1985 XL600R vs 10527kms of Australian summer.

hi everyone

so this is the ride report of my journey. from melbourne to monkey mia and back. in total it was 10527kms in 32 days, 20 of them riding days. ive procrastinated alot about what type of trip i wanted to do. since i got my bike licence in early 2008 exactly what i wanted to do changed on a day to day basis, this adventure seemed to pick me rather than me picking the adventure. i never had any plans, and only chose to go to monkey mia on the morning i left. im just glad i had a bike that could put up with my indeciciveness, a bike that is older than i am and a bike that made it an adventure rather than a trip.


http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=melbourne&daddr=Lincoln+Hwy+to:Brookton+Hwy+to:monkey+mia+wa+to:Brockman+Hwy+to:albany+wa+to:Flinders+Hwy+torinces+Hwy+to:-38.754083,143.569336+to:melbourne&hl=en&geocode=%3BFXwY8P0dVEQZCA%3BFV5XFf4dhBTtBg%3B%3BFdTI9v0dDD7hBg%3B%3BFRif8P0dspETCA%3BFV6Vvv0dziZnCA%3B%3B&mra=dpe&mrcr=2&mrsp=8&sz=5&via=1,2,4,6,7,8&sll=-36.527295,139.306641&sspn=25.369646,27.993164&ie=UTF8&ll=-37.055177,140.229492&spn=25.201093,27.993164&z=5

the great ocean road.

mainly just getting used to the handling charcteristics of a trail bike with 50kgs BEHIND the rear axle on twisty technical roads, was a good learning experience. counter steering was out of the question as it would cause an alarming flex in the frame, so i just moved my weight around alot.

the sea breeze, sun and feeling of pure freedom as melbourne faded from the rear view mirrors.

i stayed in a caravan park at hopkins river, it was pretty tame and the site i was given could easily hold 50 bikes.

into south australia.

following the A1 through beechport and robe etc etc. 60ks from meninge i found a track going off the highway leading to a fantastic little campsite looking at lake alexandrina.

acheived a gps confirmed top speed of 141kph but knocked 50ks of the fuel range.

went through all the wine regions like mclaren vale and langhorne creek. then back up to adelaide to stay at my cousins house. some idiot pulled out onto the highway infront of me and didnt accelerate so that gave my new pads a good test, i realised later that the front disc got a bit warped from that. and it would slowly get worse.

the bike running well and everything feeling good for the nullabor and my clothes washed and a sleep on my cousins couch was just what i needed.

adelaide to arno bay, arno bay is about 200ks NE of port lincoln. nice place but i think every single property there is a beach house and no one actually lives there. covered a decent distance today 600ish kays and was feeling it so in addition to the wind hampering tent setup i opted for a caravan for the night. started feeling a little lost and lonely and wondering what exatly was the point to the trip. maybe it was because where i was upto in Mondo Enduro was a low point for them too.

arno bay to streaky bay. in elliston i met an old german guy on an r1200gs, we were both going to streaky bay which is about 300ks NW of port lincoln, i went through port lincoln aswell, but im much more interested in actually riding than seeing touristy crap.

some spectacular coastline made for great bike posing!

streaky bay to fowlers bay, fowlers bay........what a shithole.

the caravan park receptionist was a real bitch and when i asked the groundkeeper guy if i could borrow a container for my oil change he was not happy with me. and told me he didnt care what i did with the old oil. a few families of aboriginals pulled up on the beach infront of the caravan park and played a mix of eurithmics/johnnycash/rihanna until they had run out of rubbish to throw on the ground and their voices were sore from constantly yelling at each other. i wish i could have said that without sounding racist.

on the plus side i took all the luggage off and went for a burn through the sandhills in an attempt to improve off road riding skills. i didnt fall off. also gottfreid and i met some people who had done heaps of travelling on a bmw r65 around australia and when i told them my inspiration was this guy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5FnLP77CX8

they revealed that they had spent christmas day with him on kangaroo island. small world........

this guy:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5FnLP77CX8

fowlers bay to eucla, start of the nullabor, got used to travelling with someone else. i would ride infront setting the pace. long distances are easy when you have a young body made of rubber bands, a camel back and an ipod playing daft punk.

eucla to norseman, the longest day so far. but we both just jumped off our bikes at the end ready for more. this high spirit was demolished when i found a crack in the subframe holding the right pannier and exhaust. so i spent the next day getting it welded and set the damper on soft rather than hard to reduce vibrations.

relative size of trucks vs me on the nullabor




in the workshop

Good stuff mate

still in norseman, but i have a story vouching for the amazingness of the xl600r as an allrounder.

so after the 700+km day into norseman and after i found the frame crack. i started asking around if there was anyone open (it was late) that could weld my frame. i asked the local motocross teenage boys refuelling at the petrol station and they said sure, follow us. thinking we were just going to potter down the sidewalk or something i got my bike and didnt put anygear on except my helmet.

it turns out that they have an urban assault course through the down jumping clear over 2 lane roads and train tracks. one part went up onto the railway platform then off the other end. i was watching the guy infront of me go off the end and thought it was just a ramp but when i got about 5meters away (whilst doing 60kph) i realised it was a sheer 2 meter drop. the xl handled all this in its stride whilst i bounced around blinded by the dust and the fact that it was nighttime.

now, name me a bike that can do all this, and the 700k day, put up with a 19yo wannabe mechanic AND cost less than 2500aud? let alone one thats 25 years old.

It's the same everywhere, sounds factual rather than racist.

norseman to hyden. first day offroad, officially this track was closed and we were warned by a ranger not to go down it. but that only spurred me on further. it wasnt that bad, some patches of sand that when you hit at 80kph could get interesting but i just remembered ewan learning on the LWD, leant back, and opened the throttle.

from here on the photos get pretty shit cos the screen broke, it still took pictures, i just couldnt see what they were. just point and hope for the best.

hyden to perth. gottfried went south as i went west. as it was christmas day getting fuel was an issue, i had about 2litres left when i finally found a station open in northam. then was riding through the northern suburbs of perth when............


chain snapped, it jammed against the crankcase and stalled the engine, i was certain that either the rod had snapped or that spare grenade that i didnt throw over the back fence had gone off in the gearbox. imagine my releif when i looked down to see the chain dragging. the releif didnt last long as i found out then that my spare masterlink was a 420 and not a 520. i had to wait 3 days in an outrageously expensive and shitty motel with cochroaches for 110bucks per night until the shops opened in perth. then the closest place (kawasaki dealer) sold xring chains for 150 of which the exact same ones i have bought in melbourne from peterstevens for 70. fucking kawasaki.

note: absence of left side cover which i lost in hyden doing an air filter clean. ie....it blew away.

edit-i just noticed looking at this picture that the kickstand is bent. i thought it was leaning a bit more than usual............

back on the road heading north to geraldton






in this photo behind me is the indian ocean, this was a real kodak moment as i realised that we had actually fucking made it. i cant stress how many people told me i was an idiot for taking that bike. i knew all along it was gonna make it, just now i didnt have to defend it anymore.

Good stuff...

geraldton to monkey mia. i didnt take many pics as my mind was consumed with the oil blockage causing the bike to over heat to nearly all the way around my dipstick gauge, as in 160+degrees celsuis. man im glad i got that thing! quick oil change and oil filter change and were back in buisness. last night i slept on the beach in my riding gear in geraldton as there were no vacancies anywhere. meant i could get an early start at 5am cos of no gear to pack up, just hop on and go!