Suzuki Bandit 1200 Ron Johnston (leader) Honda CBR929 Ben Warden (rear)
Suzuki GSXR1000 Clifford Peters Yamaha R1 Stoimen Stojanov
Suzuki SV650 Tim Emons (1st ride) Buell 1200 Nigel Hellyer
At Yarra Glen the brave few congregated. Amazingly, the continuous rain from Friday and all Saturday – one of the most cold and miserable days for years – had evaporated. It was overcast but the forecast said it would clear up later in the day. And it did.
It had been a rough night with our roof leaking right onto the main bed, soaking everything. We ended up “camping” but those minus 10 sleeping bags are just too hot and make a for an uncomfortable night’s sleep. Looking at the assembled crew, I figured the rear rider post would be good for the head and not too onerous.
We set off at
Half way over the Black Spur saw the group bunch up behind the cars and red traffic control lights at the most recent subsidence. Thankfully we were able to pass up the outside of the cars just as the lights changed, and then had a brilliant car-less run to the end. At Narbethong we turned right and headed for Marysville, then onto Buxton. Along here my fuel light unexpectedly came on, 30 km or more early. I now attribute that to low rear tyre pressure, as a result of a slow leak – but more of that later. Doing the math I figured Eildon was too far away and made a flying dash into Buxton Servo for a splash of fuel, paying cash. I indicated to Stoimen my intention and he passed the news up the tree.
I rejoined the group at Taggerty and we proceeded on to Thornton at a fair clip, the roads now dry and the weather more enjoyable. For a change we turned right and headed around the main drag to Eildon where the group pulled into the servo and I continued around to the shops, getting a head start at the sandwich bar. Remember to go to the right shop – the left fish and chip shop does not do sandwiches. As for the top take-away, we don’t even bother going there now as the service is so slow.
I had a chat with Tim and Stoimen about the Skyline road across to Alexandra and the technical and dangerous nature of the road, as evidenced by the high number of Club crashes. The information was accepted with grace and good humour and we all survived unscathed.
Stoimen had riden with the Club quite a few years ago, been off and had a family, and now had somehow managed a leave pass for the day. He was looking to go a bit faster than the general speed, lagging back and then playing catch-up, which was fine by me. Often new riders struggle to come to terms with the sustained nature of our riding – both distance and speed. So it was refreshing to see someone itching to go.
Eildon was nominally morning tea, so after a short break we headed over the scenic Skyline. At Alexandra we turned right and headed out the highway, monitoring speeds carefully, heading for Yarck and eventually Merton where we turned left and onto the Euroa road. This is one of the first roads I ever went on with the Club back in the early eighties. It has a blind, off camber, up and down cork screw corner. I had never met anything like it, at the time. At the right turn to Strathbogie, the road was closed, the bridge under repair and impassable. So we continued north on relatively straight roads to Euroa, stopping just around the corner. There were no toilets and soon people were heading in all directions looking for relief. It always pays to stop close to one or the other – food or toilets - preferably both.
To get to Longwood and run parallel to the Hume requires a few kilometres of highway travel. Ron overshot the tricky freeway entrance and, while stopped, Stoien pointed out a nail in my rear tyre. Kicking the tyre indicated that it was holding air and so we continued on. Longwood to Avenal is long and straight, ideal for some performance testing, if you are game. The group became a spot on the horizon but soon hove into view as we negotiated our way through town and onto the Seymour road.
At Seymour we pulled into the service station and I pulled out a two inch (5 cm for the youngsters) nail. The Dunlop 208 tyre was on its last legs, and a plug would see it home. I used my plug and the Club insertion crochet hook style insertion needle as it is easier to push into the tyre than the needle I have in my kit. I noticed the Club’s kit is down to one plug, a job for the Club Captain to remedy. A squirt of air, all done in 10 minutes. Then over to the hamburger kiosk to join the others for a late lunch, everyone in high spirits.
Exiting town we headed for Broadford. There was some confusion at the Tallarook turn as we headed for Pyalong, looking for the Broadford exit, 500 metres around the next corner. We didn’t take that either, continuing on to Rob Langer’s favourite loop back to Broadford via the turn at the sharp 45 km/h right hander. I think Tim encountered a kangaroo along here.
At Broadford we picked up Ron’s favourite road through the hills to Strath Creek. Coming down the hay bale lined, armco clad steep twisties, I could see fatigue setting in as a couple of riders ran wide. Plenty of Club crashes on this tricky set of corners. The extra 20 km loop had buggered up my fuel calculations again and the warning light again came on again. It had to be Strath Creek. I told Stoimen to sweep the other riders along and I would catch them in Kinglake West. This worked really well as I had a good blast, headed cleared, just catching the tail riders before Kinglake West.
Tim could not stop grinning, the smile painted on. He had had a great day. It was still relatively early, the small, tight knit group making good time throughout the day. Clifford still had a long drive home to Portland - after tea, making for a 1000 km day. After getting address details from Stoimen and Tim to send them a Club info pack, it was farewell to all.
The 13 km of twisties down to Whittlesea on the damp in patches road topped off the day. Ron mentioned he would like to do the same ride again, this time picking up Strathbogie, road works allowing. It seemed like a good idea, so look for it on the next itinerary.
The official ride distance was 380 km, but door to door saw a smidge under 500 km, the odometer tripping over ’20,000 km. A chain and front sprocket are next on the maintenance agenda, apart from the obvious rear tyre replacement.
Ben Warden (Honda
CBR929)