WING NOTES
Newsletter of the
August
2002
Australian Wing Riders Association (Qld) Inc.
P O Box 652, Ipswich
Queensland 4305
Meetings held 1st Monday
of every month:
Next Meeting
2nd September
2002
at
Coorparoo RSL Club
45 Holdsworth Street, Coorparoo
7:30pm
Wing Notes
August
2002
OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF THE AUSTRALIAN WING RIDERS ASSOCIATION (QLD) INC.
EDITOR:.............Clint
Lovell
Phone/Fax:
(07) 3398 3437
E-Mail:
clint@lovell.com.au
WING NOTES
is produced with the object of keeping members
informed about matters of interest to AWRA
members.
A copy of each issue is posted to every financial member of the AWRA.
Copies are also distributed to selected motorcycle dealers in the greater Brisbane area.
Submissions for inclusion in WING NOTES
should be with the Editor no later than the Friday following the monthly meeting, ie: Friday after the 1st Monday of
the month.
DISCLAIMER:
Although WING NOTES
will endeavour to reproduce submissions in their original form it reserves the right to edit submissions as it
sees fit. Views expressed in contributed articles in WING NOTES
are not necessarily those of the AWRA or the Editor.
WING NOTES is produced with care, in good faith and from sources
believed to be accurate at the time of writing.
What’s Inside
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The Editor’s View
Hi All
Not too many piccies this month –
Charleen and I have missed a couple of rides recently. It’s a shame when work
interferes with riding time. Especially when one is semi-retired.
A couple of good stories this month,
with contributions from Larry, Bevan and Bill. Lionel gets a whole page from
a moment’s forgetfulness.
The two pictures in the back aren’t
from AWRA rides, but I’m vain. I sure wouldn’t like to be the pillion on the
other.
Keep the articles coming.
Contributions can be emailed to
clint@lovell.com.au
or posted
to
47 Breslin St, Carina, Qld 4152.
Photos and slides can be scanned and returned.
Clint
From
the Secretary’s Desk
Did my usual Warrego
Highway hop on Monday night and sped (?) off to meet everyone at Shell-Gailes,
to lead them back to the remote and mysterious Ipswich and this month’s
meeting venue.
Arrived at Gailes at the
appointed hour of 6:00pm and proceeded to wait. Bevan arrived first,
(slightly flustered, as he had misread the leaving time for Gailes), followed
by Bill & Mary, Clint & Charlene, and finally Ray & Val (sans slippers).
Having the full compliment of adventurous souls we departed at 6:30pm for
Ipswich.
Turbo & Wendy were already
at Jets when we arrived about 7:00pm, so it was into the first order of the
day – something to eat! Regretfully the kitchen had run out of steak prior
to our arrival so the menu was limited somewhat. (Not happy Jan!)
With little business to discuss the
meeting turned out to be a relatively short one, albeit productive, and we had
everything wrapped up by 8:15pm.
Coffee was the next order
of the day, so the big question was, where was the nearest McDonalds.
Bundamba, I said, so off we go. Unfortunately, when we arrived the place
was lit up like a Xmas tree but no-one was home, it had been closed for
renovations (that day as I eventually found out). A quick phone call and
everyone headed of into Mt Gravatt to meet Lionel & Mary whilst I headed for
home and a reasonably early night.
Brent
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From the President
1. Bongaree is on which Qld island?
2. Who played the title role in the 1951 film The Great Caruso
?
3. Actor Richard Burton was Welsh. True or False?
4. Who wrote the novel Out of Africa?
5. Catherine Zeta Jones is married to whom?.
6. What, approximately, is the mean distance from the earth to the
sun?
7. In which magical story does a Scottish village awaken every 100
years ?
8. What acronym defines an optical maser?
9. Name the most powerful chess piece ?
10. What is the earth’s hardest naturally occurring substance?
Answers
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Odyssey Mackay 2002
(Our View)
First of all let me thank everybody
for their help, care & support the night we had my beloved Commodore stolen.
Especially Ray & Val for getting their car & taking us home all the way to
Caboolture. And also Clinton & Charleen for the use of their mobile phone.
(ours went with the car)
Now for the exciting stuff, our trip
to Mackay for the 7th Qld Odyssey.
We were all set to leave by ourselves
on Thursday lunch time but heard some others were leaving on the Friday. So we
decided to travel with them. Glad we did.
Roundabout 1pm Ray, Val, our good
friend Noel Ashton (Asho), Annette & I left the BP Burpengary. (spent a whole
day cleaning my bike, got a shower of rain & caught behind a truck even before
we got to the garage.) A bit of a mess it was in. Anyway took off at a nice
gentle pace with no rain or mishap until the range just before Miriamvale.
I'm leading & Ray & Asho are lagging
behind a bit. Next thing Ray is right up behind me babbling about a Killer
Truck or something, so get a move on. We made it to Miriamvale without
getting run over, filled up and headed up the road to Bororen where we booked
into a motel, parked the steeds for the night had a good feed, some drinks and
waited for Lionel and Mary to catch up. They had to leave later in the day.
Work does that to you.
Next morning up bright and early and
headed to Rocky for Breakfast where Asho departed for a wedding. The three
wings led by Ray heading off to Mackay. (much of which is in a 110klm + zone.)
Good Stuff.
Arrived in Mackay, about lunch, booked
into our motel (which we chose because it was 50 metres from the Odyssey
venue). Sorry we're not using that gate we're using the one r-i-g-h-t
a-r-o-u-n-d the other side. We checked in at the Odyssey & then decided to
go to a pub for lunch. Living up to our reputation we had to do the
roundabouts, U turns thing to get to the pub we could see just down the road.
After a lovely lunch back to the showgrounds to partake of refreshments and
chatter.
Saturday Night we again returned to
the grounds for the night’s entertainment, meeting up with people we had met
at other AGM's and Odysseys and even people from down the road and Brisbane. A
very good night. Mackay Ulysses Catered and presented very well.
Congratulations to them.
Sunday we had breakfast compliments of
Mackay lions (for a fee)
Back to the motel and pack up to come
home. OOPS a bit of a bubble appeared in Ray and Val’s rear tyre. Just to
upset them I told them. Back to the showgrounds to find a new tyre. After
much help and frantic phone calls all over Mackay, it was decided Ray would
stay in Mackay. Val would return to Rocky with Peter Goodsir and then ride
back with Asho who was meeting us for the return ride. After rearranging Val
and her gear it was decided to go to the airport to see if she could get a
flight home. Lucky Val.(school holidays and all)
Peter, Lionel and Mary, Annette and I
headed off into the sunlight checking out Sarina Beach on the way. (Nice
quiet place for a quiet holiday). “Let’s stop at the Carmilla Pub for lunch.”
was the call, never been there though. After pies and coke we headed off only
to have some confusion of direction at the intersection of the highway. Off
they went, my bike decided to fall over. I don't know why, just did. I made
Annette help me pick it up and away we go again.
Stopping for coffee about an hour or
so down the track Annette's purse is missing. Left under the chair at the
Carmilla Pub. After frantic phone calls and name calling we arranged to have
it sent down to Caboolture via snail mail. If you’re ever in Carmilla drop in
and say Hi to Carol and the gang.
Not to worry Larry’s got his plastic.
The only problem is His cards only work on certain accounts (the ones with not
much money in them.) Frantic calls to daughter in Brisbane. All fixed.
We park at Rocky for the night. Called
a cab and headed off to Lonestar steakhouse for tea, then back to the motel,
dropping Peter off on the way.
Monday morning woke everybody up at
motel and headed off to Brisbane. Asho decides to wait till Tuesday and ride
home with Ray.
We get to Miriamvale, have breakfast,
fuel up and head off again. A couple of ks down the road my alternator light
comes on. No worries the battery is charged, should get us home. WRONG! We
get to Apple Tree Creek where the motor cuts out with just enough slope to
reach the garage. WRONG again. 30 metres from the garage Annette has to get
off and push. One hand pushing and one hand over her eyes in case a Harley
rider comes past and recognises her. Turning into the garage driveway, slight
slope, tired bike and Annette, bike lays down again. With her help we get it
up again and into the car park. By this time Lionel and Mary realize we are
not behind them, come back and swap batteries.
Off we go again, only to get 50 or 60
ks down the road and it stopped again. Change batteries again. Lionel’s
won't start this time. We were on an uphill slope with the 4 of us pushing,
not enough speed. Traffic everywhere. We managed to get to the other side of
the road and push down hill, that worked.
Decided to pull out all lights fuses.
Stopped for coffee at Gympie. Still
going. Lionel and Mary followed us right to our door. Many thanks to Lionel
and Mary.
I just hope WE can help somebody out
one of these days.
All told a very enjoyable but eventful
ride.
Larry and
Annette
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New location - 1 Jalomy St.
Boondall Qld
4034
Please ring for an appointment
As this is a private residence
- NO cold calls at premises please.
July Ride Report
Another excellent winter’s day for a ride.
Meeting at the Caltex at Loganholme,
four Wings and one Kawasaki Tourer left at 8.30 sharp.(due to the length of
the ride).
Off we went along the Freeway to the
City-along Coronation Drive, up Hale Street to Waterworks Road and out through
the Gap, over Mt Nebo and on to Mt Glorious and down the other side to Cedar
Park. This is where we had morning tea whilst waiting for John & Anne Spick.
(Sorry about the mix up guys).
Just as we were leaving Cedar Park
Bill & Mary arrived. They decided to stop and have a cuppa and would catch up
at lunch.
From here we rode around Wivenhoe Dam
to Esk turning off to go towards Gatton.
After crossing Toowoomba Highway we
veered off towards Laidley, Rosewood where we stopped for fuel.
From Rosewood we traveled out through
Grandchester along which we were told was the scenic route to Rosevale for
lunch. Unfortunately we had to share the usually quiet and friendly pub with
a very large group from the FORD CLUB. (Some very nice cars) thus detracting
from the character of the place and the quality of the meals which we were
lucky enough to experience the day we checked out the ride.
This is where we caught up with Bill &
Mary again. Also very happy to have Paul & Robyn (on a very nice Black Wing)
join us for lunch & the ride home.
The raffle was drawn and won by our
guest on the Kawasaki (Chris) Second Prize was won by Mary Carter.
All fed and watered we headed out now
with seven bikes back through Warrell View through Boona and back through
Beaudesert, Tamborine Village and towards Beenleigh turning off at Stanmore
Road to Stapylton for a cup of coffee and last hurrahs. Everybody being the
great people they are told us what a good day they. I know we did and I hope
everybody else did. For most a very nice 400km. By the time we got home it
was a mere 600km
Hope to see all on next months ride.
Larry
p.s. from
me ( it was a better ride over Mt Glorious on the bike than in the car)
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|
Answers to this month’s Quiz
| 1 |
Bribie
Island |
2 |
Mario
Lanza |
| 3 |
True |
4 |
Karen
Blixen |
| 5 |
Michael
Douglas |
6 |
About
150 million kilometres |
| 7 |
Brigadoon |
8 |
Laser |
| 9 |
The
Queen |
10 |
Diamond |
|
|
Return to questions
Return to What's Inside |
R.I.P. TYRES
I have some sad news, (especially for
my wallet). We all know what a personal issue motorcycle tyres are. Everyone
has an opinion on what is the best or worst. I wish I knew what was the best
so that I could buy them, and the worst so that I can avoid them.
Our President Bevan devoted a whole
editorial on the tyres that he doesn’t like, and as Bevan is a very
experienced rider I am sure that he speaks with authority on the subject.
Steve
Brouggy has had some interesting articles in the Motorcycle Trader magazine,
and I have learned a lot from reading Steve’s articles. It still didn’t help
me out as a lot of the time the styles of riding that he spoke of didn’t
relate to me.
There was
another comparo with tyres in a recent magazine, that did not give a great
report to the tyres that I have been using, but once again from the article,
the style of riding did not really relate to me. From the article I deduced
that what they were trying to do on a Valkyrie, they should have been on a
Yamaha R1.
I guess it
just comes down to personal choice. I can remember many years ago I got very
interested in wine. I bought books on the subject, listened to experienced
wine buffs and tried different brands and types of wine. All I got was
confused. I forgot what I liked because I was influenced by the so-called
experts. In the end I went back to the cheapies that I know I liked, and
completely forgot the technicalities of the subject.
What has
that got to do with tyres? It does not matter squat what this person or that
person says, or what article is written about the subject. In the end it is
your end that is on the bike, not theirs. If you like the black rings that are
on your bike – keep them. If you don’t, and it is affecting safety, do as
Chris Pusey did and get rid of them.
Unfortunately this can be an expensive exercise, but it is cheap in comparison
to hospital bills. I have been running Bridgestones for a while now. I bought
them because they were cheaper than Dunlops, but I found that I liked them.
They suit my riding style. I just replaced the front tyre that I had put
52,000 klms on, and the back tyre that I had put 28,000 klms on. Guess what I
put back on – that’s right – Bridgestones.
The sad
news is that if your bike is wearing rubber that you don’t like and you are
waiting for them to wear out to replace them, you could be waiting a long
time.
The other
interesting comparison I can make is with restaurants. You may like a
particular restaurant and always go there. Then you might be missing out on a
better meal at another one. The trouble with tyres is by the time you get
around to testing a few different tyres, the ones you liked best two sets ago
are obsolete and not available any more.
Confused?
Yeah, me too.
Safe
Riding.
Bill Carter
Ride
Coordinator
Is it a bird?
In
Kentucky you don’t see too many people hang-gliding. Ol’ Zeek decided to
save up and get a hang-glider. He takes it to the highest mountain, and
after struggling to the top, he gets ready to take flight. He takes off
running and reaches the edge, and into the wind he goes!
Meanwhile,
Maw and Paw Hicks were sittin’ on the porch swing, talking ‘bout the good ol’
days when Maw spots the biggest bird she has ever seen! “Look at the size of
that bird Paw!” she exclaims. Paw raises up, “Git my gun, Maw.” Maw runs
into the house, brings out his pump action shotgun. Paw takes careful aim.
BANG…BANG…BANG…BANG! The monster size bird continues to sail silently over
the treetops.
“I think ya
missed him, Paw.” she says. “Yeah,” he replies, “but at least he let go of
ol’ Zeek!”
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Member Profile
Clint and Charleen Lovell met at a
Subaru 4WD Club outing. Both had arrived early at the meeting point. That
was late in 1981. The usual courtship conversations took place and it was
discovered that one of the many shared interests was motorcycles.
1975 Clint had a Honda 175 ex PMG
bike, red with big black guards. That was followed by a Honda CB360T for the
years 1976 to 1981. This was a bike that was used for commuting to and from
work at all hours of the day for shift work. His first taste of Goldwing was
on a GL1000, riding it down from Mt Cootha when the owner got into trouble.
From that moment he knew what he wanted – but it was to be a long wait.
Around the same time Charleen’s father
bought a Honda 90 for his suburban running around. It also became Charleen’s
ride around the house yard – that being about half an acre of varying terrain.
Around 1980 Charleen obtained her open
motorcycle license, but did not have the opportunity to purchase a bike.
Clint and Charleen had always had a
fondness for the Goldwing motorcycles and used to daydream about touring on
one, reliving that short ride down the mountain.
Twenty years later, after closing
their offroad adventure tour business and selling a spare house, a beautiful
Candy Apple Red 1995 20th anniversary model Honda Goldwing entered
their lives.
The day came to look over the ‘Wing
and as Clint hadn’t ridden for twenty years a very good friend went with Clint
to test ride and assess the bike. Clint went home with stories of how pretty
the bike was and how many lights it had. There were even a few photographs to
show Charleen.
The next day Clint was back with a
cheque in his pocket. The previous owner was very generous as he handed over
the service manual and an assortment of bits and pieces associated with the
bike. A very nervous yet excited Clint rode home on Charleen’s 40th
birthday. It was getting late and he had to finish the ride in the dark. The
bike didn’t need so many lights when Clint rode up the driveway. His smile
was on high beam.
A few days passed as Clint became used
to the handling of the ‘Wing. Charleen was taken for a fairly short ride
around the district. It was a tentative time for both as they had to become
accustomed to each other in this new situation. Would Charleen be a good
pillion? Would Clint be a good rider? A new level of trust emerged.
That was August last year and by
October they were riding south. The idea was to see how far they could get
and if they could make it to Melbourne. That would be a good opportunity to
see family and to purchase some trousers for the coming summer rides.
Clint and Charleen have a habit of
naming their vehicles and the big red bike of fun became known as “Lucille” in
honour of Lucille Ball – the big redheaded comedian.
While
refueling at BP Stapylton one day the owner of Nando’s came out to introduce
himself and show Clint his lovely teal coloured ‘Wing. He also told Clint he
had recently joined a Wingriders club and gave the details. The rest is well
known.
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Shame File
Once again, the Shame File camera has been out at meetings and it’s trouble
with cars again! It’s a good thing some of us drive cars to meetings or Shame
File photos might be hard to get.
This
problem just doesn’t happen on a bike.
Yep –
the car is locked tight.
In the dark, no one can see your red face Lionel
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Australian Wing Riders Association (Qld) Incorporated
Ride / Social
Calendar
Date
|
Destination
|
Ride / Social Event Details
|
Coordinator/s
|
|
August Ride
18th August |
NUMINBAH & FURTHER SOUTH |
Ø
Meet Loganholme Caltex
8.30am, leave 9.00am sharp
Ø
Heading south through Numinbah
Ø
Bring morning tea @ Hinze dam, and buy
lunch at Tropical Fruit World Condong, (Murwillumbah). Final stop at Point
Danger |
Thommo’s Trek
|
|
24th August
Social Bar-B-Q |
KANGAROO PT CLIFFS |
BYO BAR-B-Q at the base of the
Kangaroo Point cliffs, (where they abseil). You can access the area via
the lower road diagonally opposite Somerville House School. BYO EVERYTHING
6.30PM START |
Chris & Sheryl |
|
14th September
Social |
RAY & VAL THOMAS RESIDENCE
YERONGA
PH 38480498 |
BAR B Q – BRING MEAT & DRINKS
START 6.30 |
Chris & Sheryl
Ph. 38073581 |
|
September Ride
21st – 22nd
September |
TEXAS |
TURBO’S OVERNIGHT TOUR TO TEXAS
See Turbo’s flyer for details. Hotel & motel
accommodation available Phone Motel on 4653 1300
Or Hotel on 4653 1310 to book your accommodation
Meet at BP Blacksoil at 8.00am for an 8.30am departure.
|
Turbo & Wendy |
|
October Ride
20th October |
|
TBA |
Chris & Sheryl |
|
November Ride
17th November |
|
TBA |
Bevan & Therese |
|
December Ride
15th December |
STANTHORPE |
Meet at Shell Gailes Roadhouse at
8.30am for a 9am departure. Bring smoko and buy lunch |
Lionel & Mary Jacobson |
**RIDE ORGANISERS: Please
check the details of your ride and let me know of any changes
IMPORTANT: EVEN IF YOU HAVN’T
FINALISED THE DETAILS OF YOUR RIDE, JUST SUPPLY THE START LOCATION & TIME, THE
GENERAL DIRECTION OF THE RIDE, AND THE MEAL ARRANGEMENTS.
PERSONAL
RESPONSIBILITY
It is the personal responsibility of
each motorcyclist to be responsible for at least the following:
Ø
The roadworthiness of their vehicle, (including
trailer)
Ø
That they are in a fit condition to control the
vehicle, (including trailer)
Ø
That they obey the traffic rules and ride in a safe
manner
Ø
That they ride in a considerate manner that does not
endanger, or unnecessarily inconvenience other road users
Ø
To be correctly attired for safe motorcycling
**HINT
Always
take some water and a snack when out on a ride. Riding can dry you out very
quickly, and the effects of dehydration can affect your reaction times and
concentration. Of course we all know that alcohol causes dehydration, so if
you had a couple of drinks the night before, make sure your water intake is
sufficient. Workers on the outback drilling rigs and mine sites take in approx
5 litres per day, and they know that if their urine is cloudy they are
dehydrating. Remember – if you are thirsty today, it is because you did not
drink enough water yesterday.
Safe
riding.
Bill Carter,
Ride Co-ordinator, Tel. 3349 3419
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Clint and Charleen in Melbourne
Test Ride?
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