Where is the VJMC 2020 National Rally?

This is just in from Judy re the VJMC National Rally

The Pahiatua rally will be held 14th – 16th February 2002. There are a variety of rooms from double beds, 2 single beds in a room, 4 single beds in a room and bunkrooms. It will be on a first paid basis so if you stipulate what kind of room you want and it is available it will be yours. All bedding and towels are supplied so you don’t have to bring any. Anyone wanting a single room will need to pay extra for the privilege!. The premises have a commercial kitchen and all plates and utensils are supplied so all you have to bring are yourself and personal items. We will organise liquor sales so that you can get it on site We will email a map and directions to the site as people enrol for the rally. There are some really good Roads in the area so will get on to the experts and get something good organised for a ride on the Saturday. We will have the usual judging for the Japanese bikes and organise something for any British, European or American bikes or any other Country bikes. Any questions either phone or email me and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

Keep on the Black Stuff between the Trees.

Judy

Go here for entry forms

Manawatu Classic Motorcycle Clubs 40th Anniversary Rally

The end of last month saw the Manawatu Classic Motorcycle Club run its 40th Rally at Camp Rangi Woods. What a great weekend it was for those who participated. With the weather firmly in the sunshine quadrant all weekend it meant the ninety participants were able to make most of the outdoor activities.
It was a busy time on Friday for the club members as they prepared for the weekend and the afternoon saw a steady stream of rally goers arrive and claim there bunk beds and then make there way down to the communal kitchen and dining room. Camp Rangi Woods is a wonderful facility for such events and its location up the Pohangina Valley in the Totara Reserve provides a unique scenic backdrop and a great stepping off point for ride the following day. After a welcome dinner the social evening began with many people catching up with others they probably last saw at previous rallys it was soon time to catch some shut eye ready for the big day on Saturday.
 With the sun doing its best to make its way above the huge totara trees surrounding the camp the troops got out the polishing cloths and no time at all had there pride and joys gleaming ready for the judging. The bikes were organised into decades and it certainly was a great lineup with a lot of head scratching and contemplation as people voted on there favourite bikes. Of note was the large number of Norton Commandos on show (I think it was thirteen). It was then onto the ride which which was going to be following much of the Manawatu Scenic Route. With the numbers also swelled by locals turning up for the day it was going to be a very large ride and after the riders brief the ride got underway.
The ride headed out of the camp just after 10 with Dave leading the way on his 1974 Honda. He was soon burbling up the road with quite a train of bikes following him. In the meantime my son Clifford and I had gone ahead to a couple of spots to get some photos and it was quite something hearing the rumble of bikes gradually approach and then a frantic clicking as the bikes went by. The stop at Rangiwahia was impressive. I doubt the place has seen such a line up in years with bikes lining both sides of the main street. With the last of bikes arriving into town the 'gang' was soon back on the road heading to Kimbolton.
This is a nice section of road with mile after mile of twisties that ended all too soon with the 50 kmh sign into Kimbolton. A short ride through to Feilding soon had the bikes parked up outside the Rush Family Museum where the pre packed lunches were waiting. Terry Rush gave a talk about the museum which has one of the most interesting collections of significant motorsports cars in New Zealand. Fascinating. People then made there way back to Rangi Woods for either a beer or a siesta; or both!
The evening program got underway with the arrival of Tim Gibbs who was down to give a talk about a life time devoted to motorcycling as a competitor, stunt rider, product developer, dealer and   motorcycling events organiser. It is extraordinary what some people fit into their lives. His friend   also brought along a restored 1925 New Imperial that had been Tims first bike back in the forties and it was beautifully restored. The prize giving was also memorable because Tim had donated all his old cups to be the club to be used as pass on cups for the different prize categories. As he handed them out to the recipients he gave the background for each of the cups. It definitely created a very special prizegiving.
With that done it was on to the dinner courtesy of KR catering which was a fine meal that managed to fill a hole after such a full on day. The rest of the evening was devoted to more socialising with with the bar doing a great trade. The following morning saw a great breakfast that ensured the rally participants headed home with a full tummy to go along with with some great memories. A big thank you to the committee, friends and members of the Manawatu Classic Motorcycle Club for a wonderful rally. We are all looking forward to the National Rally next year, 20th to 22nd November, Pahiatua, which I am sure will be very successful as it is being run by the club. Put it in your diary.
PS If you want to see more photos go here

November End of Month Ride

Our November end of month ride proved to be an interesting smorgasbord of activities as we made our way around the tried and true Stanway loop. Bruce S brought along his RG500 for a spin, with Bruce A on his trusty BMW 650, Rich on his DL650, yours truly on my XJ 750. Also along for the first time was Warren on his Yamaha XJ900. Great to have another XJ on the scene. As can be seen from the photos, Warrens bike is in great order and it is certainly another great advertisement for the durability of these underrated bikes. 

After a pleasant ride through the countryside we arrived at our usual stop; Stanway Hall. After a great natter about all sorts of important things (like bikes), we were soon on our way to the most important stop, Vivs Kitchen at Sanson. It was very busy as usual with umpteen cream horns still leaving the cabinets at a rate that would bring a smile to a dairy farmer. Some of us decided to add to the count and after another great natter some of us thought a trip to Manfeild to see how some of the crew were going at a Track Day sponsored by Honda .

We caught up with Dion, Kim and Jamie who were having a great time out on the track. Whilst there usual bikes were getting a workout the lads had also brought along their latest purchase, an Aprilia 125. It certainly looked the part sitting on the trailer. Phil was also out seeing how fast his new Honda CBR 1000 R would go, and judging by the his onboard video, rather fast! It is also interesting to note Dion and Kim joining in on the action in the video as well. 

After looking at his tyres peeling/melting, Phil decided it was time to go home and not tempt fate. After all he had only had his bike for a month. Rich and I decided it was home time as well. However there was one more stop on the way home.

Parked on South Street was a Ford GT40 not a kit car! Rich managed to push some interesting buttons with said owner who maintained it wasn't and hence the price. He certainly spun a few yarns with trips to the dairy to pick up milk and bread a great little tale. We left him talking to variety of people who had stopped and wished him all the best for a sale. 

Another great Sunday wandering around the countryside and spending some time chatting with fellow petrol heads and looking forward to more of the same in the future

Short and sweet spring ride

With the busy lives people lead it is often difficult to fit everything in. A fine sunny day after many winters Here is another little wander we went on earlier in the month. It was great to see Dion out and about on his NS400R and also great to have Jamie along on his lovely VFR400. Bruce S was out on the booming Ducati 748R  and Kim brought the H2 out for a spin. Sir Al decided on bringing out an HD Sportster from work for a sampling and Ian on the mighty Vmax and Bruce A on his GS BMW. We had a quick squirt over the Pahiatua Track and along to Ballance and up to Woodville. The Windmill cafe was our chosen destination and a good feed and yarn was had by all. One of the more interesting conversations that took place was when one of Bruce S's mates turned up from Levin on a fairly new Kawasaki Ninja H2. The comparison with Kim's H2 is staggering in all sorts of ways but not in others. Relative to there times they are very much equals, but relative to each other the technological jump is profound. It was then back over the hill via the Saddle Road or back over the track. Home by lunchtime but nice to fit in a ride amongst all the domestic chores before heading back to work on Monday. Brilliant.

October Spring Things

Hunterville via Fordell the text said! That certainly got my attention as that can mean only one thing. Turakina Valley Road. Probably one of the nicest runs in the district with its lovely mix of tight corners, sweepers and the occasional straight through some lovely countryside. Arriving at Manawatu Motorcycles saw an interesting array of machines and even more interesting people. Sir Al and Ian were lined up on there TansAlp and W650 respectively whilst Dave T was there on his luscious blue GSX1100, Ray on his Tiger and John on his trusty BMW 600. Gary turned up on his BMW 650GS and last but not least Rich on his DL650 Strom.
We were soon on our way heading westwards with our first turn being at the top of Mount Stewart and heading towards Halcombe. This is our scenic route when heading west and our first brief stop was to pick up Dave at Kakariki on his Transalp. After skirting Marton we rejoined State Highway 3 at our first stop in Turakina. After a quick natter our next stop was going to be Hunterville and we were soon on the Turakina Valley road and cautiously enjoying using up some rubber away from the centre of our tyres. Cautiously because as we soon discovered it doesn't look like the road has been swept for a while as some of us had some interesting 'moments'. Along the way it was interesting to see a very strong police presence at one of the DOC areas and amongst the police vehicles was a Hayabusa. I wonder what that was about..... (cough, cough)?
We all made it safely through the valley and parked up in front of Hunters Cafe. The usual food and beverage was ordered to accompany the varied conversations around the table. After a good go at putting the world right it was back on the bikes and onto State Highway One until the Vinegar Hill turnoff. We were soon swinging through the bends heading home with the only incident being a stop that saw smoke coming from under my bike as a leaking oil filter housing dropped oil onto some hot headers. Another great wander around the countryside and as soon as the oil leak is fixed I will be out there doing it all again.
Can't wait.

PS
For those who haven't come along on our monthly Tuesday night get togethers all sorts of interesting things happen. (Especially if Barry is around)

Here is another little wander we went on earlier in the month. It was great to see Dion out and about on his NS400R and also great to have Jamie on his lovely VFR400. Bruce S was out on the booming Ducati 748R  

You don't see one of these everyday!

Our end of month rides have become an interesting amalgam of bikes from round the world. It has been interesting to see how more cosmopolitan our groups tastes have become, with preponderance of West European bikes like Ducatis, Triumphs and BMW. It's not often you see one from Eastern Europe so Warrens Jawa TS350 certainly created some interest among the troops. Although an early nineteen nineties bike it was still running pre mix. It was an interesting reminder of how popular these bikes were back in the fifties and sixties before the Japanese began to dominate the market. Along for the run was Sir Al and Dave on there TransAlps, Bruce A on his BMW GS650, Bruce S on his Ducati 748, Gary A on his BMW GS650 (that is actually an 800), Ray on his Triumph Tiger and yours truly on the XJ. With the weather doing its best to discourage us from heading out with some drizzle we looked to the north and saw a break and decided on loop around through Colyton, the back of Feilding and Halcombe with a coffee stop in Sanson. The big question for Warren was how far he would get on the five or so litres of premix in the Jawa's tank?
I am pleased to report that the Jawa did very well. It certainly managed to keep up with the 100 km speed we averaged on the run. Our weather hopes were realised with a nice clear run from Colyton onwards. With a stop at Stanway for a chat we were soon making our way through Sanson and then heading to the Woolshed for a cup of tea. The car park was filling up fast on our arrival and the quality of the food certainly explains its popularity. It was a nice wee pootle around the countryside and lets hope we can do the same next weekend!