Ride to Harden, Wednesday 17 February 2021

A small team of five keen riders assembled at Caltex Nicholls at 0920 for a 0930 departure. Morning in Canberra was overcast and threatening but we all had faith in the weather forecasters and magic prevailed. Following the excellent brief by yours truly, we mounted and headed out along the Barton Hwy. Just after Hall we found that road works had finally commenced on the dual carriageway extension with 60 then 40 kph restrictions for the first short stretch. Not fussed we soon found the run along the Barton excellent with no delaying traffic all the way down the Hume to the Jugiong turn-off.

The turn for Jugiong was made easier to see as someone had conveniently parked a Subaru Impress well into the steel guard rails at the junction. Police had taped off the area just incase the driver returned and tried to push it home on its remaining two wheels. The Long Track Pantry was as always an excellent stop to stretch your legs. It’s obviously popular as the Pantry was very busy for mid-week. Jugiong road up to Harden was as usual superb. It’s a great stretch of road clearly engineered and designed by a fellow biker. We passed a few like minded riders enjoying this stretch heading south as well.

At Harden three of us thought it prudent to top up down in Murrumburrah before hitting the Bakery. This was namely those with the well designed bikes, where the engine is the centre of attention rather than the fuel tank - it’s a no brainer Hey!

Jackson Bakery in Harden was a good choice but also none of the usual cafes in Murrumburrah are open in the week. The Bakery was well patronised by locals and travellers alike. The Bakery is well laid out, offers good home cooked food and has a large open area to rest and stretch. Here we bumped into some Ulysses members from Wagga. They were out for the day and on their way down to Jugiong then heading back towards Wagga. Lunch over we also decided to head off and make our way back to Canberra.

The return ride was extended slightly to make it more interesting. We headed towards Boorowa along Cunningar road then took a right at the ’T’ junction on  to Hughstonia road towards Binalong. These roads are a little more enjoyable and well away from traffic - real farm country.  The rationale here was to avoid road works on Burley Griffin Way. As it turned out after three kilometres along Cunningar road we hit road works with soft dirt for 200 metres where a 10 ton growler was lifting old bitumen creating a mini dust storm for use to ride through and laying a soft dirt and gravel stretch:-(

Once through Binalong and back on Burley Griffen Way four of the five riders decided to head for Yass for a final coffee stop and chin wag before heading home. Dave on the other hand had to head straight home.  After our coffee, the two that live south (Kevin and Darren) went home via Mountain Creek road (jewel in the crown)while Anthony and l, namely those living north in gods country, returned back along a surprisingly very quiet Barton Hwy.

Overall, everyone agreed it was a great ride noting the routes taken and the fact that there was so little traffic throughout the day. Very hard to beat a mid week ride where a lot of the crazies are elsewhere beavering away at work.

Warren

The Weather: Top 24 degrees, initially overcast then brilliant.
Overall Distance traveled: 306 Kms

 
An unlikely bunch of distinguished riders:

• Kevin Sherman          Indian Scout
• Darren Beauchamp    Harley Dyna Super Glide
• Anthony Hanson        Honda Goldwing  our 'illustrious photographer
• Dave Mossman          BMW 1250RS
• Warren Richer           Triumph Thruxton R1200

Chomp & Chat - Barney’s at Bookham. Sunday, 14th February 2021

I will be the first to admit that when I awoke to an almost perfect riding day, I was more than pleasantly surprised. It was delightfully warm, sunny and very little wind. The forecast maximum temperature was in the mid 20’s. My last few attempts as ride leader had been totally washed out with torrential rain, gale force winds and floods. I do have a tendency to attract bad weather!

The second thought was to wonder how many riders would be able to tear themselves away from partners and sweethearts on such a perfect day given that it was Valentines Day. Fortunately, I had already been contacted by a few riders confirming their intention to join the ride, so I knew I would have some company. I appreciated the courtesy. I then found myself wondering if, as ride leader, I should be providing red roses and boxed chocolates for all comers to mark the occasion. My ultimate excuse for not supplying these items was that my little Ducati Monster 659 is totally devoid of any kind of luggage system. A bit of an oversight by the Italian designers I thought, given their romantic reputation as a nation. So, lovely riding weather would be my gift to the group. I hoped they appreciated my thoughtfulness.

And, what a group it turned out to be! We started with 13 bikes of various marques and layouts, ridden by 14 enthusiastic riders and pillions. Did the perfect weather and love of riding trump the commercialism of Valentine’s Day? Maybe so.

It was great to welcome three new members to our club for this ride as well. Dion & Kim on their very flash looking Harley Davidson Trike and Aeron (also new to Canberra) on her sweet Suzuki SV650. I sincerely hope they enjoyed their first encounter with the other reprobates of the club. It was also good to see Anthony back to riding after some recent health issues. He generously offered to be tail end Charlie of our large group and became the self appointed official photographer.

The route for the day started at the Caltex servo in Weston Creek and ventured out along the Mountain View Road/ Wee Jasper Road to Yass before hitting the Hume Highway to Barney’s Cafe at Bookham for lunch, a distance of just over 100km. The planned return was via Illalong Road to the Burley Griffin Way, then the Hume and Barton Highways to home. The most difficult part of this ride was getting through the traffic lights and roundabout chaos of the John Gorton Drive through Coombs and Denman Prospect before joining the Uriarra Rd. With traffic lights that only stay green long enough for three or four vehicles to proceed  at any given time, keeping a group of 13 bikes together is a real challenge for any ride leader. Somehow we managed to all get together again before heading towards the Uriarra Crossing.

The ride briefing for the Mountain View Road section included warnings about the bumpy road surface and numerous blind, sometimes off-camber corners. There was also the likelihood of potholes, fallen branches, loose leaf litter and gravel and sand washed across the road after recent rain. It was almost certain that these hazards would be encountered on the riding line around a blind corner or beyond a crest. One of the riders also added the possibility of oncoming four wheel drive vehicles being encountered around a corner on the wrong side of the road. These predictions all proved to be correct in every way, with the added bonus of scattered road kill, an oncoming, fully loaded hay truck occupying most of the road as it turning off into a farm driveway, numerous bicycle riders in small groups and a gaggle of bush walkers occupying the middle of the road. The oncoming car swerving onto our side of the road to avoid the bush walkers caused a few hearts to flutter and other things to clench for riders towards the end of our group. Otherwise, this is always a fabulous ride, especially crossing the Murrumbidgee River at the Taemas Bridge and the steep, scenic climb up the other side. The countryside was looking truly magnificent with a tinge of green after the rain. Most unusual for this time of the year when everything usually turns brown from the summer heat.

The group was joined in Yass by Carolyn on her Kawasaki Ninja 1000, taking our group to 15 riders. Kevin took the opportunity to top up his almost empty Indian tank whilst I discovered something new about the design of my Ducati Monster. As we took this short break, I removed my gloves to phone ahead with our lunch numbers. Of course, Murphy arrived and one of my gloves fell to the ground under the front of my bike. I quickly dismounted and casually reached for the errant glove. This was when I discovered that the V-twin engine layout on the Ducati has a very hot exhaust header protruding low down to the road from the forward cylinder. Squeezing my hand back into the wayward glove with a large blister forming on the back of my hand was not a highlight of the trip! Never too old to learn and experience new things, eh?

The ride to Bookham along the Hume was non eventful and gave a few of the riders the opportunity to open the throttle, engage cruise control on their bikes and to claim the best parking spots at our destination.

The staff at Barneys greeted us warmly and had set aside a large space for us under their front verandah. A comment was made by the manager that they were surprised that there were so many of us in the group, given that is was Valentines Day. It was amusing to note that some of the responses from our group included, “I thought that was yesterday,” and “Ooops, I completely forgot about that!” Food was ordered and the Chat part of the Chomp and Chat started in earnest. Overall the food was reasonably good and the service very friendly with most people enjoying their meals. Funnily enough, one of the riders who had ordered a salad expressed their disappointment that there was not much actually in the salad. This was in stark contrast to the steak sandwiches and hamburgers that were filled with an exceptional array of salad vegetables. It seems that if you want a good salad, order the burger and discard the meat. The other major criticism of our chosen venue was the lack of onsite toilet and bathroom facilities. To wash your hands or to visit the toilet required a short hike down the opposite side of the road to the highway rest area. I suspect that despite the good food and friendly service on offer, this might be a deal breaker for future visits.

It was after lunch that the Valentines Day factor really kicked in. Several riders departed early to return home directly for planned family functions. During our morning briefing, Warren had noted that there had been extensive roadworks along the Burley Griffin Way, so it was likely that there would be long stretches of 60kph speed limits and possibly numerous gravel/clay patches to traverse. This information persuaded a few more riders to return via the Hume Highway for fear of getting their pristine, recently washed and polished bikes spattered with that infamous RMS sticky lime and clay road base. As it turned out, all the patches had been sealed and there was not a single stretch of clay to be found.

These early departures reduced our group to just five bikes - myself, Charan, Mark (on his brand new Tiger), Aeron and Craig. We headed off down the Illalong Road to Burley Griffen Way then onwards to the promise of a coffee stop in Yass at the Roses Cafe. The Illalong road was bumpy in places but traversed some beautiful farming country. The predicted roadworks on Burley Griffin Way didn’t eventuate, although the 60kph speed limits were still active over the freshly laid bitumen surface. The biggest disappointment was to discover the Roses Cafe closing its doors just as we arrived. Too bad that we were keen to top up our caffeine reserves and indulge extravagantly in their delightful pastries. Who would have expected the doors being locked at 2pm when the sign on the door said open until 4pm? The bakery just down the hill also closed its doors at the same time in a show of commercial solidarity. Could this be the Valentines Day factor again? We will never know as no explanations for the early closures were offered.

At this point our little group was reduced to just two, as Charan, Craig and Mark set off on their own individual pursuits. I asked Aeron whether she wanted to return via the Mountain View Road again or the Barton Highway. She was definitely not prepared to battle the Mountain View Road potholes twice in one day, so it was the highway for us. I had discovered over lunch that Aeron had only recently moved to the ACT and actually lived in the same deep southern suburb as myself. It was a pleasant surprise to discover at the end of a great day of riding that we actually lived in adjacent streets.

Thanks to all who ventured out and made the day lots of fun. It was great to meet and welcome new members and celebrate the return of others. We hope to see you again on upcoming rides. Thanks to Anthony for supplying most of the pictures of the outing. I hope to see you all again soon, and in the meantime. stay safe and stay upright.

The Group: (in no particular order)

• Peter Ongley  -  Ducati 659 Monster
• Dion & Kim Koch  -  Harley Davidson Trike
• Neil McRitchie  -  Kawasaki GTR 1400
• Warren Richer  -  Triumph Thruxton 1200
• Andrew Campbell  -  BMW R1250RS
• Craig Fraser  -  Yamaha FJR 1300
• Kevin Sherman  -  Indian Scout
• Chris Dietzel  - Kawasaki GTR 1400
• Anthony Hanson  - Honda Goldwing Aspencade 1500
• Mick Harvey  -  Yamaha FJR 1300
• Aeron Johnson  -  Suzuki SV650
• Mark Mitchell  -  Triumph Tiger 900 Rally Pro
• Charan Szvarajan  -  Honda CBR 250
• Carolyn Hutton  -  Kawasaki Ninja 1000

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Kangaroo Valley & Huskisson, 7 February 2021

What are the chances that you’d get a week of overcast skies with storms that dumped over 100mm of rain but then have beautiful sunshine for Ulysses ride day? Almost zero, from my experience.

Usually it’s the other way round – weeks of bright sunshine are followed by gale-force winds, torrential rain and hail the size of basketballs on ride day. However, the malevolent weather gods must have been on holidays on Sunday because we were blessed with near-perfect weather after a week of storms. 

I didn’t make the start of the ride at Bungendore but caught up with the rest of the mob at the Meridian Café at Marulan. I had just parked the bike and taken off my helmet when Al and his eight acolytes (Al-colytes?) turned up.
I immediately marked the Meridian down because they don’t have meat pies and I had to settle for a freshly baked scone with jam and whipped cream, but the coffee was good. 

The next part of the ride involves some tricky route-finding, so Al handed over the reins to Scott, who as usual had the route saved in his GPS. This was Scott’s first ride since a crash landing off a ladder in mid-December saw the firies rescue him from his roof and the ambos take him to hospital with a broken rib and several cracked vertebrae. It was good to have him back on the road!

Apart from getting stuck behind some slow drivers and lots of traffic in Kangaroo Valley, the ride went smoothly. We refuelled in Nowra and headed on to Huskisson, where we were gobsmacked by the slow, heavy traffic, crowds of people wandering from one hipster store to the next, and bugger-all parking spots.

We eventually found a place to park and hiked a few blocks to the huge Huskisson Hotel, which has a nice view over Jervis Bay. The food was good and despite the mobs of diners and a warning that it would take 30 minutes, it came quickly and, amazingly, without any mistakes.

But the pub is a real production line place, geared mostly for younger Sydney tourists. A waitress told me if we’d come the day before we wouldn’t have made it through the door because they had weddings, parties, twenty-firsts and wakes all booked in for the day.

By now it was warm and muggy, so we were glad to get back on the road. Apart from a small route-finding glitch near Turpentine Road, it was smooth sailing all the way to Nerriga. The bush is still recovering from last summer’s bushfires, but it looked a lot better than last time I went this wayScott and Dieter continued on while the rest of us had a 15-minute break at Nerriga. Just short of Tarago we were stopped by a line of traffic banked up behind a crash. Someone told Al the road had been closed for two hours and it would probably be another couple of hours before it was cleared.

So, we backtracked to Windellama, then Goulburn, and headed home via the freeways. The question of what had happened to Scott and Dieter, who presumably were ahead of us in the traffic jam at the accident, was answered by a text message I saw from Scott as I pulled up at home at 6pm.
I quote: “How did your trip home go? Dieter and I waited for Cullula Road to reopen, and we were only held up 15 or 20 minutes. I had a cold beer in my hand at 5:25!”

Oh well, you win some, you lose some. The ride was only supposed to have been 460km, but our final detour pushed it out (according to the Speedometer 55 app on my iPhone) to 535km. Nonetheless, it was a great day out.
Ian

• Alan Munday          Yamaha FJR1300
• Scott England        BMW R1250RT
• Kevin Sherman      Indian
• Hartmut Kehm       BMW R1250GS
• Bill Henshaw         Triumph Explorer
• Chas Towie            Honda ST1300
• Neil McRitchie        Kawasaki GTR1400
• Mike Allan             Triumph Thruxton
• Dieter Walter         Ducati Multistrada 950
• Ian Paterson         Honda GL1800 Goldwing