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
