M
mikeyw64
Guest
well sadly my little adventure is all over.
(for reference ?1 is worth a little over AUS$2)
Planning started back in January and originally was due to be a week with family for a wedding then 2 weeks riding. That changed to 3 weeks riding ue to the wedding being cancelled. Sadly I couldn't rearrange to be there for the MotoGP later this month .
Discussions elsewhere with various Ozzie Bird riders led to me "buying" an 2006 Bird with 120,000 km on the clock for $4000 although we left the reggo in the original owners name as she is being put back up for sale with any proceeds coming back to myself. (for reference to hire a large capacity bike there would have cost approx ?150-$170 per day.
Not only have I ridden what are probably some of the best biking roads in the Southern Hemisphere but I've met a wonderful group of people who have moved from virtual to real world friends
Highlights of the trip include riding the Oxley Highway which contains a most delightful selection of fast sweepers and tight twisties, the Old Jamieson to Eildon road which is 65km of twisties, the Bonang, another 110km section of grins (although 10-15km of it was loose gravel ) plus a blast along the Great Ocean Road in the dark following another Bird (not sure it was so much fun for him lol)
Final Stats for the trip are
Days riding 15
Total Distance 6795km / 4222 miles
Moving Average 86kph / 54mph
Time in Saddle 78 hours 42 minutes
And the routes I travelled are at
http://sharetheexperience.co.uk/moz2015/moz2015_maps_pt1.html
http://sharetheexperience.co.uk/moz2015/moz2015_maps_pt2.html
I'm also pleased that I managed to stay within my budget of $150 per day to cover food, fuel & accommodation . Stopped at a variety of Motels, Hostels or being put up by Bird riders)>
Fuel prices down under were on average around $1.40 per litre for 95/98 Premium fuel and I was regularly getting 300km /186 miles from a tank without the low level light coming on, no doubt helped by the completely different riding conditions.
Speaking of driving conditions a few observations.
Ozzie drivers almost religiously obey the speed limits probably due to the harsh penalties imposed, I may have ignored them a little
A few of the freeways have 110kph / 68mph limits but on the whole the majority of Highways/open roads have 100kph / 62kph limits with 50kph around built up areas and a variety of 80 & 90s
The Ozzies also have an obsession with double white lines, they're every where even where there is good visibility!!
What I did like though was the prewarning (usually 5km in advance) of overtaking lanes . What I also liked was that at the end of the overtaking lanes the LH lane has to filter back into the RH lane.
What was frustrating was the number of drivers who insisted on trying to overtake with a speed differential of only 3-5kph rather than booting it around a slightly slower moving vehicle.
SOmething else which was interesting is that although weaving/undertaking is technically illegal its very common place & accepted especially in built up areas (apparently I undertook at least 2 unmarked cops) yet filtering (which has just been made legal in a few of the states with a whole load of stipulations) still isn't generally accepted by car drivers, go figure
What I also loved was the way they grade the twisties with recommended speeds (which you can pretty much double on a bike) as it is done consistently with added notes if a particular bend tightens up.
It's also so nice to go ride on empty roads with little or no traffic (although being taken through the middle of Melbourne at 16:00 on a Friday afternoon was "interesting"
Bottom line is this is one of the best holidays I've ever been on and I look forward to going back
Main Thread
(for reference ?1 is worth a little over AUS$2)
Planning started back in January and originally was due to be a week with family for a wedding then 2 weeks riding. That changed to 3 weeks riding ue to the wedding being cancelled. Sadly I couldn't rearrange to be there for the MotoGP later this month .
Discussions elsewhere with various Ozzie Bird riders led to me "buying" an 2006 Bird with 120,000 km on the clock for $4000 although we left the reggo in the original owners name as she is being put back up for sale with any proceeds coming back to myself. (for reference to hire a large capacity bike there would have cost approx ?150-$170 per day.
Not only have I ridden what are probably some of the best biking roads in the Southern Hemisphere but I've met a wonderful group of people who have moved from virtual to real world friends
Highlights of the trip include riding the Oxley Highway which contains a most delightful selection of fast sweepers and tight twisties, the Old Jamieson to Eildon road which is 65km of twisties, the Bonang, another 110km section of grins (although 10-15km of it was loose gravel ) plus a blast along the Great Ocean Road in the dark following another Bird (not sure it was so much fun for him lol)
Final Stats for the trip are
Days riding 15
Total Distance 6795km / 4222 miles
Moving Average 86kph / 54mph
Time in Saddle 78 hours 42 minutes
And the routes I travelled are at
http://sharetheexperience.co.uk/moz2015/moz2015_maps_pt1.html
http://sharetheexperience.co.uk/moz2015/moz2015_maps_pt2.html
I'm also pleased that I managed to stay within my budget of $150 per day to cover food, fuel & accommodation . Stopped at a variety of Motels, Hostels or being put up by Bird riders)>
Fuel prices down under were on average around $1.40 per litre for 95/98 Premium fuel and I was regularly getting 300km /186 miles from a tank without the low level light coming on, no doubt helped by the completely different riding conditions.
Speaking of driving conditions a few observations.
Ozzie drivers almost religiously obey the speed limits probably due to the harsh penalties imposed, I may have ignored them a little
A few of the freeways have 110kph / 68mph limits but on the whole the majority of Highways/open roads have 100kph / 62kph limits with 50kph around built up areas and a variety of 80 & 90s
The Ozzies also have an obsession with double white lines, they're every where even where there is good visibility!!
What I did like though was the prewarning (usually 5km in advance) of overtaking lanes . What I also liked was that at the end of the overtaking lanes the LH lane has to filter back into the RH lane.
What was frustrating was the number of drivers who insisted on trying to overtake with a speed differential of only 3-5kph rather than booting it around a slightly slower moving vehicle.
SOmething else which was interesting is that although weaving/undertaking is technically illegal its very common place & accepted especially in built up areas (apparently I undertook at least 2 unmarked cops) yet filtering (which has just been made legal in a few of the states with a whole load of stipulations) still isn't generally accepted by car drivers, go figure
What I also loved was the way they grade the twisties with recommended speeds (which you can pretty much double on a bike) as it is done consistently with added notes if a particular bend tightens up.
It's also so nice to go ride on empty roads with little or no traffic (although being taken through the middle of Melbourne at 16:00 on a Friday afternoon was "interesting"
Bottom line is this is one of the best holidays I've ever been on and I look forward to going back
Main Thread
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