Hi all,
Today I took my Mk2 for a gallop down to the Bombala Bike Show in southern NSW, Bombala being the closest larger town to our village of Delegate. Its been quite some years since I have attended the show. I was glad to support the local show and I know money raised goes to a good cause. It’s a short 50km run for me and i went with a mate who rode his whizz bang 1000cc Aprilia. I played follow the leader and fortunately he kept his speed below 90 mph which meant I could keep up without substantially exceeding 5000 rpm which is about as high I like to rev my bike for sustained periods.
After paying the entry I rode up onto the oval and parked next to a sign announcing ‘British Bikes’. There was only two other in that category , one an immaculate customised T140 and the other, a relatively modern Triumph R3. No other Norton, BSA etc in sight.
The vast majority of bikes were the ubiquitous parts bin engineered Harleys, a collection of very striking but off the shelf modern Indians and a heap of show bikes pushed off their trailers which I would deem as unridable on conventional roads. Yes there endless death‘s motifs, gold plated skulls emblems and intricate custom paint jobs. One had a pair of Colt 45s painted on the tank with the shibboleth, ‘God judges but I’m the shooter’ underneath. I’m sure the owner of the bike is the most law abiding person who has never shot anything bigger than an air rifle and wouldn’t hurt a fly.
Now yes, all very interesting to some and perhaps the owners may well feel there incredibly expensive bikes are an expression of or perhaps even an extension of their inner selves but frankly, after a life time of riding old pommie iron, I really had the impression that I had seen it all before. There were massive trikes, with VW motors, some even with V8s. There was custom cruisers with barely enough ground clearance to be rideable and a rat bike section that didn’t look particularly ratty to me, just a modern bike in excellent condition with a few oddball bits stuck on them. There were desperate attempts by manufacturers to give there cruisers classic looks with valanced guards, running boards and foot clutches but still with a liquid crystal diode instrument display. I just wondered, what was the point!
To my mind, by far the most interesting bike (modesty forbids me to say my Commando) was an immaculate and very original Honda 750/4.
My mate noted that actually my Commando, even although it was demonstrably overshadowed by the cacophony of bling, chrome, gold plate and custom mural paint jobs on other bikes, actually attracted more attention than any other bike there. Obviously amongst some there is still some vague collective memory of what a desirable bike once was! Of course no way my bike could win a prize in that competition. Yes I gave it a cursory wash before taking it down but general use on miles of gravel roads means it can never match the brilliance of other bikes that a real show ponies.
I sudden found myself feeling very old. Unlike the majority of other attendees, I don’t have dingle dangles all over my jacket, I don’t have custom boots and I certainly don’t try to look like a 1%er. I guess I’m just no longer ‘in the scene’.
So there was nothing for it but to ride back to my local hotel in Delegate for a few quiet beers. It seemed so different from the fun I used to have at bike club dos 40 years ago with bonfires, drinking, bands and burnouts. I’m now just an old fart.
The highlight of the day was halfway home we swapped bikes and I rode the Aprilia. Wow, biking has come a long way. With 160hp on tap it was a huge amount of fun. As my mate kindly said as he got off the Commando was, ‘I can really see why everyone wanted one of these when they when they were new’.
regards all
Alan
Today I took my Mk2 for a gallop down to the Bombala Bike Show in southern NSW, Bombala being the closest larger town to our village of Delegate. Its been quite some years since I have attended the show. I was glad to support the local show and I know money raised goes to a good cause. It’s a short 50km run for me and i went with a mate who rode his whizz bang 1000cc Aprilia. I played follow the leader and fortunately he kept his speed below 90 mph which meant I could keep up without substantially exceeding 5000 rpm which is about as high I like to rev my bike for sustained periods.
After paying the entry I rode up onto the oval and parked next to a sign announcing ‘British Bikes’. There was only two other in that category , one an immaculate customised T140 and the other, a relatively modern Triumph R3. No other Norton, BSA etc in sight.
The vast majority of bikes were the ubiquitous parts bin engineered Harleys, a collection of very striking but off the shelf modern Indians and a heap of show bikes pushed off their trailers which I would deem as unridable on conventional roads. Yes there endless death‘s motifs, gold plated skulls emblems and intricate custom paint jobs. One had a pair of Colt 45s painted on the tank with the shibboleth, ‘God judges but I’m the shooter’ underneath. I’m sure the owner of the bike is the most law abiding person who has never shot anything bigger than an air rifle and wouldn’t hurt a fly.
Now yes, all very interesting to some and perhaps the owners may well feel there incredibly expensive bikes are an expression of or perhaps even an extension of their inner selves but frankly, after a life time of riding old pommie iron, I really had the impression that I had seen it all before. There were massive trikes, with VW motors, some even with V8s. There was custom cruisers with barely enough ground clearance to be rideable and a rat bike section that didn’t look particularly ratty to me, just a modern bike in excellent condition with a few oddball bits stuck on them. There were desperate attempts by manufacturers to give there cruisers classic looks with valanced guards, running boards and foot clutches but still with a liquid crystal diode instrument display. I just wondered, what was the point!
To my mind, by far the most interesting bike (modesty forbids me to say my Commando) was an immaculate and very original Honda 750/4.
My mate noted that actually my Commando, even although it was demonstrably overshadowed by the cacophony of bling, chrome, gold plate and custom mural paint jobs on other bikes, actually attracted more attention than any other bike there. Obviously amongst some there is still some vague collective memory of what a desirable bike once was! Of course no way my bike could win a prize in that competition. Yes I gave it a cursory wash before taking it down but general use on miles of gravel roads means it can never match the brilliance of other bikes that a real show ponies.
I sudden found myself feeling very old. Unlike the majority of other attendees, I don’t have dingle dangles all over my jacket, I don’t have custom boots and I certainly don’t try to look like a 1%er. I guess I’m just no longer ‘in the scene’.
So there was nothing for it but to ride back to my local hotel in Delegate for a few quiet beers. It seemed so different from the fun I used to have at bike club dos 40 years ago with bonfires, drinking, bands and burnouts. I’m now just an old fart.
The highlight of the day was halfway home we swapped bikes and I rode the Aprilia. Wow, biking has come a long way. With 160hp on tap it was a huge amount of fun. As my mate kindly said as he got off the Commando was, ‘I can really see why everyone wanted one of these when they when they were new’.
regards all
Alan
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