Bovines Prefer Two Strokes

Don revealed another side of himself on a run we did throught the Rangitikei just before Christmas. He has a way with Bovines. After stopping next to their paddock at the top of the Cheltneham the animals seemed to show an intense interest in the bikes. We were convinced that was because they were nearly all two strokes, but it could have been due to Dons intense conversation with them. After arriving in Hunterville for our cafe stop no one had the heart to buy a hamburger after such a spiritual experience! Another great Sunday ride.

VJMC Blue Hazes first run for 2011

From 10,000 mile Kawasaki H2

From 10,000 mile Kawasaki H2

From 10,000 mile Kawasaki H2

From 10,000 mile Kawasaki H2

From 10,000 mile Kawasaki H2

From 10,000 mile Kawasaki H2

Weather wise, January 2011 was very kind to motorcyclists in the Manawatu. And so it was for our first monthly run of 2011. The run was to finish with a sausage and bread BBQ at Paul and Janices. After meeting at Manawatu Motorcycles, Hunterville was decided on as a suitable culinary destination that could top up the cholesterol count. The roll call for the ride was
Paul De Lautour - Kawasaki H1a,
Bruce Andrews - Yamaha YPVS RD350,
Alan Clark - Kawasaki H2,
Kim De Lautour - Yamaha RZ250,
Don Mardle - Yamaha RZ350,
Geoff Noyes - Kawasaki KR150,
Paul Whiting - Kawasaki GPz750
Dion Tornquist - Kawasaki KH400
Gary Whiting - Suzuki T500
First stop was Cheltenham hill after going through Colyton and the outskirts of Feilding and then on to Stormy Point along the Vinegar Hill road and finally to Hunterville. We enjoyed the food and drink along with the banter from the waitress at the cafe. A great place to stop. Great to see Sir Als odometer just tick over the 10000 miles. With such an immaculate and valuable bike it would be very easy to be precious with it and hide it away in the garage. Not Alan, hes out there using very regularly each month. Ride it dont hide it!
For our return journey we decided on the long way home so we could avoid most of State Highway One. Rangatira Road was new for us, but turned out to be a great road with a nice mix of tight and open corners through some great countryside. A short scoot down state highway one to Porewa Road then had us not to far from the turnoff at Kakariki. Through to Halcombe and then on to Mt Stewart and then to Pauls place. The bread and sausages turned out to be an absolutely lovely 5+ a day meal. Thanks Paul and Janice.
A great start to the year and lets hope every last Sunday of the month is a fine one!

PS. Our thoughts and feelings go out to everyone in Christchurch after the latest earthquake. I will never forget our visit down to the CCJMG show in Christchurch last year and how the crew pulled it together so soon after the first quake. I am sure that the spirit displayed then will stand you in good stead for the challenges that lye ahead.
Kia kaha

Labour Day Ride 2010

From Labour Day Ride 2010

From Labour Day Ride 2010

From Labour Day Ride 2010

From Labour Day Ride 2010

From Labour Day Ride 2010

The weather forecast at the begining of the week looked promising for a Labour Day ride so the email was sent out and a group of nine gathered at Manawatu Motorcycles ready for a wander around the countryside. It was good to see Terry on his Suzuki GT550 a bike he has used as his daily commute since he purchased it in 1981. It has done over 50 thousand miles and has had nothing done to the motor. Amazing. Also along for a ride was John on his immaculate Suzuki T500 in blue with only a few thousand miles on the clock. Can't wait to see some of the other bikes he has in his garage. Geoff came arrived on his immaculate little Kawasaki KR150. A great little machine that has no difficulty keeping up with the group. Sir Al brought along his Suzuki TS250 that is running extremely well after its recent rebuild. Sparkie (Kim) decided to test his rewired RZ250 that was moving but still awaiting the repair of some 'spiked' electronic parts. Dr Sprocket (Paul D) wheeled out his immaculate Kawasaki H1a, Dion on the mighty KH400, Don on his Honda MT and myself on my KH250. After some discussion a ride was decided on. The route took in the Pahiatua track and on to Rongomai via Mangamaire and back through Pahiatua and back through to Ballance and over the Saddle road to Ashurst. First stop was at the top of the track and then onto Mangamaire. The Rongomai section of the run was as always a lot of fun with a range of tight and tighter corners well suited to these bikes. You can still have a lot of fun on 40hp or less and still get time to take in the country atmosphere. Just before Pahiatua Don went onto reserve and after filling up the calculations worked out at 25mpg! The run through to Ballance was far more interesting than State Highway 2 and then it was on to the Saddle. The run up was a bit of a struggle for those of us on 250s, but the run down the other side to Ashhurst was a ball. We had decided on the Ashhurst Inn for our morning tea but it was closed so off down the road to the Ashhurst Domain Cafe for some good coffee, food and conversation.
Another great ride.
Roll on Summer!!!

Leedstown?

From Leedstown

From Leedstown

From Leedstown

The Manawatu branch of the VJMC decided on a run to make the most of the continuing great autumn weather. Dions used this as a test run for his T500 and as the video shows the oil pump needs serious adjusting! Found some great new roads out the back of Hunterville with one road seeming to suggest a town none of us had heard of. Worth investigating. It proved to be a phantom town but the road to get to it had some great corners and scenery. Our stop off in Hunterville at our favourite cafe was greeted with the usual good quality food and great to see they had the fire on as the temperatures are definetly dropping as we get closer to the shortest day of the year. Dion rejoined us after turning around in Feilding with a T500 needing more fettling but as usual his replacement bike, the KR250 was still suffering from starting issues. Bruce didn't have to go to the gymn that day as he pushed Dion up the road to get him started!

VJMC Blue Haze Explore Hopelands

From Hopelands

From Hopelands

From Hopelands

From Hopelands

The Manawatu chapter of the VJMC club made the most of yet another autumn day and headed towards the blue sky in the Wairarapa. We decided to explore an area between Mangatainoka and Woodville called Hopelands. It proved to be an excellent choice with some great roads now added to our destinations. After making our way over the Pahiatua track and then through to Mangatainoka we headed east over a variety of back country roads and eventually made our way to Woodville for a refreshment stop at Cafe 88. Highly recommended if you want great food at a good price with great service. Sir Al brought along the latest addition to his garage. A very low mileage H2 in original order. It went really well with Alan taking it very easy whilst he gets used to it. I think he was very pleased to find that it was very docile. I am sure it wont be long before he explores the other parts of its perfomance. Don arrived on his trusty Bonneville to a chorus of "Its making the wrong noise" only to find out that the Honda MT250 he intended to bring had only just been picked up off the garage floor. Its broken clutch lever made it difficult to ride. Don hasn't had a lot of luck with the MT lately.

Track and Saddle Ride. Making the most of a glorious autumn day!

From Track and Saddle 18042010

From Track and Saddle 18042010

Paul D, Paul W, Alan, Dion and myself decided that we couldn't let another beautiful autumn day go by without a ride. This video is the Saddle road part of the loop which is a favourite ride for Manawatu riders. First stop was to have a look at Dions latest purchase, an orange 1969 Suzuki T500 Titan. A very sixties flower power colour and machine! We then made our way over the Pahiatua Track and we were greeted by a friendly wave from Mr Plod just before reaching Balance. After some bike swapping at Balance Bridge we made our way over the Saddle to our refreshment stop at the Ashurst Domain. Great to see Paul D out on his H1, Paul W on his GPz, Dion on his X7, Alan on his A7 and myself on the KH.