VJMC #138

+ NEWS . EVENTS . RIDE REPORTS . AND MORE Quarterly Club Mag www.vjmc.org.au

ISSUE 138

VJMC INC AUSTR ALI A

VJMC Australia Committee President John McNair johnfour750@hotmail.com Secretary Paul Johnson pj0067@bigpond.net.au / paul_joh85@hotmail.com Treasurer Steve Phelps steve.phelps@bigpond.com Vice president/Public Officer David Bernardi mrdbernardi@gmail.com Area Rep Coordinator Alan Stork storka.01@hotmail.com Membership Secretary Mick Godfrey mgo22098@bigpond.net.au Merchandising Officer Peter Donnellan peted@internode.on.net Committee Member Graeme Knight glknight22@hotmail.com Committee Member Stephen O’Farrell stepheno2812@gmail.com Committee Member (Rally) Phil Dawes dawes105@bigpond.com Librarian Lyndon Adams lyndarra@gmail.com Editor Tom Calderwood tom@pepperpublishing.com.au

Cover: 1960 Honda RC161 - The first Honda to compete in the 250cc class, this machine took third in the 1960 West German GP. Photo by Simon Whittaker

138 CON TEN TS

President’s Report

4

Laverda Concours

6

NSW Log Book Scheme

7

Lower Hunter Report

8

NW + S NSW & ACT Report

9

SEQ News & Calendar

10

Kingaroy Ride

12

SA Report & Rides

13

Tri-State overnighter

14

Western Victoria Wanderings

16

Melbourne Metro

17

National Rally Invitation

18

National Rally forms (pull out)

19-26

Members Directory

27

Full Rundown of Japan Tour

28

Club Info

40

Membership Renewal

42

Please Contribute

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PR ESIDEN T’S COLUMN

Firstly, a big thank you to our trusty editor Tom for putting in a column in Issue 137 for me while I was away on the VJMC Japan Tour. And what an issue it was. Lots of interesting reading and a really classy bike on the front cover. Yes I am rather partial to the Honda Fours. Have been for about 40 years when I bought my K2. However while I do have a collection of Honda’s I also love all the other VJM’s out there. Even today on my way home I stopped into my local shopping centre and as I was getting out of my car I spotted a VJM in the motorcycle parking area. I ducked over for a look and here was a very original Suzuki A100 but unfortunately no owner to be seen. The owner of some large cruiser looked perplexed when I walked past his bike to check out this little old bike. Well you get that.

Wow! What an amazing trip we had to Japan. Jeff and Jane Eales excelled in organizing 37 people all around Japan. The Suzuka 8-Hour Race was an unforgettable experience with I believe around 80,000 people there and some great racing throughout the day and into the night with the race finishing around 7.30pm under headlights. The Japanese race fans love their motorcycle racing with both ladies and gents sporting there factory colours including flags for Honda, Yamaha or whatever team they followed.

At night the flags were packed away and out came the coloured fluro sticks. A lady next to me in the grandstand had an I-Pad with all the teams on it and what lap they were on or if they crashed etc.

The 37 degree heat was made bearable with cooling tents which provided misting water from above.

The Honda museum was just AWESOME. I mean, what can I say, we got the best first.

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Actually the Suzuki and Kawasaki museum’s were very good too. I just loved the great collection of Honda 60’s race bikes. I’ve read about them for years but never thought I would actually see them in the flesh so to speak. There collection of 50’s and 60’s road bikes was fantastic too.

The Suzuki museum had a great collection of early bikes too and their 3D theatre was just amazing too. Both these museums featured cars too. The Kawasaki museum was fabulous too and although they didn’t have as many bikes on display as the other two it was fascinating to see all the other things they make as well as motorcycles. Everything from the amazing bullet trains that we travelled on (at speeds up to 284 kph) to ships, bridges, planes, helicopters and even the impellers in the Rolls Royce engines in the airliners that we flew there and back in.

It was a very pleasant surprise while walking through the Kawasaki museum to see a large mural on the wall featuring two of our great Aussie racers Ron Toombs and another with Greg Hansford, both of whom are no longer with us.

The coach tour of Tokyo was great as was the Peace Park in Hiroshima, the Steam Train Museum in Kyoto, the aquarium in Osaka and our visit to Yamiya Honda 750 Spares Shop in Nagoya.

Nagoya’s underground shopping centre’s which go under several blocks were amazing as were the huge bookshops. At a time when E-books are supposed to be taking over it was unreal to see so many bookshops with enthusiastic customers in a country that’s a leader in technology. All these things were amazing but it was made so much better with the comradeship of those taking part in the trip. Some of these I already knew and some of them I didn’t. Pretty soon however we www.vjmc.org.au

PR ESIDEN T’S COLUMN

got to know each other. With most of the eastern states represented it was great to meet all these fellow members. I must again say a big thank you to Jeff and Jane, Olivia at JTB and of course to all of you who helped to make this one hell of a memorable trip.

Well 2015 is coming to and end and the big man

in red will be Ho Ho Ho-ing along in his Honda powered sleigh (just kidding) so I would like to take this opportunity to wish all our members and their families a wonderful and safe Christmas and Happy New Year. See you all in Canberra.

Ride Safe John McNair

www.vjmc.org.au

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L AV ER DA CONCOUR S

LAVERDA CONCOURS

By Eric & Merilyne Leah

This year marked the 27th running of the Laverda Club’s concours which is now held at the Cleveland Show grounds, one of the bayside suburbs of Brisbane.

Those who have been around a while will recall it used to be held at Captain Burke Park underneath the Story Bridge at Kangaroo Point.

A discussion at various club meetings brought forward suggestions of expanding our club display this year, and to try to showcase what the VJMC is all about.

Earlier in the year we had a working bee to make up display equipment. This was used to showcase at least one motorcycle from each major manufacturer, and display bikes in such a way that they could be viewed from all sides.

All owners of bikes being displayed were asked to write a short story and attach photos about their bikes journey and restoration, etc, etc.The bikes were arranged in a circular fashion around our Marquees.

SEQ Treasurer, Scott, wrote a short history 6

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of the four major Japanese Marques which were put on display style lecterns at each corner, next to the featured bike from that manufacturer.

The stand was well received and there always seemed to be a bit of crowd around it at all times.

The set out meant people could have a good look at any of the bikes, read a little bit about either the model, or that particular bike, and there was always someone on the stand who was happy to talk about their bike.

There were a few inquiries regarding membership, and also many more offers of bikes for sale “which we might be interested in.”

Once again the Laverda club organised a good event, and there was a large amount of interest from exhibitors and a good crowd in attendance.

The highlight of the day was the VJMC being awarded best club display on the day, which will encourage us to do the same or better at next year’s event. www.vjmc.org.au

NSW LOG BOOK SCHEME

NSW LOG BOOK SCHEME As of the 1st October, VJMC NSW has opted in to the new Historic Vehicle Log Book Scheme, and club members with conditionally registered machines can opt to participate in the new scheme by notifying the RMS and being issued with a Log Book for each machine.

The scheme allow up to 60 days (pro-rata each year of conditional registration) to be used for activities outside club events, which must be recorded in the Log Book maintained by the club member.

Members can still also participate in club events

as previously AS WELL as the Log Book Scheme, which means that it will become much easier for members to get out for a ride when time allows without having to arrange a ride ahead of time.

Members don't have to join the new logbook scheme and for those members, their Conditional Historic registration will continue as before without any change.

Full details of the scheme are available on the RMS website at http://www.rms.nsw.gov. au/roads/registration/get-nsw-registration/ historic-v ehicles/log-book-trial.html

www.vjmc.org.au

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LOWER HU N TER R EPORT

LOWER HUNTER REPORT Club activities since the last magazine have included the following:The July ride was scheduled for Williamtown Fighter World at our local RAAF base. This is a great interactive display combined with an aircraft museum. Unfortunately, the wet weather put paid to our designated ride date and also the backup date. Oh well – next year!

August saw our “ride the Putty Rd“ event.

For a variety of reasons – mechanical, timing, member commitments to other activities and the combined distance, the Putty Rd remains unconquered for us in 2015. Whilst we reached the famous bendy strip, a collective decision to abandon our ride was taken and each made their way home.

The September ride was to Broke Village Fair. This is a combination of local craft stalls, industry stalls and all types of Vintage and Classis cars and Motorcycle Club displays, along with stationary engines and various service club stalls and promotions. The whole event was very crowded and it was also a very warm day. Traffic,

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parking and the general public made for a hectic but interesting day. Lots of cars and bikes of interest and plenty of chrome to polish.

September is also the time of the Newcastle Annual Mattara Festival, and the VJMC was invited to participate.

This is a carnival held over a couple of weeks with all kinds of activities culminating in the Mattara Hill climb held by the local MG car club. The weather was unhelpful once again, but did not prevent the hardy souls amongst us from attending the day and promoting the VJMC banner and raising the awareness of our presence in the district.

Daylight saving is upon us, and we will be conducting a monthly twilight mid-week ride to the Hunter Foreshore and Harry’s Café de Wheels. Ahh – the pies. This is a great opportunity to showcase the vast array of vintage and classic bikes in the Hunter and I am sure the bikes will benefit from a mid-week “cobweb blowout”.

www.vjmc.org.au

NORTH WEST & SOU TH NSW + ACT R EPORT

NORTH WEST NSW REPORT Garry Hennessey

Firstly, it seems my email was misprinted in the last mag. Correct email: gph2251@gmail.com sorry for the confusion.

Our first official ride was on the 1st of August, just a short trip around the Elsmore loop with three club registered bikes, Rodney on a 750 Suzuki, Graham and his 650 Yammy and myself on my Honda CB 175.

Sunday 23rd saw us at the Inverell Pioneer Village for a local car and bike show with plenty of eye candy to drool over (cars and bikes that is!).

The weekend of the 29th/30th of August was the Grafton Vintage bike Rally that I attended on my CB 750. A great weekend of bike riding and great weather with plenty of lovely bikes of all makes and ages.

Septembers ride on the 5th was changed and we decided to meet Graham in Delungra for a farm auction, certainly something different and a bit of an eye opener to see what some people will pay for things!. Graham bid for and acquired an XL

125, not for himself, but for President John, or so he says, we’ll see who ends up with it.

The weekend of the 11th and 12th of September was the Northern Rivers Rally at Ballina which I attended on my CB 175 and for the first time in about 12 years of rallies I had the dubious honor of riding in the back-up vehicle as the little Honda did not want to play. Just a minor problem of a new seal on the fuel cap that was too tight and causing vacuum in the tank, an it was easy fix once it was worked out.

On Saturday 10th October Rodney, Graham, Ken and myself took a pleasant ride thru Tingha and across to Copeton Dam and back to Inverell.

That’s the last few months covered and with the warmer weather now on the way we may be opting for a couple of rides a month.

A suggestion has been put in to include a Tiddler’s ride, as there are plenty of smaller road and off road bikes around.

See you on the road.

Garry: 0418496538

ACT + S/NSW RIDE REPORT Spring in the ACT and surrounding districts makes for great riding weather, with those frosty cold mornings happily gone. Local members have met up for a few local rides on the weekends, and they have been well attended, with a large variety of motorcycle marques coming along.

Apart from the big four Japanese marques attending, we are seeing Bridgestone’s, BSA’s, Triumphs, BMW’s, Ducati’s and Harley’s out on the ride days as well. Great to see such a wide variety of both modern and older classics out and about.

The rides have all been at a relaxed riding pace to cater for all riders and motorcycle capacities/

abilities. A good response has been received by all attendees, as most members enjoy riding in a group, which makes it all the more enjoyable. We are trying to keep the majority of rides within a half day period, with the odd full day in the mix as well. Hopefully this caters for all.

Planned rides will always be put up on the club’s website calendar and an email will also be sent out with all the details concerning date, route, timings and contact numbers.

So for any members in the ACT and surrounding areas, all are most welcome to attend and I’m sure you’ll enjoy the ride and company of like-minded others.

www.vjmc.org.au

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SE QUEENSL A ND NEWS

SE QUEENSLAND NEWS ALTHOUGH IT’S BEEN WINTER WE HAVE HAD SOME GOOD EVENTS THROUGHOUT THE AREA. ONE OF THE HIGHLIGHTS WAS WINNING THE “BEST CLUB DISPLAY” TROPHY AT THE 2015 LAVERDA CONCOURS IN JULY.

This event attracts thousands of spectators each year and the motorcycle parking area is like a bike show in itself. Several clubs were represented along with trade stands and of course the actual Concours which was the biggest it’s been for some years and included some spectacular machines.

The VJMC display was an oval shaped display and contained about 15 bikes, some restored and some not. The display attracted a lot of interest and Ian Smith’s Honda RC166 Replica with its six megaphone exhaust system had people swarming around it whenever he started it up.

Other bikes on the display ranged from early 60’s to the 70’s and 80’s. Sizes were from 200cc to 1100cc. It was great to see John and Sue Albertson there from Tamworth VJMC following John’s hospitalization. Keep up the good work John.

The Tiddler Rides have been changed to a Lightweight Ride and includes machines up to 500cc however the route set down for the mid August ride was all 60 and 80kph zones so as to still suit the tiddlers. The ride started and finished at the car park for Mount Cootha Gardens which allows members to trailer the tiddlers in for the ride. The ride covered about 70 klms Taking in Mount Cootha summit, a drink stop at the BP garage (and fuel for Rowan’s Trials bike with its tiny tank) in The Gap, Gap Creek Road, Upper Brookfield, Pullenvale and Chapel Hill. There were lots of twisties, uphills and downhills for the eight or nine bikes. Most of the riders stayed for lunch at the Gardens Café.

Saturday morning Breakfast at Tony’s Café

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in the premises of Tony Armstrong Suzuki in Underwood have been popular and is a great opportunity for socializing and admiring the bikes in the parking area which is closed off to motorcycles only on Saturdays. Everything is available from toasted sandwiches to a big bacon and eggs breakfast.

Some of our VJMC members won trophies at the Honda CB750 Clubs “Living In The 70’s Show” in September. The 2015 show was moved to the motorcycle hub of Moss St Underwood and featured over 40 classic Japanese motorcycles with a lot of people there to check out the machines on display which included machines from the VJMC, Honda 750 club, Honda CBX club and the Kawasaki Z Owners Club along with other private entrants. VJMC winners were Ray Burrows (Suzuki TS250), Glen Wilson (Honda CL77), Eric Leah (Yamaha 200), Terry Neilson (Kawasaki 900 Jaffa) and Robin Hall (Honda TL125).

Also in September was the ride to Mulgowie south west of Laidley in the Lockyer Valley. The ride got off to a cool start but warmed up for the run down to Boonah via Roadvale and Teviotville for morning tea at Café 17. It was then on through Kalbar to Cunningham’s Lookout where we were greeted with views across the Fassifern Valley.

On through Rosewood and Grandchester to the historic Mulgowie Hotel where we caught up with fellow club member Ken Knight.

Keep it safe and I look forward to seeing you on one of our South East Queensland events.

John McNair

www.vjmc.org.au

SEQ CALENDAR

SOUTH EAST QLD RIDE CALENDAR DECEMBER 2015; Wednesday 2nd

Bike Nite at Harry’s Diner 104 Newmarket Rd Windsor. Join hundreds of bikes there from 6pm.

Tuesday 8th

Club Meeting at the Belmont Tavern in Belmont Shopping Centre corner Burstall Ave and Belmont Rd Belmont at 7pm.

Sunday 13th

“Christmas on the Spit”. Day ride to The Spit on Somerset Dam for 2015 Club Christmas Party. BBQ lunch provided. Leave Caltex Garage Warrego Hwy Blacksoil at 9am. More info at club meeting.

JANUARY 2016; Wednesday 6th

Tuesday 12th

Bike Night at Harry’s Diner 104 Newmarket Rd Windsor. Starts from 6pm to 6.30pm. Hundreds of bikes attending.

Club Meeting at the Belmont Tavern in Belmont Shopping Centre corner Burstall Ave and Belmont Rd Belmont at 7pm.

Sunday (date TBA); Historic Clubs breakie ride to Red Cedar Picnic area on Northbrook Parkway west of Mt Glorious.

FEBRUARY 2016; Wednesday 3rd Tuesday 9th

www.vjmc.org.au

Bike Night at Harry’s Diner 104 Newmarket Rd Windsor. Starts from 6pm to 6.30pm. Hundreds of bikes attending.

Club Meeting at the Belmont Tavern in Belmont Shopping Centre corner Burstall Ave and Belmont Rd Belmont at 7pm.

Note; Club breakfast get together each Saturday morning at Tony’s Café Tony Armstrong Suzuki Kingston-Beenleigh Rd Underwood from 7.45am.

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K INGAROY R IDE

KINGAROY RIDE SOUTH EAST QUEENSLAND GROUP August 29 – 30th August.

IT WAS QUITE DULL AND CLOUDY AS WE LEFT BRISBANE FOR THE WEEKEND RIDE TO KINGAROY WHICH LIES ABOUT THREE HOURS NORTH WEST OF BRISBANE. HOWEVER WE HAD PLANNED A DETOUR VIA ESK, HAMPTON, GOOMBUNGEE AND THE BUNYA MOUNTAINS. OUR GROUP HAD ONLY THREE BIKES AND FIVE PEOPLE AT THIS STAGE WITH GRAEME AND RUTH TO MEET US AT THE BUNYA MOUNTAINS CAFÉ.

We met at the Caltex Garage at Blacksoil on Brisbane’s west and proceeded up the Brisbane Valley Hwy to Esk. On the way we passed over the wall of the massive Wivenhoe Dam which at 75 percent is equivalent to three and a half times Sydney Harbour. It’s quite a spectacular view. We had many more views of the dam before we got to Esk. Chris led us to a great little coffee shop in Esk for a morning tea stop.

Soon back on the road again in sunshine as we headed for Hampton at the top of the range. The climb up the range offers splendid views back over the Lockyer Valley.

Onto the New England Hwy at Hampton and then north towards Crows Nest turning off at Peachy to the historic town of Goombungee with its old verandahs an quaint old hotel. We passed through one or two villages before meeting the Dalby-Bunya Mtns Rd. Ahead lay the mountains however in between us and the Bunya Mtns was a band of rain but it looked clear on the mountains.

Got through that rain okay and proceeded to climb what had looked nice and dry mountains before but the rain was back and it was a slow ride up to the Bunya Mtns café where we met up with Graeme and Ruth who had a table right next to a wood fireplace. The rain had really set in now along with the mist. On with the wet weather gear and on the road. The foliage is quite thick and in some places the trees on each side of the road touch in the middle. Visibility was poor and as I hit one lot of water running across the road 12

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the wash off the front wheel took my feet off the pegs. Once down off the mountains the visibility improved however the rain stayed with us to Kingaroy. Soon were at the Kingaroy Country Motel with its undercover parking to unpack the bikes Great.

Changed and showered we rang the RSK courtesy bus which duly arrived and transported us to the club for tea. Food was good with a couple of beers and lots of stories before hopping on the bus back to the motel.

After quite a lot of rain through the night Sunday dawned a beautiful sunny but cool day.

Fortunately I had a spare pair of gloves to replace my wet ones from the day before but Chris strapped his wet gloves to his tank bag and road with bare hands through Maidenwell to Cooyar.

Stopped here for fuel however Chris couldn’t turn his bike off as his hands were blue and totally numb and he couldn’t hold the key. No, we didn’t laugh. Well maybe a little bit. Ummm!

A lot. How cruel. Back on the road and through Crows Nest to Hampton for lunch at Flavours Café. Great café with the owner a motorcyclist all motorcyclists are welcome. This road from about 40 klms before Cooyar follows the range and is very scenic. The road down to Esk again was fun before rejoining the Brisbane Valley Hwy back to Brisbane. A top weekend and I must say a big thank you to Craig from Toowoomba who helped out with info on the roads from Goombungee to the Bunya Mtns.

John McNair www.vjmc.org.au

SA R EPORT

SA REPORT Really hard to believe that another year is nearly done. Where do they go? We’ve had some good runs this year, notably the regular run to Roy and Bev’s cafe in Piccadilly, which is always a great day – even when it’s wet and foggy – and the annual Tri State overnighter, this year held in Berri in the sunny Riverland. This allows the more remote members in Broken Hill and Mildura to get together with the SA guys and share a bit of time riding, eating, drinking and bs’ing – Berri worked very well for us this year and the popular vote was to hold it there again next year. When we have energetic Riverland members like Simon and Raelene, and Ash and Sylvia, it makes it really easy to put together a

successful weekend like that and they deserve all the thanks we can give.

We have a few events still to go (at the time of writing) – October 31st which is a ‘charity ride’ after which we will make a donation to CanTeen, and then the not-to-be-missed Xmas ride/lunch on December 6th, followed the next weekend with the Toy Run on December 13th where we will have a display. And of course the regular last Thursday of the month social/dinner at the Tonsley Hotel.

Hope to see at an event soon – your friends and families are always welcome too.

Cheers Peter Hunt.

SA CHARITY RIDE A perfect day greeted us on Saturday 31st Oct for our inaugural Charity Ride. A total of 19 bikes gathered at the departure point at Stirling, in cool sunny conditions. We had some new members there and a couple who had not been on rides with us before, so it was nice to meet them and share some chats.

After the greetings and chats the ride got started and we headed up to Mt Lofty, across to Norton Summit, then Marble Hill, down through a couple of valleys on back roads that most people had not been on before, back out onto Lobethal Rd and arrived at the Amberlight Motorcycle Cafe in Lobethal, which is owned by club member Jo. Here there was much chatting, eating, bike perving, coffee’ing etc, and I passed the hat (well, old cream bucket) around to collect some dollars for CanTeen, the organisation that looks after kids/teenagers with cancer – hence why it was called a Charity Ride.

I am very pleased to report that we collected a grand total of $550. A truly awesome amount which exceeded all my hopes, so many many thanks to those that attended and dug deep for a very worthy cause. You can be very proud that you have helped a kid to live a happier and more comfortable life.

At the end of lunch, and a couple of cold bevvies across the road for some, the crowd started to disperse and people made their own way home by various routes, enjoying a perfect riding day.

Great weather, great riding, great company..... what more do you need?

Thanks go out to Jo and the staff at Amberlight for looking after us so well (coffee is always good!), and again special thanks to those that attended and handed over some ‘hard-earned’ to help some needy kids. You have done the club proud.

Peter Hunt

www.vjmc.org.au

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BAROSSA RU N + TR I STATE OV ER NIGHTER

SA BAROSSA RUN 18th April

Report by Tom Osborne.

It was a good turn out, despite the dubious weather. We had 10 bikes of various guises, from a 500cc two stroke to the mighty Kawasaki and Honda sixes, on the run.

The sun was just shining as we set off from Kersbrook, with a slight drizzle in the air. A pleasant ride up to Williamstown and through to Menglers Hill for a pit stop to take in the lovely view over the Barossa Valley.

The weather held off as we headed onto Birdwood, passing through the rapidly greening Eden Valley, slowing briefly for Springton and Mt Pleasent. The

lure of warm coffee at Birdwood spurring us on as the rain started to get heavier.

We finished up at Birdwood meeting another bike and with 2 more bikes (250 and 750cc) who had been, unknown to the pack, slowly catching up since Kersbrook, made it 13 bikes in total. We enjoyed a light lunch of coffee, burgers and pies and of course, good company. The sun started to shine as lunch ended and we all headed home.

A big thankyou to all those who came, some from down south, and made the ride a success.

TRI STATE OVERNIGHTER ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL TRI STATE OVERNIGHTER WAS HELD ON THE WEEKEND OF THE 29TH AND 30TH AUGUST. WE HAD 6 BIKES AND 1 CAR LEAVE BOLIVAR JUST BEFORE 9AM ON SATURDAY 29TH AUG, A MORNING WHICH WAS COOL, A LITTLE OVERCAST AND WITH THE ODD BIT OF DRIZZLE ABOUT. We headed off towards the Riverland, with the first stop being Truro to pick up another 2 bikes and another car (which should have been a bike but that’s another story). With clearing skies on to Blanchetown for 2 more bikes, then Barmera for another car.

We arrived at the Berri Caravan Park right on 12 (minus one bike due to an unfortunate mechanical issue), to be met by 5 from Broken Hill and 7 from Mildura, and of course our hosts Simon and Raelene and able-bodied helpers Ash and Sylvia.

The bbq was already sizzling, and after checking in to our rooms, meeting new friends and reacquainting with old over a hot cuppa, it was time to tuck into a delicious lunch very kindly donated

by Simon and Raelene – thank you so much!!

We (I counted 27 bikes) then were escorted to Renmark (via some much welcomed twisty 14

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backroads) by the owner of the bike collection we had been invited to view, onto the ferry (I wasn’t expecting overseas travel so this was a nice surprise) and to the property to see the collection... and what a collection. I’m not mentioning names or too much about it to protect privacy, but most of us would kill for a shed like this and separate man cave that really would do nicely as a permanent home! We were very privileged to spend a couple of hours perving on the collection of mostly British bikes, including one that is rocket powered.... no, not a Rocket 3, a real rocket! It’s reportedly capable of propelling the very brave rider (if one can be found) to in excess of 150mph. We were treated to coffee/tea and homemade cakes as well – thank you so much to the owner of this collection for allowing us a look around, and to his wife for the delicious afternoon tea. Fantastic. www.vjmc.org.au

TR I STATE OV ER NIGHTER

Back to the caravan park, freshened up and off to the Berri Resort Hotel for dinner. Excellent food, drinks and company, and then the 10min walk back to the caravan park where Simon had set up the overhead projector with a dvd on the making of The World’s Fastest Indian, plus a doco on the man himself Bert Munro, with interviews and rare footage – really entertaining, and Simon had also saved some other bike articles for us to watch. This was accompanied by more coffee/tea and homemade cakes and biscuits – we were very spoilt thank you Raelene!!

After a big day it was off to bed not too late, and Sunday morning Simon and Raelene had organised the local Girl Guide troop to cook us a bbq breakfast. A hot breakfast was very welcome after the near 0 deg night, plus there was the option to have just cereal/toast. Thank you to the Girl Guides for doing an awesome job, nobody was left hungry!

It then came time to head off in our respective directions, under clear skies and warming sun, and with the Broken Hill guys facing a 400+km trip home they couldn’t have asked for a better day. It was a great ride home back to Adelaide in perfect conditions and light traffic.

I know I’ve said thanks a number of times, but it really does need to be said – setting the date and sending out emails is the easy bit – the work was all done by Simon and Raelene and Ashley and Sylvia, you guys are legends and your generosity and thoughtfulness deserves all the accolades we can muster. Thank you so much.

This event is really shaping up to be a regular date on our calendar, so thank you also to all those that made the effort to be there – without you it wouldn’t happen. I hope you enjoyed it as much as me.

Peter Hunt

www.vjmc.org.au

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WESTERN VIC CONGRATULATIONS TO DAVE PARKER REPRESENTATIVE FOR OUR NEWEST AREA MORNINGTON PENINSULA-PHILLIP ISLAND. THE AREA HAD ITS FIRST GET TOGETHER WITH APPROXIMATELY 20 PEOPLE ON 17 BIKES MEETING TO ENJOY A BBQ THEN A RIDE TO THE FAMOUS ARTHURS SEAT. FOR THOSE OF YOU ON THE PENINSULA DAVE CAN BE CONTACTED ON 0416154056 OR EMAIL DHPARKER@BIGPOND.NET.AU John Doward. Looking forward, we at Western Vic are thinking about putting on a tongue in cheek bike show. We might call it the Show and Grime. It will be just for fun, with a run before,

and a BBQ afterwards. A chance to get some of the bikes out that other members may not have seen. Might be something that other areas could consider putting on?

Western Region Wanderings July 9 Winter Dinner at the Scarsdale Hotel 29 members turned up on a chilly Thursday night to celebrate winter for the VJMC Western Region.

We had an action packed night with raffles, an auction and to cap it off Trivia!

Whilst it wasn’t just about bikes, the VJs did feature with a continuous slideshow presentation chronicling the history of the Western Vic Region from humble beginnings in 2008 to now where we have about 40 members affiliated with the area.

Quotes from those attending: • A great evening!

• Great night - good company, good food.

• Nice open fire and I loved the salad with the meal. The salad was unusual (to me) and brilliantly tasty. Not rabbits food.

• It was a great night. A very enjoyable evening.

• What a great night ,with a great bunch of people.

• Look forward to the next one... great fun with great friends.

• Yep. A fun night with like minded people.

• Great imagination = great fun!!

Last Sunday in July Monthly ride and meet drab weather coffee and a yarn about old Jap bikes no ride.

Last Sunday in August Monthly ride and meet Again with the weather threatening a few hardy souls from Ballarat and Geelong met up at Meredith.

Last Sunday in September Monthly ride and meet Finally we got to do the ride from Ballarat to Colac by various back roads as organised

by Bohdan, magnificent weather finally, and breathtaking scenery along with riding our old bikes!

Andrew debuted his GPZ750

16

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

www.vjmc.org.au

MELBOUR NE METRO R EPORT

MELBOURNE METRO REPORT Words by John Doward, Photos by John Doward & Phil Scorah.

Melbourne group members have been involved in the following rides & events over the past few months: • Multiple Sclerosis charity fundraising ride around Port Phillip Bay 12th July • Greg’s mid-week ride to Gembrook & Yarra Glen 15th July • Historic & Vintage Restorations visit 18th July • Steve’s mates day ride to Dalyston 9th August • Paul’s mid-week ride to Yea & Marysville 19th August • Tom’s Dandenong’s ride 23rd August • Beaumaris Concourse Car & Bike Show 13th September • Andrew’s mid-week ride to Hazeldene & Lancefield 16th September • Murf’s Agnes Falls ride 26th September • Distinguished Gentleman’s prostate cancer charity fundraising ride in Melbourne 27th September.

Upcoming rides & events are listed on the VJMC website calendar. All VJMC members and interested guests are most welcome to attend.

Ride your vintage Japanese motorcycle there if you can, but not compulsory. Ideas for more rides & events are also most welcome. We hold informal social evening meetings on the last Tuesday of each month (except earlier in December) from 7

pm at the Grandview Hotel, corner of Heidelberg Road and Station Street Fairfield. For the 28th July meeting, we held a special ‘Christmas in July’ evening where members kindly donated lots of warm clothing and $228 raffle proceeds to assist the Avalon Centre with their homeless support program.

Hope to see you at a ride or event soon.

www.vjmc.org.au

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

17

VJMC NATIONAL RALLY. CANBERRA, ACT - 4-6 MARCH 2016 INVITATION The ACT & Southern NSW Region invites you to attend the VJMC National Rally in Canberra from 4-6 March 2016. The rally will offer a variety of rides (including some suitable for tiddlers), quality trophies and raffle prizes, great food and the opportunity to meet old and new friends from across Australia and overseas.

WHAT TO SEE AND DO IN CANBERRA As the nation’s capital Canberra is home to many great national attractions including Parliament House (both new and old), the Australian War Memorial, the National Museum of Australia, the National Art Gallery, the Portrait Gallery, the High Court, the National Library and the National Film and Sound Archive – all these places are well worth a visit during your stay in the Canberra region.

RALLY HEADQUARTERS For 2016, and in keeping with the ‘Southern NSW Region’ part of the organising group’s name, the national rally will be based at the Capital Country Holiday Park located in Sutton, NSW (approximately 15 kilometres north-east of Canberra City). The Capital Country Holiday Park offers a variety of accommodation options ranging from tent and van sites, bunk house accommodation (a great option for those who don’t mind sharing a room and ensuite with others for much less than the cost of a tent site) and basic cabins through to bungalows and lakeside villas. Make sure you mention you’re attending the VJMC rally to take advantage of the group discount rates they are offering on accommodation.

Contact details for Capital Country Holiday Park are as follows: Street/Postal Address: 47 Bidges Rd, Sutton NSW 2620 Telephone: 1800 664 269 or (02) 6230 3433 Facsimile: (02) 6230 3483 Website: www.capitalcountryholidaypark.com.au Email: bookings@capitalcountryholidaypark.com.au PROGRAM Friday: T he 2016 VJMC National Rally will officially kickoff at the Capital Country Holiday Park with a BBQ dinner (and Yvonne’s famous fruit muffins).

Saturday: On Saturday morning there will be a very pleasant ride around Lake Burley Griffin that will finish at the National Museum of Australia for lunch, the ‘Concours’ judging and ‘Show and Shine’ judging. In addition to the rally entrants, motoring enthusiasts from all over the Canberra and southern NSW region will be out in force to marvel at our magnificent machines, check out the static displays of our supporters and join in the festival atmosphere of our National Rally.

On Saturday night the Annual Dinner will be held at the Capital Country Holiday Park (this is a BYO venue). In addition to the ‘Concours’ and ‘Show and Shine’ judging awards there will be some great raffle prizes.

Sunday: The VJMC Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held at Capital Country Holiday Park on Sunday morning – members are invited to attend to elect office bearers and find out what has been happening with the Club and its wider patronage.

Following the AGM there will be a leisurely ride through southern NSW for morning tea and lunch after which riders will return to Capital Country Holiday Park to bid farewell to friends old and new.

18

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

www.vjmc.org.au

2016 VJMC National Rally

Q. A.

Q. A.

Q. A.

Q. A.

Is there an extra charge for bringing more than one motorcycle?

No – there is no charge for bringing more than one motorcycle.

What sort of accommodation does Capital Country Holiday Park offer?

In addition to offering a range of cabin-style accommodation Capital Country Holiday Park also offers bunk house accommodation (three sets of bunks – minimum of three people per room – with ensuite), drive through sites for caravans and unpowered tent sites (most are grassed but some have concrete slabs).

Do I need to let Capital Country Holiday Park know I’m with the VJMC Rally?

Yes – Capital Country Holiday Park are offering group discount rates on accommodation for rally entrants – make sure you let them know you are with the VJMC Rally when you book to receive the discounted rate.

How many people can I register and order meals for on a registration form?

A maximum of two people – and meals for two people – may be registered/ordered per form.

However, and in the spirit of supporting the rally, entrants who are not the married/de-facto/legal partner of the main entrant should register using separate forms.

Where can I get a PDF copy of the registration form?

A PDF copy of the registration form (which you can fill out and save and which also calculates the totals) can be downloaded from either www.vjmc.org.au or www.vjmc-rally.info.

Registration Form FAQ

Q. A.

............................................................................................................ Home Ph #: ......................................

Postal Address:

...............................................................................................................................................................

[provide name(s) and details]

 5XL* A $.....................

$.....................

$.....................

Pre-Ordered Meals (lunches will be available for purchase but do not need to be pre-ordered)

Total for Registration Fee

 4XL*

 Short Sleeve Polo (+ $ 7.00)  3XL

 Long Sleeve T-Shirt (+ $ 4.00)

 Non-VJMC Member @ $ 50.00

Size S M L  XL  2XL (* Long sleeve t-shirt NOT available in size 4XL or 5XL)

 Short Sleeve T-Shirt (FREE)

 VJMC Member @ $ 40.00

Registration Fee (ONLY required for Main Entrant - includes one Badge and one Short Sleeve T-Shirt)

All persons attending the rally, taking part in rides and/or displaying motorcycles MUST register A maximum of two persons – and meals for two persons – may be registered/ordered per form

...............................................................................................................................................................

..........................................................................................................................................................................

Special dietary requirements:

Email Address:

............................................................................................................ VJMC Member #: .............................

Spouse/Partner Name:

............................................................................................................ Mobile Ph #: ......................................

............................................................................................................ VJMC Member #: .............................

Main Entrant Name:

Event Registration Form

Canberra, ACT ~ 4-6 March 2016

Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club National Rally

Clear All Fields In Form

 Payment by Direct Deposit

Commonwealth Bank of Australia 062-801 VJMC Rally Account 10240696 Your Postcode and Surname (in that order)

 Payment by Cheque/Money Order

 post*

Please make cheque/money order payable to: Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club Inc

 email

Financial Institution: BSB Number: Account Name: Account Number: Reference:

Please confirm my registration by:

Please send proof of payment with the completed forms.

Please include a stamped, self-addressed envelope.

*

...........................................................................

For payments made by Direct Deposit you may send a high quality scanned (not photographed) copy of the completed forms and proof of payment via email to: VJMC.Rally@gmail.com

Year

...........................................................................

Send completed forms and payment/proof of payment to: VJMC Rally Treasurer PO Box 4217 Ainslie ACT 2602

...........................................................................

Make

Details for Motorcycle # 2

Year

...........................................................................

Details for Motorcycle # 1 Make

No 

...........................................................................

Yes 

No 

Model

(1) Please judge for trophies:

Yes 

No 

...........................................................................

No 

(2) Partially/fully restored:

Yes 

No 

Model

Yes 

No 

(3) Concours condition:

Yes 

...........................................................................

(1) Please judge for trophies:

Yes 

No 

(4) Will be ridden to/during the rally:

Rego #

(2) Partially/fully restored:

Yes 

No 

...........................................................................

(3) Concours condition:

Yes 

Rego #

(4) Will be ridden to/during the rally:

(1) Only select Yes if you want the motorcycle to be judged in one or more trophy categories.

Yes  Yes  Yes  Yes 

(2) Partially/fully restored:

(3) Concours condition:

(4) Will be ridden to/during the rally:

No 

No 

No 

No 

...........................................................................

Rego #

(1) Please judge for trophies:

...........................................................................

Model

No 

No 

No 

Yes 

(3) Concours condition:

Yes 

Yes 

(2) Partially/fully restored: (4) Will be ridden to/during the rally:

Yes 

No 

No 

No 

No 

...........................................................................

...........................................................................

...........................................................................

(1) Please judge for trophies:

Rego #

Model

Make

...........................................................................

Make

Yes 

Yes 

Yes 

No 

...........................................................................

Year

(4) Will be ridden to/during the rally:

...........................................................................

No 

(3) Concours condition:

Year

Yes 

(4) Will be ridden to/during the rally:

No 

(2) Partially/fully restored:

Details for Motorcycle # 6

Yes 

(3) Concours condition:

No 

Yes 

...........................................................................

...........................................................................

(1) Please judge for trophies:

Rego #

Model

...........................................................................

Details for Motorcycle # 5

Yes 

(2) Partially/fully restored:

No 

...........................................................................

Rego # Yes 

...........................................................................

Model

(1) Please judge for trophies:

...........................................................................

Make Make

Year

...........................................................................

Year

...........................................................................

Details for Motorcycle # 4

Details for Motorcycle # 3

Yes  Yes 

(3) Concours condition:

(4) Will be ridden to/during the rally:

No 

No 

No  (4) Will be ridden to/during the rally:

(3) Concours condition:

(2) Partially/fully restored:

No 

No 

No 

No 

(4) Only select Yes if the motorcycle will be ridden to the VJMC Rally and/or on at least one of the VJMC Rally rides.

(3) Only select Yes if the motorcycle is in Concours condition (ie, in ex-factory condition – may be original or restored).

(2) Only select No if the motorcycle has not been either partially or fully restored (ie, none of the engine, frame or body parts have been polished, re-painted, re-chromed, etc) since the motorcycle was manufactured and it is in substantially original condition (eg, original parts only replaced due to wear/tear/damage and/or for safety/maintenance reasons).

Yes 

Yes 

Yes 

Yes 

...........................................................................

...........................................................................

(1) Please judge for trophies:

Rego #

Model

...........................................................................

(1) Only select Yes if you want the motorcycle to be judged in one or more trophy categories.

Yes 

(2) Partially/fully restored:

No 

...........................................................................

Rego # Yes 

...........................................................................

Model

(1) Please judge for trophies:

...........................................................................

Make Make

Year

...........................................................................

Year ...........................................................................

Details for Motorcycle # 8

Details for Motorcycle # 7

Total for Registration Fee

Size S M L  XL  2XL (* Long sleeve t-shirt NOT available in size 4XL or 5XL)

 3XL

 4XL*

 5XL*

A $.....................

$.....................

(1) Only select Yes if you want the motorcycle to be judged in one or more trophy categories.

 Short Sleeve T-Shirt (FREE)

 Long Sleeve T-Shirt (+ $ 4.00)

 Short Sleeve Polo (+ $ 7.00)

(2) Only select No if the motorcycle has not been either partially or fully restored (ie, none of the engine, frame or body parts have been polished, re-painted, re-chromed, etc) since the motorcycle was manufactured and it is in substantially original condition (eg, original parts only replaced due to wear/tear/damage and/or for safety/maintenance reasons).  Non-VJMC Member @ $ 50.00

$.....................

Registration Fee (ONLY required for Main Entrant - includes one Badge and one Short Sleeve T-Shirt)

 VJMC Member @ $ 40.00

(3) Only select Yes if the motorcycle is in Concours condition (ie, in ex-factory condition – may be original or restored).

...............................................................................................................................................................

...............................................................................................................................................................

[provide name(s) and details]

..........................................................................................................................................................................

............................................................................................................ Mobile Ph #: ......................................

............................................................................................................ Home Ph #: ......................................

............................................................................................................ VJMC Member #: .............................

............................................................................................................ VJMC Member #: .............................

Spouse/Partner Name:

I have a current and valid motorcycle license that covers the use of the motorcycle(s) I will be riding in the ACT;

Main Entrant Name:

a.

The motorcycle(s) I ride will be fully or concessionally registered, or be operating under a permit scheme, and have third party insurance that covers the use of the motorcycle(s) whilst riding in the ACT during the VJMC Rally; and

Postal Address:

If I plan to ride a motorcycle during the VJMC Rally I declare and confirm that:

Email Address:

I will not hold the VJMC or any of its representatives or sponsors responsible for any damage to or theft of machinery or possessions or for any bodily injury sustained during the course of the VJMC Rally.

Indemnity Statement – for all persons intending to ride and/or display a motorcycle at the rally

Special dietary requirements:

All persons attending the rally, taking part in rides and/or displaying motorcycles MUST register A maximum of two persons – and meals for two persons – may be registered/ordered per form

If you are entering more than two motorcycles please complete the following page

(4) Only select Yes if the motorcycle will be ridden to the VJMC Rally and/or on at least one of the VJMC Rally rides.

1.

2. b.

Event Registration Form

c.I will observe the terms and conditions of the relevant registration/permit scheme for the motorcycle(s) I ride.

.....................................................................

Signature: ...........................................................

Signature: ...........................................................

Clear All Fields In Form

Main Entrant Name:

.....................................................................

(Rally registration not valid unless this form is signed)

Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club National Rally

Canberra, ACT ~ 4-6 March 2016

I accept that VJMC Rally organisers reserve the right to prevent riders and/or motorcycles not complying with any of the three conditions above from taking part in rally rides.

Spouse/Partner Name:

.....................................................................

d.

Date:

@ $ 17.00

~ Egg & Bacon Roll

 M  L  XL  2XL  3XL

 M  L  XL  2XL  3XL  4XL  5XL

Long Sleeve T-Shirt:  S

Short Sleeve Polo:

@ $ 25.00

C $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

B $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

Total payment due by 5 February (or ‘Late Fee’ applies)

$.....................

Qty ..…. $.....................

C $.....................

Total for Extra Rally Badges and Shirts @ $ 10.00

B $.....................

Total for Pre-Ordered Meals

Late Fee (per person and only if applicable)

A $.....................

Total for Registration Fee

Payment Due

Registrations received after Friday 5 February will incur a $10.00 ‘Late Fee’ per person Absolutely NO registrations will be accepted after Friday 12 February

Total for Extra Rally Badges and Shirts

S

@ $ 18.00

 M  L  XL  2XL  3XL  4XL  5XL

Short Sleeve T-Shirt:  S

@ $ 22.00

@ $ 10.00

Badges:

Extra Rally Badges and Shirts

Total for Pre-Ordered Meals

@ $ 15.00

~ Continental Breakfast

Sunday Breakfast (Capital Country Holiday Park)

@ $ 35.00

~ 2 Courses & Tea/Coffee

@ $ 17.00

~ Egg & Bacon Roll

Saturday Dinner (Capital Country Holiday Park)

@ $ 15.00

~ Continental Breakfast

Saturday Breakfast (Capital Country Holiday Park)

@ $ 10.00

~ BBQ & Salads

Friday Dinner (Capital Country Holiday Park)

Pre-Ordered Meals (lunches will be available for purchase but do not need to be pre-ordered)

Q. A.

Q. A.

Q. A.

Q. A.

Q. A.

Q. A.

Who can I contact if I need more information?

Please send an email message to enquiry@vjmc-rally.info or contact either Phil Dawes (02 6236 9868) or Kathy Leslie (02 6247 0827).

How quickly will my registration be processed?

Rally registration forms will normally be processed within 2-3 days of being received. However, as the Rally Treasurer will be away from mid-September until mid-December, rally registration forms received during this period will not be processed until late December.

What is the cut-off date for rally registrations? Can I change any details after I have registered?

Absolutely NO new registrations, or changes to existing registrations for clothing or pre-ordered meals, will be accepted after Friday 12 February. However, additions/changes to bikes entered for the rally will be accepted until Tuesday 1 March.

What types and sizes of shirts will be available?

The JBs brand of shirts has been chosen and the styles available are: short sleeve t-shirt; long sleeve t-shirt and short sleeve polo shirt. Black have been chosen and they will be screen printed on the front, back and one sleeve. All shirt styles are available in sizes S, M, L, XL, 2XL and 3XL. The short sleeve t-shirt and short sleeve polo shirt are also available in sizes 4XL and 5XL.

Can I bring my own drinks to dinner on Saturday night?

Yes – Capital Country Holiday Park is a BYO (both non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks) venue. Capital Country Holiday Park will provide ice free of charge for use in drink coolers.

Why can’t the Saturday and Sunday lunches be pre-ordered?

On Saturday you will be able to purchase lunch from the National Museum of Australia Café and/or from a local community group (eg, Lions Club, Salvation Army, etc) who will be at the public display.

On Sunday you will be able to purchase a meal at the lunch stop during the ride.

Q. A.

Do I need to let Capital Country Holiday Park know I’m with the VJMC Rally?

Yes – Capital Country Holiday Park are offering group discount rates on accommodation for rally entrants – make sure you let them know you are with the VJMC Rally when you book to receive the discounted rate.

Where can I get a PDF copy of the registration form?

A PDF copy of the registration form (which you can fill out and save and which also calculates the totals) can be downloaded from either www.vjmc.org.au or www.vjmc-rally.info.

Q. A.

What sort of accommodation does Capital Country Holiday Park offer?

In addition to offering a range of cabin-style accommodation Capital Country Holiday Park also offers bunk house accommodation (three sets of bunks – minimum of three people per room – with ensuite), drive through sites for caravans and unpowered tent sites (most are grassed but some have concrete slabs).

Q. A.

Q. A.

Is there an extra charge for bringing more than one motorcycle?

No – there is no charge for bringing more than one motorcycle.

How many people can I register and order meals for on a registration form?

A maximum of two people – and meals for two people – may be registered/ordered per form.

However, and in the spirit of supporting the rally, entrants who are not the married/de-facto/legal partner of the main entrant should register using separate forms.

Q. A.

DIR ECTORY

MEMBERS BUSINESS DIRECTORY

IF YOU ARE A VJMC MEMBER AND YOU WOULD LIKE TO PROMOTE YOUR BUSINESS ON THIS PAGE, PLEASE EMAIL YOUR DETAILS TO ADRIAN DIXON AT ADIXON@CONTECHENGINEERING.COM

Alan Jansen Pals Automotive Services 11/42 New St. Ringwood 3134.

Motorcycle & car RWC inspections in Melbourne’s Eastern suburbs by ‘Vintage Friendly’ inspectors.

By appointment only. www.palsautos.com.au alan@palsautos.com.au 03 9879 6044 Frank Van Den Broek Garage Door & Gate Solutions 23 Canterbury Roar, Braeside Victoria 3195 9587 4000 www.garagedoorsolutions.com.au www.vjmc.org.au

2016 VJMC National Rally

Alvin Wong Doux Wedding Corp Wedding photography and Videography. Special discount for VJMC Members. www.doux.com.au 0433 142 522

Ned Vernon Traditional trained metalsmith and specialises in finely crafted motorcycle fabrication. Working in both aluminium and steel manufacture and specialises in tanks fairing and crafting one off custom designs. www.clavo-loco.com nedvernon@gmail.com 0403 805 301

Registration Form FAQ

Allen Sutton The Hydroblast Shop 3/ 41-43 Sinclair Rd Dandenong, Vic 3175 0400 516 979 www.thehydroblastshop.com.au Superior restoration of automotive, motorcycle and industrial components. We can make those engine casings, barrels, heads, carbies and intricate parts look like new again. Let our experience be a part of your next restoration project. Visit our website for more detail.

Richard Scoular Classic Bikes Direct 41A Jarrah Drive, Braeside Victoria 3195 0400 222 040 www.classicbikesdirect.com.au Let our world wide network be your advantage when buying a Classic to add to your collection, Nearly 40 years industry experience.

Tony and Catherine Fresh as Bread Cafe 76 Aberdeen Road, Macleod Victoria 3085 For VJMC members: your first coffee is complimentary, great quiet location off main roads, opposite park, with plenty of parking right in front of cafe. Good stop for group rides.

Steve Gittings Printforme 03 5334 2605 0417 336 360 printforme@ncable.net.au Design. Print. Finish.

Offset and digital printing.

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

27

JA PA N SUZUK A 8-HOUR TOUR

THE VJMC JAPAN-SUZUKA 8-HOUR TOUR 2015

By Jeff & Jane Eeles

AFTER A LONG BUILD-UP FROM WHEN I FIRST PITCHED THE TOUR TO VJMC MEMBERS AT THE 2013 VICTOR HARBOR RALLY, 39 MEMBERS, PARTNERS AND FRIENDS FINALLY MADE THE JOURNEY TO JAPAN IN JULY THIS YEAR. Some took the opportunity to leave a bit earlier and take in some sight-seeing before the tour kicked off, while others stayed on after the tour and also saw a bit more of this wonderful Country.

After the bulk of the group arrived in Japan, the tour ‘officially’ started in the Tokyo suburb of Shinagawa and the grandly named Grand Prince Hotel Shin Takanawa where the latest arrivals were allocated their rooms and provided with the rest of the day free to wander around the area, or just kick back and relax.

We had planned to try for a group dinner the first evening and around 29 of us hit the streets of Shinagawa later, to look for somewhere to settle

28

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

in for a meal and chat. It soon became obvious to us that 29, or 20, or 10 or, even 5 was more than most establishments could handle. The group dinner didn’t happen, because…… well, it appears that no one in Japan cooks at home. Every eatery we went to was packed out!

Day 2 dawned with the a half-day tour of Tokyo.

We visited the Tokyo Tower, a great observation deck, not unlike the Eiffel Tower in style and design. In the last few years, Tokyo has opened an even taller tower on the other side of the city, the Tokyo SkyTree. However, this wasn’t open on the day due to high winds apparently causing sway of up to 2 metres at the top!

www.vjmc.org.au

JA PA N SUZUK A 8-HOUR TOUR

From Tokyo Tower, the tour moved some of the significant parts of the town, to the Kaminarimon Gate of the Asakusa Kannon Temple and then free time to wander down the nearby Nakamise Shopping Arcade.

Later, back on the tour bus, I asked our guide if the driver could drop some of us off in the Ueno district. Ueno is an area that I’ve written about before. Once a ‘Disneyland’ of motorcycle shops, it has been through some hard times, but is now trying to claw back some of its past glory.

A large group of us jumped off the bus there, and spent a few hours wandering the main street, and back streets, finding a few little tucked-away shops, many of them holding some really nice Jap classics.

The next day was one of the first highlights of the tour, a day tour to the Honda Collection Hall (the Honda Museum) at Twin Ring Motegi.At the Collection Hall, we were given a quick run-down on which bikes we were allowed to sit on, and which cars we could sit in. Then, it was off at your leisure to explore the three floors of classic and modern bikes, cars, engines and robotics nicely laid out in a clean, modern building. There’s no way to describe everything there is to look at, so I’ll just leave the photo’s to speak for themselves.

A few of us took the opportunity to take the short walk from the Collection Hall to the Motegi

Circuit. While there was no competition on that day, it was just good to be able to say I’d been there.

Before long, we had to be back on the bus for our trip back to our hotel. Motegi Circuit/Collection Hall is a good couple of hours from Tokyo, each way. What struck many of us was the remote location of the circuit and the many narrow, winding roads that lead into it.For those of you who have been to Phillip Island for a Superbike or MotoGP meeting, and think that access is limited well, divide that by half again, and it might give you some idea. There is no nearby railway station, and the roads are, as I said before, narrow and winding. They would be a nightmare in a tour bus, dreadful in a car, and not all that much fun on a bike … given a race-day crowd.

Our English-speaking tour guide, who we came to know well on the Tokyo tour the day before, kept us entertained on the trip to and from Motegi with stories of Japanese life and customs, while trying to teach us some useful Japanese words … like ‘alligator’ (arigato - thanks) and ‘don’t touch the moustache’ (douitashimashite – you’re welcome).

I don’t know if many learnt much, but it certainly entertained some for a while!

Another day dawns and we’re off to the city of Nagoya. Nagoya is to be our base for a few days, including the Suzuka 8-Hour Race weekend.

www.vjmc.org.au

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

29

JA PA N SUZUK A 8-HOUR TOUR

At Shinagawa Station, we exchanged our vouchers for our Japan Rail (JR) Rail Passes, the ‘Golden Tickets’ that would provide us with unlimited trips on most of the trains throughout Japan. Off to the Shinkansen (Bullet Train) platform we went, and lined up for our first ride on a Bullet Train.

Members with GPS’s on their phones or iPads recorded speeds up to 295kph on the short’ish trip to Nagoya.

The Shinkansen are such an awesome sight to see when pulling gracefully in to station platforms, and even more awesome when an express flies through a station at near top speed!

Many of the group were getting ‘the hang’ of Japan now and were more comfortable to head out on their own. So, with the rest of the day free in Nagoya, many went off to have a look around.

Sunday finally arrived. It’s Suzuka 8-Hour Race day! From Nagoya, we had to take a one-hour commute to Suzuka Circuit Inou Station, followed by a short walk to the track itself.

We were up and going nice and early. With the race starting at 11:30am, we wanted to have a good amount of time to have a look around the huge number of stalls, selling everything from key-rings to whole bikes, before settling in for the race start.

Soon though, it was getting close to ‘zero-hour’. A few of us found a seat on a terrace at the corner leading onto the straight, giving us a good view of the whole of the straight, the line-up of the bikes, and the riders.

30

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

The 8-Hour has a LeMans-type start, with the riders on one side of the track and the bikes on the other. For the warm-up laps, the riders do a practice sprint to the bikes too.

With the warm-up laps over, the bikes and riders were back on their respective sides of the track.

By now, the commentator has whipped the crowd up to a frenzy and the final 10 seconds before 11:30am are counted down by just about every person in the crowd… amazing! The riders sprint, engines fire, and the BIG countdown begins.

Obviously, I’m not going to give a commentary on 8 hours of racing. I’ll just add that about the last hour and a half is in dusk/dark conditions and the bikes must run lights.

However, as darkness descends over Suzuka, the crowd in the grandstands change from waving flags in the colours of their favourite teams, to waving glow-sticks in similar colours. Sitting in the terraces again, just back from the grandstand… it’s a brilliant sight.

After the race, there’s a big fireworks display and the crowd disperse to wherever it is they’re spending that night. The VJMC’ers head back to the nearby station to grab a train back to Nagoya.

Monday is a free day in Nagoya. The Honda enthusiasts have discovered that shop Yamiya of www.yamiya750.com – Honda replica parts suppliers are in Nagoya, and not too far from our hotel! I understand that many a credit card took a hammering there but, what happens on the tour, STAYS on the tour, so no names shall be mentioned!

Jane and I decided to do some sight-seeing. Jane hadn’t been here before, and while I’d stayed here on my first trip to Japan in 1989, I’d only used the town as a base to commute to Suzuka, just as we were doing this time.

Tourist brochures, apart from some venues marked as closed on Mondays, spruiked the Nagoya City Science Museum as a must see. So we worked out how to get there using our JR Passes and headed off. Well, we can now report that the Science Museum also does not open on a Monday! www.vjmc.org.au

JA PA N SUZUK A 8-HOUR TOUR

Refreshed, we decided to grab a train down to the Atsuta Jingu Shrine a bit further south. That turned out to be another pleasant stroll through beautiful tree-lined paths with traditional Shinto buildings scattered throughout.

In the evening, we caught up with VJMC’ers Glenn and Glenice who took us to a traditional

restaurant/café they’d spotted earlier. That led to a very relaxing end to our time in Nagoya, kicking back, traditional-style with our shoes off, we ordered a whole variety of Japanese food.

Between broken Japanese, broken English and some sign language, we finished up quite full, and the drinks went down pretty well too. Clearly, ‘beer’ is a universal word!

Next morning, we all gathered together in the hotel lobby. Today, we’re off to the Suzuki Museum. The pre-arranged coach picked us all up and we enjoyed the sights for a while till we arrived at Hamamatsu and negotiated some tight back streets leading to the Suzuki Factory.

It’s worth pointing out at this stage, that getting in to ‘Factory’ tours is nigh on impossible unless you’re part of an organised group of dealers from Japan or overseas. A bunch of Aussies, even a big 39-person bunch, just doesn’t cut it for the factories.

We were not disappointed though. The Suzuki Museum was a real stand-out for those on the tour.

It started with a 3D video in a good-sized theatrette, and then we were let loose to wander the two very extensive floors of tributes to the past and present from the Suzuki organisation.

I found the layout of the Suzuki Museum to be more interesting and less sterile than the Honda Collection Hall. For those who don’t already know, I’ll ‘put my hand up’ now, and admit to being a Kawasaki enthusiast. I was done with the Honda Museum in under an hour yet, at Suzuki, the 90 minutes we had there was not enough. And, that was the opinion of many on the tour too.

Back on the bus all too soon, we had a ‘date’ at the Hamamatsu Station. The coach dropped us off, we were reunited with our luggage, and off we went for another great Shinkansen ride to Kyoto.

By now, some of the previously cautious tour members were becoming very confident and, at least from the free day in Nagoya, had been happy to find their own way around, and make their own train, bus and subway journeys.

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VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

No worries we thought, the Nagoya City Art Museum is only about 50 metres or so across the park, let’s go there. Up to the front door and …… errr, guess what!!

Not one’s to give up easily, Jane had also spotted an attraction close to her heart, a City Orchid Garden just a few blocks away. And here we found paradise.

Re-imagined, as the PR people like to say these days, the garden had been reconstructed a short while ago to incorporate a traditional Japanese garden set around a very large pond. The orchid display was spectacular and the spacious, quiet café a pleasure to sit and relax in.

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After settling into our accommodation, members wandered off to explore Kyoto. Jane and I had been there just 4 years earlier, so many places and things were familiar to us and we spent a little time reacquainting ourselves with some of the places we’d enjoyed last visit. Maybe the only disappointment was being unable to find a great little yakitoria restaurant (chicken on skewers) we’d eaten at previously.

The humungous underground shopping mall on the north side of Kyoto Station was a surprise for us.

It had undergone a full renovation since we were here last, and had been extended, as far as we could tell.

Another day dawns and we all have a free day in Kyoto. Packed with endless culture, it’s easy to spend a week in Kyoto, and nearby Nara, and still not see half of what’s on offer.

We teamed up with Glenn and Glenice again, and Ron and Joan, and decided on a walk through the ‘old’ part of Kyoto, the Gion District where it is possible to see a Geisha in full dress, on her way to a appointment.

Our first mission though, was to find Nishiki Market. The girls had decided that a bit of retail therapy was required, and the market, or should I say the kilometres of endless and often interesting shops, provided just what they needed.

Soon it was lunch time, so we found a nice café to cool off for a while and enjoy a sundae. Afterward, Ron and Joan had other things to get to, so split off.

Exhausting the arcades, we headed into the ancient and seemingly endless narrow little streets of the Gion District proper. It was probably a bit early in the day for Geisha spotting, so didn’t actually get to see some. However, it was nice to see many young ladies, out for the day, dressed in traditional kimono.

Dinner in Kyoto was at a great little café/ restaurant on the north side of the station area.

Glenn found the beers cold, the girls liked the sake and sodas and I was on the Cokes as usual.

A constant flo9w of small plates of delicious food 32

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passed over the table and we left very satisfied after exchanging some small-talk with a few of the locals.

Another day over and we’re back on the Shinkansen to Hiroshima. Naturally, no trip to Hiroshima can be taken without a visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.

Many members took the walk through the Peace Museum. A rather chilling, in-your-face display of the dropping, and after-effects, of the atomic bomb. I don’t think any one of us left there with any other thought than that it should never happen again.

We had to share that experience with several thousand Scouts, who were there for an International Jamboree. That crowded the venue somewhat, but we got through.

A stroll through the park, a visit to the Children’s Peace Memorial, walk around the remains of the bombed out dome, and we certainly went away with a very good understanding of how the incident affected the people of Hiroshima.

On a lighter side, not too far away from the Peace Park is a huge arcade of shops. A bit of retail therapy, and some air-conditioning was just what was needed for a change of mood.

We then jumped on a tram and headed back in the direction of our hotel. The tram terminated at the railway station, a perfect stop for our hotel right around the corner.

That evening, we were up for another food adventure in Japan. I won’t go into detail here, but it turned out to be one of the classic memories of the trip. I’ve more to say about it in a side item to this story.

With the tour drawing to a close, we had to head to Osaka. As a ‘tour group’, the last night was in Osaka and many members had made their own way there at different times.

Clearly, plenty of members had been doing their homework, and had realised that the Shinkansen ride from Hiroshima to Osaka took them past Kobe. And, as any self-respecting Kawasaki enthusiast will know, that’s near where the www.vjmc.org.au

Kawasaki factory, and Kawasaki Good Times World (Museum) is too.

So we jumped ship, or should I say ‘train’ at Kobe and, to save some time, grabbed a taxi to the Port of Kobe to spend time looking around the many aspects of Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Displaying planes, trains, ships, helicopters, robotics… and motorcycles, the Kawasaki Museum is both large, and small. I’ll explain more about that in a separate discussion on the factory museums.

Before leaving Good Times World, it was compulsory for me to hit the Factory Shop. That’s where the credit card took a really big hit. It could have been worse though, I had to limit my collection of Kawasaki motomobilia to what I could reasonably carry home!

All good times have to come to an end though, and we grabbed another taxi back to Kobe station to continue our ride to Osaka.

That evening, most of us gathered together in a bar at the hotel, to catch up, re-live the highlights, and say our good-byes.

The evening was topped off with over 20 of the group dining in a nearby Teppanyaki Restaurant.

Although not cheap by any means, the real Wagyu Beef and other dishes were a taste sensation.

The next day, many would fly back to Tokyo to catch flights back to Australia, while others had plans to see a bit more of this fascinating country…… Japan, the home of the world’s best

motorcycles, wonderfully friendly people, great scenery and culture and, probably a place that many of the tour group will return to.

At this point, I’d like to extend a huge ‘Thank You’ to the VJMC National Committee. Not only did they support my crazy idea to give away a free ticket for the 2015 Japan – Suzuka 8-Hour Tour to a lucky entrant at the 2015 National Rally, they also came to the party again later too.

As the tour bookings were starting to stack up to the, “Sorry, we can’t take any more” proportions, they also agreed to stump up the cost of VJMC Tour Shirts for all of the 39 tour participants!

I was hoping to get t-shirts for everyone but, in the end, we stepped up a notch and managed to get polo shirts embroidered with the VJMC logo, plus “2015 Japan – Suzuka 8-Hour Tour”. The Red Shirts as they came to be known on tour were provided so that they would stand out in any photo’s used in articles published in or overseas national magazines.And, if you think the Red Shirts didn’t stand out in a crowd, just go back and have a look at some of the photo’s again. Even at Suzuka, among a crowd of 10’s upon 10’s of thousands, you could be walking along trackside, or in the stalls, and there before you would be a Red Shirt worn by one of your tour colleagues.

Thanks again NatCom!

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OKONOMI YAK I

OKONOMIYAKI IN HIROSHIMA NO, THAT’S NOT A TONGUE-TWISTER!

By Jeff & Jane Eeles

YOU GET THE BEST DINING EXPERIENCE IN JAPAN WHEN YOU TO GET OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY AND LOOK FOR THE QUIRKY LOCAL EATERIES. A classic example of this was our night in Hiroshima. We had spent a lot of time with another couple, Glenn and Glenice, and both of us had spotted 3 or 4 laneways of very traditional looking houses and shops from our hotel window, right around the back of the hotel. We knew that’s where we had to go to look for food!

We found a place cooking Okonomiyaki and we managed to ask the cook if we could come in.

There was 5 of us and the place only had about 6 seats... most of which were already taken by locals. The young’ish cook still beckoned us in and we asked if there was an upstairs area and he nodded.

Up a short but steep stairway, we were shown into a room with two low tables and cushions around them. There wasn’t much else in the room, except for a TV, some collector’s plates, and some stock for the business. It didn’t really have the

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atmosphere of a café/restaurant, but what the hell, it was neat and clean, the food looked good, we were hungry, and the guy wanted to serve us.

About 4 or 5 Okonomiyaki later, several beers and Cokes (it was hot there remember!), sake and soda, and some water, we couldn’t fit any more in. The young cook was great, always making sure we were OK, and we never had to wait long for our orders. I swear we ate in that guys lounge room that night!

But, for ¥6750 for food and drinks that filled us to the brim, great service and fantastic hosts, we couldn’t be happier.

As we were leaving we asked that one of us have their photo taken behind the hot plate. Nah, they made sure we were ALL behind the hot plate and we even had customers taking the photo’s for us.

As we left, there was handshakes and hugs from everyone! It was amazing.

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ELSEW HER E IN JA PA N

MEANWHILE - ELSEWHERE IN JAPAN ...

AFTER THE CLUB TOUR, JANE AND I HAD BOOKED OURSELVES SOME REST AND RELAXATION TIME ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MAIN ISLAND. THE PACIFIC OCEAN COAST OF JAPAN, FROM TOKYO DOWN TO HIROSHIMA AND BEYOND, IS PROBABLY THE MOST TRAVELLED AND WELL KNOWN PART OF THE COUNTRY … EXCEPT FOR, MAYBE, THE SKI FIELDS UP NORTH.

However, the Japan Sea coast, which predominantly faces Korea, offers some really beautiful towns, with lower populations, yet equally attractive places to visit. The slight obstacle, for the locals at least, is travelling a couple of hundred or so km’s across a fairly decent mountain range that runs down the middle of the island.

No doubt, a couple of centuries ago, making such a trip was quite arduous and quite possibly, a little of the reluctance of the past, still lingers in the present day psyche.

We had booked 5 nights in a town called Kinosaki. Kinosaki is an Onsen (Hot Springs baths) Town. It is very traditional in its buildings and customs. There is a canal running most of the length of the main street that has

beautiful traditional bridges crossing it at regular intervals.

We stayed in a Ryokan, which we had done on our last visit in 2011. A ryokan tends to be a bit more expensive than a tourist hotel, because they’re traditional style. Generally, you get a reasonably spacious room with tatami mats on the floor. Off one end of the room, there will often be an alcove for lounging and it will often face to the outside, allowing a scenic view to admire or, in our case, a view of the canal and people watching.

During the day, the room will be set up with a low table and cushions on the floor around it.

In the evening, the staff will come in and lay out your traditional futon There are many onsen in Kinosaki, but there are

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ELSEW HER E IN JA PA N

seven main Onsen. Each one is said to have its own special properties. They certainly do have quite different characteristics.

Some open early in the morning, some close quite late at night. Almost all of them have in indoor bath, and an outdoor aspect as well. I really enjoy the outdoor areas, as it does give a feeling of bathing even though there’s no opportunity for outside eyes to view the bathers.

A large group of ryokan owners in Kinosaki have created a scheme whereby, if you stay at one of their ryokan, you are given a free pass to visit any of the seven main onsen as many times as you wish. The pass works seamlessly (as most things do in Japan), with just a quick scan at the onsen entrance, and you’re off to your naturally heated hot spring bath …

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after observing the pre-wash ritual of course.

The last two nights we were in Kinosaki, there was a massive fireworks display. The second night was bigger than the first, and it coincided with a huge festival that took up almost all of the two main streets of Kinosaki. It was tremendous fun. There was food stalls, games stalls, a Miss Kinosaki Yukata 2015 competition, and a lot of it was happening not too far from our ryokan..

Another aspect of Kinosaki we really enjoyed, was just relaxing… wandering around the town and taking it easy. Visitors to the town are invited, practically ‘expected’, to wander around the town in yukata, a light cotton, casual kimono. It seems a little strange for the average westerner at first, but doesn’t take long to get into the groove. Western clothing is fine too, the choice is yours. www.vjmc.org.au

MUSEUMS, MUSEUMS & MUSEUMS

MUSEUMS, MUSEUMS AND MUSEUMS! THE ORIGINAL IDEA FOR THE 2015 JAPAN – SUZUKA 8-HOUR TOUR, WAS TO VISIT AT LEAST ONE MOTORCYCLE FACTORY. THE JAPAN TRAVEL BUREAU SAID THAT THEY COULD PROBABLY FIT TWO INTO THE SCHEDULE, AND SO IT WAS THAT TWO WERE LISTED. What was later discovered was that it is nigh on impossible to get into a factory these days, unless you are part of an organised dealer tour… which we weren’t.

So, a slight rethink was in order. For the day of what was to be the Suzuki factory tour, the very easy option was to simply cross the road to the Suzuki Museum. Too easy.

Slightly harder, was the day set aside for the factory tour while we were still up around Tokyo.

The main complication was that there are simply no factories in that area, or within easy reach.

After some discussion with JTB, I asked them if it would be possible to do a day trip to the Honda Collection Hall.

I’d checked it out on the map, and it looked doable. The answer came back with a big ‘YES’, and many tour members’ prayers had suddenly been answered!

Many of the tour group also got to visit the Kawasaki Factory Museum too. This wasn’t organised, it just fell into the lap of those interested.

Others will have their take on each museum, but here’s mine. I’ll admit my strong passion for Team Green right now, so take that into account when reading my comments The old saying of, “a picture’s worth a thousand words” is most appropriate here, so I’ll let the photo’s tell the story rather than try to describe each museum in detail.

The Honda Collection Hall was initially quite impressive. I enjoyed the long drive from Tokyo to get there, and the views of the countryside along the way. Based at Motegi, it is certainly

well off the beaten track.

Housed in a modern, purpose-built building, it has a central atrium with the car museum on one side, and the bikes on the other.

The Customer Service staff gave us a quick run-down of what we could touch, and what we couldn’t; which bikes we could get on, and cars we could sit in, then they let us loose to wander at will.

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VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

Although we were given 90 minutes I had pretty much done the museum in about 50 minutes. I’m sure others will have a very different take on it though.

All the vehicles were well displayed, but I found the facility to be quite sterile. I used some of my spare time there to wander off to the Motegi Twin Ring Circuit, an easy 10min. walk up the road.

There was no racing or testing going on, but I can at least now say that I’ve been to Motegi.

Suzuki Factory Museum I was very impressed with the Suzuki Museum.

We started off there being invited into a theatrette where we were shown a 3D video of the Suzuki production process. Unfortunately, for our group, the video was car production related but, it was very interesting just the same.

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MUSEUMS, MUSEUMS & MUSEUMS

A little like Honda, Suzuki had bikes and cars, and each were slightly separate from the other.

I felt a lot more ‘life’ in the Suzuki displays, with some vehicles being placed in scenic settings that gave context to the vehicle being shown.

Suzuki also displayed weaving looms too, which is where Suzuki had their start in industrial manufacturing.

Like Honda, we had 90mins at Suzuki, and I could have used another half hour no trouble at all.

Kawasaki Good Times World OK, so this one should be the one I go ballistic about. The truth is, I almost cried, and not tears of joy either, more like tears of despair!

As out taxi approached a building, clearly where the driver was going to let us off, all I could think at the time was, “It’s closed!They’ve packed up and abandoned the place ages ago!”

Maybe it was the stark port/seafront location that made it look a little desolate, but I have to say that it did not present well from the outside.

Inside, of course, was a different story. The facility can be considered large, yet small at the 38

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same time. As a showcase of all things that are Kawasaki Heavy Industries, it is huge. Yet, as a museum of Kawasaki motorcycles, it is relatively small.

Not only did we get to see a good selection of classic Kawasaki motorcycles, there was a good few current models too, including the new supercharged H2.

On top of that, there were displays of a section of a Shinkansen (remember, Kawasaki build those too); there was a Kawasaki helicopter; a Kawasaki ship (well, part of one); a light rail vehicle; robotics; jet skis; as well as a theatre showing continual videos of all of the huge range of domestic, commercial and industrial products that come from Kawsaki.

One video I really enjoyed was the construction of a Shinkansen train from beginning to end.

Was I disappointed in the display from the perspective of a museum? No, not really. There is so much that is Kawasaki as a company, and the venue did a very good job of covering as much as it did.

Anyway, the Factory Goods shop proved to be a very welcome distraction, and my collection of Kawasaki-mobilia increased considerably.

By the way, if you go to Google Maps and type in ‘Kawasaki Good Times World Kobe’, and drag the little yellow man onto the screen, you can get an option that takes you inside the museum and you can ‘virtually’ walk through it. The current models on display on Google Maps aren’t those we saw, but the classic models are.

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SUZUK A 2017

JAPAN SUZUKA 8-HOUR RACE 2017 HAVE YOU READ THE ARTICLES FROM THE VJMC 2015 JAPAN & SUZUKA 8-HOUR TOUR? WOULD YOU LIKE TO GO? WOULD YOU LIKE TO AGAIN? Jeff Eeles, who put the 2015 tour together, would be very happy to do it again in 2017 for anyone who would like to join in. No matter whether you went this year, and would like to do it again; or whether you’ve not been before, but have been thinking about something like this for a while, here’s your opportunity.

The Suzuka 8-Hour is held on the last weekend in July every year, and 2017 will be the 40th running of the race. For the 2015 tour, the race weekend was in the middle of the tour, allowing some motorcycle-related, sightseeing and cultural activities either side of the race meeting.

The group toured two factory museums and many also visited a third.

For practical and logistical reasons, the tour will be limited to around 35-39 participants only, and some did miss the cut this year.

We also know he has used the experience of this tour, to make improvements for the next, so it shouldn’t be a case of the ‘same again’.

The feedback to Jeff, and as you will have read, was that members thoroughly enjoyed themselves. So it might be a case of getting it right first time!

VJMC members, relatives and friends all welcome!

If you’re interested, please contact Jeff at jeeles@iprimus.com.au We know he’s already started a list, so don’t delay if you’re serious about it.

Got a bit of extra time to spend in Japan?

All of our bookings for this trip were handled by the Japan Travel Bureau (JTB) because, well, they’re the experts in Japan, aren’t they!

The customer service the members received was outstanding, nothing was ever too much trouble.

If you’re considering the 2017 tour, or just your own private trip, talk to JTB, they have offices in Sydney and Melbourne.

If the 2017 tour may be your thing, you can do as many did this time, and add some extra time to the basic tour. Or, if it suits, go a bit earlier. Do your own thing for a while, and catch up with the main group when they arrive.

As JTB said to us this year, it doesn’t matter if some of the tour group want to go early; if they want to stay on for a while longer; or, if they need to shorten the basic tour by a few days, JTB will sort you out.

Suzuka 8-Hour photo’s

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Regional

MEETS

CLUB INFO

ACT + SNWS

Meet: Belconnen Soccer Club Belconnen Way, Hawker ACT 7:30pm - 3rd Wednesday night of each month.

Contact: Ian Stevens 0407 706 705 iansac50@tpg.com.au

NSW

Lower Hunter Meet on the second Thurs of each month at the Maquarie Club, Cockle Creek, starting around 7.20pm.

Contact Vince Foreman (02) 4973 1852 or yvonnevince@bigpond.com.au Mid Hunter Meet: 7pm on 1st Tues of every even-numbered month at Greta Workers Club. Cnr New England Hwy & West St Contact: Allan Kensitt (02)4938 7223 or 0405 492700

HISTORIC REGO NSW CONDITIONAL REGISTRATION Sydney Roadworthy Inspections David Bernardi | 0431 661 769 mrdbernardi@gmail.com All other NSW areas contact Lyndon Adams | (02) 4945 1780 lyndarra@gmail.com

ACT

Ian Stevens | 0407 706 705 iansac50@tpg.com.au

VICTORIA CLUB PERMIT SCHEME INSPECTORS

Tamworth Meet: Tamworth City Bowling Club ANZAC Park, Brisbane St, Tamworth. 6.30pm last Thursday of every month. Contact: Ray Fox 0409 396 432 ray.fox@coateshire.com.au

Melbourne - West Kevin Drazdauskas | 0419 884 560

QLD

North West Vic

South East Qld Meet: Belmont Tavern Cnr Burstall Ave & Belmont Rd, Belmont.

7pm second Tues of each month.

Contact: Ray Burrows 0409 640 600 rjrburr@bigpond.net.au

SA

South Australia Meet: Tonsley Hotel, South Road, Clovelly Park. 6:30pm on the last Thursday of each month Contact: Mick mgo22098@bigpond.com.au

VIC

Melbourne - South East Trevor Whitty | 0419 807 212 Trev Lawrence | trev@gracehouse.com.au Central Vic Graeme Climas | (03) 5446 3844 West Gippsland Dennis Flynn | 0407 359 278 Western Vic Alan Stork | 0401 995 061

QLD CLUB REGISTRATION SCHEME Brisbane Graeme Knight | 0411 034 938

Melbourne Metro Meet: Grandview Hotel Cnr Station Street & Heidelberg Road, Fairfield 7.00pm on the last Tuesday night of each month Central Vic Meet: Garlands Bakehouse & Cafe 124 High Street, Kangaroo Flat 10.00am every Sunday morning Contact: Ivan Eeles (03) 5448 4746 familyeeles@hotmail.com

The club has a sizeable library of magazines, workshop manuals and parts manuals for members to use.

Enquires: library@vjmc.org.au

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www.vjmc.org.au

Regional

REPRESENTATIVES ACT + SNSW ACT Ian Stevens 0407 706 705 iansac50@tpg.com.au

NSW Bathurst Vacant. Rep required.

Broken Hill Sam Muscat 0412 208 898 spmuscat@bigpond.com Central Coast Jeff Lockhart 0419 286 311 jefflock1400@bigpond.com Far North Coast Rob Andrews (02) 6621 4083 and32@bigpond.net.au Goulburn Malcolm Peden (02) 4821 5060 pedenmj@westnet.com.au Lower Hunter Bill Keevers 0438 646 117 billkeevers@gmail.com Manning Steve Wardle (02) 6551 5546 canvasz1000@bigpond.com Mid Hunter Allan Kensit (02) 4938 7223 midhuntervjmc@yahoo.com.au Mid North Coast Vacant. Rep required.

North West Garry Hennessey 0418 496 538 ghp2251@gmail.com Orange Region Peter Ezzy 0427 663 246 peterezzy3@bigpond.com Queanbeyan Rob Hogan (02) 6299 7579 robandcarolyn@bigpond.com Sydney David Bernardi 0431 661 769 mrdbernardi@gmail.com Sydney Inner Steve O’Farrell (02) 9517 3490 sofarrell@premecha.com Sydney South/West Allan Dykstra (02) 9824 7165 adykstra@tpg.com.au Tamworth Ray Fox 0427 255 022 foxray8@gmail.com

www.vjmc.org.au

CLUB INFO

NORTHERN TERRITORY

Darwin John Hefferan 0413 998 261 heffs@live.com.au

WA

Perth & West Australia David Williams 0418 687 855 dave.williams@se1.bp.com

QUEENSLAND Mackay Peter & Helen Douglas (07) 4954 3653 South East Queensland Ray Burrows 0409 640 600 rjrburr@bigpond.net.au Sunshine Coast Vacant - rep required

SA

South Australia Peter Hunt 0418 214 754 phunty@bigpond.net.au

TAS

Tasmania Tony Mahoney 0438 385 176 ttmahoney@gmail.com

VIC

Central Victoria Ivan Eeles (03) 5448 4746 familyeeles@hotmail.com East Gippsland Steve Millikan (03) 5144 7535 Mobile 0429 187 195 Stephen.millikan@gmail.com Geelong Andrew Deans 0419 270 221 apdeans@hotmail.com Melbourne John Doward 0467 280 425 jrha0747@tpg.com.au Mornington Peninsula/Phillip Island Dave Parker 0416 154 056 dhparker@bigpond.net.au North East Victoria Bob & Jenny Kitchener (03) 5775 1370 vjmcnortheastvic@hotmail.com North West Victoria Trevor Lawrence 0412 469 337 trev@gracehouse.com.au West Gippsland Mick Gunn 0439 537 901 mickjgunn@gmail.com Western Victoria Alan & Pam Stork 0401 995 061 storka.01@hotmail.com

More Info on becoming a regional rep: Contact Alan Stork on 0401 995 061 if you are interested in getting VJMC happening in your area.

WORLD WIDE CLUB INFO VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB INC The VJMC is a worldwide club.

There are independent branches in North America (USA/Canada), UK, New Zealand and Australia.

Some enthusiasts are members of more than one branch.

Direct enquiries for overseas branches of the VJMC to: North America President: Thomas Kolenko Website: www.vjmc.org Email: president@vjmc.org United Kingdom Chairman: Malcolm Linsley, VJMC PO Box 21671 Falkirk, FK1 9AL. Website: www.vjmc.com Email: chairman_vjmc@yahoo. co.uk New Zealand: Ross & Trudy Charlton, 2 Te Miti St, Paekakariki, Wellington.

Email: ross.judy@xtra.co.nz

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

41

Member RenewaL Annual subs VJMC Inc

I

f your fees are due, please complete and send this renewal slip with payment.

Direct Credit is now available. If paying by direct credit, please complete and send this renewal as confirmation.

Member No

OFFICIAL USE ONLY Received Renewal Date Received $

Cash / Cheque / MO / Direct Credit Receipt No Reply Sent

Name Due Date Cost: $40 single, $50 family.

Additional Info (address / contact change etc)

Email I give the VJMC Committe and Reps permission for my contact details to be provided to other members on request.

(Name, phone, email and locality only).

Signed Date Cheques / Money orders payable to VJMC Inc, or Direct Credit: VJMC Inc Australia BSB 062-801 ACC 10-240-688 (Commonwealth) Please include your member number as detail.

Send to: VJMC Inc PO Box 254 Modbury North SA 5092

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VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

From

1/6/15 1/7/14

ANNUAL FEES NEW RENEW Autralian Residents $45 $40 Family (member + 1 other) $55 $50 New Zealand $50 $45 Overseas $55 $50

www.vjmc.org.au

NEXT ISSUE DEADLINE: january 25th

www.vjmc.org.au

VINTAGE JAPANESE MOTORCYCLE CLUB

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