Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 159 i Australian Road Rider

This year we should all get vaccinated against COVID-19, but that doesn’t mean overseas trips are on the cards yet. I’m expecting a big year of international travel in 2022, but not this year — so I’m thinking about the big trips we could do while staying relatively local. The Christmas/New Year border shutdowns highlighted how the pandemic can catch people out, with many stuck interstate and unable to get home in time to avoid a fortnight of hotel quarantine, despite often never being closer than 100km from known cases of COVID-19… but on the whole I think Australia’s response to the pandemic has been excellent. So unless you’re planning a long trip, I’d stay close to home — or at least within half a day of your home state,…

If exploring independently, living dirt cheap and getting around on a fast, nimble Adventure bike ticks your box, then perhaps this trip (and article) may not be for you. If soaking up a vastly different culture, assaulting your senses, marvelling at stunning scenery blended together with a kind ride, some creature comforts, wonderful food, lots of laughs and on-point local support is more to your liking, then touring India in a group awaits you. Our travelling crew comprised a few good mates, all north of 50, each with a past interest in bikes. We harboured a nagging urge to do something a bit different on two wheels while we still could. India had long been calling us and in particular, Rajasthan, which is said to have more culture than all…

A new Benelli 750 is on showroom floors. Back in the 1970s, the Benelli 750 Sei was one of the most radical motorcycles of the 1970s – not for its appearance, but for its engineering. Six-cylinder motorcycles were rare and expensive, but oh-so cool. Benelli also produced a four-cylinder 250 and the 750 grew to 900cc… but it couldn’t save the old brand. Since then there have been various attempts to bring the name back, but the 900cc triples of the early 2000s weren’t commercially successful. The Benelli 752S brings something fresh, stylish and exciting to the mid-capacity market. Benelli nearly disappeared a few years ago, caught in a downward spiral of declining sales and no money for product development, leading to further sales declines. The entire British industry did…

“SO WE ABANDONED COL AND HIS STUFFED TYRE, BECAUSE WE COULD…” The tyre was cactus. OK, it was still round and black, but it had gone from borderline to “stuffed” inside 150km, and we were less than one-third of the distance into a multi-day ride from our base in the Hunter Valley through the Blue Mountains and on to NSW’s spectacular south. So we abandoned Col and his stuffed tyre because we could, Col accepting his sin bin time for the “unprepared” with grace. It’s October 2020 and Coronavirus has closed state borders. The weather has been all over the place and I have a seven-day window to test Ducati’s Multistrada S GT, so I’m taking this long-distance machine on a long-distance ride… Motorcycle touring is an exclusive club that…

Blue and reds flashing in the mirrors. Bugger, I wonder if they got me as I came off that dirt road and gave old Big Red a gutful. Despite her age she can get up and boogie. Nowadays there’s no way she could out-run the latest BMW Highway Patrol car, not that I’d have the inclination to do that! The car door opens, the cap goes on, then the surgical style face masked cop steps out. Bugger, where’s my face mask? Welcome to life in Covid-19 lockdown Victoria. Everyone has to wear a face mask and there are limited reasons to be out and about. I haven’t been pulled over for ages, since being sprung doing 62 in a 60 zone in Tajikistan! Got off that one but that’s another…

“THE 950 S DOESN’T MISS OUT ON THE TECH…” The road, if I can call it that, wasn’t really there anymore. It was just a massive collection of repairs, patches of asphalt repairing the holes that had developed since the road was built, and I’d found it at a speed which was higher than I’d have preferred. It’s the sort of road which has helped make Adventure bikes so popular, because they cope admirably with poor road surfaces, and I was hoping the Ducati Multistrada 950 S would do the same, despite being one of the “softest” Adventure bikes available. With its semi-active Skyhook suspension, the bike not only coped, but actually made the surface almost comfortable to ride across, even slightly cranked over at speed. It certainly handled the…

There are many accommodation options in Wauchope, from basic and cheap to luxurious. TIMBERTOWN MOTEL I stayed at the Timbertown Motel, which is an older place with decent-sized rooms and cabins. Being on the Oxley I thought it might be noisy, but it turns out not too many people want to drive the highway late at night, so no dramas there. The pool was inviting but I was a bit busy… Rates are affordable, there’s parking right outside most of the rooms and they are installing an automated check-in/room key system, so you could arrive and leave at any time. It’s on the way out of town, but within walking distance to the Bago Tavern. More info: www.timbertownresort.com P: 02 6586 0699 GINGERS CREEK Up the Oxley Highway is Gingers…

LOOKING BACK 30 YEARS SINCE THE BRITTEN It came from New Zealand, was about as radical as you could get and looked like changing the world… but it didn’t, for a bunch of reasons, not the least of which was that its innovative engineer creator, John Britten, died young. Back in 1991, Britten rolled his new creation out the shed doors and onto the world stage, where the bike proceeded to win races and embarrass much wealthier rivals. Cycle World would eventually write, “If I were head honcho at a motorcycle company in Japan, Germany, Italy or America, I’d march right down the hallway… and ask how it is that one man working in a shed in Christchurch could have out-teched my entire engineering department.” The magazine’s cover claimed the…

The open road beckoned. With a Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special in the garage, the idea to fill the panniers and Head Out on the Highway Looking for Adventure was filling my head. Not that I have any guns to fire or felt like exploding into space, but at least the stereo on the Street Glide could play “Born to be Wild” pretty loud. The Street Glide’s infotainment system can do more than just play the radio or connect to my phone, though; there’s built-in navigation and communications, too. The Street Glide S is Harley’s bagger with style with its “slammed” rear end, 19-inch front wheel, batwing fairing and shorty screen. If you want more retro, Harley has the Road King and Heritage Classic. If you want a more comfortable and…

Suzuki SV650 – $10,190 RA It’s 25kg lighter and a lot cheaper. The respected 650 V-Twin engine matches the Benelli’s power output, is super reliable but feels physically smaller. Ancillaries, like suspension, aren’t as good as the Benelli’s. Suzuki GSX-S750 – $12,690 RA A direct competitor on price, but as a UJM (Universal Japanese Motorcycle), it’s quite a different beast. The four-cylinder engine has a lot of punch and it’s still 10kg lighter than the Benelli. The suspension is UJM as well, no adjustment except preload, and this explains the affordable price. Yamaha MT-07HP – $12,599 RA It’s 40kg lighter with one of the best engines Yamaha builds. It’s quickish, sounds as good as the Benelli and bulletproof. KTM 790 Duke – $15,195 CFMoto will assemble the Duke 790 from…

Like many people of a certain age, I sometimes struggle with technology. I use maybe 10 per cent of the capacity of my iPhone, and can operate a computer just well enough to work as a journalist. Little of it is intuitive. If something doesn’t work as intended, I have no idea and call Nigel. When it comes to motorcycles, I’ve learned to make allowances. Hydraulic disc brakes were a wonderful invention, at least once they’d worked out how to make them work in the rain, as were automatic lubrication systems for two-strokes and electronic ignitions replacing points across the board. Ditto adjustable suspension and 17-inch wheels on sports bikes. Blinkers, neutral lights, electric starters, all had their detractors at the time but imagine life without them. Tubeless tyres were…

Situated 130km north of Melbourne, Yea is the perfect location for day rides for our brothers and sisters confined to stop-start city traffic. As a bonus, getting there can be fun. After a trundle through the suburbs, leaving Whittlesea, long sweepers and undulating countryside greet riders who take the Yea Whittlesea Road. For those who want to be a little more adventurous, taking the Eastern freeway and then north up Springvale Road will take you to Warrandyte and the tight scratchers’ road through to St Andrews and Kinglake West, Kinglake, Flowerdale, then on to Yea. It’s a nice ride. Be warned, there are a few well-credentialed motorcycle racers living out here and they know the road. For those who like a longer ride, looping through Lilydale, Healesville or the Melba…

Triumph Tiger 900s Nigel Crowley tested the GT Pro in the last issue of ARR and came away very impressed. It’s mostly aimed at the same buyer as the 950 S. Suzuki V-Strom 1050 Cheaper to buy, equipped with a famously bulletproof engine and robust as anything, the latest V-Strom is capable and good to ride – but won’t give the adrenalin hit of the 950 S. Kawasaki Versys 1000S Cheaper than the older SE model, but without the electronic suspension. KTM 890 Adventure With standard laced wheels, this lightweight twin might be a better choice for those doing lots of dirt road riding, but it doesn’t have the electronic suspension of the Ducati.…

My V7 Sport is still a bike I’ll never sell and still love to ride, despite it being 50-odd years old. I’ve been riding over 40 years, with six Guzzis, five Ducatis, 10 Beemers, many Triumphs and Nortons all passing through my shed at one time or another. At the moment I have a very nice 1978 Mk1 Le Mans, a beautiful ‘86 Ducati F1 750 and a modern 1200cc Triumph Bonneville. The V7 Sport is the one that feels special when I ride it. It steers so well and has the perfect riding position for me and the short-stroke revvy 750cc engine is superb. I came to Moto Guzzi ownership via Pommy bikes. My riding mate Charlie acquired a GT 750 Ducati bevel and soon I found myself on…

Uluru was closing. There would be no more climbing of Australia’s giant monolith, and I wanted to get there while I still had the chance. That was the goal. The plan was to take a brand-new SWM RS650R from my East Coast home across the Great Dividing Range into the outback, doing some of the trip on my lonesome, some with a friend I’d meet up with in Broken Hill, the last big town in New South Wales. Cobar was the first stop, sleeping off the road – a test for the gear (and me) while I was still close to civilisation. The rain overnight pushed my patience, but I managed to pack up between showers and hit the road, heading for Wilcannia, then Broken Hill on the boring western…

Harley-Davidson was rocked in 2020 by the pandemic, by tough sales conditions in its home country and a change to its CEO, so it was no surprise the 2021 model updates were delayed. Indeed, the new Adventure bike, the Pan America, wasn’t even announced simultaneously with the other changes, instead getting its own global reveal on February 22, after this issue goes to press. Check out www.roadrider.com.au for details on the Pan America. The other changes to the line-up include Street Bob getting the 114 Milwaukee Eight engine to go with its stripped-down bobber styling. There are three Specials in the touring line-up for 2021: the Road King Special, Road Glide Special and Street Glide Special. Special paint, Daymaker LED headlights and updated infotainment with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay…

The corners were flowing into each other, with only short straights connecting the fun bits. I’m on an old road and it’s perfect for the Triumph Thruxton RS. I was riding at a pace I’d describe as fast (that’s where you get a big ticket, but not arrested). The old Thruxton, from all reports, was great, but I didn’t get to ride one… this one is glorious, from its free-revving twin-cylinder engine to its unmistakeable classic style with modern electronics and running gear. Unfortunately it all comes at a price – around $25,000. For that you get a classically styled big-bore café racer with lots of hidden tech, but few creature comforts. THE STYLE Triumph hasn’t messed with the silhouette of the Thruxton because it’s perfect. Loved it the first…

With the coronavirus circulating and borders closed, Queensland as a riding destination has been neglected in recent issues. To correct this glaring oversight, we called out to you, our loyal and well-ridden “ridership”, for suggestions. The answer came back as a resounding vote for the so-called Granite Belt, a rocky, high-altitude region renowned for its cooler climate and rich, productive soils. It’s an easy hour-or-so ride from Brisbane and a land of plenty when it comes to great roads, flash wineries and top tucker. We were not disappointed, although timing our visit to coincide with rain squalls and flooded streets wasn’t ideal. We bade soggy Brissy farewell and headed west toward the Lockyer Valley, itself a veritable primary production breadbasket well known for vegetable and grain growing, as well as…

When the Port Macquarie-Hastings council invited Australian Road Rider to visit its motorcycle-friendly town of Wauchope, I was pretty pumped. It’s effectively the eastern end of the Oxley Highway, one of Australia’s great riding roads. The highway and much of the surrounding area was extensively damaged by bushfires in recent years, although recent rains and government funding for repairs have seen both the bush and the road recover. GETTING THERE Wauchope is a little over four hours from Sydney or six from Brisbane if you take the direct route, which is mostly freeway along the Pacific Highway these days. It’s fast but boring, so if you can head inland and approach from the west, you’ll get to enjoy more than 300 bends between Walcha and Wauchope. Given the easier access…

Wauchope is big enough to off er plenty of dining options, but small enough to still be homely and friendly. There are many choices when it comes to food and your preferred tipple. BAGO TAVERN Lunch, Dinner Walking distance from the Timbertown Motel is the Bago Tavern. I had the Thursday night rump steak special ($10!), an absolute bargain. The Bago has a good range of drinks, including a longer wine list than I’d have expected, along with its huge range of pub meals. There’s also a courtesy bus running Friday and Saturday nights if you don’t want to ride. More info: bagotavern.com.au P: 02 6586 4722 E: info@bagotavern.com.au BARDI’S CAFE Breakfast, Lunch, seven days Bardi’s Cafe has a Motorcycle Friendly sign out the front and is owned by riders.…

WIN THIS Every issue we’re giving away this beaut pack of Motul cleaning gear worth $49.95. All you have to do to be in with a chance of winning is send us a pick of your shining steed and we’ll pick what we think is the best shot and comment and the top blokes at Motul will fire out this pack to whoever wrote it. Simple. Pack includes some of the best washing and detailing products on the market: • Wash & Wax, a waterless cleaner that leaves a wax coating• Moto Wash, good for all surfaces• Scratch Remover, a micro-abrasive cream for painted surfaces• Helmet & Visor Clean, to keep your lid and your view pristine. If you’re the winner and you haven’t already heard from us, email roadrider@umco.com.au.…