Superbikes, F1 and home to Perth

Winners

The World Super Bikes race meet at Phillip Island is about as good as it gets. Such a unique environment, with the cars parked outside and the bikes allowed to roam around the track boundary, all day if you choose. It was so much fun we took both bikes to the track on all three days. The pit walk was excellent on Saturday, with some of the big names, eg Troy Bayliss and Max Biaggi available for a photo and autograph. Troy Bayliss getting the job done on Sunday capped off a thoroughly enjoyable weekend and we left the track thinking "when will we be able to get back here to do it all again!" The street party in Cowes on Saturday night was a tame affair. Gone are the days when some guy would climb a flag pole only to have someone on the ground trying to shoot him down with a rocket flare! The locals call that "the good old days."

Turn 6 Siberia - Phillip Island Race Track

Camp at Healesville

And where to now? O' yes that's right, Healesville, to get the bikes serviced, new tyres on the Vulcan and ride Reefton and Black Spurs - maybe more than once! Be warned, contrary to some maps, Don Road, between Launching Place and Healesville is not all sealed. We made this little discovery with the trailer in tow the day we left Cowes. If there was a warning sign we didn't see it. I came out of a sharp left hander onto a narrow wooden paved bridge, to be greeted by a gravel road and Steve parked a few meters ahead. All I could come up with was "what the ****?" Did we turn back? Nope. We rode on, like you do and in four short kilometers we got as dirty and dusty as we have ever been.

2008 Melbourne F1 GP Pole Lewis Hamilton MCLAREN MERCEDES

2008 Melbourne F1 GP Podium
 Lewis Hamilton
Nick Heidfeld
Nico Rosberg

With the Formula 1 our intention, from Healesville we went for a week of city life in a hotel in the middle of Melbournes St Kilda. Being F1 fans from the early 80's, a couple of grandstand tickets on pit straight and a hotel, walking distance to the track, is quite a treat. It was an entertaining week despite the relentless heat and our seats in full sun all day long. I took to wearing a wet T Shirt to stay cool. How anyone could sit there in Ferrari Red or McLaren Black God only knows. Fitzroy Street in St Kilda hummed all night long, our hotel windows double glazed to help keep out the noise. One waiter said "wait 'til Friday night, you'll even see purple poodles." We never did, in fact we didn't see a purple pooch at all. This left us wondering if purple poodle was code name for something far more erotic and interesting!

Checking out of our hotel and navigating out of Melbourne tested our tolerance to heat once more. Already 32˚ by 9am and several trips up and down a couple of flights of stairs required to load the bikes and trailer. Parked in a 10 minute zone didn't help. When we were finally ready to leave, I led the way, expecting to turn left at the 2nd set of traffic lights. But the sign said St Kilda Rd. I was expecting Kings Way or "To West Gate Bridge," so I rode on. Realising the error of our ways, we took the next left. At 9:30am on a weekday Melbourne is unforgiving if you get the navigation wrong. Somehow we found our way back to Kings Way, our terms of phrase deteriorating with every wrong turn. "Get a GPS" I hear you say - but that would leave me nothing to write about! It was easy rolling after that, despite a half hour traffic jam just after crossing West Gate Bridge - pain is a relative thing! We were heading home now to Perth, the long way round, via The Great Ocean Road of course. It was Tuesday 18th March and Easter weekend only three days away. On long weekends, if you don't want to set up camp in sight of The Black Stump you have to make a booking, it's that simple. We picked The Grampians for our Easter sojourn, which left a two night stopover at Apollo Bay along the way.

Bush walking in the Grampians

The weather often trips us up when we have to keep to a time table and the ride from Apollo Bay to The Grampians was no exception. A cold front was forecast to arrive in Melbourne by Thursday afternoon. I must admit we didn't take too much notice of it as we were still recovering from 30+ temperatures during the Grand Prix. It looked a little hazy as we turned left at Lavers Hill, and then it came, the first of many squalls we were about to endure over the next couple of hours. My jacket seems to have lost all the water resistant properties it ever had and it wasn't long before we were wet, cold and feeling thoroughly miserable. Stopping for a hot chocolate or a coffee or soup and pies helped to strengthen our resolve. We were lucky it wasn't a really cold day. As we approached Halls Gap I noticed a noise coming from inside my helmet. "UUUrgh" it went! I knew I'd heard it somewhere before and then it came to me, it was the same noise that Lurch used to make on The Adams Family TV show all those years ago!

The drought is broken, Grampians

We were wondering if we could help to break the drought in The Grampians too. Well actually we could and we did. We got a good drenching on Easter Sunday - 38mm. Could it happen again on Easter Monday? Yep. Like sitting ducks we waited for round two and in less that one hour another 50mm had fallen. At 6pm the tent was under water and we were using primitive implements to bail and dig drains around the tent - must remember to bring that little spade next time!

Nearly home, but not many bends

Come the 25th March, we couldn't wait to get out of the place. We were on the road by 9:30am and made it to McDonalds in Horsham for breakie, just before the 10:30 closing time. The weather was a little kinder for our ride to Tanunda in the Barossa.

We took a day off to dry out a little and then set off for home in a serious way. We rode by day and slept soundly in roadhouse motels by night. Calm, cool days made the Nullarbor crossing a delight this time around - this ride really is one of Australia's great road journeys. Four days after leaving Tanunda we were back home in Safety Bay.

So here we are, home again after three months cruising around in this Great Country, mile after mile without a care in the world. I have given thanks many times for being granted "safe passage" and we hope it isn't too long before we are riding along a string of back roads again, looking for nothing more that the enjoyment of a good ride.

Safe riding everyone,