well I never expected to see so many old faces at Deans Marsh - seemed like everyone was there this morning! I got up early looked outside to check the weather - overcast and maybe some drizzle but at least none of the torrential rain like we had on New Years Eve. Its great to see rain but keep it to week days when we're all at work!

The ride down to Deans Marsh was the usual straight ride - just missing

the odd cyclist. The best bit is that stretch form the t-junction on the Cape Otway Road - but it's one eye on the road and the other on the look out for radars!

I didn't see another bike on the way to Deans but when I got to Martians it was unreal - the place was bursting at the seams with bikes! Ollie & the crew were there and Mick was out on the new bike - beautiful black Daytona - in great condition - a stable mate for the Sprint ST.

Then Glenn from Williamstown appeared on his new beast - an 1198s - he still has the Daytona and a Harley but loves the Duke! Then Dave & Delina pulled up after their ride down to the Cape and Waz pulled up with Sonya on the Harley!

Mick & I decided to go for a quick ride over

to Forrest and then back on the Cape Otway Rd. It was on the way back that we had a slight problem! We'd just turned onto Mt Duneed Rd when Mick pulled over - his gear shifter had snapped off!

It looked like a little crack had been there and it had worsened as he'd ridden it until it just broke off. It didn't take long for Mick to organise the rescue team - the car with the trailer was summoned to take the crippled Daytona back for repairs.

Waz told me he's putting together a calendar for the RAT rides and we should let him know of any specific events that are planned.

There's a ride on Sunday 10th January 2010 with the Triumph Riders of Victoria - leaving Texas in Mercer St @ 9am. Sounds like its going to be a good ride & plenty of interest.

So, Happy New Year and safe riding in 2010.

Busy Sunday!

Well it was a busy day yesterday with a ride in the morning and then Mick's for a BBQ in the afternoon. Some of the blokes at work had planned to go for a quick ride in the morning down to Wye River for lunch - it just happened to be the same day as the Toy Ride.
But I figured I could give the Toy Ride a miss for one year. Anyway, only 3 of us turned up for the work ride - 3 others failed to show up!
Maybe it was the big black clouds that put them off.
So it was a brisk ride down to Deans Marsh for a coffee & then I came back while the others continued in the rain down towards Forrest and on to Wye River via Skenes Creek.
There were a lot of bikes on the road - plenty of others that didn't do the Toy Ride!
The afternoon was a relaxing few hours over at Mick & Vicki's eating & having a few refreshments.
The girls looked like they were having a good time too...

Plan is to catch up this Thursday night (17 Dec) at the Wharfshed & make it the last meeting of the year. Be good to have a chat about the calendar for next year & work out if there's any chance we can get a few week-end trips happening. Hope you've all got you lists ready for Santa!!