Melbourne to Byron: RR

[The Bigfella]

You home yet Hans?

We had another airhead along on our ride today.



He had a couple or three offs.... one going up a bit of a rock-climb, another coming back down it.... (I may have that one on video, but haven't checked yet - damn video camera is chockers full of dust) ....but he enjoyed himself. R100GS.

[Deleted User 61]

I hate it when that happens!
Yep - happened to me once on the R65, doing a two-day dual-sport run.
The walls of the rut were not quite that vertical and tight, though!

(Another case of look where you want to go!)

[ontic]

Gday Fella's.
Just got back on Sunday evening. What a trip. I've yet to upload any more photos, and honestly, I didn't take all that many. There is a few though. Eventually... My laptop has blown a head gasket, so I am on the girls one now, compounding any photo problems.
Also gotta figure out my return route properly.

I met up with Charlie and Lex at Nariel Creek on Thursday and rode to Omeo with them for some camping at Anglers rest. Good times.
Back in Melbourne now feeling very knackered and despising this hot dry fan-forced-oven of a temporary climate we are in- and missing the ability to jump in creeks and ocean to cool off. What a lousy campsite I chose for this house- pretty much full sun and not a swimming hole or pristine river to be seen

Anyway, I'll try to update this when I can. Gotta run and do a bit of stuff now.
Cheers,
Hans.

[grant81rs]

Gidday Hans,

What a good trip you covered mate and as always your notes and "write-ups" keep us glued to the screen and hanging on every word....

Talk to you soon, now wash that bike

[Mal S7]

Gday all, how the bloody hell are yers? Long time no see. Been busy and stressed as hell making a new career for meself but its too damn HOT now til April for the riding therapy I really need.

And, btw, would you believe, I just saw this article in the Journal of Safety -
"Toward a meaningful way to measure whole body vibration in motor cycle riders exposed to rough surfaces"

Aren'tcha glad someone else is studying it!!

cheers

Mal

[Mal S7]

Great post and pics btw.

cheers
Mal

[Steve78RS]

Welcome back Mal

Steve from Orange

[Sibbo]

G'day Hans ....a pity we missed each other .I hadn't been following you here as my net connection died and it took 8 weeks to get this shiny new WiFi installed .
Sounds like you had a good one , except for the rain .I tried riding in that lot you mentioned as you came into Lismore , it reached all the way North .Tilly didn't like it ,a few electrically enforced stops but it was fun in a bent kind of a way .To do the kms you did in it displays serious masochistic tendencies ! Well done that man !

Next time mate !

[Airbear]

Hans and the homeward leg - I’ve sorted a few photos. Here are the ‘ladies’, our two R90s on the dusty Corryong to Benambra road. We were about halfway along the 87kms of dirt.



Here’s Hans, having a bit of a rest after angling at Angler's Rest campsite on the Cobungra River …



LaverdaLex, looking after his fluid intake …



And his bike, a 1976 Laverda C3, recently refurbished. He’s thinking about getting an old boxer after this trip.



Firewood mules …



A great ride – briefly; lots of interesting roads, excellent food and raves. Hans caught a brace of trout and I failed to land anything. Camping was very comfortable, at Stacey’s Bridge on the Corryong to Benambra road and two nights at Angler’s Rest on the Omeo Highway.

[ontic]

Gday Peter,
yeah, really sorry I missed you this time. Next time for sure.
All up, somehow, I didn't actually get too much rain throughout the whole trip (considering how much rain was around)- at least while I was riding. Because we came up west of the ranges we only hit the wet at Tenterfield to Byron. That was really wet.
I hit another very wet patch on my way south to Grafton, ending up riding through it at night with no wet weather gear on (and barely made it to my auties place after my GPS led me down a flooded muddy goat path). I waited that rain out for a few days and then got a window of dry weather to ride to Dorrigo and down to Bellingen- just in time to settle in for a week at a friends place to hang out and watch Bellingen flood. Somewhere near Badja State forest I rode through another heavy lone storm, and that was it as far as wet riding went. Not too bad considering.

No real wet issues with my bike this time. It doesn't seem to mind actually riding through the rain- though I have had problems before if I leave it just sitting out there in the rain.

Btw, John got back a week or so after me- safe and well after finally solving some nagging electrical problems in Newcastle.

Gday Charlie,
thanks for posting those photo's. My laptop has blown it's logic board (at least) and Krista's laptop which I am using right now is struggling at best. I don't get much time on it, and at present it has no room to upload photo's- so it will be a little while before I can do that.
It was great to meet up again. I'll be giving Lex a call this coming week I think.
A few nights ago I had a few beers with Katharina and Thomas (the Germans on Japanese bikes). They are off around Tassy right now. I'll see them again when they get back, before they head off to Turkey, and then home.

Gotta run now,
cheers,
Hans.