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03-12-2007, 09:15pm
I finally have a chance to sit down and write a ride report for you all to read.
Where to start…
Sunday was slow. Understatement, Sunday was down right miserable. The missus work laptop had died and was causing a major headache. After working for some time on the stupid little computer we finally decided to head out for a late lunch at about 2 pm.
We got to a favorite little cafà and ordered the average sort of cafà fare. It was then that the missus looked at me and said, “You look miserable. Why donâ€t you go for a ride this afternoon?â€
As you can imagine, the lights came on and I started to think of routes. The food arrived and was practically Hovered in to get it out of the way. Then the impatient stare as the missus slowly munched her way through her meal talking about something that was important. Or at least it might have been important, I wasnâ€t listening. All I cared about was that I was going for a ride and she was going shopping to get ready for visitors who were coming to dinner.
Dropped off at the front of the house I ran inside and out the back to grab the gear. A Superman speed costume change and I was in my full kit and back out the front door to the bike. Chain… Good, nice and waxy. Brakes… yep, they feel ok. Tyres… still one at either end, and they look as they should. Key in… the dash finishes itâ€s flashy spin, spin bit and everything looks clear. Jabbing the starter button the engine comes to life and the wide eyed anticipation in me quickly channels into a narrow minded focus. The pulsing idle of the engine and the gentle but steady vibration through the hanndlebars starts tuning the senses. My heart rate slows as I carefully back the bike out of the carport. Breathing in long slow purposeful breaths I flick my left toe up under the gear lever and snick the transmission into first. Right at that moment I felt that indescribable symbiosis form between rider and machine as I eased the clutch out and… Stalled it!!!!!!!
Hey, it happens! So, I pulled the clutch back in and fired her up again. Without any hiccups I ride out the drive and headed out of town towards my favorite stretch of road. I hadnâ€t figured out where I was going yet but I knew that this 10ish kilometers of road would give me an idea of which way to go. Rolling past the 100 k an hour sign I spot three sports bikes disappearing around the next corner. The red mist rose and a little voice in my head growled ‘Theyâ€re mine!!!â€. I quickly try and build a bit of heat in the tyres by throwing the bike back and forth as I gradually increase my speed. ‘Stuff it,†I think, ‘thatâ€ll do. Time to go and get ‘em.†With that I slid my backside back in the seat and started twisting the throttle. Knees locked into the tank I gently lean left, then right, and left again, cutting through the apex of three insignificant kinks in the road. A quick glimps of the taillight of the last bike passing out of sight around the next right hander tells me that Iâ€ll soon be on them. As the 60km/h, yellow, speed advisory diamond for the coming corner flashes by I quickly glance down at the speed-o. ‘145, better drop a couple of ksâ€, “this oneâ€s roughâ€. I smoothly shift my weight off the seat and out to the right of the bike. Pushing my knee forward and down, I roll off the throttle and begin to turn the bike in. Approaching mid corner I feel the knee slider tag the coarse asphalt. I know this means that Iâ€ve reached the edge of my rear wheelâ€s footprint. I can lean her a bit harder sacrificing the size of her footprint but on this occasion I want to get as much drive out of the corner as I can so I need the biggest contact patch available. Iâ€m just about at the apex of the corner so I start to ease the throttle. My mindâ€s constantly assessing the feedback that the bike is giving me. All of this is occurring in a matter of milliseconds. I can feel that Iâ€m still getting good traction at the rear so I continue to roll the throttle on. Enough… no, bit more… thatâ€s it. The front wheel is pushing out towards the outside of the corner as the back is barely holding on. Everything is keyed in and feels perfect. I quickly stop adding power as I force the right handlebar away from me to change direction. Instead of just releasing the tension in my arm I use it to help push my weight back over the centre of the bike and out the other side as the bike gradually passes vertical in itâ€s change of direction and starts to lean into the next corner. Not as tight as the last, I reach the apex with my knee just clear of the gravel on the inside of the corner and begin the process of powering on again. My head still out past the mirror I rapidly draw up on the rear of the first bike. The riders surprise was evident in the way that he quickly moved to the left of the lane, making room for me to move past him on the right. I glace across to see a nice blue GSX 600R. The next bike wasnâ€t much more that a bike length ahead of the first and was another gixer 6, this time silver. Two down and one to go. Back on the seat I tuck down and grab whatâ€s left of the throttle reeling in and passing the last of the three only to crest a rise in the road and have to brake for a car in front of us. Common sense kicks in and I follow the car patiently around the next two corners until a chance to pass presents itself. This break in proceedings gave me a chance to look back past my shoulder and figure out that the red surrounded headlight I just passed belonged to a recent model CBR6. To my surprise, the red CBR follows me around the car. ‘Iâ€ve got a tail. Cool! I wonder how long heâ€ll try for.†Speeding away from the car I hit fifth gear only to have to drop her back to forth through the kink before the hairpin turn. As soon as through the kink and upright I grab a huge fist full of brakes and drop back two gears to second. Locking my knees into the tank to keep my weight back the nose of the bike dives to the front wheel as the back becomes light and starts to sway and chatter. Easing off the brakes I shift my weight and lean the bike into the tight right hander. Once again my knee slider contacts as I begin to accelerate out of the corner. Applying as much power as I could the front wheel lightens and starts to drift out. Realising whatâ€s happening I force the bike to stand upright and power my way up the short hill and into a series of tight, cliff top corners. Powering out of the last through a gradually straightening kink I glance back to look for the CBR. Nothing! ‘Oh well, that was fun. On with the ride.â€
I get to Inverloch and the decision is made. I take some more interesting windy back roads to Korumburra via Kongwak. Not pushing it as hard I take the time to enjoy the magnificent rolling green hills of South Gippsland. Itâ€s hard to believe that so much of the rest of the country is in drought.
Not needing fuel I still pull into the service station in Korumburra to clean my visor. Good visibility is a necessity for the stretch of road I had planned next. Considered one of the ‘nastiest†stretches of road by some, the shortest route to Warrugul through Strezleki is a tight twisting road thatâ€s surface regularly gets pushed out of shape by milk tankers.
Back on the road I head out of Korumburra and into the twisties in the hills. The corners gradually get tighter and tighter as the numbers on the yellow diamonds get smaller and smaller. Even at 90% of effort I start to sweat from all the work of shifting my weight from side to side. I donâ€t think I sat down for more than 2 kilometers in that whole stretch to Warrugul. Iâ€d love to say that it was an uneventful yet enjoyable part of my days ride but unfortunately it wasnâ€t without incident. Through one of the tighter areas in the hills I gave the throttle a quick squirt out of one corner before hauling on the anchors again for the next. Iâ€d been doing this almost rhythmically through the last few bends. A routine had was established. Shift weight, lean, knee down, throttle on, drive through the apex, gradually apply more power. I felt so at ease, so comfortable and confident in my bike and the tyres. Stupid me. My confidence and complacency nearly bought me undone. There I was looking past the next braking point, past the entry, even beyond the apex of the next corner, so much so that I wasnâ€t watching my line on the exit of the corner I was in. Then it happened, the front wheel past over some corrugations in the surface and started to chatter. The panic didnâ€t sink in until my knee came down hard and the front of the bike started pushing out of line towards the wrong side of the road. Iâ€d lost front wheel traction, completely! I had to get it back, I had to try. For an instant I pictured my beautiful bike, my pride and joy, compressed firmly into the dirt embankment with cracked fairings and ground engine casings.
I wish I could say it was skill, at worst I would even take experience. After all it has happened to me before, and this time it was no different. I was lucky, lucky enough to… Maybe I can lay claim to instinctive enough, yeah it was an instinctive reaction… with a lot of luck. As the wheel was sliding away from me I pulled on the inside bar until I felt resistance. At that very instant that the front wheel felt as though there was pressure on the forks I dug my knee in. One fluid action relaxing my elbows as the bike sat bolt upright. Now I really was heading for that dirt embankment. Without hesitation, nor celebration of my save, I thrust the inside bar forward throwing the bike once again into a full lean to complete the corner. Exiting an entire lane width wider than I originally planned I thanked the Busa gods that there wasnâ€t any oncoming traffic as I ducked back to my own side of the road. With renewed respect for the road surface I completed the stretch to Warragul.
Still not needing fuel I pushed on to Trafalgar. Better top her up I thought as I rolled into a petrol station. There isnâ€t anything really special about Trafalgar, although it is the gateway to nifty stretch of Busa friendly sweepers that weave through the town of Thorpdale on the way to Mirboo North.
Iâ€m still slightly befuddled thinking about the downhill run out of Thorpdale to the main road to Mirboo North. The road sweeps left and right and back again over and over, yet, at 100 km/h you can ride a straight line down the hill letting the road do all the work under you. But whoâ€d do that. I stayed in my lane and let the bike sway, lifting and falling on itâ€s suspension as it passed over its centerline in a wave like motion changing direction over and over again.
Shortly thereafter I roll into Mirboo North. Hereâ€s a sleepy town for you. I wouldnâ€t be surprised if they actually put Valium in the water supply. Two choices here, main road, so so, or back road with a lot less cuttings and a bit more to and flowing. Easy call… Back road!
Itâ€s was quiet too. Listening to the roar of the engine echoing off the hills it was hard to imagine a mate had done his licence on this very stretch of road not more than six months ago. It was, however, easy to see why he would have sped. The road begs for a bit of throttle as you can see where the sweeping bend in front of you straightens and carves its way up the opposite hillside.
Suffice to say Leongatha came into view fairly promptly. Here I followed the main road out of town for a while. At least until I got to a turn off leading out through the hills again. Either way would take to within 100 metres the most northern roundabout in Inverloch. Even though the hilly road was further to travel, the extra freedom allowed for enough speed to put me back onto the main road out of Inverloch in front of a car that I had followed out of Leongatha.
A quick wiggle through the estate roads on the outskirts of Inverloch put me back on the coast road where I had started my journey. This time facing east I decided to have one last push before I returned to the torture of continuing to repair the missus laptop. Knowing that the next morning I would be riding this same stretch to work I figure Iâ€ll do a few drifts out of corners. That way I can check out my black line marking in the morning. So I start riding into the corners in a lower gear than normal keeping a good 4 of the 7 shift lights lit. This is where the power comes on hard. This is that happy zone, the place where the Busaâ€s claws are sharpest. On the exit of the corners I rap down on the throttle hard and feel for that moment where the backend stops following the front.
Paradise is 160 horses is the palm of your hand and enough space to throw them around.
Hell is feeling the back end of the bike try and shove you rectum through your skull as you loose control of a drift into a pothole. Then youâ€re swallowed by fear as you find the bike wanting to high side you over a cliff. Black lines on the road look fantastic. Nearly having brown lines in your underwear is frightening. Realising that there could have been a blood red line at the end of a black line is an awakening experience. Recovering the sudden swing and jolt was, with no doubt at all, luck! Suffice to say my quest for an adrenaline rush was well and truly achieved. The phrase overdose even springs to mind.
I know it the moment I throw my leg over the bike, pushing it hard comes with near misses but it also comes with a feeling of total and complete satisfaction. I pull in the drive and take my helmet off as I open the front door. The missus smiles and asks how my ride was. The corner of my mouth turns upward giving a glimpse of a thought driven grin. I say a simple yet honest ‘goodâ€. She replies by stating that I look refreshed and relaxed. For a second I pause and think about what she has just said. Am I really relaxed and refreshed, Iâ€m sweating and feel exhausted??? Yeah, the more I think about it, I am. ‘Goodâ€, nah, my ride was more than just ‘goodâ€. It was like having a million fingers of rapturous joy reaching out from my heart to touch the nerves of every inch of my body. The little hairs on the back of my neck are still standing, as a clown like smile hides behind a veil of self control. I fear that if the rest of the world could feel what I feel right at this moment that, somehow, they would find a way of taking it from me. This is my, golden glow, and Iâ€ll keep it deep inside of me. Let them find their own.
The end.
Where to start…
Sunday was slow. Understatement, Sunday was down right miserable. The missus work laptop had died and was causing a major headache. After working for some time on the stupid little computer we finally decided to head out for a late lunch at about 2 pm.
We got to a favorite little cafà and ordered the average sort of cafà fare. It was then that the missus looked at me and said, “You look miserable. Why donâ€t you go for a ride this afternoon?â€
As you can imagine, the lights came on and I started to think of routes. The food arrived and was practically Hovered in to get it out of the way. Then the impatient stare as the missus slowly munched her way through her meal talking about something that was important. Or at least it might have been important, I wasnâ€t listening. All I cared about was that I was going for a ride and she was going shopping to get ready for visitors who were coming to dinner.
Dropped off at the front of the house I ran inside and out the back to grab the gear. A Superman speed costume change and I was in my full kit and back out the front door to the bike. Chain… Good, nice and waxy. Brakes… yep, they feel ok. Tyres… still one at either end, and they look as they should. Key in… the dash finishes itâ€s flashy spin, spin bit and everything looks clear. Jabbing the starter button the engine comes to life and the wide eyed anticipation in me quickly channels into a narrow minded focus. The pulsing idle of the engine and the gentle but steady vibration through the hanndlebars starts tuning the senses. My heart rate slows as I carefully back the bike out of the carport. Breathing in long slow purposeful breaths I flick my left toe up under the gear lever and snick the transmission into first. Right at that moment I felt that indescribable symbiosis form between rider and machine as I eased the clutch out and… Stalled it!!!!!!!
Hey, it happens! So, I pulled the clutch back in and fired her up again. Without any hiccups I ride out the drive and headed out of town towards my favorite stretch of road. I hadnâ€t figured out where I was going yet but I knew that this 10ish kilometers of road would give me an idea of which way to go. Rolling past the 100 k an hour sign I spot three sports bikes disappearing around the next corner. The red mist rose and a little voice in my head growled ‘Theyâ€re mine!!!â€. I quickly try and build a bit of heat in the tyres by throwing the bike back and forth as I gradually increase my speed. ‘Stuff it,†I think, ‘thatâ€ll do. Time to go and get ‘em.†With that I slid my backside back in the seat and started twisting the throttle. Knees locked into the tank I gently lean left, then right, and left again, cutting through the apex of three insignificant kinks in the road. A quick glimps of the taillight of the last bike passing out of sight around the next right hander tells me that Iâ€ll soon be on them. As the 60km/h, yellow, speed advisory diamond for the coming corner flashes by I quickly glance down at the speed-o. ‘145, better drop a couple of ksâ€, “this oneâ€s roughâ€. I smoothly shift my weight off the seat and out to the right of the bike. Pushing my knee forward and down, I roll off the throttle and begin to turn the bike in. Approaching mid corner I feel the knee slider tag the coarse asphalt. I know this means that Iâ€ve reached the edge of my rear wheelâ€s footprint. I can lean her a bit harder sacrificing the size of her footprint but on this occasion I want to get as much drive out of the corner as I can so I need the biggest contact patch available. Iâ€m just about at the apex of the corner so I start to ease the throttle. My mindâ€s constantly assessing the feedback that the bike is giving me. All of this is occurring in a matter of milliseconds. I can feel that Iâ€m still getting good traction at the rear so I continue to roll the throttle on. Enough… no, bit more… thatâ€s it. The front wheel is pushing out towards the outside of the corner as the back is barely holding on. Everything is keyed in and feels perfect. I quickly stop adding power as I force the right handlebar away from me to change direction. Instead of just releasing the tension in my arm I use it to help push my weight back over the centre of the bike and out the other side as the bike gradually passes vertical in itâ€s change of direction and starts to lean into the next corner. Not as tight as the last, I reach the apex with my knee just clear of the gravel on the inside of the corner and begin the process of powering on again. My head still out past the mirror I rapidly draw up on the rear of the first bike. The riders surprise was evident in the way that he quickly moved to the left of the lane, making room for me to move past him on the right. I glace across to see a nice blue GSX 600R. The next bike wasnâ€t much more that a bike length ahead of the first and was another gixer 6, this time silver. Two down and one to go. Back on the seat I tuck down and grab whatâ€s left of the throttle reeling in and passing the last of the three only to crest a rise in the road and have to brake for a car in front of us. Common sense kicks in and I follow the car patiently around the next two corners until a chance to pass presents itself. This break in proceedings gave me a chance to look back past my shoulder and figure out that the red surrounded headlight I just passed belonged to a recent model CBR6. To my surprise, the red CBR follows me around the car. ‘Iâ€ve got a tail. Cool! I wonder how long heâ€ll try for.†Speeding away from the car I hit fifth gear only to have to drop her back to forth through the kink before the hairpin turn. As soon as through the kink and upright I grab a huge fist full of brakes and drop back two gears to second. Locking my knees into the tank to keep my weight back the nose of the bike dives to the front wheel as the back becomes light and starts to sway and chatter. Easing off the brakes I shift my weight and lean the bike into the tight right hander. Once again my knee slider contacts as I begin to accelerate out of the corner. Applying as much power as I could the front wheel lightens and starts to drift out. Realising whatâ€s happening I force the bike to stand upright and power my way up the short hill and into a series of tight, cliff top corners. Powering out of the last through a gradually straightening kink I glance back to look for the CBR. Nothing! ‘Oh well, that was fun. On with the ride.â€
I get to Inverloch and the decision is made. I take some more interesting windy back roads to Korumburra via Kongwak. Not pushing it as hard I take the time to enjoy the magnificent rolling green hills of South Gippsland. Itâ€s hard to believe that so much of the rest of the country is in drought.
Not needing fuel I still pull into the service station in Korumburra to clean my visor. Good visibility is a necessity for the stretch of road I had planned next. Considered one of the ‘nastiest†stretches of road by some, the shortest route to Warrugul through Strezleki is a tight twisting road thatâ€s surface regularly gets pushed out of shape by milk tankers.
Back on the road I head out of Korumburra and into the twisties in the hills. The corners gradually get tighter and tighter as the numbers on the yellow diamonds get smaller and smaller. Even at 90% of effort I start to sweat from all the work of shifting my weight from side to side. I donâ€t think I sat down for more than 2 kilometers in that whole stretch to Warrugul. Iâ€d love to say that it was an uneventful yet enjoyable part of my days ride but unfortunately it wasnâ€t without incident. Through one of the tighter areas in the hills I gave the throttle a quick squirt out of one corner before hauling on the anchors again for the next. Iâ€d been doing this almost rhythmically through the last few bends. A routine had was established. Shift weight, lean, knee down, throttle on, drive through the apex, gradually apply more power. I felt so at ease, so comfortable and confident in my bike and the tyres. Stupid me. My confidence and complacency nearly bought me undone. There I was looking past the next braking point, past the entry, even beyond the apex of the next corner, so much so that I wasnâ€t watching my line on the exit of the corner I was in. Then it happened, the front wheel past over some corrugations in the surface and started to chatter. The panic didnâ€t sink in until my knee came down hard and the front of the bike started pushing out of line towards the wrong side of the road. Iâ€d lost front wheel traction, completely! I had to get it back, I had to try. For an instant I pictured my beautiful bike, my pride and joy, compressed firmly into the dirt embankment with cracked fairings and ground engine casings.
I wish I could say it was skill, at worst I would even take experience. After all it has happened to me before, and this time it was no different. I was lucky, lucky enough to… Maybe I can lay claim to instinctive enough, yeah it was an instinctive reaction… with a lot of luck. As the wheel was sliding away from me I pulled on the inside bar until I felt resistance. At that very instant that the front wheel felt as though there was pressure on the forks I dug my knee in. One fluid action relaxing my elbows as the bike sat bolt upright. Now I really was heading for that dirt embankment. Without hesitation, nor celebration of my save, I thrust the inside bar forward throwing the bike once again into a full lean to complete the corner. Exiting an entire lane width wider than I originally planned I thanked the Busa gods that there wasnâ€t any oncoming traffic as I ducked back to my own side of the road. With renewed respect for the road surface I completed the stretch to Warragul.
Still not needing fuel I pushed on to Trafalgar. Better top her up I thought as I rolled into a petrol station. There isnâ€t anything really special about Trafalgar, although it is the gateway to nifty stretch of Busa friendly sweepers that weave through the town of Thorpdale on the way to Mirboo North.
Iâ€m still slightly befuddled thinking about the downhill run out of Thorpdale to the main road to Mirboo North. The road sweeps left and right and back again over and over, yet, at 100 km/h you can ride a straight line down the hill letting the road do all the work under you. But whoâ€d do that. I stayed in my lane and let the bike sway, lifting and falling on itâ€s suspension as it passed over its centerline in a wave like motion changing direction over and over again.
Shortly thereafter I roll into Mirboo North. Hereâ€s a sleepy town for you. I wouldnâ€t be surprised if they actually put Valium in the water supply. Two choices here, main road, so so, or back road with a lot less cuttings and a bit more to and flowing. Easy call… Back road!
Itâ€s was quiet too. Listening to the roar of the engine echoing off the hills it was hard to imagine a mate had done his licence on this very stretch of road not more than six months ago. It was, however, easy to see why he would have sped. The road begs for a bit of throttle as you can see where the sweeping bend in front of you straightens and carves its way up the opposite hillside.
Suffice to say Leongatha came into view fairly promptly. Here I followed the main road out of town for a while. At least until I got to a turn off leading out through the hills again. Either way would take to within 100 metres the most northern roundabout in Inverloch. Even though the hilly road was further to travel, the extra freedom allowed for enough speed to put me back onto the main road out of Inverloch in front of a car that I had followed out of Leongatha.
A quick wiggle through the estate roads on the outskirts of Inverloch put me back on the coast road where I had started my journey. This time facing east I decided to have one last push before I returned to the torture of continuing to repair the missus laptop. Knowing that the next morning I would be riding this same stretch to work I figure Iâ€ll do a few drifts out of corners. That way I can check out my black line marking in the morning. So I start riding into the corners in a lower gear than normal keeping a good 4 of the 7 shift lights lit. This is where the power comes on hard. This is that happy zone, the place where the Busaâ€s claws are sharpest. On the exit of the corners I rap down on the throttle hard and feel for that moment where the backend stops following the front.
Paradise is 160 horses is the palm of your hand and enough space to throw them around.
Hell is feeling the back end of the bike try and shove you rectum through your skull as you loose control of a drift into a pothole. Then youâ€re swallowed by fear as you find the bike wanting to high side you over a cliff. Black lines on the road look fantastic. Nearly having brown lines in your underwear is frightening. Realising that there could have been a blood red line at the end of a black line is an awakening experience. Recovering the sudden swing and jolt was, with no doubt at all, luck! Suffice to say my quest for an adrenaline rush was well and truly achieved. The phrase overdose even springs to mind.
I know it the moment I throw my leg over the bike, pushing it hard comes with near misses but it also comes with a feeling of total and complete satisfaction. I pull in the drive and take my helmet off as I open the front door. The missus smiles and asks how my ride was. The corner of my mouth turns upward giving a glimpse of a thought driven grin. I say a simple yet honest ‘goodâ€. She replies by stating that I look refreshed and relaxed. For a second I pause and think about what she has just said. Am I really relaxed and refreshed, Iâ€m sweating and feel exhausted??? Yeah, the more I think about it, I am. ‘Goodâ€, nah, my ride was more than just ‘goodâ€. It was like having a million fingers of rapturous joy reaching out from my heart to touch the nerves of every inch of my body. The little hairs on the back of my neck are still standing, as a clown like smile hides behind a veil of self control. I fear that if the rest of the world could feel what I feel right at this moment that, somehow, they would find a way of taking it from me. This is my, golden glow, and Iâ€ll keep it deep inside of me. Let them find their own.
The end.