A Blue Haze Christmas

From Xmas run 2010

From Xmas run 2010

From Xmas run 2010

From Xmas run 2010

From Xmas run 2010

From Xmas run 2010

The weather forcast was looking a little ominous for the the Christmas ride, but on the day the weather cooperated for our morning run and saved the rain for the afternoon BBQ. I was determined to have my T500 all legal and on the road for the Christmas run. This was a challenge in itsef after having to navigate through all the paper and mechanical requirements to make it legal for the road. A big thanks to Phil Turnbull for the appropriate letter and to Paul De Lautour for the last minute brake declaration. Also thanks to Alan and his workmates at New Zealand Telephone and Cable for the Coffees and moral support whilst waiting for VTNZ to dot the is' and cross the ts'. This then was to be its first run and after the decision was made to head east over the ranges it only took until Aokautare for the realisation that something was amiss. The plugs were checked and replaced and Paul W gave it a good thrashing up to the top of the track. After a brief stop at the top we headed on down the track towards Managamaire and on to Rongomai, but the T was still playing up. The group split up with Paul De Lautour and myself heading towards Pahiatua to await the others after there loop through Rongomai. As we waited Paul pulled the carbs off the T and low and behold the problem was found in the left hand carb, a stray clip! With the arrival of the others we headed off and what a dramatic difference to the T. An excellent early Christmas present!
Our cafe stop at 'Over the Bridge' was up to its usual high standard and enjoyed in wonderful sunshine. This was all about to change as we made our way back to Palmy and the small droplets of precipitation became more numerous. Luckily Kim and Casandra had a cunning plan which involved a large umbrella and the BBQ in the garage. Great to see the two Johns arrive on their respective Kawasaki S3a and Suzuki GT750J. Its not often you get to see two 750Js alongside each other. Hop a long Don with his recently aquired bionic hip was also waiting with his stories about the very 'kind' nurses at the Southern Cross hospital. I am sure they have made a large contribution to his remarkable recovery.
Kim cranked up the BBQ and cooked up a storm to go with the great salads and puddings. The kids and ladies were a very welcome addition to the the conversations around the table and betweeen the raindrops. The presentation of a piece of Garage Art to Dion was a celebration of Dions contribution to New Zealands motorcycling heritage by recycling so many bikes (and scooters!) in any given year. The 3D CX500 turbo painting is definetly going to add to the ambience of his carpeted garage and of course a reminder of yet another bike he used to own! As the rain continued to fall people left happy after spending a great day cruising around the countryside on some classic Japanese bikes and sharing the company and conversations with a others (spouses and familys included) who have a similar passion.
A big thank you to Kim and Casandra for hosting a great afternoon.