Exactly ten months from date of ordering to date of delivery, the F800GS had arrived, just in time for a trip from Perth down to the Albany hillclimb weekend. Friday, 7.30am start, headed down the freeway in morning peak hour, met Kevin and off we went to Boyup Brook to meet Richard and possibly also Paddy. Richard and Kevin. No Paddy. We went through a cloud of bees, I ran over a 2 metre snake, there were bugs everywhere, but eventually we arrived in Albany at 3.30pm. There was a "parade" scheduled for 4pm up the main street around the roundabout and back to the start. These were some of the bikes waiting. The AMAC is a one off homebuilt bike. Probably built in 1927, unlikely its 1927cc. "Rusty" 1938 Panther. Appears to be unrestored. Something more modern. Not original? Even more modern. Parade over, off to set up camp at the Albany Rifle Club. We drank beer, lit a campfire, ate food, talked jibber, retired for the night, ready for the bike show in Stirling Terrace on Saturday morning.
There were many different bikes lined up the next morning. Couldn't resist, a Valiant Charger, a classic Australian car from the 70's. Is the tow car for the Shannon's insurance promo trailer. Adventure bike, Villiers power. Horn! Honda Four with HRD sidecar, which has nothing to do with the HRD above. Tidy and original 750GT Another wog bike. BSA M20. Another HRD, 1948, Brampton forks instead of Girdraulics on the one back up the page. Neat BMW. Another ADV bike. And another. Plenty more to come. pete.
Triumph Legend. I think handbuilt from spares stocks after the factory folded. Something like that. No doubt some Triumph pedant will correct me. BYO oil leaks. Proceeds from the weekend go to the Albany Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service. They came down and created a Toyota convertible, just because they could. Special tools. They should have practiced on this monstrosity instead. Many years I went around to a blokes house trying to sell him a Honda 350/4 and ended up buying an RD350 like this off him. I knew then I was not going to become a salesman for a living. I have no particular interest in sidecars, but I know there's more than a few inmates with an unhealthy fascination for them, hence the many outfit photos. I suppose someone once fitted a sidecar to one of these too... Nice BMW, I wonder whose bike that is. Velocette something. I do know it's not a Thruxton. This thing was a mobile Touratech, Wunderlich and Hepco & Becker catalogue. I'm surprised there was room for the rider. Token KTM. I hung upside down from a lamp post to get the right angle. Next year I had better bring the Laverda down, so people don't start to think wog bikes only have v twin motors. In closing this segment of the report, I ask, "please explain?" pete
Great old bikes"! The rare Vincents....still outruns some modern bikes. Thanks for the pics. Guilherme.
Obligatory blues band. Quite capable, but when they accepted a booking to play from 9.30 to 12.30 they probably didn't realise it was am instead of pm. "BlueManna" from Denmark. Which is a town 40km away. But also a country. Far away. Looking over toward the hill, site of tomorrows action. Albany is a port town. A seafarer called Vancouver passed by here with Capt. Cook, took one look and said I'll go and discover a major city in Canada instead. True story. Dave Ward and Loose Bruce. About to depart on the Poker Run. 'A' Powell looks on enviously at the F800GS. Or is that a look of concern? At this point my luck changed. My camera stopped working and as for Poker, I had a hand like a foot. Next episode, the hill climb. pete
After some beer and a demonstration of cannon firing at the Rifle Club, by a gentleman dressed in a confederate uniform, it was sleep time again. Hill climb time. But first a little more sightseeing. Another exotic vehicle. Gratuitous photo of an F800GS. Some of the 100 bikes entered in the hill climb. That's a 57 Gold Star BSA in front. I wouldn't have known that except for the number plate. About the only criteria for entry is the bike must be pre 1981. The bikes go two at a time. They have a run to set a time, and then have to match it as close as possible for their next runs. I think. This Gilera was entered but didn't run. At last, a wog bike that isn't a v twin. Look closely, that's an old Kawasaki ADV bike on the start line. Minimalist tool kit. Kawasaki W650 vs Z900 Another Z bike. Looked promising, burnout while "staging", then bogged it with way too much throttle and pulled away coughing and spluttering at about 10kmh. Still, he was out there doing it and I was just watching. After I saw this, it was all too much and I jumped on the F800GS and rode back to Perth. and ticked over my very first 1000km just south of Kojonup. Anyway, that's all folks. pete
Nice pics Pete. I think I met Loose Bruce at Clarky's "Mortlock River Run" last weekend. Might try and bring the family down next year. Andrew Linton.
Well done and thanks for sharing your RR with us. I must venture over to the West one day. Perhaps the 2012 OCR could be held in the West.
<TABLE class=tborder cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=6 width="100%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR title="Post 8273065" vAlign=top><TD class=alt1 align=middle width=125>bing44</TD><TD class=alt2>Great report. One question: why are there so many places in Aus. that have names ending in up?</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>The suffix "..up" means "place of" in the indigenous language(s) <TABLE class=tborder cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=6 width="100%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR title="Post 8273333" vAlign=top><TD class=alt1 align=middle width=125>ashstudly</TD><TD class=alt2>No report on how the bike ran?</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE> Bike ran fine. Was running it in so gently, gently on the throttle. Took it to the dealers today for its first service. pete
I'll add a few pics I took. These from Saturday morning in town. Then there was this odd looking bike that was of no interest to my dog. A real variety of bikes. Grey beards & cloth caps abounded. This was the weirdest thing I saw all weekend, how can this be comfortable or even legal?
Then a few from Sunday at the Hillclimb. Only bikes made up to 1980 could participate. This guy(& his attire) with his JAP were one of my favourites. This Matchless was beautiful (as was the vincent). Some contrasting machinery Note the sticker on the helmet of the SR500 rider. John McKinnon (mcfingon) from this forum was a competitor. A Grimley Coventry (I think) The old Kawasaki adventure bike (with a Z1000 ducktail?)
