5 minute read
WhaT liES ahEad
By Tony Gray, Member #3905
Most people around the world would agree that 2020 was a pretty horrible year so could not wait until 2021 rolled over and allowed a little more sunshine to radiate into their lives. There is one thing that we cannot predict with certainty and that is the future.
At time of writing (the New Year fireworks smoke has just settled) I am closely watching the Covid State border closures and how it might affect a proposed trip to Tassie from the end of January. Why risk it you might well ask? Well I answer, why not? We can sit around forever waiting for the planets to align perfectly and that might never happen so do you continue to just sit? Alternatively you can bite the bullet and have a go – avoiding known risks in our case.
This is also a good time for reflection as Queensland prepares to remember the devastating floods that occurred 10 years ago. Do you remember what your plans were on 1 January 2011 or where you were? Jane and I were holidaying with our family at Peregian Beach on the Sunshine Coast and I had taken Rex the Kwaka along to get in some day rides around the hinterland. The Gray Ghost had only recently returned home from her first European adventure in late 2010 so it was Rex’s turn for some fun miles. The weather had started to turn nasty with reports of flooding starting in Bundaberg from the after effects of TC Tasha in North Qld. I decided to head home a day early in what quickly degenerated into torrential rain.
Riding down the M1 in very light traffic I had assumed that I was the only soul brave (stupid?) enough to be riding a bike in those conditions. I was wrong. Trundling along in the left hand lane was an early model Honda Gold Wing outfit. As I sploshed past I managed a feeble wave to a fellow traveller. A bit further down the tar I decided that Rex and I both needed a drink so we pulled into a highway servo to be followed in soon after by the Wing. The usual biker banter ensued – G’day; How ya’ goin’? Wet eh? Fancy a kawfee? Yeah!
Following this intellectual exchange ‘old mate’ and me re-joined to the café where we proceeded to cause a minor flood while waiting for our kawfee. The story that ensued was a gem. ‘Old mate’ (let’s just call him Bill) asked if I had ever ridden an outfit which gave me the chance to regale a old story of being passenger in a Suzuki Water-bottle Outfit in North Qld being ridden by a drug crazed madman with a death wish. I was 20yo at the time and the experience of being suspended in mid-air in a potential coffin had cured me of any desire to be in an outfit again.
A picture of a Suzuki GT750 ‘Water-Bottle’ that terrorised me in my youth when attached to a sidecar. It had a 3 cylinder 2 stroke engine with chain drive.
I am happy to report that I have since ridden and been a passenger in a Ural outfit and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I was surprised with Bill’s admission that this was his first time riding an outfit. This was somewhat surprising given the conditions in which we were riding. Now Bill was not a young man with probably a decade on me (or maybe just a hard life?) with a long flowing (as in wet) beard of which Richard Maher would be proud.
Happy times riding a Ural Outfit in 2019
It transpired that Bill had just purchased the outfit sight unseen off the internet. Where from I asked? Bundaberg! But I have seen the news and Bundaberg is flooding! Yes it certainly is came Bill’s reply, and I had God’s trouble getting out of there with multiple road closures. The next question was an obvious one, where ya’ headed? Home! Brisbane? Nah, Karratha! You mean the one in the Pilbara WA? Yeah. That’s a long way! Nah not too far, I’ve got 10 days leave from the mines so plenty of time (I subsequently looked at the mileage involved in the longer southerly route that Bill was undertaking – approx. 6,500km). It was not possible to ride the shorter northerly route due to the floods.
Bill’s story was that he was a crane operator on the wharves who liked to do a spot of fishing. His solo bike couldn’t carry the gear he needed and was a handful in the sand so he saw an outfit as an ideal solution. Not many outfits came onto the market so when this one appeared Bill acted. In summary here was someone who was prepared to fly halfway around the country into horrendous weather conditions to purchase a bike sight unseen, of a type he had never ridden, of a vintage (mid 1970’s) where ageing components could be expected to fail and then travel 6,500km home in 10 days. To make matters worse a filling had fallen out of a tooth on the flight over that was giving him curry. I bid Bill farewell and good luck on his trip home and wondered what lay ahead for this intrepid traveller. Little did I know at that time what awaited a large number of the residents of S-E Qld with death and destruction in the form of the devastating floods? In hindsight that long road trip on a Gold Wing outfit may have been a whole lot more enjoyable.
Bring on Tassie!
