had someone facing his first Finke race ask me for advice. It came as a small shock when I heard myself answer that it was so long ago I did that race that I didn’t think my advice would be worth anything. The race had changed so much. That set me to thinking about some of the riding which marked my glory days, such as they were.
The Thumper Nats was certainly a big series for me.
I didn’t race the first year – 1993 – but I didn’t miss too many from 1994 through
to the late-1990s when the series became so professional. After a few years of racing odd rounds here and there I think I raced my last Thumper Nats in 2005.
“The point of all this gibber is that I’m seeing the phenomenon again. Right now.”
The Australian Four Day Enduro Championship was another big event for me. As a youngster I watched it kick off in the mid-1970s and become a major milestone each year. When I finally fronted the big clock on the start line and Ted Goddard dropped the flag to
signal my minute I nearly peed myself with excitement. Over the next decade or so the thrill of riding that event never diminished. During that time I was riding occasional State enduro rounds up and down the east coast and it was a fantastic phenomenon to be part of.
There was a time when organised trail rides were flourishing, too. The Oyster Bay Poker Run, The Sunny Corner Trailbike Rally and The Eildon Nav Rally were three rides with long and proud histories, and to unpack the van at those rides each year and see the numbers growing over time – sometimes decades – was a hugely satisfying feeling.
The point of all this gibber is that I’m seeing the phenomenon again. Right now.
Adventure riding is still young and it’s exploding in popularity all around us. When future generations tell tales of the glory days of adventure riding, they’ll be talking about now.
Make sure you don’t miss a second of it.
EVERY RIDE STARTS IN
APPAREL & PROTECTION
First Gear Kilimanjaro & Kathmandu Jacket, Klim Outlander GTX Boot, Klim Revolt Pullover, Forcefield Body Armour Pro Shirt X-V 2 & Klim Krew Pak.
PARTS & ACCESSORIES
DrySpec H35 A-Lock Waterproof
35L Side Case, Outback Motortek
BMW F800GS Crash Bars, Upper Crash Bars, Giant Loop Mototrekk
Pannier Bags, Giant Loop Zigzag
Handlebar Bag, Metal Mule 35litre
Pannier Box & AltRider Skid Plate for Honda CRF1000L Africa Twin.
Because our aim is to make sure you’re outfitted in the right riding gear (size and fit), we offer you a simple guarantee. If your KLIM adventure gear doesn’t fit first go, we are happy to exchange it at no cost to you! Learn more on our website: https://www.adventuremoto.com.au/blog/size-guarantee/
Adventure Rider Magazine is published bi-monthly by Mayne Media Group Pty Ltd
Publisher Kurt Quambusch
Editor Tom Foster tom@maynemedia.com.au
Group Sales Manager Mitch Newell mitch@maynemedia.com.au
Phone: (02) 9452 4517 Mobile: 0402 202 870
Production Arianna Lucini arianna@maynemedia.com.au
Design Danny Bourke art@maynemedia.com.au
Subscriptions
Julesie (he’s a top bloke) (02) 9452 4517
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Website: www.advridermag.com.au
Enquiries: Phone: (02) 9452 4517
Int.ph: +61 2 9452 4517
Int.fax: +61 2 9452 5319
Adventure Rallye Red Centre
Rocks, deep bulldust, heat, the Finke track and long, high-speed blasting through Australia’s red centre. The Red Centre Adventure Rallye had it all.
Main: Adelaide’s Brad Teagle and Italy’s Lukas Pfister wheelied everywhere, all the time, side-by-side whenever there was room. Why? “It’s fun!” said a smiling Lukas.
Left: Riding through rocks and deep sand offered rewards like this oasis.
Below: The happy crew.
There seems to be a big market in adventure rides built around loamy dirt roads, heartbreaking scenery and an eye on rider comfort. There’s a good reason for that. It’s a fantastic way to spend a few days and a fabulous way to see some hard-toaccess parts of the Land Girt By Sea. But Outback Motorcycle Adventures in Alice Springs went a different way. Based in Alice Springs under the care of Damian ‘Damo’ McGrath and Michael ‘Vroomy’ Vroom, the guys had thousands of kilometres of hard-to-access, heartbreaking scenery, but the pair thought an event where the emphasis was more on the riding than the comfort might be a starter. They were right.
The Rallye
For the first running of the Red Centre Adventure Rallye entries were capped at 20. Vroomy rode lead on a rally-kitted 690, and Damo – possibly in need of a mental-health assessment – took care of sweeping on a KTM1190.
Those bikes would make a punter think the course wasn’t set out to be too tough, but that’s a relative measure. What might be easy for some might be tough for others.
There were a couple of particularly appealing features of this particular ride.
The first was each day looping from, and back to, Alice Springs. That allowed riders to set up a base and carry very little luggage on the bikes. Another was the
variety of terrain available within a day’s ride of Alice, and of course, there was all the mystique and spirituality of the incredible sights in the Dreamtime region. Ridges of hard-edged stone, thousands of years in the aging, thrust up through the primordial ground, desert horizons show the curvature of the earth, night skies are velvet black and sprinkled with the twinkling celestial lights of millennia and the very soul of Australia can be felt in every grain of blood-red dust.
Due to the heady, jet-setting lifestyle of the motorcycle magazine world, Adventure Rider Magazine lobbed into Alice to join the Red Centre Rallye on its third day. The first two days had gone well with few problems. One rider had hit a
u
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kangaroo and a couple of other riders had opted for a day’s rest as we arrived, so it was a happy crew of 15 or so who headed out into the surprisingly chilly Alice Springs morning. The day was expected to be around 320km and to include what the organisers assured everyone was ‘a bit of everything’.
Due to the previous day running a little longer than expected riders left town early so everyone could be back by the forecast ‘4.00pm or so’.
Ha. Like that was ever going to happen.
Ride hard
Outback Motorcycle Adventures has a string of CRF450s available as hire bikes.’. The entire fleet was hired out for this inaugural running and joined by a couple of KTMs, a DRZ400, and an astonishing 1982 XL500.
Yes. An air-cooled, drum-braked, kick-started, silver-and-red blast from the past, ridden by Mt Gambier mechanic Murray Saunders. As you work your way through this story just remember that bike and rider were in the thick of things and at the front of the field the whole way.
Adventure Rider Magazine started the ride on one of the CRF450s and it was
spectacularly well-suited to the terrain. The bikes, fitted with Safari Tanks, were light, nimble, had plenty of power and were incredibly good fun to ride. On the final day we were lucky enough to get some time on a CRF250 Rallye, and it was a hoot! Especially as the temperature nudged into the high 20s and the rocks got bigger and the hills steeper. We had a quiet chuckle to our sweaty selves when the bikes were being manhandled down rocky descents. The 250 weighed next to nothing and was super comfortable.
But that was later. Things started with a 450 enduro bike, the throttle wide open and the red dirt flying.
Gut feeling
Heading off into the crisp, sunny, desert morning the group made its way out of town and hit the dust. Some of the dust was red, some of it was white, but there was plenty of it. If you’re going to ride in the centre of Australia, you’re going to have to deal with dust and that’s all there is to that. Thanks to the course being supplied as GPX files and formatted for several phone apps, riders could spread out and hoon or cruise as they chose.
Lunch was scheduled for around the middle of the day, and the highlights mentioned at the briefing included the Rock Garden, a cutting of some variety, and ‘a hill with a bit of a washout up the guts’.
Top: Out of town and into the sand.
Right: Mark Delautour and Dee Kiernan from Taupo, New Zealand, made the whole course look easy.
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As the day progressed and the amazing expanse of the desert floated by, the pace settled and everything moved along nicely. Some roosted and rorted and rode at insane speeds, railing dust berms in turns and running the long, red-dust straights pinned in top. The 130kph speed limit of the Northern Territory was clearly much appreciated by the more proficient riders. Adventure Rider Magazine, of course, maintained a high level of dignity and wobbled along following ruts and bouncing off hidden rocks while trying to look everywhere at once so as not to miss any of the incredible setting.
It was a very pleasant morning’s ride no matter how fast a rider chose to travel.
Hang on a sec…
The ‘bit of hill’ turned out to be no real challenge to anyone, and the cutting, while spectacular, didn’t stop anyone either. But the Rock Garden was an absolute howler.
The obstacle was probably only a couple of hundred metres long, but it
accounted for quite a few riders. Mostly it was due to a missed footing when a bike had a wheel perched up on a sharpish boulder, and you can believe us when we say there were plenty of those.
The smaller bikes revved, boofed and clanked their way through with all hands chipping in to help each other, and eventually almost all were through. Jackets, gloves and helmets had been flung into the surrounding scenery and
riders were gasping for breath in the overheated desert air.
Then someone pointed out the 1190 was still to come.
“Goody!” said no-one.
But Damo and Vroomy had ridden the course on big bikes and knew what was needed. With a careful choice of line and a little watchful care the big KTM was walked through the danger area. In fact, it went through with less drama than
Above: Lunch in the Finke River Gorge was a welcome break after a fair run through the sand to get there.
Right: The Rock Garden was only short, but it caught out quite a few very experienced riders.
some of the smaller bikes which had come unstuck with riders on board. It was definitely a character-building section, and plenty was muttered quietly about the two characters who’d included it.
Onward
After the Rock Garden just about anything was going to seem easy, and the trail leading away from the area was a tight, sandy goat track with lots of rocks here and there to keep everyone
Above: Trying for race speed on the Finke Desert Race track whoops.
Below: The tough sections were only short, but they made sure riders were concentrating.
Below right: There’s a perception the terrain around Alice Springs is dead flat. With local knowledge the Rallye covered plenty of ups and downs.
honest. The 450s carved through, riders and bikes both loving the air moving across overheated surfaces, making their way to Boggy Hole, a small body of water which looked like it belonged on a tourist brochure. From there it was a short, sandy blast through the scrub to lunch in the Finke Gorge National Park, served from under the shade of a gazebo and offering lots of cold drinks, snacks, serious tucker for those who wanted it, and, best of all, a chance to recover from what had been a solid morning’s riding.
The day had got away a bit by this stage, and it was obvious the crew wasn’t going to be back in Alice by 4.00pm, but nobody seemed too worried. The first two days had finished late as well, but with such exceptional riding, and the late sunsets in the desert, that suited everyone just fine.
At around 6.00pm a tired bunch parked the bikes at Desert Edge Motorcycles –home of Outback Motorcycle Adventures – cracked open the cooler of cold drinks supplied by the organisers, and sat back to talk their way back through what had been a tough, but very satisfying, day.
Go easy
After a challenging third day Damo and Vroomy had sensibly progammed in a much less demanding course for the fourth day. It was forecast to be warmer as well, so everyone’s eyes lit up when the briefing covered fast, flowing, freshly graded 4WD roads, a pub (which turned out to be an historical site, not an actual working pub), and home-made lasagna for lunch.
The route also included Ruby Gap and riding through a couple of valleys which pretty much set the standard for outback majesty. The views across the low hills and deep, craggy rock walls were incredible.
This day did include a fair swag of deep-sand, and it was interesting to see how well everyone coped. The group was made up of mostly experienced and capable riders, and it showed. Anyone who wasn’t comfortable at the thought of the terrain was offered optional cut-outs and escorted around via roads or easy trails, but very few did. Most seemed glad of the chance to cut their chops in conditions and terrain not too many get to see.
A huge bonus of the fourth day was a stop at Hale River Homestead at Old Ambalindum station. It was an unexpected opportunity for a morning scone or chunk of rocky road in the middle of the outback, and, best of all, it had coffee.
Life was good on the fourth day.
The deep-sand track out to Ruby Gap was a hoot and the home-made lasagna fulfilled the briefing promise – although finding the support vehicle proved an adventure in itself.
Still, it appeared eventually, and once again the cold drinks and food were consumed amid laughter as everyone realised they now wouldn’t run out fuel (refuels from the support truck were part of each lunch stop), and as the desert glowed orange in the fading sunlight a hard-worked crew made its way back to Desert Edge Motorcycles to close out another big, 340km day.
Cruise to the finish
The final day was a mere 180km or so, and a late start allowed weary riders a sleep in. The idea was to run several trails around the town itself and it was expected to be a cruisy sort of day.
Well…that’s the way it seemed at briefing.
Somehow, a few snotty hills found their way into the first section for the morning, and that took some more teamwork to get sorted, and then a deepsand 4WD track out to Emily Gap had everyone working hard. Fatigue had to be considered by this stage and quite a few bikes speared off the track into the scrubby grass when caught by the sand ruts. It was hot too, and that took its toll.
Still, everyone was soon at the gap and wandering up to see the aboriginal art which decorated the towering rock faces. We can’t show you the paintings because there was a sign requesting they not be photographed. They were interesting, though.
From Emily Gap, some riders still foolishly believing this was to be an easy end to a great week, the crew headed through the sand to meet another fast, open road for a session of WFO fun through to meet the Finke Desert Race track.
This was a big highlight of the ride.
Everyone knows about the Finke Desert Race, and here was a chance to ride
Above: Boggy Hole on the Finke River. One of the few permanent waterholes in the outback. It has several unique species of fish.
Below: Clowning at Ewaninga Siding on the Finke track.
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some of the track and just see what the riders have to deal with each June long weekend. The track itself runs alongside the old Ghan railway, and for a great deal of it, a dirt road known as the Finke Service Track.
Some riders where clearly right at home carving through the deep, red bulldust, throttles open and holding impressive speed. Some were shocked at the severity of the terrain on the track and opted to ride the service track instead – which was no picnic either, just quietly.
But all eventually ended up at Ewaninga Rail Siding, a series of concrete dongas for the Ghan Railway service crews many years ago. The siding is now abandoned
Above: If you’re going to ride the outback you have to be prepared for dust.
and has been vanadalised, but is still a great marker of central-Australian history.
Whoops
From Ewaninga Vroomy and Damo promised some ‘real’ red bulldust and whoops. They led everyone back onto the Finke track and for probably 10km or so riders got to flail and flap their way across some serious Finke whoopage, wondering how Toby Price could possibly hold the speeds seen in the Youtube videos.
It was incredible.
A hard-packed road ran alongside for anyone who didn’t want to tackle the whoops, and after a little clowning and some laughs it was time to head for lunch.
Rock stars
There was mention of ‘a couple of rocky descents’, and seeing it was the final day everyone was fairly sure they’d be nothing much.
It was the last day, right? Only 180km and bound to be easy?
was a cruncher, and the descent itself a ball-tearer. Where the Rock Garden had at least been fairly level, the short, boulder-strewn drop meant there was no stopping to catch a breath. Once committed bike and rider had to make the run, and that was all there was too it.
The trail to the top of the descent was a tad gnarly and caught out a few, and that had heart rates high for arrival at what was really a very short drop. But the rocks made sure everyone was focused, and again, teamwork carried the day.
There were quite a few deflated, tired and beat up riders by the time that trail and obstacle were dealt with, that’s for sure.
Next year
Of all the amazing sites this ride had covered, and all the fantastic, challenging terrain which had been conquered, lunch on the final day still marked an incredible high point.
Below: Damo’s 1190 must’ve been a handful in some of the rough going, but the Alice Springs resident seemed to cope well on the big bike. Below right: There’s some big-name landmarks on the ride. u
The rocky track leading to the descent
High on a narrow ridge overlooking the surrounding desert, with Pine Gap and
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the Alice Springs airport in the far distance, riders on the Red Centre Adventure Rallye were treated to what must be a world-class, once-in-lifetime, 360-degree view of Australia’s heart.
Above: The view from lunch on the final day. Below: The last day was easier, naturally. There were still plenty of rocks, though. Below right: Murray Saunders from Mt Gambier had done a rebuild on his 1982 XL500 and thought he’d see how it went. It went awesome!
In the blazing sun, and against a deepblue sky, the wonder of the outback was laid bare in every direction. It was an unforgettable experience, even alongside all the unforgettable sights the ride had already revealed. And it would’ve been a fitting way to close out the ride.
But that wasn’t how it happened.
Oh no. There was lots more riding to be done, and it was mostly a high-speed blast along sandy trails and riverbeds to wind up, beat but elated, back at Outback Motorcycle Adventure headquarters.
The cold drinks flowed, the stories were shared, and that glow that only comes from completing a tough and memorable ride shone from everyone.
The farewell dinner was a very pleasant and enjoyable way to swap a few more stories, relive some high points and share phone numbers and addresses.
The Red Centre Adventure Rallye is scheduled to run again in 2019, and Adventure Rider Magazine can’t recommend it highly enough.
Get there if you can.
Outback Motorcycle Adventures
For more info on the Red Centre Adventure Rallye and other rides Outback Motorcycle Adventures has planned, log on to www.outbackmotorcycleadventures.com.au
Multistrada 1200 Enduro
Now from $24,790
Wherever the adventure takes you, now you can follow it all the way. On any terrain, in any condition, the Ducati Multistrada 1200 Enduro is designed to experience the journey with a new style, new performance and new technology. The 160 hp Ducati Testastretta DVT engine, 30 litre tank, 19” front wheel, spoked wheels and 200 mm wheel travel. Ducati Multistrada 1200 Enduro. We have given it everything, except boundaries.
Benelli
TRK502X
Big-bike looks and comfort in a manageable and affordable package.
Images: Benelli and TF
Italian manufacturer Benelli may well have hit an adventure-riding sweet spot with the TRK502X. The 500cc, liquid-cooled, parallel twin offers the kind of smooth power delivery so many adventure riders look for, and the ergos give the feel of a bike which will be comfortable over long distances without the intimidation and expense of massive horsepower and overwhelming electronics.
Cruising the Adriatic coast of northern Italy, taking in centuries-old castles and winding mountain roads, it was right at home.
First things first
Our thoughts and comments here are the result of riding the TRK502X in Italy, and predominantly on the bitumen. That’s important to remember because we didn’t get to plough it through any red desert dust, submarine through deepwater crossings or tackle any rocky hills. Keeping that in mind, we were very impressed with the bike’s performance in its own backyard, and we’re fairly confident it will do well in The Wide Brown Land, especially for LAMS riders and those with a mind open enough to see what the bike has to offer.
What have we got?
The TRK502X is an off-road version of the TRK502 which has been available in Australia for a while. It’s near enough the same bike, but has spoked wheels, different gearing and an impressive list of extras. To cover off the important points, the motor is a 499.6cc, liquid-cooled, fourvalve-per-cylinder, fuel-injected parallel twin. There’s switchable ABS but no traction control, a six-speed box, chain drive, adjustable rear suspension, upsidedowners at the front and a 17/19-inch wheel combo. Benelli claims a power output of just a smidge over 47 horsepower (35kW) and 46Nm of torque.
That pretty much sums up the mechanicals.
Dimensions include a seat height of
Far left: Italians are the masters of style. Main: We didn’t get to do any real off-roading on the TRK502X. We can’t wait to give it a run in Australian conditions.
Top: Big-bike comfort in a compact package. There’s a lighter, aftermarket exhaust available.
u
850mm, 220mm ground clearance and a 20-litre tank.
Look again
The TRK502X is Italian designed, and a statement of the bike’s build and dimensions doesn’t begin to approach the ‘style’ and passion in the bike’s DNA.
Style is almost an Italian trademark, and that was our first big impression of the TRK502X when we saw it gleaming in the 35-degree heat outside Benelli’s head office in Pesaro, Italy.
Damn. It’s a nice-looking bike.
We’d been through the spec sheet and looked at the videos and pics and thought we had a fair idea of what to expect, so it was quite a surprise when our first look at the real thing caused us to catch our breath and go, “Crikey. Is it really a 500?”
The next instant thought was that the bike couldn’t possibly be sold for the ride-away price of well under $10,000 we thought we’d seen somewhere in the promotional material. It just looked like it’d cost at least half that much again. Plus, as we ticked off some of the appointments – screen, crash bars, bashplate, centrestand, LED lighting and a generally beautiful finish – we
Top: It seemed to us the TRK502X was set up to turn fast. It sure was a lot of fun in the Italian hills. Right: Instrumentation is good, but without menus to work through the dash feels less important. It was clear and easy-to-read, and the lack of complex menus meant more time to enjoy the ride.
just assumed we’d been confused, or maybe mixed up the TRK502X with something else.
But no. The ride-away price is Australia is $9,390.
Before we even started riding we were impressed.
Settle in
Climbing on board the Benelli made us feel instantly at home. The seat is fairly large and a nice shape, the tank not too bulbous and overall the bike didn’t feel huge. A touch of the start button had the little twin purring, and in the time it took to get across the parking lot and hit the 110kph highway pace we’d already settled in and felt good (which wasn’t
how we felt after an hour or so coping with the stress of remembering to stay on the wrong side of the road).
From a comfort point of view the Benelli is a winner. The footpegs have rubber inserts held in place with two bolts for each, and that shouldn’t faze anyone. The non-adjustable screen was really good for our 175cm test rider, and in general we felt the cockpit layout and riding position will suit the majority of Aussies. The ’bars sweep back a fair way, so fitting dirtbike-style aftermarket ’bars might need some fiddling, but we doubt it would be too difficult, and all the switches and controls felt good.
Speaking of controls, there’s a separate button on the left-hand ’bar for ABS on
and off, and we really liked that. There was no menu to hack through, and no special electronic tricks. Just push and hold the button until the ABS light on the dash starts blinking and off you go.
Smooth operator
As far as performance goes we felt Benelli had managed a bit of swifty.
The dry weight of the bike on the spec sheet is 213kg. That’s a fair chunk. Yamaha’s Ténéré 660 is claimed to be 206kg ready to ride, and we rated it as feeling heavy. Plus the Ténéré has a bigger motor.
The Benelli doesn’t feel heavy. Not even a little bit. Whether it’s the lower seat height or just out-and-out clever design, we never once felt challenged by the mass of the bike.
That was very interesting, we thought. Again, keep in mind we rode mostly on the road, and the dirt we did ride was fairly smooth.
Still, the TRK502X doesn’t feel anything like its gazetted weight. We wouldn’t have said it was nimble, but carving around the roads of Tavullia where Valentino Rossi cut his chops as a youngster, the bike was a surge of pleasure as the smooth, easy-tohandle power delivery made us feel life was good.
The stock gearing felt about right, and it allowed freeway speeds with little or no stress, but the motor worked best at surprisingly close to the redline. We’ve probably become accustomed to bigcapacity motors and especially the V-twins which tend to have long legs, but we noticed when we wanted to push the bike for pace the needle hovered around the 7500rpm to 9000rpm mark. Redline
Above: Even when trying for a little pace the Benelli is a relaxing ride. Below: The drive train was our favourite part of the Benelli. It’s a good package, front to back.
Bottom: LED lighting and blinkers.
ULTIMATE COMPANION
was at 10,000rpm. Cruising at lower revs was fuss-free and no problem, but it was in the upper end of the rev range the motor really sparkled.
Matched to a smooth power delivery was a slick gearbox, progressive clutch action and generally seamless final drive.
Tight lines
In general the handling of the Benelli felt good. As a sightseeing bike it was better than good. It was so smooth and comfortable, and, given where we were riding, it couldn’t have been a whole lot better.
It did seem as though turning was a tad sharper than we expected. At first we thought the 19-inch front wheel may have been responsible, but the more we rode the less we felt that was the case. We suspect the geometry is such that turning is quick. When the bike was pushed the trait was highlighted and we had a couple of alarming moments. It’s not a situation which will need correcting, because owners will quickly become used to the feel, but we’ll be interested to see how that front end reacts in some Aussie red dust and shitty ruts.
Allied to the geometry is the suspension, and we just didn’t get a chance to punch the bike through rough ground to see how it performed. On the road it was fine. We’ll have to wait for an Aussie ride to say any more.
Braking was good, although the rear lacked a little feel compared to the highpriced bikes of today. The front was really good, as would be expected with a pair of 320mm discs and twin-piston callipers, and the ABS is switchable. We’re pretty sure the Italian ABS could be switched off on the rear only, but the Aussie importers assured us the Australian bikes will be switchable for both ends. As far
The Benelli company
Above: The engine and pipe protection is standard. We didn’t have the chance to give it a workout. That’s for an Aussie ride.
Below left: The button just inside the switchblock is to turn off the ABS.
Below: Nice and simple.
as we could tell the ABS worked well and allowed aggressive braking. Of course, we’ll again have to wait for a ride here at home to really know what’s going on.
Summing up
Our overwhelming impression of the Benelli TRK502X is that it’s a sweetheart.
Benelli is a well-established motorcycle marque with a long history.
The company kicked off in 1911 in Pesaro, Italy, when Teresa Benelli invested all the family’s assets into the fledgling business hoping to establish a workplace for her six sons.
Initially a bicycle and motorcycle repair business called Benelli Garage which could also manufacture parts, the sons did well. Two studied engineering and one, Antonio, went on to take several Italian road-race championships on a Benelli 175.
Destruction of the factory during the Second World War forced Benelli out of production until 1949, and in 1950 the company locked up the 250cc world championship. Through the ’50s and ’60s the company continued to evolve and showed a flair for clever design.
In 1973, struggling like all European manufacturers with competition from the Japanese, Benelli, along with Moto Guzzi, was acquired by an Argentinian industrialist and in the late-1980s became ‘Guzzi Benelli SpA’.
In 1995 Benelli once again became a separate entity and is now owned by motor group Qianjing in southeast China.
It’s comfortable, lively enough to be good fun without being intimidating, and it doesn’t hurt that it’s a good-looking bit of gear as well.
The aspect of the Benelli which had us thinking hardest was the capacity. For an Australian adventure rider, 500cc is almost a tiddler, and that’s a little curious. It seemed to us the motor provided plenty of everything for all we would ask the bike to do. It’s by no means a powerhouse, and those who crave 100 horsepower or more will turn their
noses up. But those not fixated on sheer snort will find a bike that’s a genuine pleasure to ride. Without the intimidation of a huge power output a rider is free to enjoy the ride itself. Tyres and chains last a whole lot longer and in general maintenance is less critical. It’s a comfortable, fun, very enjoyable bike and we can’t wait to see how it copes in our own backyard.
Above: Rubber inserts in the ’pegs are secured with bolts from underneath. Check out the length of that brake-pedal tip.
Left: The standard rack accepts a Givi top box, and Givi luggage and racks will be available soon, probably by the time you read this.
Below: Crash bars are stock, and we were a bit puzzled at why these loops stuck out so far. They’re for mounting lights.
Benelli TRK502X
B IK e spe C s
Web: benelli.com.au.
Recommended retail $9,390 ride away.
Engine: In-line, two-cylinder, liquid-cooled, four valves per cylinder, double-overhead-camshaft four-stroke
Maximum torque: 45Nm @ 5000rpm
Clutch: Wet
Start: Electric
Displacement: 499.6cc
Bore x Stroke: 69mm x 66.8mm
Compression ratio: 11.5:1
Rated output: 35kW @ 8500rpm
Lubrication: Wet sump
Fuel supply: EFI with 37mm throttle body
Exhaust system: With catalytic converter and oxygen sensors
Certification: Euro 4
Gearbox: Six-speed
Final drive: Chain
Ignition: Delphi MT05
Spark plug: NGK CR8E
Frame: Trestle in steel tubes
Front suspension: Upside-down forks ø 50mm
Front suspension stroke: 135mm
Rear suspension: Rear swingarm with central shock absorber, springpreload adjustable, hydraulic rebound and compression adjustable
Rear shock-absorber stroke: 45mm
Front brake: Twin semi-floating 320mm discs with four-piston callipers and ABS
Front rim type: Aluminium rim, spoked. 19 inch x 3.0 inch
Front tyre: 110/80 – R19
Rear brake: Single 260mm disc with single-piston calliper and ABS
Rear rim type: Aluminium rim, spoked. 17 inch x MT4.5 inch
Rear tyre: 150/70 – R 17
Seat Height: 850mm
Wheelbase: 1505mm
Fuel capacity: 20 litres
Dry weight: 213kg
Carese II | Art. 6450
Gore-Tex® jacket
Torno II | Art. 6460
Gore-Tex® pants
Adventure Stars ride with the
AMA Clearance Warehouse of Yatala in Queensland, Alpinestars and CTi knee braces supported a ride where some lucky adventure riders got to mix it up with some very respected motorcycling heroes.
There’s not a whole lot of celebrity adulation in adventure riding. It’s a pursuit for hardbitten, self-made men and women who back themselves against the odds. There’s no TV broadcasts and it’s not easy to follow a ride online. To misquote the movie catchphrase, “Underneath your bike in the desert, no-one can hear you scream”. But there are some big names riding adventure, and meeting three at once will still make a riders’ knees as weak as 30km of Finke whoops.
Big names
The ride came about after a few industry kingpins got together and thought it’d be nice if they could treat their customers to a ride, and at the same time, let them get up close and personal with a few really big names. On an August weekend at the AMA Clearance Warehouse in Yatala, Toby Price, Stephen Gall and Daryl Beattie spent a little time wandering through the crowd of 40 adoring adventure riders, sharing stories and looking forward to a few hours carving through the south-east Queensland sight-seeing highlights.
Duck Creek
After a briefing and stargazing the whole show, including sweeps Craig Bailes, Mick Jaeger and a recovery vehicle, set off over Tambourine Mountain to make its way through Canungra to O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat. At that subtropical haven everyone regrouped and was given a heads-up about the next section, Duck Creek Road.
Duck Creek Road was the start of the dirt, and given Adventure Rider Magazine’s experience looking for that same location with Gally some years ago, it could
Images: Karlos Neale
Toby Price
Much-admired for his forthright attitude, sense of fun and, of course, as a Dakar winner, Price is enjoying a stellar career in rallye racing for Red Bull and KTM. His attempts to do the ‘Iron Man Double’ – where he competes on both a bike and in a ute at Finke each year –have made him an even more legendary figure…if that’s possible.
Price is well-known for giving generously of his time to his legions of fans around the world.
Daryl Beattie
Probably best-known for his 500cc Grand Prix career where he shared garages with Wayne Gardner and Mick Doohan at different times, and finished runner-up in the world championship with Suzuki in 1995, Beattie now runs a successful adventure-tour company and continues as a television presenter. His tours take riders through adventure heartland like The Simpson, Cape York and the Canning Stock Route.
Stephen Gall
Older Australians are quick to associate Gall with being four times winner of the Mr Motocross title when Australian motocross was in its heyday in the late-1970s and early ’80s. ‘Gally’ also took a stack of Australian motorcycling championships in different disciplines and was a handy road racer and sprint-car driver as well. He’s long been Australia’s leading motorcycle trainer and a strong spokesman for protective gear in motorcycling, especially knee braces.
Most recently Stephen was involved in Mad Max Fury Road as a stunt rider and co-ordinator. u
possibly be the Bermuda Triangle of the adventure-bike world.
There were no mysteries on this occasion, though. A couple of flat tyres, one of them on Gally’s Ténéré, were easy to explain, and even the cornerman system seemed to work well…which is kind of mysterious in a way, really. We’ve never seen the cornerman system run without some kind of problem.
During the day Toby Price told the eager riders what it was like to do Dakar and Finke, and Gally and Daryl
chatted and shared stories, and that held everyone enraptured.
Moving on
From Duck Creek Road riders rejoined the bitumen at Kerry then made their way along a series of gazetted roads that looked like they cut through people’s properties. The opening and closing of gates and dirt farm roads that get so little use made for an adventure in itself, and of course, having Toby Price on a 1290, Daryl
on an Africa Twin and Mr Motocross on a Ténéré circulating through the field lent a high level of glamour to the whole occasion.
Air time
Alpinestars gave the assembled riders a detailed look at its new Tech-Air range – featured in issue #29 – and Gally was able to educate listeners to the advantages of the CTi braces, which both he and Toby Price wear.
So all in all, it was a great day out for a stack of riders, good promotion for some great safety products, and a cracker way to spend a Saturday.
Beattie
Beattie
BigLap The
Meet Mitch. He’s just knocked over a dream ride.
My name is Mitch van der Merwe. I’m 19, and instead of going to university this year like the vast majority of my peers, I successfully circumnavigated mainland Australia on a 2011 BMW F650GS.
Northbound
It was a solo ride and I covered 22,459km over 82 days, with daily distances varying anywhere from 50km to 600km. My only ‘plan’ was to stick to the coast as best I could.
From Canberra I made my way across to, and up, the east coast.
I was excited to head north, as until then I’d barely seen anything beyond Newcastle. Despite the sense of urgency to reach the top I made sure to visit attractions like the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour, the Big Shrimp in Ballina, and of course, Byron Bay.
Queensland provided some of the most engaging adventures I experienced, from the stunning beaches between Maroochydore and Elliott Heads, Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays, through to the intriguing history of Paronella Park near Innisfail. With the air thick with the sweet smell of sugarcane, I explored
Top: The sheer mass of the bike and its luggage made for an interesting run to The Tip.
Left: The ride covered 22,459km over 82 days, with daily distances varying anywhere from 50km to 600km. u
Cairns, the Gillies Range (by far the most exhilarating, curvy roads), Lake Tinaroo, the Atherton Tablelands and Port Douglas before preparing for Cape York.
Challenging
Myself and the riders I met were sceptical, but hopeful, that the F650GS would carry me to the top without causing too much grief. I made sure to fit a quality set of tyres before setting off, but the sheer mass of the bike and its luggage made for an interesting run to The Tip. Until this trip, I’d never touched a dirt road on two wheels before, and to say I found it incredibly challenging is an understatement. Within hours of leaving the asphalt I discovered the unforgiving brutality of soft sand as the Peninsula Developmental Road turned to bulldust, large amounts of which found its way into every orifice of my body after I hit the deck.
I was convinced I needed to turn back. The idea of expending all of my energy purely trying to stay upright –not to mention the wild road trains and the threat of crocodiles – was daunting. Still, I pushed on.
Inspired
most of his peers went to university,
The next few days included a roadside oil change in Weipa, posing for photos on the Old Telegraph Track and adoption by a convoy of grey nomads who helped me to my feet after another crash near the Jardine Ferry.
But I made it to Bamaga, Seisia and of course Pajinka (The Tip).
Throughout the expedition I met dozens of incredible and inspiring people, one of whom was a man named Karl Pirchmoser. Karl’s a seasoned long-distance adventure rider and writer who was about to tackle a non-stop, north-to-south, cross-continental trip on his Super Ténéré. I was inspired to continue the expedition.
Cracked bum
I returned to Cairns, and after some maintenance headed west.
Somewhere between Georgetown, Croydon and Normanton I missed a fuel stop which resulted in my first
Above: While
Mitch packed his gear and discovered the real world. Left: A roadside oil change in Weipa.
fuel scare. The last 34km to the Burke And Wills Roadhouse were covered purely on fumes.
I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the abandoned WWII clay airstrips on the Stuart Highway up to Darwin. It was liberating to be able to speed through the red dust into the setting sun, just as others had done all those years ago. Unfortunately, the runway came to an end before my trusty BMW could fly.
Bewitched by the desolate beauty of
Western Australia’s Kimberley region, I continued to follow the sun. After navigating bushfires, eagles and dingoes I found myself in Derby. The stretch between Broome and Port Headland was hands down the most arduous and boring of the ride, though there was very little visual stimulation until reaching Exmouth and the Cape Range National Park. Coral Bay, Carnarvon, and Denham all exhibited beauty and charm, but couldn’t compete with Rottnest Island
Left: The BMW had ample power, regardless of how much weight it was lugging.
Below: Pleasantly surprised by the tranquillity of Lakes Entrance and the surrounding region.
and the southwest coastline.
Visiting friends in Perth and the beautiful Margaret River region allowed me to service the bike and prepare for the long ride home, not to mention give my arse a break after 60 or so days on the road.
Discovery
The undulating Ninety Mile Straight and the dreary Nullarbor were far from being as burdensome as had been described. Instead, I was enchanted by the vast, desolate beauty. It reminded me of my days in outback Queensland and the Northern Territory.
As I drew closer to the Spencer Gulf, South Australia surprised me with exquisite beauty in shallow teal and turquoise waters, only to be rivaled by the beaches surrounding Augusta, Albany, and Esperance, which were still fresh on the camera roll.
After racing freight trains with the Flinders Ranges on my left and the setting sun on my right I discovered the lush beauty of the Barossa Valley.
Blow hard
My plans to tackle the Great Ocean Road were interrupted by almost hurricane-force winds and damaging storms, but determination and a bucket-list obligation resulted in a wet, and surprisingly dangerous, run across the Glenelg Highway and down
to Apollo Bay. I’d never ridden in such overpowering winds, but with dusk looming, and with the crotch of my rain suit failing to keep the water out, there was a sense of desperation. Much to my delight, the bulb of my headlight decided to give up the fight, resulting in an incredibly slow, miserable, dark, and butt-clenching roll down the windy mountain pass to my destination.
Capital
After exploring the Great Ocean Road and surrounding beaches I ate my way through Melbourne, making sure to soak up the architecture, before heading for Sale.
I was pleasantly surprised by the tranquillity of Lakes Entrance and the surrounding region, though at that point I was most excited to reach Eden and the familiar southeast coast.
Just as promptly as it started, my expedition was over, and I found myself navigating roadworks in Canberra once again.
Right: Having never touched a dirt road on two wheels before, to say this ride was incredibly challenging is an understatement.
Below: Heading west after maintenance in Cairns.
Value
I took well over 2000 photos, kept a detailed journal and took advantage of every moment under the stars. I watched every sunrise, every sunset, and enjoyed every kilometre. The bike performed flawlessly. It started every morning, floated across the vast desert highways without an issue, and I didn’t even suffer a flat tyre. Overtaking road trains and speeding away from dangerous situations in city traffic were no problem and I always had ample power, regardless of how much weight I was lugging.
The total cost of fuel, food, accommodation, bike servicing and joy flights over the Whitsundays came to roughly $8,000, but the memories and experiences are priceless.
Friction modifiers can cause problems in motorcycle clutches and gearboxes. Consult your owners’ manual and use the oil recommended by the manufacturer.
Pretty much everyone knows not to use automotive engine oils in their bike, and most would know it’s because auto oils use friction modifiers. But why? Don’t we want to reduce friction in our engines? Yes we do. The difference between auto and bike engines is not where friction modifiers create the problem. It’s the clutch that suffers.
friction modifiers Oils: W
hat we’re trying to tackle here is the reasons for not using friction modifiers in four-stroke motorcycle engines. We’re not going to try and explain the chemistry of friction modifiers. If you’re thirsty for that kind of knowledge, see the propeller-head panel.
Friction modifiers in oils, as the name suggests, are additives which increase an oil’s effectiveness.
In a car, engine and gearbox oils are separate, so the oil in the sump of the engine can be totally different from the oil in the gearbox. In most modern, four-stroke motorcycles, the engine
Left: Even good-quality oils designed for automotive use are usually not suitable for bikes. They nearly all contain friction modifiers.
and gearbox share the same oil from the same sump. Whatever oil is circulating through the engine is also circulating through the gearbox, and, most importantly, the clutch.
Get that in your brain. It’s important.
Plating up
Here’s a quick, not-very-exact conceptual explanation of a motorcycle clutch.
A series of fibre and steel plates are stacked in the bike’s driveline in such a way that when we pull in the clutch lever the plates are forced apart. There’s no contact between them and they spin away happily like the fan of a windmill in a strong breeze. When we release the clutch lever, springs force the plates together and friction makes them stick to each other and transfer the power or drive back into the motor-gearbox-chain/shaft-rear wheel system.
You release the clutch lever, the engine is reconnected to the rear wheel and you’re driven forward.
Simple.
So a clutch relies on friction to work. Why, then, would we bathe it in oil?
We don’t always.
Wet’n’dry
Motorcycle clutches fall into two basic categories: wet and dry.
Right: For the sake of avoiding a problem, it’s best to assume all oils labelled as suitable for modern motor vehicles contain friction modifiers. Using an oil with friction modifiers can create problems in bikes.
teCh
There are very few dry clutches around these days. They’re noisy, they wear fast, and they run hot. The most common place to see a dry clutch is in a highperformance road-race bike. Those guys don’t care about wear or noise. They just want maximum performance, and a dry clutch, for various reasons, delivers.
In the day-to-day world of bike ownership, pretty much all modern bikes sitting on dealer floors run a wet clutch.
That means the clutch plates, steel and fibre, are bathed in oil, and as we’ve already learned, that’s the same oil which is circulating through the engine and gearbox.
The main reason for the oil bathing the clutch plates is for heat transfer – it helps keep the temperature of the plates within acceptable tolerances. That in turn delivers huge increases in durability and life expectancy, and because we’re all dreadfully worried about the environment, it makes the clutch operation much quieter.
Oil also helps for smoother engagement. It’s a nicer, more progressive feel releasing the clutch lever when the plates have a coating of a viscous liquid.
There’s the rub
The apparent imbalance should be obvious.
On the one hand the clutch relies on friction to work, and on the other, the whole aim of oil is to reduce friction. Covering the clutch in oil seems a step forward and a step back at the same time.
That’s true, but when our chums in the chemistry labs get involved, oils ain’t oils.
Keeping things simple, the oils run in motorcycle engines and gearboxes – and therefore clutches – are chosen with properties that allow them to do their lubrication function as the engineers demand, provide the cooling properties
Top right: A typical wet clutch is housed inside the lower case of a bike engine.
Above insert: This seal on an oil-bottle’s label almost guarantees it contains friction modifiers.
Diagram right: An exploded view of a clutch. A series of fibre and steel plates stacked in the bike’s driveline.
needed for the clutch, yet still allowing sufficient friction for the clutch to do its work.
Auto oils with friction modifiers, designed to serve the single function of lubricating to the highest possible degree, are so damn ‘slippery’ a motorcycle clutch bathed in that formula of lubricant wouldn’t be able to find the friction it needed to transfer power. Friction modifiers lube to such a high degree that, whether the plates are in contact or not they’ll still do the windmill thing.
Above: Dry clutches aren’t common outside high-level competition bikes. They’re loud, get very hot, and look horn. You wouldn’t want to get one of your thongs caught in there, eh?
If cars shared engine/clutch/gearbox oil the same way, they’d have the same problem, but they don’t. So they can afford to have different lubes with different properties in separate mechanical systems.
Do as you’re told
Aside from the basic operation of the motorcycle clutch there’s also the possibility friction modifiers might cause damage to the components of a motorcycle gearbox, usually pitting and degradation of metal parts, but that’s far too broad a set of possibilities to explore here.
How can you tell if an oil contains friction modifiers?
A customer staring at a rack of oil bottles really can’t. If you see any
containers with an API seal declaring ‘Energy Conserving’ or ‘Energy Conserving II’, try and not use it. It’s an American designation, and it will mean the product almost certainly contains friction modifiers. Otherwise, for the sake of avoiding a problem, it’s best to assume all oils labelled as suitable for modern cars, trucks and non-specific machinery contain friction modifiers and won’t be ideal for a bike.
As always, use the oils recommended in the owners’ manual, or at the very least try for an oil labelled as specific for motorcycle use. The people who designed and built the bike know best. If you do have to run an auto-specced oil due to a problem, drain and replace it with the correct, manufacturer-recommended lubricant as soon as possible.
For the propeller-heads
The Society Of Automotive Engineers (SAE) did a beaut paper called The Effect Of Engine Oil Additives On Motorcycle Clutch Systems. It’s six pages of poindexters let loose in a wild orgy of insane precision, experiment and measurement.
For those who are interested, here’s a brief excerpt…
‘The energy conserving by engine oils has been required from the viewpoint of the environmental issue. The fuel efficiency of passenger car engine oils has been improved by adding friction modifiers. However, engine oils containing friction modifiers can not be applied to 4-stroke motorcycles. Because motorcycles normally have a wet clutch system inside the crankcase and such engine oils can decrease the clutch capacity.1) ~ 2) Therefore, it is important for motorcycle engines to investigate additives, which can increase friction coefficient on paperbased friction materials. In this study, friction coefficients of engine oils formulated with different additives such as dispersants and detergents were evaluated with a reciprocating friction tester. Several types of polybutenyl succinimides, sulfonates, phenates and salicylates were used as dispersants and detergents. As a result, it was found that the polybutenyl succinimide borate shows a higher friction coefficient than the other succinimide. In addition, several detergents, which increase a friction coefficient, were found.’
If you’re now, so, like, excited, you can read the whole thing online at sae.org.
Go for it, you madman, you.
Four
Rivers
Every year, generally around April, Peter Haydon and a group of riding mates choose an off-road destination. They leave the stresses of work and life behind and set out to see some this vast country.
Words and images: Peter Haydon
Thud! A ballistic pillow launched across the dark motel room and hit my face with pinpoint precision. It quickly ended my sleep and reminded me I had a roommate. I squinted at the glowing red digits of the bedside clock and ‘5:33’ stared back.
Sharing a room on rides has its up and downs, particularly if one of you suffers from RTS (Reverberating Throat Syndrome) – that noisy sleep condition that results in a sound often compared to a chainsaw. Gaz stood in silence jiggling his teabag. I was sure he was wondering if halving the cost of a night’s accommodation was worth halving a night’s sleep.
The crew
South-western NSW was the setting for 2018, our sixth ride. In previous years we’d covered the Corner country, Flinders and Finke, the upper Darling, Wombeyan and the high country. For 2018 it was unfinished business to tick off the lower Darling River area and in doing so, visit four major NSW rivers and the mystical lunar landscape of the Mungo National Park.
Timmee, one of our regular riders, plotted the ride. Seeing he was based in
Hay, NSW, that town was to be our start and finish, and the rest of us trailered bikes from as far as Trangie, Parkes, Condobolin and Wagga.
The group consisted of Timmee’s 1150GSA, Scooter’s 1200GSA, Gaz’s F800GS, Col’s trusty(ish) Tengai 650, Geevsie’s WR450 and my own Tiger 800XC. We were also fortunate to have another two riding mates, Ron and Lid, tag along with a fully stocked Esky in a LandCruiser towing a bike trailer.
Good start
We couldn’t have asked for better weather. The four-day forecast predicted sunny
days and temperatures in the mid-20s. Anticipation was high, so it wasn’t long before we twisted the throttles out of Hay and five dusty bike clouds scattered off into the distance on the fast, compactedclay surface of our first dirt road.
As the trees of the river country disappeared we soon began to appreciate the vast remoteness of the Hay Plain. People often ask why anyone would want to go into this type of terrain as there’s nothing to see. Some things are just
Main: Regrouping at Darnick.
Below: Six mates and four rivers over four days. u
too hard to explain, but ‘nothing to see’ is exactly what we wanted. We wanted to experience that feeling of freedom with a hint of loneliness…of being a mere speck in a vast, open landscape.
But enough of that deep-soul stuff. We were soon at the remote locality of Corrong and the crossing of our first river, the Lachlan. It was a bit sentimental as it’s the river most members of the group swam in as kids growing up in Condobolin.
A tap of the camera shutter button and a toot of the horn for the little farm boy standing with his mum and dad as they set up for a day’s cattle work in the nearby yards and we were soon dustclouding again.
Six of the best
After another compact run, and what would be the first of many wildlife near misses, we turned out on to the Balranald/Ivanhoe road to finish the remaining 80km into Ivanhoe for our first fuel stop, lunch, and to meet up with our sixth rider, ‘Geevsie’.
We arrived at the small, sleepy town located on the Sydney-to-Broken Hill railway line to top up the tanks and grab a bite from the local café. For the travelling adventure rider, Ivanhoe can provide basic but welcome services like fuel, a caravan park, pub, café and a medical facility.
As we chomped down on greasy burgers our ears pricked up at the unmistakable braap of a 450 resonating in the distance, and soon after Geevsie rolled in on his – now – adventurespecced WR.
Geevsie had always been keen to do one of our annual rides, so after coming off a third-place-outright finish in the recent gruelling Condo 750 Rally he thought he’d take the 450 on an outback trip as well. He and his brother-in-law,
Todd, of Honda’s Smith Bros Racing, knocked up a rear rack for his saddlebags and 13-litre Rotopax, transforming the WR from a race weapon to a capable longdistance adventurer. The start to his day had been a little more challenging and included the railway line service track out of Condobolin to Euabalong West, Roto, then on to Ivanhoe.
Tight and wired
The first half of the afternoon was spent along the Ivanhoe to Menindee road via the old train-station locality of Darnick.
The road surface soon became a lot looser, and for the most part sandy, with some really hard-packed sections thrown in which kept the suspension busy. There were some more wide-eyed near misses with an abundance of wild goats and ’roos before we eventually rolled into Menindee for our next fuel stop and the crossing of our second river: the once-mighty Darling. I say ‘oncemighty’ because for many years there have been allegations of water mismanagement and upstream water plundering. In some places the river has been reduced to a mere trickle, while in others it’s completely dry.
The failure of the river and lakes system was quite evident rolling into the outskirts of Menindee itself. There were paddocks of dead orchards, vineyards, large packing sheds and
coolroom storage facilities now closed and redundant.
It was at this point Col’s old faithful 1989 Tengai blew a large hole in the side of its muffler and separated from the header pipe.
When it comes to bikes, Col is a simple man with simple needs. He has a lot of faith in this old girl and it’s seen many of our trips in the past. So with a twist of fence wire and a dash of she’ll-be-right he had the muffler somewhat secured and the Tengai back on the road – albeit a fair bit louder than before the failure.
Top: ‘Nothing to see’ was exactly what the riders wanted.
Above: Nothing some wire won’t fix. Below: Couldn’t have asked for better weather.
With fuel on board the group set out through the Kinchega National Park on the western side of the Darling, but not before Col tightened the remaining one-millimetre gap on the Tengai’s stripped gearshift lever so he could restore some positive feeling to his gear changes.
Getting wood
The Pooncarie Road through Kinchega National Park was a sandy one from the get go, but with a bit of speed and some rearward weight transfer we skimmed along quite well.
The signposting to Pooncarie was a little scarce and we made an unplanned detour into the Kinchega Woolshed. Built in 1875, it’s certainly well worth a visit. I’d been in there some nine years earlier, but unfortunately, time and the remaining daylight were against us and we couldn’t stop there on this trip. After some head scratching and a review of the map we got ourselves back on to the sandy, narrow, main road which edged
the Cawndilla Lake, part of the Menindee Lakes system. We found it lined with an abundance of birdlife and other animals who all rely on this drying water source.
With the afternoon light fading and 580km under our belts we arrived at our first night’s camp: the circa 1870 Bindara Station on the banks of the Darling River. Barb was our very accommodating host and has created a welcoming outback farm stay experience. There’s a range of meal options and accommodation from old Jillaroo cabins to a grass camping area with a camp kitchen and riverside campsites. We opted for the riverside camping spots dotted along the property and, for a mere $10 each, had our own firepit with hotplate, flushing toilet and hot shower. We tried the extra-nice, innocent ‘it’sbeen-a-bloody-long-day-and-we’re-buggered’ biker look and were provided with a load of wood for the campfire.
Surprisingly Bindara Station also had 3G phone reception which gave us a welcome chance to check in with our loved ones and of course update Facetube.
As we settled around the campfire with cold beers in hand, reflecting back on our day’s riding, we marvelled at a full moon creeping its way up into a mauve sky above an emerald-green river while the remaining orange glow of sunset disappeared.
You won’t find that at any Aldi.
Reflection
Sharing a motel room with fellow riders is one thing, camping in close quarters with seven others always proves even more interesting.
No sooner had the raspy note of a single chainsaw begun than the
Top left: Sights like these can’t be found at any Aldi. Above: Col tightened the remaining one-millimetre gap on the Tengai’s stripped gearshift lever so he could restore some positive feeling to his gear changes.
Below left: From left: Rob ‘Lid’ Nagle, David ‘Geevsie’ Geeves, Author Peter Haydon, Craig ‘Scooter’ Thornton, Ron Baroni, Colin ‘Stibby’ Stibbard and Tim ‘Timmee’ Kennedy. The pic was shot by Gary ‘Gaz’ Honeysette. Below: Gary ‘Gaz’ Honeysette, who the author claims was unable to use the self-timer on his camera.
infectious RTS slowly spread through the rest of the camp. After hours of endless, sleepless torture (some called it Karma), we were crawling from our swags to witness our first outback sunrise for the trip. With the billy boiling and a rider’s staple breakfast of bacon, eggs and spaghetti cooking away, we soon had our bellies filled for a shorter, 200km day to Mungo National Park. But not before we took the time to look at the property cemetery dating back to the late 1800s. It was a stark reminder of just how tough times were for the early pioneers of this harsh country and the sacrifices made trying to conquer it.
Good to see
We continued along the very dry and sandy Pooncarie River Road.
Either side of the road was as bare as bones with not a blade of grass to be seen, yet every now and then we had to jump on the anchors and give way to healthy, fat-looking stock and wildlife. It was along this section we helped a kangaroo who had managed to lodge itself upside-down between
the rails of a cattle grid. A swift and successful rescue mission ensued and it was free to live another day. It was a much better outcome than becoming a bonnet ornament for a LandCruiser. We soon rolled into the little riverside town of Pooncarie where we refuelled and stopped for smoko. With social media shrinking our world these days, some pre-trip research had us licking our lips at the Old Wharf Café as we enjoyed warm scones with whipped cream and jam swilled down with hot coffee and pots of tea. The modern-looking café is set on a grassed garden area overlooking what was the site of the old paddle-steamer port for this area back in the day.
Pooncarie also offers travellers another café with fuel, coin-operated hot showers in the park and a pub. It’s great to see remote communities having a go and providing such services and amenities, and as a group we felt it important to take the time to stop and support these businesses whenever possible.
With bellies and tanks full we headed to our second-night camp at Mungo National Park.
Top: The Murray River in the Kulkyne National Park. Top right: After a third-place-outright finish in the recent gruelling Condo 750 Rally, a rear rack for saddlebags and 13-litre Rotopax transformed the WR from a race weapon to a capable long-distance adventurer. Below left: A 200km day ended up at Mungo National Park.
Site visit
Access was via a track called Top Hut Road. It was deep, rutted and sandy, and along with the local wildlife it had us on our toes all the way.
We regrouped at the park entrance and it started to feel like forever as we waited for Gaz, running sweep for this section. Finally we realised that perhaps our luck had run out and he’d had an off. Col set out back down the road to look for him and with a sigh of relief found he’d pinched a front tube on his Beemer. It’s moments like these that make you realise we sometimes take the remoteness of our rides for granted. There’s the added realisation that if something bad had happened, we’d have been in real trouble. Carrying a PLB is a must, and it’s on the top of the shopping list for the next ride.
We paid our camping and entrance fees of $16.50 at the National Park Information Centre then set up camp just down the road at the Main Camp Ground, located just a few kilometres from Mungo Resort on the Arumpo Road. It’s a large, well-laidout camp area with long-drop loos, a gas barbeque shelter, fire pits and rainwater tanks. Hot showers are also available for campers back at the info centre. A word of warning though: a ground sheet is advisable. The dirt in this camp was heavily covered in clover burr and it
loved to stick to anything and everything.
There was no risk of RTS affecting anyone on this night. The boys took advantage of the large camping area and had themselves well scattered, agreeing to be in close quarters only for fire, beers and food.
For those not familiar with Lake Mungo, it’s a dry lake located in the southwest of New South Wales. The lake is the central feature of Mungo National Park and is one of 17 lakes in the World Heritage-listed Willandra Lakes region. Many important archaeological findings have been made at the lake, most significantly the discovery of the 40,000-year-old remains of Mungo Man, the oldest human remains found in Australia, and Mungo Woman, the oldest ritually cremated human remains in the world.
With the support-vehicle esky stocked we spent the afternoon riding the 80km Lake Mungo tourist loop and taking in a number of points of interest. From old shearing sheds, homestead ruins, the vast, open plains of the dry lakebed to the eroded Walls Of China and the magical sand dunes, it was fantastic.
The day finished on top of the huge white sand hills, something that was a little unexpected. They provided amazing 360-degree sunset views of the ancient and remote area, and it was hard to imagine it was once a lush, thriving lake system with an abundance of wildlife supporting human activity.
If one takes the time to consider the history and significance of the area, it truly is a special place to visit.
Pit stop
The third day began with another stunning sunrise and we were soon packed and riding an alternate route north back to Pooncarie through the ancient lakebeds of Leaghur and Garnpung. It was along there Geevsie had a crikey moment and spotted a strange, coloured creature in the distance. With phone in one hand and throttle in other he took off full-noise on the WR to film the creature and gain tangible proof he wasn’t as raving mad as we all thought.
Anyone who can ride as quick as he does while reading a road book and still manage a podium in a major rally must have some sort of brain instability about them right?
When we regrouped he proudly show us the footage of his wildlife discovery: a rare white kangaroo! u
Once we hit the Pooncarie/Ivanhoe road it soon became evident it hadn’t seen any road maintenance for years. It quickly deteriorated into long, deep sand sections that had us shaking and wobbling about as we attempted to motor through at speed. With the possibility of 50km of this stuff, fun wasn’t the ‘F’ word floating through my brain. But it was in sections like this the smaller bikes were in their element, and they made light work of it. As the $500 Tengai warrior floated past it also proved you didn’t need to spend a fortune on big, flash adventure bikes to explore this great country.
As quick as the sand had hit us the road changed yet again and relief finally came in the form of a hard-packed surface that had the big boys twisting the throttles into Pooncarie for fuel and coffee at the Port Pit Stop Café.
Pub grub
From Pooncarie we crossed back over the Darling and continued along the Western River Road.
Although we were treated to more sand sections, the road overall was wide with a mix of surfaces and provided an enjoyable run into Wentworth on the Victoria/ NSW border to sight our third river, the mighty Murray, at the junction of the two waterways. It was here the Darling River –or what was left of it – ended and flowed into the Murray.
A pie from the local bakery had us fuelled to tackle the 80km blacktop transport section through Mildura before turning on to Kulkyne Way and into the Murray Kulkyne National Park, which gave up a fun, meandering track beside the river. We soon popped out the other side on to the Hattah/Robinvale Road.
The 480km day finished at the Euston caravan park, on the banks of the Murray, with a pub next door that provided great meals in a friendly atmosphere.
Same time next year
The finish was planned in Hay around noon to allow everyone time to travel back to their respective homes, so the last day began early, but not before jumpstarting the dead battery on the Tengai.
Turning off the Sturt Highway on to Euston Prungle Road we found ourselves on some fast dirt through open farmlands that eventually led us back to the Sturt Highway just out of Balranald. When nature called Col left the Tengai idling due to the flat battery, and that created another problem when the poor old girl overheated.
What was it I was saying about buying big, flash adventure bikes?
Anyhow, after a short break and a top up of water the Tengai roared into life and we were again on our way via the Homebush Hotel – circa 1878 – then, as we rode through Oxley, we again crossed the Lachlan River. It was around there the Lachlan, which began its life over 800km away in the foothills of the Great Dividing
Range above Goulburn, and after serving its duties to many townships and farms along the way, began to fade out into open marshlands.
We completed the remaining 80km of blacktop into Hay, situated on the fourth and last river, the Murrumbidgee. We loaded our bikes and regrouped at a local café to reflect on another fantastic trip through some incredible country with great people. But, more importantly, it had been a safe one.
The lunch meeting was then adjourned, rescheduled for April 2019.
Above: The boys took advantage of the large camping area at Mungo and had themselves well scattered. Below left: A swift and successful rescue mission on a kangaroo lodged upside-down between the rails of a cattle grid.
Below: Video proof The Great White ’Roo is roaming the Aussie outback.
Emergency Release System
Quick Release Chin Strap
Dynamic Flow-through Ventilation
KPA
3
3 Shells
Metal Security Plate
Maschine Alpine Assault Rally
The
Red BikeOf Shame
Nick Fletcher found the Maschine Alpine Assault Rally a great example of how sometimes things are best when they don’t go to plan.
Words and images: Nick Fletcher
When Winston Churchill was asked how history would judge him, he replied, “History will be kind to me because I intend to write it”. This is very definitely my approach to Maschine’s Alpine Assault Rally. If you want an honest depiction of my performance on the ride you won’t read about it here. I’ll be dwelling solely on the failings of my fellow riders, of which there were many.
Get set
High-end adventure tour company Maschine had promised the ‘the hardest adventure rally in Australia’. When it was suggested I could come along as photographer my first thought was, ‘Who can I get to come with me?’ This wasn’t so much because I needed a hand with gear, but more because I never like to be the most inept person on any ride. It didn’t take long to persuade Mark Morrison, my untalented ginger accomplice, to come along in order to mark the accident black spots with his face.
The concept of the rally was pure genius. Maschine provided a road-book and GPX files, mechanical and medical support, accommodation, and carried all the luggage. All riders needed to worry about was where they were going to crash.
High way
Thursday night before the ride the Bureau Of Meteorology declared the coming
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Top left: The bedraggled team at Woods Point.
Above: It was big news. Main: Man down!
of The Apocalypse. Furthermore, the newsreader stated anyone thinking of going into the bush was an utter cretin. Unsurprisingly, the Maschine team had to re-think its plans. There was no way a large group of riders could be allowed to set off during Stormaggeddon without some sort of adult supervision. It was decided to run the event as a group ride, with Nick Selleck leading, Chris Bostelman sweeping, the Doc (Mike Thumm) to pick up the pieces and me to document the carnage. Dave Ryan and Jim Bassett were responsible for driving the ute, bike recovery and rider heckling. Broadly the route was from Merrijig (near Mount Buller in Victoria), to Woods Point, (not near Mount Buller), to Dargo and back to Merrijig. The route called for about 250km of riding each day and a chance to get stuck into some really fruity bits of the Victorian high country.
Bigger they are
It was a varied group that assembled for the event: a host of KTM 690s/Husky 701s, a handful of enduro machines, two KTM 950s, one maniac (Deane Limmer) on a Sherco 300 two-stroke and, of course, the bike everyone wanted, my 50,000km DRZ.
That’s not to forget my offsider Mark on his CRF450 (aka The Red Bike Of Shame), which I assumed he chose to accessorise his ginger hair.
Of course it was a delight to see the two ridiculous 950SEs being (well) ridden by Rob Nowak and David Crampton (Rob of Erzberg fame and David a Romaniacs finisher). When I first saw Rob I assumed he’d borrowed his 10-year-old son’s bike, but then it dawned on me I was actually looking at a twometre-tall, 110kg man astride the largest dirtbike ever made. There were some real characters on the ride. My personal
Top: Kerli hammered his 250R through some tough going. Middle: Some advice for the Ginger Ninja.
Right: Dave Crampton and his 950 loved the challenging conditions. u
favourites were Kerli, Matt and Lachlan; three 50-something (and I suspect I am being generous there) reprobates who were on weekend release from their NSW care facility. Lachy was the Peter Pan of the group – if Peter Pan was really small enough to shop in the children’s section of Target and could start a pub fight at a pacifist’s convention. Matt was the quiet one who you underestimated right until he got on his bike. Kerli was the adult of the group. I suspect he was paid by Lachy’s and Matt’s mothers to make sure they behaved. All three were way faster than me on a bike.
Going under
We set off from Merrijig with Nick’s warning of fallen trees, waist-deep mud and raging rivers ringing in our ears. He soon got us amongst it on a brilliant track that mixed huge erosion mounds, slippery clay climbs and small river crossings. Mark provided some early amusement by sliding down the clay hill on his face. The 950 hooligans were in their element and even demonstrated their trials skills while we waited for Chris,
the sweep, to scrape 10cm of clay off Mark and pop him back on the bike.
Over the next section to Jamieson things got nice and comical. First I was following Mark (Husky 701 Mark, not ginger Mark) and he got caught out by a slippery section and had a relatively straightforward crash that badly tweaked an already injured knee. He rode through to Jamieson, but the injury saw him spend the rest of the weekend in the support truck.
Further down the track I’d ridden ahead so I could get some photos, but even with my clearly superior skills it took four attempts to clear a steep pinch on one of the climbs. I mulled over staying to photograph the inevitable chaos, but decided (correctly) the river crossing further on would provide even more opportunity for bike-based mayhem.
I arrived at the Jamieson River to find a fast-flowing, 30m-wide crossing of indeterminate depth. However, with the rain hammering down and the shelter of a disabled toilet clearly visible across the river (thanks, Parks Victoria), I had sufficient incentive to get me across
the torrent without much thought. While I huddled in the most palacious dunny in all of the high country, the Alpine Assault team was having some real fun and games. As I suspected, the hill had defeated a number or riders and it required a team effort to get everyone up. While I’m not one to publically shame other people, I do suspect it’s worthwhile dwelling on Chris Bostelman’s abject failure (“I had road tyres on, I was carrying a lot of spares, my ginger beard distracted me…”). After deploying a long rope, a small team of unwilling volunteers eventually hauled the bike and its orange-faced owner over the top.
The survivors arrived at the river about an hour after I’d crossed and found, to my delight, it had risen by a good 15cm in that time. Nick Selleck had little difficulty getting across, but that certainly wasn’t true of everyone else. While Lachy can definitely ride a bike, the fact his legs barely reach his footpegs meant that
Above: Getting to work on The Red Steed Of Shame after a dunking. Top right: None the worse for wear.
he didn’t have the option of gently paddling across with his feet on the bottom. Instead he had a choice of ‘commit or drown’.
To our immense enjoyment he chose ‘drown’.
Star performer
We had a long lunch in Jamieson while the three man-children put 40 litres of
fresh oil through Lachy’s waterlogged KTM. We then headed off on the scenic route to Woods Point.
As we climbed up the rocky tracks to Mt Terrible it was smashing/bucketing/ hammering down. I was having super fun chasing Nick and the 950 twins with my goggles so fogged I just had to follow the blurred tail lights and trust they knew what they were doing. At the first stop
I removed the goggles and immediately had to slow down because I could suddenly see the man-crushing rocks I’d been missing by centimetres.
After huddling in the well-named Mt Terrible hut we headed back out into the maelstrom. At one point we were riding along a downhill track in water 15cm deep at 40kph and the water was moving faster than us. The mighty DRZ u
chose this point to start having fuel issues which required stops every 15km to fix, while Chris, the ever-helpful sweep, made suggestions such as, “Have you tried percussive maintenance?”
The pub at Woods Point was a welcome sight for a very bedraggled team. As we refueled the bikes an even wetter group of very skinny men in shorts arrived. They’d chosen the worst weekend in Victorian history to ride their mountain bikes from Canberra to Melbourne. Despite the conditions they were quite perky, happily telling us they only had 120km to go in their 800km epic. It was a high-spirited team that tucked into steak and beer that night, entertained by one of the mountain-bikers who turned out to be a ninja on the piano.
Serenity
Day two started easily on the track to Licola. However, even some of the straightforward tracks became weirdly technical in the waterlogged conditions. A number of roads had been recently graded and while the surface was smooth, the track underneath had the
consistency of sand, but with a variable crust on top. Most of us were loving the chance to demonstrate our sand-riding skills, but I suspect I wasn’t the only one to endure the mother of all tank slappers.
The highlight of day two came just before lunch. Nick found a brilliant sixkilometre excursion that included a loose, rocky descent, three river crossings and a wet-clay ascent. With no hope of getting any normal 4WD in, it was exactly the worst place in the whole of Australia to kill a bike. Mark, using his ginger sixth sense, decided this was the place to dismount face-first into a metre of water. Given a change in wind direction is normally all it took to stop his CRF, there was no doubt that five minutes lying on the bottom of a fast-flowing mountain stream was going to cause an issue.
While the crack team of Al ‘my other bike is a 990 but I thought I would take a DR because it will be more fun’, and Chris got to work on The Red Steed Of Shame, the rest of us watched the creeks start to rise. It wasn’t quite a flash flood, but within 30 minutes the rivers went from ‘that looks doable’ to ‘is there any other
way out of here?’ At this point Nick declared Top Gear Rules and led the rest of the ride towards Heyfield, leaving Mark, Chris and the ever-dependable Al to try and salvage the waterlogged CRF.
Even the ride back to Heyfield wasn’t without incident. A corner man went MIA, leaving the Doc and I on an unscripted ride to Bonnie Doon. It’s not for me to say who was responsible for this crime against dirtbiking other than to note that Lachy was uncharacteristically generous in the bar that night.
Blown a seal
Meanwhile the energy being exerted to recover the CRF had far outweighed its value.
By the time they’d got it going it had effectively had a bare-frame restoration conducted by Chris and Al. Nick joined them in time to participate in an extraction that had all the characteristics of Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow. This included Chris’ big-tanked 690 floating down a river, Mark buggering his knee crashing Nick’s (actually Trudi’s) 690, and Al riding two-up on his DR
Left: The 950 hooligans were in their element and even demonstrated their trials skills.
Right: Plenty of fresh oil was run through the waterlogged KTM.
up the horrific hill that had defeated Mark. The rest of us were enjoying a cup of tea out of the rain in Heyfield while the recovery team was loading Mark and his Red Bike Of Shame on to the support vehicle, and this gave me the chance to spend 20 minutes holding my camera under the hand dryer in the gents to desperately try and dry the thing out.
We then set off on a mainly road ride to Dargo. Deane was clearly delighted to get the chance to do 90km on tarmac on his 300 two-stroke. He started the trip with 13 teeth on his front sprocket, but by the time he got to Dargo he was down to seven. My DRZ had picked up the famous Suzuki countershaft-seal ‘improvement’ and was leaking 100ml of oil every 50km. This enhancement meant I didn’t have to worry about oiling my chain or be concerned about the risk of corrosion on my frame, engine or rear tyre. Indeed, oil changes were a thing of past, with the entire oil supply being refreshed every 500km.
Not happy at a road ride, the 950 twins decided to cut across country and arrived at the hotel two hours after everyone else with tales of an epic retreat from a Gully Of Doom.
High plains drifters
Staying in the famous Dargo Hotel was a treat, but finding out the Alpine National Park was closed was less exciting. It meant the last day of the ride needed to head back towards Licola rather the iconic Wonnangatta Valley. Nevertheless, Nick found a spectacular route along the Dargo River, which gave the better riders the chance to drift their bikes around a beautiful series of bends high above the river (and at least one rider the opportunity to dump it at high speed while failing to drift). Deane was particularly enjoying this as he’d managed to persuade Nick to lend him a 1290 while his 300 made the trip home in the van. I was enjoying it slightly less as I was carrying 20 litres of oil and having to top up the DRZ at every stop.
After lunch at Licola we then enjoyed the run back to Jamieson over the
mountains, where moody mist covered views of the hills, enhanced by the first break in the rain for three days.
After a quick tea stop in Jamieson we were soon back in Merrijig loading bikes.
Only ridden on weekends
While the Alpine Assault Rally didn’t go as planned, it’s not an event any of the participants will forget in a hurry. We saw some fabulous bits of Victoria’s high country, got to spend three days with a really great group of riders and,
with all of the hassles of accommodation, baggage, tyres and spares taken care of were able to really enjoy the riding.
In a couple of months, when Nick and Trudi get to repeat this without the weather restrictions, it’ll be a truly spectacular event. My bet is the 950 twins will be the first to the pub every day…unless of course Graham Jarvis decides to enter.
In the meantime I’m off to buy a new bike. Email me if you’re interested in a ‘lightly used’ DRZ.
Maschine Alpine Assault Rally 2018
The next Alpine Assault Rally kicks off on November 30. For entries and information go to maschine.com.au.
Ramble
in the ranges
Like all good adventures, it started with a vague plan: ‘Let’s go north’.
Adelaide has the Flinders Ranges in the back yard.
It’s a place of geological wonders and a rock-paved portal to the outback. Distances are vast, but the journey’s rewarding. An expansive range of mountains and gullies include a series of sharp, sawtooth ridges that buckle and enfold gorges, rocky creek lines and waterholes. Abundant with wildlife and steeped with traditions of the Adnyamathanha people – meaning hills or rock people – it’s a worldclass destination.
It was agreed. We needed to explore our own backyard before we commited to that ride through the African Transkei, the Andes or Atacama desert of Chile.
Size wise
My traveling companion, Andrew Lonsdale, was a South African from east London who now called
South Australia home. Andrew was the person who first introduced me to motorcycles at the age of 44. Almost two years later it was time for me to introduce Andrew to ‘The Flinders’.
My single-cylinder Sertão 650 shared the same engine as Andrew’s Husky Terra, but the BMW was more comfortable on the open road while the Husqvarna was lighter and more at ease in the dirt.
The journey through the Adelaide Plains and mid-north to the Flinders was, however, a compelling argument for a big-bore bike and always formed the basis of conversation at the end of a long day’s ride.
Preparations
With limited experience, what better way to prepare for a ride in the Flinders than a coaching session? I booked into the two-day BMW Off-Road Training Course with Chris Urquhart and Shane Booth. Overlooking the stunning Parsons Beach on the Fleurieu Peninsular south of Adelaide, the course exceeded all expectations.
The ocean formed an amazing backdrop to a stunning property that offered the perfect playground to learn riding skills under expert tuition. All types of terrain were on offer: sand, technical forest paths, mud-based creek crossings, cambered dirt tracks and vertical dam walls that were perfect for steep hill climbs and descents. It also offered narrow, technical, bespoke tracks cut through tall grasses that were used to perfect tight turns, brake and clutch control.
My confidence grew with a light-bulb moment after each and every lesson. After just one day my bike felt much lighter and far more manoeuvrable.
Words: Richard Dwyer. Images: Richard Dwyer and Andrew Lonsdale
Distances are vast in The Flinders, but the journey’s rewarding.
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RAmBle In the RAnges
After two days I felt I had a new and improved bike.
After the last lesson on cornering on dirt roads, I was ready.
The journey
It was tempting to sit on the highway and chew up the kilometres (and tyres) on the bitumen, but there were better ways. We had to pass through the northern Adelaide Plains and the vast mid-north, made up of endless cropping and pastoral districts punctuated by unique townships rich in history. I made my way north alone after agreeing to meet Andrew at Wilpena Pound in the Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park and chose a route through Balaklava, Brinkworth, Gladstone, Laura, Melrose and Wilmington. I decided to stay in Port Augusta, the gateway to the outback.
There was only one reason to go to Port Augusta: a good curry.
The best curry I’ve ever had (including my travels through India) was at the Standpipe Motel, Port Augusta. It also provided an excuse to ride through
the beautiful Horrocks Pass and the lower ranges of Wilmington.
Comfortable accommodation and an exceptional meal were the perfect way to end a day of riding.
Tough life
The next day started with a morning ride through the Pichi Richi Pass following the original route of the Ghan, first built in 1878, between Port Augusta and Quorn.
The pass is now famous for the historic steam and diesel locomotives that pull beautifully restored timber carriages through the Pichi Richi Pass to Woolshed Flat and Port Augusta. The opening to Pichi Richi is framed by bluebush-studded hills that converge and engulf gum-lined creeks with ancient rocky outcrops. The historic route offered perfect twisties to test bike and rider before wide-open pastoral plains dominated the landscape from Quorn to Hawker.
The Flinders has a rich and complex cultural heritage combining Aboriginal and pastoral history. European settlers first moved into the region in the 1840s and the many ruins demonstrate the challenges that faced European settlers in the semi-arid and sensitive landscape.
Above: The ocean formed an amazing backdrop to the perfect playground to learn riding skills with a BMW Off Road Training course. Below left: The Kanyaka Ruins.
Below: Sacred Canyon is a significant site for the Adnyamathanah people.
The Kanyaka Ruins offered a good glimpse into the life of a station and homestead that supported up to 70 families before severe droughts resulted in massive losses of sheep and eventual abandonment of the enterprise.
The destination
The Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park was just a couple more hours riding with one final fuel stop at Hawker.
After pitching the tent and setting up a base camp, my traveling companion finally arrived and we agreed there was still enough daylight to hit the dirt and explore Sacred Canyon.
A significant site for the Adnyamathanah people, Sacred Canyon is a rock-engraving site showing geometric circles (representing a rock hole or spring), and linear designs including
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kangaroo and emu. With the sun low in the sky it was the perfect opportunity to view the engravings which the Adnyamathanah people believe were made by ancestral beings during the dreaming.
The ride back to base camp was on a severely corrugated dirt road. I was very grateful for the recent training course, but the fading light and numerous kangaroo encounters still resulted in a tense ride.
Back at camp there was a rendezvous with three old mates who’d just completed
their first leg of the Mawson Trail –Blinman to Wilpena Pound.
The Mawson Trail is a cycling route close to 900km long and includes little-used country roads and trails from north of Adelaide to Blinman. Having just ridden from Adelaide, there was great respect for those attempting this journey on a mountain bike. They had only 830km to go. We would next meet in Melrose to compare stories over a cold beer at the North Star Hotel.
Coldie
The next two days were spent exploring the National Park armed with fuel, water and three 1:50,000 topo maps.
There were numerous tracks and loops through the park offering multiple opportunities for day trips. This included a loop from Wilpena Pound to the Prairie Hotel via Brachina Gorge with a return trip via Parachilna Gorge, Glass Gorge and Blinman. It was an eventful day with a stop to help replace a shredded 4WD tyre and backtracking to retrieve a dropped bag. Of course, lunch at the Prairie Hotel in Parachilna and a cold beer at the North Blinman Hotel was a highlight.
Spring time
Blinman is an old copper-mining settlement in the central Flinders Ranges and is the highest town in South Australia. Even though it’s bitumen, the ride from Blinman back to Wilpena Pound was slow and tedious, crossing paths with literally hundreds of kangaroos and emus. Weaving through the road kill made for a stark reminder of the vulnerable nature of a motorcycle at sunset in The Flinders.
The various scenic lookouts and tracks offered access to ancient and rugged mountain landscapes, gum-lined gorges and abundant wildlife. The sense of space, isolation and silence in The Flinders is calming and seems to stop time. In our back-road ramblings we even found a spring-fed waterhole that offered a fun crossing which was deeper than anticipated and completely unexpected in the semi-arid zone…a water crossing I wouldn’t have attempted prior to the training course. It was a welcome relief from the dust.
Melrose Place
The return ride to Adelaide was broken with a short stay at Melrose in the
southern part of the range.
Nestled at the foot of Mount
Remarkable, Melrose is the oldest town in the Flinders, having been officially proclaimed in 1853. The Mawson and Heysen Trails pass through the town and it’s highly respected in the mountainbiking community for its range of complex and challenging trails.
Speaking of mountain bikes, we were pleased our MTB mates had made it from Blinman on the Mawson Trail and we all stayed in the Bundaleer Cottage, adjacent to the North Star Hotel, the oldest licensed hotel in The Flinders. First licensed in 1854, it was easy to see why the North Star had stood the test of
Above top: The North Star Hotel is the oldest licensed hotel in The Flinders.
Above: The Bridle Track offers spectacular sweeping views.
Above: Author Richard Dwyer at the Prairie Hotel in Parachilna.
Below: Sertão sunset.
North of Bunyeroo Valley.
time. The publican, Nadine, offered great food, cold beer and very warm, generous and friendly hospitality.
We used Melrose as a second base camp, staying several nights to explore the region, including the spectacular Bridle Track as well as Alligator Gorge in the Mount Remarkable National Park.
Access to the Bridle Track is via Survey Road from Melrose and offers spectacular sweeping views of the southern Flinders Ranges and Spencer Gulf. The deep Alligator Gorge has high, ochre ridges, terraced and narrow gullies and a stone creek lined with river Redgum and native pine.
It made for a rewarding walk and an opportunity to stretch the legs.
Homeward bound
The return home passed through the Germein Gorge Road and gave the chance to open up the BMW for one last ride through the twisties before winding our way on both bitumen and dirt through various smaller historic towns of the mid-north.
The Beemer held its own on the bitumen, revealing its true character as an all-round adventure bike, equally comfortable both on and off the road. On reflection I also noticed how comfortable I felt off-road following the BMW Off-Road training.
The debate and banter with Andrew continued on the choice and compromise between a lighter and more agile singlecylinder thumper versus a big-bore adventure bike. While the Sertão demonstrated its credentials and did everything I asked, with a little training and some more confidence I’d find myself wanting a big-bore bike to provide more comfortable transport over the vast distances unique to Australia. Perhaps it’s time to get a new bike and add to the quiver?
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A RANGE OF SOFT LUGGAGE
or bust Northwest
The call went out to escape the Perth winter and ride north to warmer places. What started out as a long-weekend away soon grew into a seven-day, then a nine-day, ride. Colin Bayman and Ewen McGregor tell the tale.
Words: Colin Bayman and Ewen McGregor. Images Steve Fraser and Ewen McGregor
Above: What started out as a long-weekend away soon grew into a seven-day, then a nine-day, ride.
Acouple of riders had competed in the Australasian Safari in 2014 and had used many great tracks and station roads of the Midwest, Gascoyne and Pilbara regions. With this inside knowledge a route was born and 16 intrepid riders loaded all they needed and headed north.
The route followed the Wool Wagon Pathway and promised a true Australian outback experience with glorious vistas, sunsets, spectacular night skies and awesome tracks. Renowned for its quality wool which was shipped to London and sold, the region holds some large stations, developed with the help of blade shearers, famous horsemen, drovers, fencers and well sinkers. In recent years many stations had unfortunately been destocked due to drought, and had turned to tourism as their main income source.
Sight for sore eyes
Most riders met in Geraldton and rode in search of the Murchison Oasis Caravan Park. A collection of bikes from DRZs through to the big 1290s took part, and that allowed for plenty of brand ribbing.
Riders weaved their way through some nice, wide, dusty roads and station tracks…until the sun started to set and heading directly west called for caution. The scene of bikes in the distance with
Main: The red dirt goes on forever. It may not be God’s country, but you could see it from there. Below: Murchison Oasis lived up to its name. From left: Patrick Robinson, Murray Pearce, Mike Littlefair, author Colin Bayman, Peter Bayman, Evan Homan, Mark Lebkruecher, Ewen Macgregor, Chris Shaw, Rob Van Koolbergen, Murray Hynes, Lee Mathew Greer, Taine Hynes, Dirk Saunders and Neal Allen. Pic by Steve Fraser.
the setting sun’s rays cutting through the thick red dust was picture perfect. It was bloody hard to ride, but it was beautiful.
Back again
Arriving at Murchison Oasis tents were quickly put up, showers were enjoyed
Above: Dirk and Pat mowing down the distance. Left: Lee (left) and Colin can’t get the smiles off their faces. Below: Mike having a little play.
and beers opened just in time for a magnificent self-cook barbeque supplied by the owners. Most had left Perth early that day so were now tired and not far out of bed once dinner was taken care of. A few diehards sorted out the world’s problems around the cranking fire, enjoying the star-lit sky and crisp night air.
Murchison Oasis lived up to its name. Our last visit was in time for a monster dust storm followed by torrential rain. This time the weather was perfect, the facilities amazing and the staff running the show couldn’t do enough for us.
It was definitely a place we’d like to return to.
Crossing trails
After a quick breakfast of bacon and eggs the next morning it was time to hit the dirt again. The newbies had to quickly learn to ride sand with several very long, cut-up sections. “Crank it up to 100kph and hang on like the rest of us!” they were told.
Typical outback trails offered a mixture of surfaces and several gates and cattle grids to contain the stock that used to roam the large stations. The day’s ride was around 360km, but with a big group and lots of breaks, the destination, Gascoyne Junction, wasn’t reached until midafternoon, and on arrival three adventure bikes were spotted at the bowsers. Old mates ‘Pounce’, ‘Jacko’ and ‘Fuel Tanker Al’ from Perth-based Crusty Quinns were doing a run and also chose the Junction for the night.
There was green reticulated lawn for the tents, quality hot showers and a proper tavern serving cold beer and big steaks in the middle of nowhere. It was an adventure-rider’s dream.
The KLR Kurse
After more bacon and eggs the next morning the group waved goodbye to the Crusty boys and headed for Mount Augustus in the Mount Augustus National Park.
The park was gazetted in 1989 and is made up of former parts of Mount Augustus and Cobra Stations. It’s a relatively easy dirt ride on occasionally maintained roads, but awesome scenery
noRthWest oR Bust
and plenty of gotchas kept everyone on their toes. The pace was steady and only a single flat saw another mid-afternoon arrival with everyone in good form. One of the big KTMs tore a tubeless rear tyre and ended up on the support trailer for a few kilometres to avoid any delays. It was sorted in camp.
Some of the boys took off to play tourist and look at ‘the big rock’. After traversing the 49km Loop Drive across rocky creek crossings and gorges, Mount Augustus was a monolith larger than Uluru, but mostly under the ground and worth the effort to see.
By this stage both KLRs were using oil. In fact, Neil’s bike used 2.5 litres in 400km on the last day (Neil was seen buying four litres of oil at every opportunity). The following morning the oil burner just didn’t want to fire up and had its turn on the support trailer. This was after the station workers had tried every bush-mechanic’s trick in the book the get it going.
The long, boring, 600km bitumen transport stage to Coral Bay was broken up by regular river crossings as the previous night’s 160mm of rain started to make the rivers flow towards the coast.
In hot water
Everyone agreed the next day was the best of the entire tour. Pingandy Road is in the Shire of Upper Gascoyne, one of Western Australia’s most remote local governments. The route went out the back of Mount Augustus Tourist Park and on to what has to be one of the best adventure-riding roads in the State. Most were on the gas riding it like an enduro special test, and with big tanks and loaded panniers some restraint was obviously necessary. Co-author Ewen had a big off in a creek bed. The bike was damaged, his carbon neck brace broken, his helmet trowelled and he shook himself up in the process. The 690 was loaded on to the trailer for the remainder of the
Above: Peter topping up his tank from the support vehicle at Wheelan Station. Bottom: The support vehicle carried extra water, fuel for the long sections, top bags and, importantly, trailered several stricken bikes.
Above: A temperature inversion created a magnificent rainbow after leaving Coral Bay.
Below: The oil-burning KLR needed a piggy-back.
Murray H’s DRZ needed to transfer some fuel from right to left of tank to get into camp.
Below right: “Does this barbeque make my bum look big?”
day while the rest of us made horrible comments to him in the support vehicle at each stop.
But he wasn’t the only rider to come to grief. Rob on his 1290 Adventure ran wide on an off-camber corner and caused damage to his pride and joy, but with no injuries he rode on gingerly to complete the day.
Arriving at Cheela Plains to a proper station welcome by Robin, we heard that over 160mm of rain was forecast for that night, and several riders opted for the available dongas. A big cycling group was due so we hit the showers while hot water was available.
Fall from grace
With three rally mechanics in the group repairing Ewen’s 690 was never going to be an issue. The general opinion was the damage was “…nothing a hammer and few cable ties wouldn’t fix.”
Everyone had big smiles after an awesome day’s ride and it was tents-up for some and dongas for others. A fully catered barbeque meal supplied and cooked by the station had been arranged in advance and the campfire was lit and dinner sorted. A huge feed hit the spot and prepared everyone for a rough night. The rain turned the ground to slush and Murray’s big Katoom fell off its centrestand on to his tent and the back of his head.
It was a big shock of course, but fortunately only resulted in a small bruise on his scone.
Correct wait
After several long days in the saddle fatigue began to take its toll and a 690
took a rest on its side at a fuel station. Everyone was looking forward to laying around in the sun and swimming at Coral Bay, one of the best camp spots in coastal WA.
We’d scheduled a rest day there, but the grey skies, occasional drizzle and a cool wind kept most out of the water and allowed for some overdue bike maintenance. The two pubs and bakery offered good breakfasts, dinners and café lunches as everyone roughed it and got fatter by the day.
Safari
Homeward bound after leaving Coral Bay we rode through an unusual wet and dark fog caused by a temperature inversion which created a magnificent rainbow.
Hamelin Bay was a beautifully kept station stay with one of the bestequipped camp kitchens and showerand-toilet facilities of the entire trip, and on the way through Carnarvon Chef Lee stopped and picked up a couple of roasts and some vegetables. He knocked up a memorable gourmet roast dinner that night, which was spent eating, chatting and having a quiet drink before it got a bit cool and the open fire was lit.
The bitumen ride to Kalbarri was uneventful, however a few riders found some dirt to play on. A large bluff provided fantastic vistas around the wider area and allowed those who stopped to reminisce about the Australasian Safari which had passed close by during 2013 and 2014, its final two years.
All in
The last night was spent in good old Kalbarri, some 600km from Perth, and after 10 days in the outback where everyone had forgotten their commitments
Above: Ewen’s bike on the deck…again. It was hard to get a pic of him upright. Below: Relaxing after a long day.
the mood changed as riders started to think about work, loved ones and the inevitable return to civilisation.
The transition started with a donga in a caravan park, a shower, and a wander down to the pub for a few beers and a game of pool, then progressed to Colin being confronted with a twoburner, fold-up gas barbeque strapped to the rear of his DRZ. He’d provided the barbeque for the trip and, as it was the last night, a couple of the boys had decided it would be really funny to give to back to him.
After nine days, over 4500km of riding, a few dramas and lots of belly laughs everyone reflected on an amazing ride, great camaraderie and friendships developed. For some this had been their first big, multiday adventure ride and first time in deep sand, but they all handled it well. Evan, who claimed he’d stood up sometimes (no-one saw him), said this had been his first really deep-sand riding experience and he figured out that once he reached 105kph he glided like a sled while sitting down.
Team spirit was evident as everyone got in and helped when needed. Mike led the second day over the fantastic station trails. Peter provided a spare tube for the stricken katoom, a clean and oiled filter skin for a KLR and offered up a spare spark plug for another KLR but it didn’t fit. Lee cooked up a storm and provided a spare tyre for the Kattoom. Murray, Steve and Taine used their rally and mechanical skills to get the 690 and KLR on the road again. Pat changed numerous tyres. Ewen provided the entertainment by stuffing up several times and the rest bogged in when needed. Taine drove the support vehicle carrying extra water, fuel for the long sections, top bags and, importantly, trailered several stricken bikes.
This trip was far too remote for a group of this size without a support vehicle. Thanks a million, Taine.
Planning is already underway for the 2019 northwest ride.
Newbie Poker Run Challenge
The Perth Adventure Riders group has an ace up its sleeve. On this ride, everyone’s a winner.
Words: Jason Old. Images: Jason Miltrup
June 2018 saw the Perth Adventure Riders hold its second Newbie Poker Run Challenge. It’s a really simple concept. To join, every participant throws $5.00 into the kitty. Then, throughout the ride at five designated stops, every rider pulls a card from a bag to end up with a poker hand. At the end of the ride the person with the best poker hand wins the kitty –in this case $325.
The big twist for 2018 was the kitty itself being donated to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Due to the overwhelming number of prizes contributed by local sponsors, winners took home a selection of prizes instead of the cash.
Head for the hills
Aside from the fun of the poker challenge, the real aim of the event is to encourage new members to join the Perth Adventure Riders group (PAR) and take up adventure riding in a safe and welcoming environment where they can develop new skills and make some great new friends. The key to this was to adopt a ‘buddy’. Newer riders were paired with seasoned riders who shadowed them throughout the day and shared their experience.
The 90km route tackled some challenging terrain through the Julimar and Moondyne National Parks in the northeast hills region of Perth.
Left: Newer riders were paired with seasoned riders who shadowed them throughout the day and shared their experience.
Above: Every rider pulled a card from a bag to end up with a poker hand.
Below: The fourth stage had long stretches of deep pea gravel. u
Making a start
Perth had seen plenty of rain leading up to the event, making for a damp track and minimal dust. On ride day, the weather gods smiled, and after a chilly, six-degree start – freezing-cold by Perth standards – the day warmed up and offered a cloudless blue sky.
A total of 65 riders showed up for the ride, ranging from first-time off-roaders through to Finke competitors. After registration, drawing the first card for their poker hand and a briefing the group headed for the trails.
Stage one was a short tarmac section followed by the area’s notorious, slippery, ball-bearing-like pea gravel. A regroup to discuss riding techniques and bike set up allowed many riders to make adjustments before moving deeper into the forest.
Two up
The second stage was a climb.
The hill was a steep, slippery, clay-
based, off-cambered affair with a blind bend halfway up. Thanks to 4WDs, two large ruts ran down the right-hand side, and to top it off, there was a tree root to negotiate at the apex.
It was a real challenge and a steep learning curve for the newer riders. The experienced riders took some time to walk the hill with their buddies, discussing tips and techniques to negotiate the climb safely. With a plan of attack in place, one by one the riders tackled the hill, but it quickly became clear not everyone would make it unscathed.
To help the less-experienced riders, a team assembled on the side of the hill to keep them on track or pick up the pieces if necessary. Then, once each rider had completed the climb, they joined a spectators’ gallery at the summit, cheering on fellow riders to the top. The hardest spill for the day was a Ténéré which crossed over into those damn 4WD ruts. Apart from a broken indicator the
Above: Stage one was a short tarmac section, followed by the area’s notorious, slippery, ballbearing-like pea gravel.
Below: The hardest spill for the day was a Ténéré crossed up in the 4WD ruts.
Top right: Termite mounds were a feature of the final and most technical section.
Below right: An agreed, but unfulfilled, aim to drench the photographer.
rider was unscathed and the majority of riders managed to successfully, if not gracefully, conquer the ascent.
Make a splash
Stage three ventured into overgrown 4WD tracks, with sharp, jutting gravel rocks and one mud patch catching out the odd rider. The largest puddle for the day meant some great shots of riders blasting through, with an agreed aim to drench the photographer. An unfulfilled aim, as it turned out.
The following section included fast, wide-open roads, loamy fence-line tracks, natural obstacles and long stretches of deep pea gravel. The cornerman system was used throughout this section to warn of fallen trees, large ruts and precarious rock ledges that had formed after the recent rains.
The home stretch
After a day of coaching using the buddy system the group was set to tackle the most difficult and technical terrain of the fifth and final stage.
Mostly single trail, the final segment squeezed through grasstrees, termite mounds, over logs, ruts and even a car bonnet. When all was said and done everyone agreed that, although difficult, it was the most enjoyable section of the ride. With the stages completed the race was then on for the finish line: the Bindoon Bakery.
Fed and watered, the rider with the best poker hand took first pick of the prizes, with several additional prizes being awarded to runners-up.
At the end of the day the greener riders had learned new skills and increased their confidence tenfold. New friendships were formed, there were plenty of tales to tell and everyone had had one hell of an adventure to be remembered for years to come – or at least until it’s done bigger and better in 2019.
A big thankyou to the sponsors on the day, including Motorrad Garage, Overlander Adventure Equipment and Battery World Balcatta.
Tasmania has Graeme Sedgwick addicted to motorcycling freedom.
A Conquering God’s Country
bout nine hours aboard the ferry Spirit Of Tasmania is just enough time to disengage before a riding escape that couldn’t get much better. No matter which way you carve up the twisting network of sealed and unsealed road options, Tasmania is God’s country when it comes to riding.
Docking time in the bowels of the Spirit is just the beginning. Releasing tie-downs that have held for a Bass Strait crossing and being cleared to turn on ignitions notches up excitement no matter how seasoned a rider you are. An orderly disembarkation filters a rider into the frantic single lanes of a buzzing Bass Highway, a bitumen cruise to Launceston and a bed at O’Keefe’s Hotel.
Host with the most
This ride came about thanks to Matt Natonewski, an intriguing former environmental scientist who became a leather-goods importer and who also specialises in organising bike adventures to southeast Asia, India and the Apple Isle.
As it turned out the surprise invitation couldn’t have been more enjoyable. After a lazy stroll and street-café bacon, eggs and creamy cappuccino, a ride out to Sidmouth along the oyster-shelled shores of the Tamar River made a great start to a day.
Our host, Dale ‘Rock’ Bartlett, had ready a sizzling barbeque brimming with hospitality. As we sat, overlooking the Tamar, it was an idyllic spot and easy to lose track of time.
Fortunately Rock knew this and got us back on the bikes to follow his meandering lead to Exeter and a tribute Burt Munro Café, where we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways.
Grand prix
On the run back to Launceston, the now defunct Longford Grand Prix circuit made for a worthwhile detour.
Once host to 500cc world champion Geoff Duke in 1955, the temporary seven-kilometre circuit located on the northern edges of the town passed under a railway-line viaduct, crossed a wooden bridge across
Words and images: Graeme Sedgwick
Author
Sedgwick rediscovered the freedom of motorcycling in Tasmania.
Above: If you enjoy riding hundreds of kilometres on twisting, coastal, mountain and open roads, Tasmania is top-shelf.
Top right: A chance meeting with fellow Tassie travellers. From left, Stephen, Chris, Rob and Matt.
the South Esk River before another wooden bridge called ‘Kings Bridge’, a hard right turn at the Longford Hotel’s doorstep, across a railway level crossing, then over the South Esk River again via another wooden structure called the Long Bridge.
It’s interesting to note Tasmania is also home to one of the oldest continuing motorcycle clubs in the
world, the Launceston Motorcycle Club, established in 1905. Longford, if only for its romantic past and curious pub, is a worthwhile visit before or after conquering the island’s greater riding indulgences. It makes for a perfect day before the ‘real’ motivation that had beckoned travel to Tasmania. That was set for the next day.
On a roll
Heading east from Launceston via the uncomplicated rhythm of the Tasman Highway meant plenty of freedom to set my own pace through meandering curves all the way to Targa, after which cornering and momentum became a lot more interesting. The black stuff rose and fell with plenty of hairpins up the Sideling Range. There was a brief respite crossing the top, but plunging down the Sideling’s eastern side purged natural gases and lifted the heart rate. There was little time to absorb the spectacular panoramic views.
In contrast, the tempo and landscape then became a picture of farmlands rolling over gentle rises, allowing a relaxed, flowing pace into the beautiful village of Scottsdale. If I’d had more time I would’ve stopped to enjoy the Scottsdale Bakery’s delights, but the day had turned out a beauty, so it was on south to Branxholm.
Put it away
Branxholme’s Red Bridge over the Ringarooma River commemorates the site of Tasmania’s only race riot in 1877. Chinese miners on their way to the mining leases were confronted by a
group of angry European miners and a gun was drawn, but the protagonist was quickly told to ‘put it away’.
The tarmac in these parts sweeps its way to and beyond Weldborough Pass. There’s plenty of curves and crests linked by straight bursts demanding an accurate approach to ensure maximum departure momentum. It was an absolute hoot! In no time the many shining beaches of the east coast, including beautiful St Helens, came into view with plenty to be seen between the rainforest trees of Myrtle, Sassafras and Blackwood, some growing up to 50m tall.
The peaceful locality of Scamander was next, scattered along the shores of the Tasman Sea. Its buildings, and to a lesser extent its people, were almost as weather-beaten as each other. The village burgers and hot chocolates were incredible.
Recalibrate
From the coast my journey detoured inland for a short run up and down two
Left:
Graeme
Left: Good local food at Jackson’s Emporium Café near Hamilton.
Below: The Burt Munro tribute café at Exeter in Tasmania’s north.
of the east coast’s most revered passes. The first, St Marys, came from the north and bore away to the west to a township of the same name. Then, Elephant, which headed back down from the township of St Marys to the coast.
It matters little which way you decide to tackle one or both of these passes, because both, either way, are sensational. But beware, some corners are less forgiving than others, and at the same time there can be bursts of oncoming and unsuspecting traffic.
Along the coast riding became more relaxed through seaside fishing villages, like Bicheno, which combined to provide plenty of horizon chasing as the highway straightened south to Swansea and Triabunna. From there I headed inland, missing the ‘Hell-on-Earth’ history that surrounded Port Arthur, to the stunning capital of Hobart. Hobart’s stately style is a beautiful juxtaposition of 19th century architecture with a backdrop of Mount Wellington and a stunning deep-water harbour.
As the disappearing light signalled another day’s close it was rewarding to stop, think and recalibrate. It’d already been a day full of riding concentration, and that made the dusk run into New Norfolk most rewarding.
Cutting edge
A bustling town on the River Derwent, New Norfolk has a rich history as the island’s third-oldest settlement, established by evacuees relocated from
Top right: Queenstown’s Hunters Hotel opened in 1898 and is now being given a new lease on life.
Below: The Weldborough Hotel. A break for riders travelling the east coast.
Norfolk Island after the prison was abandoned in 1807.
Away from New Norfolk up the west coast there are no weather guarantees. The cooler arctic currents and winds off the southern ocean influence weather in those parts without fear or favour.
It’s plain dumb to overlook packing wet-weather kit if you intend moving through the world-famous wilderness and remote, west-coast regions.
About 30km north of New Norfolk the village of Hamilton was a perfect breakfast stop and preparation for the countless kilometres of empty highway and unsealed passages wriggling between the world-heritage listed ranges of the region.
The Lyell Highway unfolded, climbing initially from the south through some wonderfully open rural country and thick forest to arrive at Derwent Bridge and the huge, timber, Derwent Bridge Wilderness Hotel. Operated by David and Carol Fitzgibbon, the hotel’s massive open fireplaces, billiard tables, long bar and arguably the State’s biggest knife-stabbed burgers have become a rendezvous for travellers generally and riders in particular.
99 bends
Northwest across the mystical Franklin River, the daunting summit of Frenchman’s Cap, one of Tasmania’s most striking mountains, loomed to the south. The tarmac’s continuous sweeps and curves made upping the pace through the famed ‘99 bends’ section to Queenstown on the west coast very enjoyable. The Lyell Highway descends, crawling its way over a landscape decimated by copper mining and logging in the early 1900s, and is a great technical decline into the township.
Above: Pitstop Café owner Ian Brown (right) talking restoration with former environmental scientist Matt Natonewski.
It was the looming lack of remaining daylight that accelerated the day’s final fling to Strahan, a 41km charge along a bendfilled, rough-edged ribbon of bitumen heavy with local traffic. It was a happy end to a solid day.
Classic
Morning in those parts is like dreamtime, and surrounded by the smell of rain it was off to Zeehan via a gloriously empty coast road. A piercing, cold wind was a precursor to the heavens finally unloading in a big way, and when the Pitstop Café loomed into view on the northern fringe of Zeehan the decision to stop was an easy one.
Operated by Susan and Ian Brown - a bike lover - the café should be renamed ‘The Royal Enfield’, because the delightful little place is bursting with all sorts of Enfield paraphernalia, including Ian’s work-in-progress, a restoration of one of the brand’s classic models. The place was alive with customers and travellers holding court with Ian and more locals than Susan could be reasonably expected to serve.
Granville Harbour
An unsealed, white, gravel passage was next.
Located on the coast within the Pieman River State Reserve and originally a solider settlement after the World Wars, Granville Harbour was an opportunity to stand and view the Southern Ocean. It had been a popular fishing destination for locals and a holiday destination for miners when Queenstown and Zeehan were at their mightiest.
An empty road from Granville Harbour to, and across, the wall of Reece Dam was exhilarating and I rejoined the Murchison Highway as the rain began to fall again.
Thankfully the Murchison Highway is top of the crop in terms of surface, with plenty of very long curves, some almost like a slingshot. It wasn’t difficult to knock over distance rapidly along this section, at the same time blow-drying any remaining wet patches.
Back to Devonport
As I completed my lap it was easy to see why so many riders are such huge fans of this pristine island State. It’s one enormous attraction after another when it comes to motorcycling. If you haven’t ridden there yet, start planning. If you enjoy the exhilaration and freedom of riding hundreds of kilometres at a time on twisting, coastal, mountain and open-country roads, complemented by friendly people and curious places, Tasmania is top-shelf escapism.
Below: Dale ‘Rock’ Bartlett had a sizzling barbeque ready.
International relations
What happens on tour, stays on tour…except for Miles Davis, who’s always happy to share some fabulous experiences.
mIles
Just a few weeks ago I was riding around Mongolia showing groups of riders from all over the world a tour most of them would probably call a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I met lots of great people from different countries, but they all shared a passion for motorcycles and adventure. Welcome to BMW GS Trophy’s ‘Follow The Trails’ tour (aka FTT). FTT is an opportunity for everyday adventure riders to experience what the GS Trophy event is like, without the competition and the camping.
Bucket list demand GS Trophy Thailand 2016 saw around 60 customers take on the technical tracks and trails of the GS Trophy. This year’s FTT was fully subscribed with keen customers signed up in record time. It’s not surprising Mongolia is considered such a cool place to ride. It’s a large, remote country nestled between Russia and China with a very interesting history, incredible landscapes and a totally different lifestyle to most of the world. It definitely ticks the ‘adventure’ box.
Deep, dry sand with steep, aggressive dunes. u
Images: Vanessa Blankenagel
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The tours
As I wrote in my last column, this was my first GS Trophy event so it was great to be asked to also be a tour guide for the FTT tours. After a brief trip home I jetted back to Ulaan Bataar to help with two of the seven tours.
The rides started and finished at the same GS Trophy Tourist Camp in UB, then headed out for a six-day, 2000km loop. There were between 20 and 30 riders per group with varying levels of riding experience, so, due to the large amount of sandy terrain on some of the days, there were easier route options available. I was lucky enough to take the moreexperienced group of riders for each tour, so we were able to take on the trickier stuff to make sure nobody in the group felt that they weren’t getting their money’s worth.
In between the tours the guides had three days to catch their breath and prepare the bikes for the next group.
Outback-style
It was already clear from my first stint in Mongolia the style of terrain posed some identical challenges to the outback riding here in Australia. Wide, open spaces and long, straight sections of dirt roads aren’t particularly challenging. In fact they can be quite boring. But that’s the trap. The terrain is easy, so the speeds go up and the concentration goes down. Throw in unexpected obstacles like ruts, a dip/floodway with a sharp edge, or some sand when it’s least expected and suddenly it’s a wild ride.
Many Australians have had this experience and know how to handle it. But riders from Europe and Asia often
have no experience of wide-open spaces and are therefore not prepared for the risks.
I saw immediately that rider briefings almost identical to those given on outback GS Safaris would go a long way in preparing riders and giving them a chance to avoid some of the costly mistakes. It’s the simple stuff: don’t follow too close; space gives you vision and time; don’t eat dust; stay in clear air so you can see traps before you ride into them; expect the unexpected; and keep focus, especially as your speed goes up.
Friendly wildlife
The one thing we didn’t have to worry about was the wildlife. There was plenty of it, more than I’d ever seen – camels, horses, goats, sheep, cows and even
gazelles – but none of it wanted to run into us. Over 10 weeks of riding, with hundreds of riders, I don’t believe anyone hit an animal. That was very reassuring as it’s such an issue in Australia.
Changing conditions
During my first two laps it was dry and dusty, and I don’t think we had a drop of rain. It did rain a bit while I was home, and it was incredible to see how quickly and how drastically the moisture changed the deserts. I saw challenging, deep, sandy tracks turn into firm double track. I saw barren desert turn into endless lush green. And in the end I saw torrential rain turn dry desert tracks into creeks and floodplains.
At Camp 1 on my final tour the rain didn’t stop all night, our ger (Mongolian for ‘yurt’) flooded and I was stressing about what the next day would bring.
The rain stopped, we delayed the start so we could check out the tracks, and it wasn’t good.
Above: This area was called ‘The Friendly Dunes’. Many riders had their first dune experience here on the last day and loved it.
Below: It was Dr Karl!
Top right: There are thousands of Buddist monuments called Ovoos. Three laps, for good luck in your past, current and future lives. You can never have too much good luck.
Within a kilometre all three guides’ bikes were bogged and it took us an hour to get back to camp. I really thought we were screwed. Then we checked the maps and there was another option. It wasn’t ideal, it was wet and tricky, but as we continued it started raining again and we could see some tour 4x4s stuck up ahead, so we turned back. The rain belted down and we struggled. The tracks were rivers in places, and it was something I’ll never forget. Luckily we made it and in
the process found another way to get the group back to the road, and that gave us a chance to get to Camp 2.
The day was epic. There were bogged bikes and support cars, but we made it and it was a day nobody will forget in a hurry.
Gobi dunes
One of our camps was directly in front of the massive Gobi dunes, and on the way to the camp was the dune canyon
the marshals played in during the scouting tour. As I was leading stronger riders I gave them the option give it a go. It wasn’t for everyone. It was deep, dry sand with aggressive steep dunes and only a narrow access track through the middle. We stopped at a large Ovoo (a Buddhist shrine made of a pile of stones and blue cloth) near the entrance to the dunes, dropped tyre pressures and I took small groups in for some laps. It was epic! u
Back at the camp the beers tasted good as we watched the sunset over the endless dunescape.
The Enchanted Valley
On the fifth day, on the way to camp at Hanhorin, which was the historical home of Chengiss Khan (and at one time, the biggest city in the world), we rode through an incredible scene I named The Enchanted Valley.
It’s difficult to put into words, but I guess it was a sensation overload of mountainous scenery, rivers, animals and experiences. It just always seemed to deliver. This was the place where we would always see yaks and we could ride up high on the edges of the valley for
mind-blowing views.
One day we took a group into a family’s ger to sample some fresh horse milk. I was given the heads-up by one of our local guides to do this. I parked and walked up to a ger and gestured with my hands to drink something and pointed at the horses that were tied up. It took a few minutes, but before long myself and some Columbians, Greeks and a Taiwanese were inside their home sipping horse milk from a bowl while mum was preparing the stomach and intestines of a sheep for dinner and a young boy was churning horse milk into cheese.
The family were so welcoming and seemed happy we’d stopped by. The one large room was their house, bedroom for
four, lounge, kitchen and everything else. Not long after that experience we rode to the top of the valley where a young boy on a horse greeted us. He was looking after a flock of sheep, but was happy to jump on to a bike for some pics while one of the group jumped on to his horse.
With other groups we rode up to see huge eagles sitting on rocks and watch them fly away, rode through packs of wild horses, or just took in the magical views.
It was a very special place.
Pure water and Dr Karl
In my second group we had a couple of special guests, two guys from Waves For Water, a BMW-supported charity that travels to remote areas providing free water purification kits to families.
The guys were ex-military, fit and strong, but very caring and loved what they did. During the tour they’d scheduled presentations in various locations so I was invited to join one to see what it was about. The location was ridiculous, nestled directly at the base of the tallest
Above: The locals know how to get across the river. The bike of choice is a 150cc Chinese ag/trailbike. Left: A highlight of the trip was interacting with the kids. These guys helped their dad change hundreds of tyres for our fleet.
Top right: It was mind-blowing riding the towering Gobi Desert dunes. Only 300km from the Chinese border.
Gobi dunes, close to a natural spring where many families in the area sourced their water. It was an oasis and actually looked like it was fake.
There were about 50 locals to see the demonstration. It obviously meant a lot to them as some of them were clearly emotional about how having clean drinking water would have a positive impact on their families.
As the presentation wrapped up I saw a few tourists cruising to the water spring and I heard a lady with an Aussie accent. Then I heard this tall guy say two words and I instantly knew it was Dr Karl! I’ve listened to JJJ forever and I’m a huge fan of Dr Karl, so it was great to meet him. We took photos and he asked what we were up to. He asked so many questions about my bike I suggested I should take him for a spin. So we did.
Sand blasted
Every couple of tours we’d get some crazy sand storms. One lasted for a whole day, but most were short but aggressive. During the bad ones you simply have to get off your bike and hide behind it while the storm went past. Daylight seemed to turn to night at the peak and it felt like being sandblasted. The worst one turned into a thunderstorm, but 20 minutes later the sun was shining and we were laughing about what had just happened.
Done and dusted
In the end the tour organisers asked me to stay for another two tours, so it was four in total. I did some sums and ended up being in Mongolia for almost 10 weeks, I did around 13,000km with no flats, crashes or mechanicals (I did almost break my arm, but that was on a super-slippery, tiled bathroom floor where my feet went up and I landed on my forearm. For a minute I thought it was all over, but luckily the cut wasn’t deep and the swelling was controlled with a bandage so I could keep on riding).
It was definitely an amazing experience and I met some great people from all over the world. We’re already arranging a reunion ride with the four groups I led. The plan is to meet in Enduropark Andalusia in March for a day of training (they all want to learn how to wheelie, ha ha!) and a three-day tour in the hills.
It’ll be great if we can make it happen.
off Road
training Course with miles davis
After a successful series of training courses earlier this year more courses will take place before the end of the year.
All brands are welcome! From novice to advanced riders. Courses planned for Vic/NSW/Qld
Register your interest now, course details will be emailed to you Email: advriderskills@gmail.com with your name-postcode-mobile
Improve your
Improve your Bike controlPrecision - Confidence - Traction - Balance
With over 15 years experience in off-road rider training
Why does the photo never show just how steep the track is?
The essence
Andy ponders on adventure-riding motivation.
Is the essence of adventure hooning or exploring?
Do we ride adventure bikes:
A) To help us poke into those places a road bike won’t get to and enjoy the solitude, hiding from the Catherine-wheel of modern life? Or B) Is it to push our skill and endurance, challenging ourselves to the limits of our chosen steed’s design?
Answer:
C) All of the above.
Finding that balance is the trick. We’ve already looked at the puffing and sweating type of adventure riding, and I reckon a little is okay. More than that I might as well stay home and bank domestic credit by diggin’ friggin’ holes in the garden (okay, I’m exaggerating).
Pushing the limits just past our edge is really cool and confidence builds on confidence. Push too far and the wind can be lost from the sails and the good ship Wannavego becalmed. Sometimes for good.
Can do
I was talking to a rider the other day who’s confidence was totally shattered by such an experience, and it was in the hands of people who should’ve known better. She’s now almost sworn off the dirt.
How many of us have been taken on a ride with the line: “Nah, you’ll be fine. It’s not gunna be too hard, Just easy dirt.” Only to find yourself hip-deep in a creek or looking for mountain-goat DNA to kick
in, falling off every few kilometres in sand or mud with cardiac arrest just over the next contour bank, and “I’m too old for this shit,” spat out between gasps?
There’s a road around our way that has a few technical sections, but not too steep or long. There are some lovely contour banks to get some air under the wheels and a fun river crossing. Every time I sneak through that way I feel I’ve popped out the other end just that little bit better rider for having done it.
A recent ride with a less-confident mate on a TRX502 Benelli, a road-based bike, pushed her past the ‘can do’ point just to the edge of ‘no bloody way’. Myself and the third member of the group knew she had it in her and with care and support Kel popped out the other end of the track. On the trip home she smashed it with a grin a country kilometre wide and a boost of pride.
Positive
My point is that we need to look after our mates and take them where they can shine. It’s way more important than us showing off.
An easy ride never makes a good yarn, but pulling the sump plug out of someone’s confidence, or taking them where they can’t save face, can do an enormous amount of damage. Getting them into a place where they feel they mustn’t pussy out, then having them attempt riding too far outside their comfort
Andy stRApz
zone is an un-matey thing to do. That’s why we choose the ride and company carefully sometimes, and that’s fair enough.
The smell of Dettol is not pleasant, especially as you’re soaking in it. Let’s make sure we build up, not low side, our mates’ ‘can do’ psyche. The more I think about it, let’s try to get them to, “Outta my way! Bring it on!”
Below: Getting riders to attempt riding too far outside their comfort zone is an un-matey thing to do.
Do we need to help our fellow riders gain their confidence? Or should they harden up and embrace the adventure? Let us know what you think. Email tom@maynemedia.com.au and we’ll make sure Andy hears your thoughts.
Karen Ramsay
Does size matter?
Karen Ramsay ponders the big question.
Since getting back from Nepal I haven’t done much riding, and I haven’t found anyone at work yet to offer any sympathy for this plight. There’s nothing like long-service leave and a holiday to get your colleagues jealous.
They’re probably a bit tired of asking me what’s up every time I gasp or chuckle out of the blue and I say, “I was just remembering the time in Nepal that
little wet chicken I was holding jumped into the fire and I rescued it,” or, “I was just thinking about the time in Nepal I crossed my first swing bridge and how it left me on a high for the rest of the day.”
Essentials
It’s surprising how quickly we slip back into our dayto-day routines despite wondering how we’ll ever accept our normal ever again. It was also surprising how many people were just not interested in my travel stories. Here was I at work, brimming with tales, a loop of photos playing in the background of my first meeting back at work, and — nothing. Other than someone who’d been to Nepal in the past, nobody was clamouring for the details.
While it took us a little while to settle down again after just five weeks away, for long-term travellers the post-travel blues take a lot longer. Well, Marty always takes forever to get over a ride, while Meg, Dave and I were straight back to work and reality. In essence, we just continued on where we’d left off, but for world travellers it can often be like starting a whole new chapter. In our daily lives we have a fair idea of what will happen each day. When you’re travelling you often have little idea of what you’re
Words: Karen Ramsay. Images: Dave Ramsay and David Pidcock
KARen RAmsAy
Above: A 250 handled the Himalayas without a problem.
likely to encounter, who you’ll meet or even where you’ll sleep that night. The unknown versus the predictability can be one of the addictive qualities of travelling. Then there’s the realisation that we have so much ‘stuff’ in our lives. On the bike, all
you need (usually) is there with you. You realise that, while three different shirts can be a bit boring, you don’t really need 18 shirts. Wants and needs become very clear.
Weighty matters
That’s where I come to thinking about my bike choice.
For a while now, a few people have been saying to me that I’d be better off on a smaller bike. I’d been dismissing the
idea for a few reasons: there’s nothing wrong with the Terra; a smaller bike won’t make me a better rider and so forth. Seeing the places Dave takes his BMW F800 and the way other people wield their larger bikes also made me think that there was no reason to downsize from the TR650. Yet, I should perhaps be letting reality have a bit more of a say. I’m not, contrary to my youthful demeanour, getting any younger. I struggle to lift my bike on a good day, and other riders, male and female, with far more experience and knowledge than me are looking to smaller, lighter bikes for the same reason. u
Left: A small bike is a good as a big one in this situation. Below left: Husband Dave has no problems handling his 800GS.
Not a natural rider
I’m only just getting to the point where I can understand and have the time to think about what’s happening when I get into difficulty. It used to be I’d be riding along, and the next thing I’d be laying beside the bike wondering what happened. Most of the time now I can analyse to some extent what went wrong; that is, what I’ve done wrong. I can also avoid situations by realising what’s happening and taking steps to correct it. When you’re learning to ride, or not a natural, people say different things about revs or brakes or whatever, but you’re just doing your best to keep it upright and avoid bigger obstacles. Thinking about, understanding and having the ability to react to some of these things isn’t even on your radar.
A lot of partners get a bit frustrated the new rider doesn’t seem to be able to vocalise what they’re doing or react the
way they can. In the learning phase, it really is hard to process everything that’s happening and react. There’s just so much going on.
With experience, aspects of riding become automatic so you can focus on other things that are happening. I still fall at stupid moments, but usually now that’s when there’s someone standing there with a camera and I get fixated on not wanting to look like a fool. There’s also part of me that doesn’t want male riders to think all women riders are like me, so it works to my advantage when there’s at least one or two other women along whose riding is equal to the men.
’Net result
This leads back into what bike I should be looking at.
Ask that question on any social-media forum and you’ll get more traffic than a
road to Finke in June. Everyone seems to have a different opinion and there’s a whole lot of brand bashing. I’m lucky in that people who know my somewhat doubtful riding skills have offered to let me ride their bikes to try them out (okay, only one person, but that was very nice of you Kylie). While her WR250R is lowered to suit her, after taking it for a brief ride I can see why she’s one of the people recommending I downsize. Going from my 650 to her bike and back to mine was a great way to compare how much lighter and more manoeuvrable a smaller bike would be. Riding the CRF in Nepal felt the same, but having that direct comparison was great. The idea that a bigger bike is necessary if you’re travelling and camping isn’t relevant either. She’s ridden her bike fully loaded with camping gear across the country quite comfortably, and plenty of people do long journeys, even ’roundthe-world trips, on smaller bikes.
So now the quest to find the small bike that’s perfect for me begins. Perhaps I should ask for opinions online?
Above: The range of adventure bikes is almost as huge as the range of adventure riders.
Left: It can be struggle to lift a big bike. Plenty of riders are looking to smaller, lighter bikes.
What I’ve learned
R Post-adventure blues is real
R Not even the keenest adventure rider wants to view 2000 of your best, bike-themed photos
R Riding doesn’t come naturally to everyone
R Size does matter
R I still haven’t forgotten my first swing bridge
KTI PLB $299
Visual
Signal
Touratech BMW R1200GS
Touratech puts the polish on the jewel in BMW’s crown.
Hand protectors from $209.28
Pannier systems from $1987.91
Tank bags from $270.85
Seats from $837.49
Suspension front and rear from $4800
Engine guards from $531.02
Upper crash bar extensions from $616.14
Sidestand-base extension from $59.05
Windscreen from $302.35
Desierto fairing from $675.57
Headlight protection from $155.17
Radiator protection from $229.28
Crash bars from $702.09
Brake caliper cover set $111.48
new products Checkout
Listen here and have no fear. It’s first-class gear from a shop that’s near.
ZAc speed MAtrix tooL pAck
We’re loving this Zac Speed gear!
R 1680D poly-fabric construction
R YBS with rubberised, all-weather slider pulls
R Hyperlon gripper backing
R Removable 1680D tool-roll insert included
R Front- or rearward-facing design
R CONFIGR8 compatible
R Clear map pocket
AirhAwk Ahr-L seAt cushion
Fits most medium to large dualsport bikes as well as most cruisers, tourers and sport tourers.
R The only motorcycle seat cushion with a solid connection to the medical industry
R Improves circulation
R Absorbs shock and vibration
R Increases riding time
R Air pad made of durable polyurethane
R Breathable spacer-mesh cover with non-skid bottom
R Attachment straps included
RRP: $59.95. Tools not included
Available from: www.zacspeed.com
Email: info@zacspeed.com
ALpinestArs sM10 heLMet
Based on Alpinestars’ five decades of protection development.
R Lightweight carbon multi-layer composite shell construction
R Four-density EPS liner
R Lining includes canals which allow a tube to be connected to a hydration system
R Emergency Release cheek-pad system (ERS)
R ECE certified
R Coolmax comfort liner
R Spare visor and helmet bag included
R Sizes: S to XL
RRP: $849.95
Available from:
All motorcycle stores
Web: monzaimports.com.au
RRP: $179 including Express Post shipping Australia-wide
Available from: Airhawk Australia Phone: 1300 783 128 Web: airhawk.com.au
ForMA cApe horn boots
Waterproof touring boots.
R Oiled, full-grain leather
R CE-level approved protection and quality
R Built for touring and light adventure riding
R Touring sole
R Optional toe caps
R DryTex breathable and waterproof liner
R Easy entry
RRP: $329
Available from: formaboots.com.au or any Forma dealer
neW pRoduCts
pro Moto biLLet dr650
cArgo rAck
Brutishly strong and functional.
R Methodically engineered
R CNC machined from a 12mm plate of USA-made 6061 aluminium
R Hard clear anodized
R Also available in black (but will show wear marks over time)
R Stainless-steel fasteners
R Instructions and all necessary hardware included
RRP: $249 – $269 plus postage
dririder c1 AdVenture boot
A full-grain leather adventure boot with a water-repellent suede upper.
R Waterproof and breathable lining
R D3O internal ankle protectors (CE EN13634)
R TPU gear-change pad
R Antibacterial, replaceable footbed
R Reinforced heel and toe area
stAnd-sensor bypAss dongLe
To be carried as a spare part and used to get you and your bike to safety if the OEM sensor fails.
R Fits Husqvarna 701 (2017 onward), KTM 1090 (2017 onward) and KTM 1290 (2017 onward)
R If the OEM sensor fails it can’t be repaired on the trail. It’s not just a matter of twisting the wires together
R Not to be installed in place of the OEM unit. It will allow the bike to engage gears with the sidestand still in the down position
R Antitwist and punctureresistant midsole Adventure, all-terrain vulcanised rubber sole Available in black sizes 41 to 48 and brown sizes 39 to 48
RRP: $299.95
Available from: Your local motorcycle dealer Dealer enquiries phone: McLeod Accessories 1300 300 191
FirstgeAr kAthMAndu jAcket
A serious jacket for serious adventure touring. Waterproof and breathable outer shell Fully adjustable D3O T5 CE armour in the shoulders and elbows
R EVA dense-foam back pad included
R Under-the-helmet rain hood integrated into the collar
R 1.5-litre hydration bladder included in removable backpack
R Elbow and underarm waterproof and breathable
stretch material
R Double storm flap
R Large rear dry pouch
RRP: $535
Available from: AdventureMoto Web: adventuremoto.com.au
ALtrider cLeAr heAdLight guArd For the AFricA twin
A broken headlight can cost over $1000 to replace.
R 4.7mm scratch-resistant polycarbonate
R Bracket made from two-millimetre, laser-cut stainless steel
R Attaches using four OEM mounting points
R No-tools quick-release face for easy cleaning
R Headlight guard also available in stainless-steel mesh
R Compatible with Adventure Sports model
R Not compatible with OEM upper light bar
RRP: $215
Available from: Barrett Products Web: barrettproducts.com.au
Andy strApZ coVAZ
Like a tent fly for the bike. The editor raves about his own Covaz.
R Super lightweight, 70 Denier, ripstop bike cover
R Protects instruments, controls and seat
R Reduces temptation to touch the bike
R Tested in the bleak, wintery gales of Phillip Island and the the Australian alps
R Attaches to the bike with adjustable, three-millimetre, stretch, shock-cord loops
R Inverts into its own bag measuring about 25cm long and 10cm diameter.
R Fits most bikes
R Will not fit the large tourers like the LT BMWs and ST1300s
RRP: $65 plus postage
Available from: Andy Strapz
Phone: (03) 9786 3445
Web: andystrapz.com
x. wed2 heLMet
Upgrade of the best-selling X.D1, one of the editor’s favourites. He’s loving the new WED 2.
R Available in three different sizes (shell 1: S, shell 2: M-L and shell 3: XL to XXL)
R New peak with more air flow, less noise and less vibration
R Top ventilation with three positions, easy to operate with gloves on
R Upgraded emergency-release cheek pads.
R Chin windstopper with more secure fixing
R New chin vent
RRP: $649.95
Available from: Bike shops Web: ctaaustralia.com.au
dynAMoto roLLing stAnds
Innovative, fixed-axis, multi-directional wheels provide smooth, 360-degree rotation and sideways movement.
R Increase floor space by pushing your bike tight against a wall or parked car
R Unparalleled convenience when you have multiple vehicles in storage
R Make it easier to work on, and maintain, your bike
R Allow others to easily and safely move your bike
R Quick, safe and easy single-person operation
R Available for a wide range of double- and singleswingarm bikes
Designed and manufactured in Brisbane, Australia 10-year warranty
See the website for prices and to purchase Web: dynamoto.com.au
denALi soundboMb coMpAct
duAL tone Air horn
Inconspicuous styling and obnoxiously loud. Don’t sacrifice safety for style.
R Denali’s blacked-out horns practically disappear once installed
R Rugged, moulded clamp mechanically mates the compressor to the acoustic unit making the SoundBomb virtually indestructible, even in highvibration applications.
R 120dB at one metre
R 20-amp power draw
R 137mm x 114mm x 91.5mm
R Stylish all-black design
R CANbus compatible
R Make/model/yearspecific mounting kits sold separately
RRP: $89.90
Available from: Your local motorcycle dealer Web: www.whitesmoto.com.au
neLson-rigg rigg geAr hydrAtion bAckpAcks
Adventure backpacks with added comfort.
R Adjustable mid-mesh pocket
R Straps are two-way adjustable
R Padded back panel with airflow system
R Light colour
R Enduro model: 2.5-litre carrying capacity and two-litre bladder
R Adventure model: Nine-litre carrying capacity and two-litre bladder
RRP: Enduro $79.95. Adventure $119.95
Available from: All leading motorcycle dealerships Web: nelsonrigg.com.au
MotoZ Lightweight AdVenture tyres
A tube-type Tractionator.
R Designed specifically for lightweight adventure touring
R Developed for bikes like Husky 701, KTM 690, CRF250L Rally, WRF250R, DRZ400 and future parallel twins
R Same tread pattern and rubber compound as Tractionator Adventure tubeless
R Unique enduro/adventure profile for better ride and handling
R Soft/intermediate carcass
R Front tyre available in 90/90-21 to suit rim sizes 1.60 and 1.85
R Rear tyres available in 120/90-18 and 140/80-18 to suit rim sizes 2.15, 2.50 and 3.00
RRP: Front $159.95. Rear $189.95
Available from: Your local dealer Web: jtr.com.au
schuberth r2 heLMet
Free tinted visor with all purchases before December 31, 2018.
R Round to intermediate oval internal head shape
R Aerodynamically tuned shell
R Pre-installed speaker and microphone
R Plug-and-play prepared for the new SC1 communication system
R Extra-large anti-fog lens
R Spoiler integrated into the helmet shell/neckroll
R Antimicrobial, removable, washable liner
R Variable venting
RRP: Solid colour $699. Graphics $799. With SC1 standard comms pack $950 (save $200) Available from: schuberth.com.au
Airtech eVo gore-tex boots
A mid-length boot designed for hot-climate touring.
R Upper made from ultra-strong microfibre and breathable, abrasion-resistant cordura fabric
R Micro inserts for extra protection and strength
R A full-length Gore-tex lining
R Ankle, heel, shin and toe protection
R Elastic zip and highstrength velcro closure
R Ultra grippy and durable sole
R Available in black in EU sizes 36-48, US 3.5-13
RRP: $379
Available from:
All leading motorcycle dealerships Web: tcxboots.com.au
rxt Zeneth 2 heLMet
High-flow ventilation and a lightweight ABS shell.
R Ultra Flow Ventilation system
R Large eyeport to accept large-frame goggles
R Adjustable peak
R Double D rings
R Lightweight ABS construction
R 3D, fully washable/ removable liner
R AS/NZS 1698 standards approved
sw-Motech’s new AdVenture rAcks
All the strength of a steel rack but the weight of an aluminium rack.
R Storage surface features large eyelets for strapping down gear
R Adapter available to fit Rotopax cells
R Extension plate available to accommodate larger soft luggage
R Adapter kits available to attach SW-Motech and other top cases
R Bike-specific to ensure best fit
RRP: From $211
Available from: Motorrad Garage Web: motorradgarage.com.au
RRP: $99.95
Available from: Moto National Accessories Web: motonational.com.au
heLinox j-stAkes
Ultralight tent pegs.
R From 10gm each
R High-strength DAC alloy will never rust
R Superior holding power
R Available in 160mm and 300mm sizes
RRP: From $16 for a pack of four with free shipping
Available from: helinox.com.au
FirstgeAr kiLiMAnjAro 37.5 jAcket
A waterproof and breathable shell with 420D and 620D nylon fabrics.
R Five-year materials and workmanship warranty
R Three interior pockets, including oversized cellphone pocket
R Five exterior pockets
R Adjustable slider, snap collar closure
R D3O protectors in elbows, shoulders and back
R Micro-adjustability allows fine tuning of armour placement
R YKK waterproof zippers in strategic areas
R Top shoulder vents with hold-open straps
R Huge, vertical back panel vents
RRP: $595
Available from: AdventureMoto Web: adventuremoto.com.au
neW pRoduCts
koVix ALArM chAin Lock
A 10mm, hex, hardened-steel chain with protective sleeve and auto alarm system.
R Rechargeable battery, USB cable supplied (needs to be recharged every three months)
R 110cm in length
R Chain locks directly into lock
R Alarm function On/Off selection
R Built in 120dB alarm system
R Alarm protected by zinc alloy body
R Three keys supplied
R Comes in a heavy-duty carry bag
RRP: $124.95
rAd guArd 2018 ducAti MuLtistrAdA 1200 And 950 rAdiAtor And oiL-cooLer guArd set
Simple protection for exotic bikes.
Available from: Pro Accessories Web: proaccessories.com.au
rocky creek designs
Lightweight FoLding t
Take your outdoor experience to the next level.
R Takes seconds to setup
R Weighs 469gm
R Packs down to 360mm x 90mm
R Will hold up to 15kg
RRP: $75 plus postage and handling
R Easy to fit
R Allows adequate airflow
R Made from aircraft-grade aluminium
R Available in black or polished alloy
R Three-year worldwide warranty
R Australian made
RRP: $229. On special for $175. Available from: Rad Guard. Phone: (02) 6658 0060. Web: radguard.com.au
Available from: Rocky Creek Designs and all good motorcycle stores Web: rockycreekdesigns.com.au
green ninjA MotorcycLe
chAin oiLer
Designed for any bike rider.
R Easy to use
R Compact
R Less mess
R Less waste
R Keeps wheels and frame clean
R Great for tight spaces
R Made in the USA
RRP: $29 with free delivery in Australia
Available from: Smart Motorcycle Accessories Web: smartmotorcycleaccessories.com.au
2 Mx436 pioneer heLMet
An off-road adventure helmet designed with safety, style and comfort in mind.
R 3D, optically correct, ‘A Class’ polycarbonate visor with twin-shield system
R Visor is scratch/UV/ fog-resistant and Pinlock ready
R Removable and washable, breathable, hypoallergenic liner
R Reinforced chin strap with quick-release buckle, emergency-release system, metal security plate, and multidensity EPS
R Dynamic flow-through ventilation utilising channelled ports and multiple vents on the front, top, sides and back
RRP: $199
Available from: LS2 stockists Web: www.LS2Helmets.com.au
You won’t nd a better offer anywhere.
The kits include SW-Motech's new Pro Side Carriers & Adventure Rear Luggage Rack and come with all mounting hardware. Choose between black or silver TraX Adventure cases.
Not enough? For even more storage, the kit comes with two TraX expansion bags, which strap to the top of the side cases. TraX Adventure cases and expansion bags are water proof, so your gear stays dry and free from dust.
Rear and side racks are bike speci c and assure optimal t for your bike.
For full details simply shop online, call or visit our Sydney or Perth stores.
