The Classic Owners Motorcycle Club Inc.
South Australia
Obviously, we can’t stop anyone riding their bikes at this point, but as far as official club rides are concerned, they’ve all been cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns. If you really want to ride your bike, riders should be aware of the dangers, follow social distancing guidelines and self-cater.
With continuing updates to Federal and State Government announcements regarding the COVID-19 virus changing from day to day, it’s worth giving our members an update as to the state of play regarding club activities:
Please be aware that we are in an unprecedented situation and that the rules will change from day to day. We hope to keep you informed of any changes, as they occur.
News has filtered through, from the Levis MCC, that Andrew McDonald AKA Hagrid or Macca, has passed away. Details are very sketchy at the moment.
He was a member of Classic Owners, he has attended meetings and a couple of rides, but hasn’t been seen over the last few months. I’m unsure how he died and have no details of funeral arrangements.
He has been described as a gentle giant, anyone who met him or stood next to him can attest to this description. Over the past few years, he was active in the Sellicks Beach Races, riding his 1938 Harley Davidson W model at the event and at the Mill to Mill 2017. Many of the promotional posters for Sellicks featured a photo of him riding his Harley. I think this is what he’ll be remembered for, from those with a passing acquaintance with the man. Others may remember his Suzuki GT750, which he rode from his Yankalilla home to our club meetings.
Our sincere condolences go to his family and friends.
I have been advised by Martin Blindell that the Two Day Burra Classic, scheduled for April 18/19th will indeed go ahead. Martin has assured me that there is still vacant accommodation available.
All details for the event can be provided my Martin on 0413 058 600 or by email: the2ofus@adam.com.au
Once again there was only a fairly modest turnout for our run to Cape Jervis on Sunday 1st March, the first day of Autumn. Due to Murphy’s Law, the early start once again ensured mild and pleasant conditions. Historic machines were relatively very well represented with 6 of the 8 bikes in this category. In ascending order of machine age were:-
Modern bikes were:-
Graham Riley also attended the start at the Caltex servo at South Road, O’Halloran Hill on his 2016 Indian Scout 1200cc but due to other commitments was unable to ride with us.
We got off to a good start and had a very pleasant ride to our coffee stop at McLaren Flat via Clarendon. After a leisurely break we headed west through McLaren Vale and down to the coast at Aldinga. Along the esplanade down to Sellicks Beach and then back to the Main South Road towards Myponga. Across the reservoir wall then up and over the ridge before descending into Carrickalinga. Here we had a regrouping stop but it soon became apparent that the misfire earlier reported by Campbell had worsened to cause a complete breakdown. Louis generously volunteered to back-track and offer support which was later provided by the RAA.
Meanwhile the rest of us pushed on through Normanville and Delamere and on to Cape Jervis. From the lookout we could see quite a large number of vehicles in the ferry car park. The owners were taking advantage of subsidised fares to travel to the Island to support local businesses in the wake of the recent bushfires.
After a short break it was back on the bikes to fortuitously meet up with Louis at Delamere after his ride back from assisting Campbell. Then off via Parawa and Torrens Vale to Yankalilla Bakery for a well earned lunch. Here we noticed another delay in getting the whole group together there. After a bit of a wait we learned that Allan Vaisham had had a low speed fall at one of the T junctions. He was OK but the bike suffered a bit of damage to lights, mirrors and indicators etc.
Report by Alan Kernich, Club Captain
I’m sure, like me, many of you have been apprehended at a service station and told to remove your helmet when you go to pay for your fuel. This ruling has mystified me and I’m wondering WHY?
I’ve had several instances of this ruling, my experiences have been as follows:
Each time, I have parked my bike on the forecourt, with my registration plate clearly visible to their cameras and have been brandishing a $20 note, fully intent on paying for my fuel.
What exactly is the problem that the service stations are afraid of? Why do they need to see my face, when I pay for my petrol? If I filled a car up with fuel and then went to pay wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap, they wouldn’t bat an eyelid and they certainly wouldn’t ask me to take my hat and sunglasses off before I paid.
I can only assume that they think motorcyclists are a sub-human species who need to be kept in check before they inevitably commit an assault against the service station staff.
This is the kind of behaviour which I was frequently subjected to when I was living in the UK. Over there, I only had to walk into a pub with a leather jacket and helmet and then, told to leave, as motorcyclists were not welcome. These miserable people were unable to differentiate between chain wielding Hells Angels and normal blokes who rode motorbikes. Yes, I know, I wouldn’t wear my helmet into a bank either, that’s hardly a valid reason for service stations to impose a similar ruling.
I am heartily sick of this treatment and will continue to challenge service station staff concerning their ‘no helmets’ rule until I get told a sane and logical reason as to why this ruling is in effect.
Participants:
After some confusion about the scheduled start time,9 riders departed the start location under the pine trees at the site of the old Goolwa Camping Park. The journey out across the bridge over the Goolwa channel and via the north coast of Hindmarsh Island and eventually to the Murray River Mouth went without incident. It was of interest to note the changes in holiday homes on this part of the ride. For many years now we have seen the self- built holiday shacks being gradually replaced with million dollar plus homes.
The Murray Mouth was also interesting and is attracting a deal of interest with three Dredges working hard to keep the channel clear. In previous years our ride has not experienced any problem in parking at this location. However on this occasion we were just able to fit the bikes in the small space available.
On the ride back to Goolwa our traditional visit to the Marina area took place before we adjourned for lunch. It was noticed that the housing area for residences in this area has doubled and that there is now two Marina areas. Perhaps we could consider visiting the alternative Marina on a future outing.
The afternoon ride took the group to the North Goolwa area, then North towards Currency Creek and then onto the Middleton Road for our usual visit to Goolwa Airport. By this time the typical Goolwa afternoon weather had set in and a strong south westerly wind prevailed. At the airport we were surprised to see that a sky diving activity was still taking place regardless of the conditions. We watched as a turbine powered Fletcher aircraft departed for a climb to 15000 ft to enable a tandem parachute jump back to a nominated target on the aerodrome. Our departure was delayed to observe the arrival, and we observed a brilliant display of flying techniques to achieve safe touchdown of two people right on the spot, in difficult conditions. Because of this delay, it was necessary to shorten our planned afternoon route and to return to Goolwa via Middleton.
Throughout the day all machines produced reliable performance. There was a few moments of concern when Paul David’s neat B31 BSA shed its footchange lever whilst Paul was making good progress along the main Goolwa to Victor Harbour Rd. Paul exhibited considerable skill by returning to the abandoned lever which remained on the white line in the middle of the road until collected.
A pleasant surprise for the day was the reliable performance of Ian Voysey’s Malvern Star Autobike which ran well throughout the day.
Alan Wallis surprised us all by arriving on his 250 Kawasaki which he rode all the way from home. Alan normally brings his much admired Tilbrook by trailer to Moped events to officiate as Tail End Charlie. Many thanks Alan and we are sure you enjoyed the convenience of electric start for the whole day. We are assured that the Tilbrook had only a minor electrical fault just before departure.
Our thanks go also to Roger O’Loughlin, Don Jennings, and others who assisted with marshalling throughout the day and to Wayne Williams for providing his back up service with car and trailer.
We offer a warm welcome to any enthusiastic motorcyclist to share our participation in the 27th Annual Moped Marathon on Sunday April 5th in the Barossa Valley. Meet 9:00 for a 9:30 start at the rear car park, Totness Inn, Mt Pleasant.
Report by Warren Duncan, photos by Wayne Williams.
There were 16 bikes at the start, Richard Knott led the way and our first stop was Lovell’s Bakery at Birdwood. From there, the ride was whittled down to 10 as we hit the long straight road to Swan Reach, via Sedan. We crossed the Murray by ferry and followed the river down to Nildottie, where we stopped for lunch.
We continued, following the river south through the scenic settlement of Younghusband and along East Front Rd, which hugs the river bank, and eventually crossed the Murray again at Mannum. Then it was a return trip home along Randell Rd, through Palmer & Tungkillo. Riders peeling off towards their homes at various points. It was quite a long ride – 310 kilometres for me, but the weather and scenery were glorious. Thanks to Richard and all who attended for a great day out.
In spite of my careful planning to start earlier due to the likelihood of hot weather, a couple of spanners were in the works. Firstly it was very mild weather, and we can’t complain about that. Then there was the confusion about the starting time and even the place. Please consult the web calendar either on your PC or phone for the details. Although these details do not usually change from month to month, it is always a possibility. Anyhow enough with the lecturing…
Riders of 6 historic bikes (in ascending age order):-
and 4 moderns (in no particular order):-
met at Hazelwood Park for our run to Hindmarsh Island and the Murray Mouth.
We had a very pleasant run to Strathalbyn via Summertown, Aldgate, Mylor, Echunga and Macclesfield to our refreshment stop at the Strathalbyn Bakery. Here we received a phone call asking us to wait for a couple of stragglers who had missed the start. In a short while we were joined by:-
After our break we headed off towards Goolwa and unlike a previous similar run, my Bonnie just kept going this time with an uneventful run down through Currency Creek, Goolwa, across the bridge to Hindmarsh Island and on to the Murray Mouth. The good – very tasty fish and chips at a food van complete with a sheltered gazebo al fresco dining area. Here:-
caught up with us after missing the start and then diligently searching for us at the Top of Taps and the McLaren Flat Bakery. Well done Darryl. So we ended up with 9 historic bikes, far outnumbering the moderns!
The bad – just up the road at the lookout, the rather depressing sight of two dredges fighting what looks like a losing battle with the sand to keep the mouth open.
After a relaxing meal and some sightseeing we headed off back to Goolwa with a brief detour along the northern coast of the island. Bull Creek Road (always a favourite) was the route to our last stop at Meadows. As usual, the convoy broke up here with people heading off in different directions depending on the latitude of their suburb.
A bit over 210 kilometres for me and once again a really enjoyable day and thanks to the participants for your company.
Alan Kernich, Club Captain.