Three Mountains Sat 23^rd/Sun 24^th February

Darryn Webster (leader)	Triumph 675	Dave Ward	Honda CBR600RR
Bill Simpson	Honda VTR1000	Ian Payne (rear)	Honda CBR1000RR
Mark Copeland	Honda VTR1000	Paul Southwell	Honda CBR1000RR
Mark Henderson	Kawasaki ZXR-14	Peter Jones	Yamaha R1

The object of this ride was to ‘do’ three mountains, namely Buller, Hotham and Falls Creek over two days with an overnight stop at Dinner Plain.

· At 7am Saturday Dave, Darryn and I met at the Nunawading McDonalds for an early breakfast. Our eyes also had a feast on the long-legged mini-skirted young things fresh from the local disco!

· Rode up to Yea for fuel then Yarck to meet up with the others.

· The ‘transport’ stage to Mansfield is so mind-numbing but the thought of the tight turns of Mt Buller kept you sane.

· What a disappointment to be greeted with roadworks, loose gravel and a very uneven road surface, plus the bitter cold and drizzle at the top made for a hasty retreat.

· More inviting roads beckoned enroute to Whitfield and they didn’t disappoint!

· Had lunch at the newly converted servo that now serves good coffee as well as fuel. Ex VTR owner Paul quizzed Mark on the punch-out-of-corners of his machine and as guessed, it had been extensively worked internally!

· More transport stages to Myrtleford then Snake road to Rosewhite and Happy Valley. On the straight sections I could not believe the acceleration of the ZX-14, although a handful in the tight stuff, the power was unbelievable!

· Paul guided Darryn along the back road to Tawonga then Mount Beauty for fuel before tackling the sensational Tawonga Gap road. Peter had a scare when the R1’s ‘engine management light’ came on!

· We continued on to Harrietville for fuel for the VTR, then more twists and turns to Mt Hotham where we regrouped for the last leg to Dinner Plain and our overnight stay. Accommodation was downright luxurious and at $90 including evening meal and a cooked breakfast was good value.

· Over dinner we got talking to the 3 new riders who had planned to be in Tasmania now but the trip had been cancelled. So with annual leave already booked, they had decided to join us.

· Up early for 8am breakfast to leave by 8.30. Bill and the Big 14 would head directly home as, not surprisingly, he was rather tired!

· The trip down the mountain looked a bit bleak with Mt Hotham covered in fog. Fortunately it cleared further down and allowed us to enjoy the road.

· Over Tawonga Gap again, then up to Falls Creek where initially only three of us did the trip. But a few minutes after we reached the top, Bill arrived having never been to Falls before.

· Coming down a friendly policeman in an unmarked white Commodore waved us in for a licence/rego check. No problems so we were soon on our way.

· Back over Tawonga Gap AGAIN, then through Bright and Myrtleford, Oxely and Whitfield. Just out of Moyhu another licence check for the front runners. Lunched at Whitfield, then onto Mansfield where the two VTRs said their goodbyes before they departed for Geelong!

· We continued along the boring bit to Yea, then headed to Kinglake West, Kinglake and the sensational St Andrews Road before stopping at Warrandyte for a coffee and the end of the ride.

Thanks to Darryn for organising this great weekend.

Ian Payne