'The A Team" 3 Day Extreme Tour
September 22/24.
Over the 3 days of Sept 22 - 24 we had our longest serving customers, "The A team" as we call them, for their annual 3 day extreme tour.
Always wanting to offer the boys something different, we started the tour from a friends farm, just outside Donnybrook. From there we headed to our favourite lunchtime destination, Tathra winery, for our usual feast on Soup and Sandwiches.
A re-fuel, and we had a crack at Big Bertha, with only a few of the boys having a go. Alan Barnett and myself were the highest climbers, but still only 3/4 up the big sucka! After that we hit the "Mountain Trail", and made our way to a dodgy river crossing. Sending Gazza the camera man ahead to film, I re-grouped the boys, and then made the crossing with ease, having done it a week earlier with the KTM Dealers, with the water a foot higher. Some great footage was captured for the boys DVD, with Peter Barnett doing a raging bull crossing, passing and showering about 4 bikes in the process, and resembling Don Campbell across lake Dumbleyung! All riders made it across, but more than a few were wet right through.
A blast along the sandy river flats, and we were into some muddy tracks, and at a regroup, well all cracked a laugh when Paul Lane did a marron dive, then Ivan "the terrible" came around with his throttle handgrip pointed at the ground, and a rather wet and muddy back and shoulder. Yep, hed had a get-off on the slimy slippery greasy stuff that I had warned them all about! Ivan bore the group some bad news, a flooded TTR (whoops, I mean WR) saw me head back, then back again shortly after for a tow rope. Damn thing was dewatered and firing, but wouldn't run, and was an old 400, so no electric leg, and we'd ahd enough opf kicking the bitch!. The Husaberg 550 tractored the TTR (WR) out of the muddy bog hole track, and onto a nice gravel road, where the TTR fired into life. With air cleaner off, and the sun going down faster than beer on grandfinal day, we bolted to Greenbushes for a beer or three, and some much needed maintenance to the bikes.
Ivan decided that it was time to retire the CR500e, after snapping the clutch purch straightening the bars, getting anoyed mixing fuel, and generally not happy (blaming the 2 stroke for his crash) and bought Justins (Hotel licencee) Honda CRF450x. Matt Mackie decided 4 teeth on his front sprocket might not last another 2 days riding, so we arranged a new set of C&S from our good friends at Bunbury KTM. A great night of entertainment with our comedy act of Sven and Auricht from sweden bagging the TTR "girlie bikes" during the showing of the days footage.
Day 2 saw us head south into Bridgetown, with a snotty hill climb, so slippery that even the camera man couldn't stand on it. Andrew Mackie was the winner here, getting a clean line and farthest by a long shot. Some great flowing trails into lunch were had, with the culvert jumps a favourite with the ex motocross lads, all captured by Gazza the camera dude.
After lunch at the 1896 cafe, we enjoyed some more creek crossings, and made our way to "THE ROLLERCOASTER". Our friend Richard, who's farm we access to get to the hills, came down for the entertainment, and we all had a ball blasting the hills a number of times. It was decided to have one last run, and some crew stayed back and filmed the ski jump, with Jimmy capturing a great image of me on his mobile phone doing it at full speed. This image is quite sensational, as it resembles a missile flying past in the air. Got to get that footage on this site! From there we had another creek crossing to get around a fallen tree, and as I took Gazza's bike for him to film, Sven was sensationally filled in as he came through, as payback for some silly skids in town. Sven's helmet and bike were caked solid with stinky mud, and from then on, it was on, with everyone trying to get across without getting filled in. We cruised back to Greeny, and enjoyed another night of great meals and video from the day.
Day 3, and some weary bodies were ready again. We rode flowing pine trails with awsome scenery into Balingup, and had lunch at the Blackwood River Tavern. Another great meal, re-fuel and we headed for home along a great flowing bush trail, into some nice sandy loam pines, and I had the group back at the farm at 3:30. Jeff (who retired early on with an injury) was there to great us, and Ivan had some Corona's on ice for everyone to enjoy after a terrific ride. Thanks agin to the lads for their continued support, and great to see everyone had a great ride. Hope to see ya's all for a summer campout at our new "private" river campspot.