Ulysses Orange Newsletter - November 2018

Ulysses Orange Branch November 2018 Newsletter

Ulysses Albury Wodonga Newsletter - November 2018

Ulysses Albury Wodonga November 2018 newsletter

2019 Postie Bike Challenge

Discounted rate till Dec 31 - $4950 Route is Birdsville track, Brisbane to Adelaide.

More info here >> https://www.postiebikechallenge.org/?fbclid=IwAR1CvQNRRFR11ivnwdhjPOHuQIT2z0yNfp62gh6Hd37xcisGaSWCWNx5OCs

Ride (Drive) Report - Remembrance Day to Bateman's Bay, 11 November 2018

For those of us that live in Canberra’s Eastern Suburbs, for any rides west, where the meeting point is Nicholls, a day’s ride is automatically one hour longer as it takes us half an hour just to meet up with everyone. So we thought for Remembrance Day we would travel to Batemans Bay for their Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the World War One Armistice.

I am related, by blood or marriage to a few names on the Batemans Bay memorial. McMillan, Bettini, Backhouse, and Patrech are all in my family tree. But it was for Alexander McMillan, my great great uncle, that we travelled to the Bay.

Alexander was the 14th of sixteen children born to John McMillan and Ellen Backhouse. He was born at Batemans Bay and the family lived at South Durras.

Alexander enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in Sydney on 3 September 1914. He was 24 years old, single and employed as a sawyer (presumably in the family business). He joined the 13th Battalion, one of the first battalions to be raised, only six weeks after the declaration of war. The battalion left Melbourne for Albany on HMAT Ulysses 22 December 1914 arriving in Egypt in February 1915. Along with the rest of the 4th Brigade, under the command of then Colonel John Monash, the 13th Battalion took part in the landing at Anzac Cove, arriving late on 25 April 1915.

I don’t know which ship took Alexander to Gallipoli for the landing, but I do know that it is a bullet ridden lifeboat used by the 13th Battalion that greets you at the start of the WW1 gallery at the Australian War Memorial.

Surviving the landing, Alexander was shot in the left leg on 2 May and was eventually evacuated to the 1st Australian General Hospital in Heliopolis. He lingered for a few months as doctors tried at first to save his leg, and then his life. He died 7 August 1915 three days before two of his sisters arrived to check on his well-being. How did two civilian women travel half way around the world in the middle of a war? Was this common? I’m yet to find this out. Alexander was buried in the New Protestant Cemetery, Old Cairo, and to the best of my knowledge no relatives have ever visited his gravesite.

Alexander’s surname is spelt incorrectly on the memorial in Batemans Bay and the dates of the war are incorrect. According to the RSL, the people of Batemans Bay were so traumatised by the loss of so many local men so soon into the war that they wanted some sort of recognition immediately and so the memorial was created in 1917.

Alexander was just one of the 62,000 Australian men and women who lost their lives so we could live as we do today. RIP Great Uncle Alex.

Words by Tracey Winters

Christmas Toy Run - 8 December 2018

The 38th Annual Motorcyclist's Toy Run is on the 8^th December. The ride starts at 10.00am departing from outside Old Parliament House.

Roll up from 8.00am for a pre-ride coffee and a tasty breakfast treat from the Ulysses Canberra Branch BBQ. 

Please bring gifts and gift card for the kids, and non perishable food for families, to help make those less fortunate than us enjoy their Christmas.

Volunteers from the Canberra Branch are required to help with the BBQ and with the clean up afterwards.

Ride Report - Eden (no Mogo) - 21 October 2018

I had intended on going on the 0800am Eden ride today, even timing my awakening to perfection, allowing enough time to get the bike out of the shed, put my riding gear on and ride off knowing I would arrive on time. That's where all my prior planning fell over.  I normally carry one key card on me which I keep in a safe place, however the last thing I checked was the safe place .... oh shit.... the card is not there!!

I spent the next 30 mins with the wife frantically trying to find it...... card located in the washing basket....shit!

Now I was really late, instead of fashionably on time.

Shit again....

I rang Matt who I assumed was still going only to find that just two riders turned up and both on GTR1400s.

Matt and Chris were willing to wait so I rushed through my earlier routine and shot off to Hume on my GTR.

Three other guys arrived at the Hume Servo (one of them a Ulysses member) whilst I was in transit. All three were going to Mogo, so after a very quick carpark meeting - Mogo was the new destination.

We departed Hume at 0915am and rode through Queanbeyan via Lanyon Drive.  I had a minor verbal altercation with a moron car driver texting his way past the Queanbeyan Police Station. I continue to be amazed by the ever increasing levels of dumbness in our society and on our roads. The numpty car driver actually wanted me to pull over to discuss in detail his reason for texting. I was so tempted....

The ride along the highway to Bungendore was uneventful and quite pleasant for those on the GTRs with built in hand warmers. Believe it or not 11 degrees feels a lot cooler at 100kph.
A good Samaritan in a 4x4 flashed us so we accordingly monitored the road ahead only to find.... nothing. Gee thanks for the heads up.

Traffic was light and didn’t really inhibit us at all, the weather was also getting better by the minute with respect to the amount of cloud dissipating.

We stopped at Braidwood and had a heart starter and a pie. And then continued to the coast via a very smooth highway through the mountains. The road was damp but not wet so our overall pace was quite good.

There was an increase in cloud over the Clyde but no rain and the cloud cleared completely at Batemans Bay and Mogo.

We had lunch in a Cafe I can’t remember the name of which was opposite a Servo whose name I cannot recall either. But lunch was nice and hit the spot.

After a quick refuel (Chris headed south to watch his daughter jump out of a perfectly serviceable aircraft) we set off back to Bungendore along a now fully dry Kings Hwy. Suffice to say, we all enjoyed the ride back through the twisties as the temperature had improved to 21deg. We stopped at Bungendore for another coffee break prior to all of us heading in different directions.

So after a crappy start for me, the day ended with an incident free 350km (approx) ride. This is my first ride report.... be gentle.

Signed, Cooch

Riders:

Chris D              GTR1400 with Coms
Matt H               GTR1400 with Coms
Cooch               GTR1400 with Coms
(No Coms compatible - go figure)

Ride Report - Chomp and Chat to Jugiong, 14 October 2018

Only 5 riders were ready to leave Nichols Servo at the starting time of 10.30. Maybe it was the forecast of showers that turned people away (rain had been forecast all week and it did not happen) or maybe people had not got out of winter mode.

It was decided to ride via Harden then across to Jugiong to miss as much of the boring Hume Highway as possible.

The weather was overcast as we started out of the servo and another bike was coming around the roundabout and followed the group. It was a late starter and now the group was 6. As we travelled out through Murrumbateman towards Yass the weather warmed up to a quite pleasant 20-22 degrees and the cloud cover dissipated.

When the group arrived at Jugiong, parking was at a premium and we parked on a patch of grass and dirt about 50 metres further along.

I had not been able to book a table at the hotel as they did answer the phone or return calls after I left messages. There were some spare tables at the Long Track Pantry so we grabbed our table and ordered our meals and coffee.

A quite pleasant meal and the usual storytelling and we solved the problems of the world as usual.

After lunch 4 of the group decided to head back via the highway but Mick and myself decided to head back via Harden and Boorowa. A stop in Boorowa for a drink and we were on our way with an eye on the speedo as the Highway Patrol around this area are very efficient with checking your speedo for you.

It started to rain after passing through Murrumbateman but was not much and when I arrived home the roads were dry in Belconnen.

An enjoyable ride with good company with about 360 km ridden.

Alan Munday, Ride Leader

Riders:

Alan Munday              Yamaha FJR 1300

Mike Carmody            Harley Davidson Softtail S

Mick Beltrame            BMW R1200 GS LC

Kim Nichols               BMW 1200 GS

Chris Dietzel              Kawasaki GTR 1400

Chris Rose                 Triumph T120            

UPDATED - Remembrance Day Ride to Temora

Remembrance Day Ride now offers TWO departure times.

Because of time constraints, there are now two departure times for the ride to Temora on Sunday. Both groups will depart from Caltex Nicholls. All the rest of the details remain the same.

Date:                          Sun 11th November

Destination:               Remembrance Day Ride to Temora

Distance:                   400 km

Depart:                       Both Groups leave from Caltex Nicholls 

Time # 1:                   Briefing 7:50am, departure 8:00am sharp 
                                  (includes short break at Murrumburah)
Leader # 1:                Peter Arday 0411 529 151

                                               OR

Time # 2:                   Briefing 8:20am, departure 8:30am sharp
                                  (non-stop to Temora)

Leader # 2:                Al Munday 0411 529 151

Ride Report - Meet with South Coast Branch at Illawarra Fly, 4 November 2018

You know something is not quite right on a ride when tail-end Charlie gets to the destination before anybody else and corner markers are strung out across the countryside wondering if they should stay at their posts till they starve to death.

This was the situation on Sunday’s ride to the mysterious Illawarra Fly, which is rumoured to exist but which I have never seen despite having visited the place three or four times. But first, let me assure you than nobody starved to death or even missed lunch, though we could very well have died of thirst at the Fly (thank god for Coca Cola!).

Our little band of eight people on seven bikes left Watson at 9am and rode via Macs Reef Road to Bungendore (sorry, Mick and Tracey!) and then to Tarago and north on the Braidwood Road to the Hume Freeway and east to Marulan for a coffee and a pie. So far so good, although a pink teddy bear crucified on a telegraph pole 15km south of Goulburn could have been a harbinger of what was to come.

From Marulan we rode through Tallong and Bundanoon, enjoying the beautiful scenery and near-perfect weather. We intended to turn right onto Ringwood Road, which bypasses Exeter and Moss Vale, just before the railway line, but because of roadworks at that corner, Ringwood Road was closed. While this was unfortunate on the day, in the longer term it is great news because they appear to be upgrading what has been until now a dangerous intersection.

So, we continued straight ahead into Exeter, turned right under the railway line and got back onto Ringwood Road (or Werai Road as it is at this end), heading north on the shortcut that bypasses Moss Vale. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, our last two riders – including, of course, tail-end Charlie – missed the corner marker in Exeter and continued straight ahead towards Moss Vale. 

If you’re familiar with the bypass route, you will know that there are four more corners to be marked before you join the Illawarra Highway. If you can do simple arithmetic, you can probably deduce that by the time I got to the Illawarra Highway, all our remaining known riders were marking corners somewhere on the Southern Highlands, waiting for tail-end Charlie – or anybody! – to come along, and I was alone like a shag on a rock waiting to turn onto the highway.

The next few details are a bit hazy but, with the help of Chris, who had spotted the errant pair somewhere between Exeter and Lake Cargelligo and figured out what had happened, I rounded up all the others and we made our way to the Illawarra Fly. And yes, there were rider number six and tail-end Charlie who had beaten the lot of us. 

Not only that, there were about 30 riders from the Ulysses South Coast branch, for indeed this was an inter-branch meet-and-greet ride. To tell the truth, it was kind of humiliating to be leading this ride. In Canberra branch we have 300 members on our mailing list and we could only muster seven to go and meet up with a neighbouring branch. The South Coast branch is spread out from Wollongong to Ulladulla and they had more than four times as many people along.

To add to the weirdness, the Illawarra Fly café had no water, which meant no tea, no coffee, no toilets. And on top of that, the Tree Top Walk was closed for some unknown reason (perhaps because it doesn’t really exist), which took away part of the justification for going there. 

Some of the South Coast group rode back to the Robertson Pie Shop for lunch while the rest of us dined at the Fly. When we could no longer ignore the need for a toilet, we rode into Robertson for a pit stop and a welcome coffee.

We also fuelled up in Robertson, where amazingly the petrol was 12 c/L cheaper than in Moss Vale or Canberra. It had been a beautiful 22 degrees at the Fly, 24 in Robertson, 28 in Moss Vale and it crept up to 30 on the freeway on the way home. Despite the day’s oddities, it was great to be out with friends and chat to some of the South Coasters.

Ian Paterson

Ian Paterson                          GL1800

Mick & Tracey Winters            Trophy 1200

Les Robinson                         Trophy 1200

Maritta Heiler                         Kwaka 900

Kris Jirasek                            GSXR1300

Craig Fraser                           GL1800

Chris Dietzel                          GTR1400

Remembrance Day ride to Temora - Sunday 11 November 2018

Canberra branch has been invited to take part in the service at Temora to mark the centenary of the end of World War 1. Peter Arday will lead the ride, which will depart from Caltex Nicholls at 8:30am sharp.

There won’t be a march, but the ceremony will be held at the cenotaph in Callaghan Park (the site of Temora's Anzac Day services). It will commence at 10:45am, so we will need to be there well before then. Veterans are invited to take part in the ceremony and wear their gongs and the rest of us are invited to be part of the congregation (for want of a better word). We will be laying a wreath during the service.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, after the Last Post, the world’s only remaining flying Lockheed Hudson bomber will fly over the cenotaph at 500 feet and drop 6000 silk poppies.

Our usual lunch venue is the Temora Ex-Services Club, or there are other places if you prefer.

Also on Sunday, the Temora Aviation Museum is holding a Remembrance Day Aircraft Showcase featuring all the serviceable aircraft from the museum’s collection (Spitfires, Boomerang, Cessna Dragonfly, Hudson, Wirraway, Harvard, Tiger Moth and Meteor). Flying starts at 11:05am with the last flight at 4pm. Admission is $25 or $20 for over-65s. 

See https://aviationmuseum.com.au/event/remembrance-day-2017-aircraft-showcase-2/ for details.

Whether you wish to join us at the ceremony, dine at the Ex-Services Club, and/or go to the Aircraft Showcase, you’re welcome to ride with us. There will be a brief coffee stop at Murrumburrah on the way. 

Please come along and represent Canberra branch!

In summary:

Date:                          Sun 11th November

Destination:               Remembrance Day Ride to Temora

Distance:                   400 km

Leave:                        Caltex Nicholls 

Time:                         Briefing 8:20am, departure 8:30am sharp

Leader:                      Peter Arday 0411 529 151

NEXT CLUB RIDE: Sunday 4 November - Inter-branch ride to Illawarra Fly

Date:  Sun 4th November 

Destination: Inter-branch Ride to Illawarra Fly

Distance:  400 km

Leave:  BP Watson 

Time:  Briefing 8:50am, departure 9:00am

Lunch: Illawarra Fly café

NB: Treetop Walk entry $25 (concession $20)

Leader:  Ian Paterson 0427 291 728
Note: Get-together with the South Coast Branch