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OUTBACK ADVENTURE
THE WORLD’S LONGEST
SHORTCUT
RRP: AUS $9.95 NZ $11.99 (Inc.GST)
06 ESCAPE TO... HIGH COUNTRY, QLD AND IRAN
2014 TBC A RACE TO REMEMBER
BIKE CAMPING TIM & FRIES GO BUSH
TESTING KAWASAKI Z1000 ▫ APRILIA TUONO
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ODDBALL TOURING
Who says you need to stick to the well-trodden track? Tim, Pete and Fries try to have their cake and eat it too. Story Tim Munro Photography Tim Munro, Pete Gray and Fries
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t was while we were poring over the maps to find a more adventurous route from Brisbane to Sydney that old Pete rumbled up the driveway on his Harley. He glanced at the assorted maps and recently highlighted route options then asked the question, “Can I come too?” I looked at Fries while considering some of the bumpy country roads and forest tracks we had just selected for the ride. “Sure, as long as you can ride that thing properly and don’t get all precious about it being dirty and covered in bugs”. I knew his riding wouldn’t be an issue, and the idea of a couple of fully loaded adventure bikes
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touring with a Harley-Davidson bobber was, in fact, strangely appealing. “Geez, two dogs and a Hog,” said Fries eventually, and we set about organising the run.
Poor buggers... We had the luxury of being able to take a few days to get down to Sydney so didn’t have any real time pressure on us, although there were a couple of stops we planned to make along the way. It was midday on Friday the 13th when we left Brisbane central and I had good intel’ that the Urbenville pub was going to go off with a black party later in the evening. Still, we had time to take the better
riding roads and turned right at Beaudesert onto the Boonah Rd for a good warm up ride through the well-sealed corners through to Rathdownie. After a beer at the Rathie pub we headed south on the Mount Lindesay Hwy for the run up the hill to the state border. This is a great ride with a series of slow to mid-speed corners all the way through to Woodenbong. This gave me a chance to suss out the speed of the Fat Bob around corners and I was very surprised at the pace Pete managed to maintain behind Free Wheeling’s well-travelled Super Tenere. We refuelled in town before riding the 13km down to Urbenville and checking into the Crown Hotel for the night.
Main Fries, Tim and Pete... ready to ride. Left Riding into another postcard scene in SE QLD. Top Brisbane skyline... leaving the city behind is a great feeling. Above Mount Lindesay on the NSW/QLD border. FREE WHEELING 19
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DAY TRIPS
WHY WE RIDE There is much more to motorcycling than riding the iconic roads, such as Bells Line of Road and the Great Ocean Road. Travel Editor Hamish Cooper leads us down some of the routes that take us to the heart of the motorcycling experience. Story Hamish Cooper Photography FW archives, Tim Munro, Callum Cooper
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FREE WHEELING DAY TRIPS
The Magic Pillion Ride dmit it. More often than not our most popular riding roads are crawling with weekend traffic or infested with speed traps posing as “safety cameras”. Sydney’s Royal National Park has always been one of my fave rides. It’s just an hour from the CBD so “back in the day” of Z1 Kawasakis and bevel-drive Ducatis it was a ribbon of road rage for weekend warriors. Now it’s far more enjoyable as a two-up cruise and even better in the misty rain of spring or early summer. Very romantic and as relaxing for the pillion as the rider. Follow the Princes Highway south, turn off at Farnell Ave and follow the signs to the park. At the Hacking River causeway at Audley Weir you can hire a rowboat from the old boatshed for an hour’s gentle aquatic diversion. What’s the rush? Just make sure you are facing the right way around in the dinghy before you push off, unlike landlubber me. Back on the bike, you’ll follow your nose to the coast, often travelling through a tunnel of trees and greenery broken by rocky outcrops. Wow! The Sea Cliff Bridge on the coast is an ultra-modern contrast to the primeval forest of the earlier ride. It’s straight out of a European tour book. Cross its curvaceous flanks and meander along the waterfront through Scarborough and Coaldale on the Grand Pacific Drive to Thirrol. Stop anywhere for a seaside lunch, then plan your return – maybe via Bald Hill Lookout at Stanwell Tops to watch the hang-gliders.
Gazetted in 1879, the Royal National Park is the world’s second oldest national park (behind Yellowstone in the USA).
Redfern Motor Parts, 436 Princes Hwy, Corrimal, gives a fascinating insight into Harley’s early history. Usually open Saturday 9am-3pm. Phone (02) 42846733. FREE WHEELING 45
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ON THE ROAD
KAWASAKI Z1000 ABS SPECIAL EDITION
ZED GOES
Sugomi Japanese tag lines aside, the new Z1000 ABS Special Edition is taking aim at the Euros in the juiced up nakebike battle of 2014. Test Nick Byrne Photography Brendon Thorne
Kawasaki has a long tradition of making iconic and elegant roadbikes. Think of the late ‘90s ZX-7RR that thrust Anthony Gobert onto the world stage, or the ‘89-model KR1-S. Even the original Z1 in 1972 has a refined elegance about it that makes it a classic design. The 2014 Z1000 is not one of these. You have to give Kawasaki kudos though as the muscular Sugomiinspired lines (meaning: an intense aggressive aura or energy) certainly helps the Z1 to stand out, with its dropped-nose front fairing and East German weightlifter-like shoulders. It’s designed to imitate a predator waiting to strike upon its prey but I see something that’s melting in the sun. Maybe I am being a bit harsh, as the design has grown on me over the time the bike has been in my garage, as certainly any misgivings of the Z1’s aesthetics are dissipated once you straddle the beast. Not only is it ergonomically brilliant, with a comfortable reach and span to the ‘bars, but that lack of frontal fairing makes you feel like your on an 1043cc motocrosser rather than roadbike with that real sense of connection to the front wheel.
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The new styling makes the Z1000 look like something out of Transformers. The Decepticons will be here any minute...
IN THE SPEC Kawasaki Z1000 ABS Special Edition Engine: Across-the-frame four-cylinder Bore and stroke: 77 x 56mm Displacement: 1043cc Compression ratio: 11.8:1 Fuelling: EFI, 4 x 38mm throttle bodies Exhaust: Four-into-one-into-two Power: 104.5kW@10,000rpm Torque: 111Nm@7300rpm Transmission: Six-speed, wet clutch, chain final drive Ignition: Digital Chassis: Aluminium twin-tube Suspension Front: 41mm Showa SFF-BP (Separate Function Fork-Big Piston) inverted fork, rebound damping and spring preload adjustability, 120mm travel Rear: Showa Monoshock, rebound damping and spring preload adjustability, 122mm travel Brakes Front: Dual four-piston radiallymounted calipers, dual 310mm discs, ABS Rear: Single twin-piston caliper, single 245mm disc, ABS Wheels and tyres: Cast alloy, Pirelli Diablo Rosso Corsa Front: 120/70ZR17M/C (58W) Rear: 190/50ZR17M/C (73W) Fuel capacity: 17L Weight: 221kg wet (claimed) Seat height: 815mm Overall length: 2045mm Wheelbase: 1435mm Price: $16,799+ ORC Warranty: 24 mths, unlimited km Testbike: Kawasaki Australia FREE WHEELING 65