LOCAL RIDES SHARE YOUR LOCAL RIDE

Australian Motorcyclist Issue #124

• TUG MCCLUTCHIN
• VMAX PORCHE 911 CUS’TOM MOTORCYCLE
• RIDING IN THE BALKANS
• HARLEY X350 SECOND OPINION PIECE THE BIKE OF MY PEOPLE?
• PLAYING TO WIN HARLEY – DAVIDSON’S NEW X 350 IS A REAL RIDER’S BIKE; LAZY BIKERS NEED NOT APPLY.
• WILLY WAUTHlE MOTARD TREASURE
• SHE’S NO SHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL
• THE LEGEND OF VALENTINO ROSSI
• Harley-Davidson Road Glide and Street Glide
• THE FASTEST PLACE ON EARTH
• WORLDSBK CALENDAR UPDATE
• LOCAL RIDES SHARE YOUR LOCAL RIDE
• Kick starting the Kids Ohvale FIM Mini GP
• PHOTO COMPETITION REMEMBER THIS WANTED POSTER?
• NEWS BIMOTA BACK IN WSBK
• NEW PRODUCTS ELECTRIC DIRTBIKE RANGE

By Tug McClutchin

It’s hard to not start this story with “back in my day”. So, I didn’t. Not quite, anyway

But I still reminisce.

The Sydney I cut my road motorcycling teeth in had a couple of popular “local rides”. The type of place you go when you can spare a few hours away from the chores and get on the bike for a quick blast. The Old Pacific Highway, commonly called The Old Road, and the road through the Royal National Park south of Sydney were the popular spots. For those in Sydney’s west, like I was, Bells Line of Road presented opportunities for all sorts of trouble.

Back then the speed limits were higher and largely unenforceable in the twisty bits with the available technology.