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Post by Jake on Mar 30, 2017 20:49:54 GMT 10
Well, here we are on Day 16 of our Around Australia Trip (hopefully). We crossed the Nullabor without any real incident, arrived in Perth and turned right. We are now in Kalbarri, about 600 km north of Perth. And we are staying here for a rest day – our first since departing Tasmania. So far we have covered 4775 km at an average of 318 km per day. We are travelling at a speed of about 75 km/hour. The outfit will certainly go much faster but we are heavily loaded, with a strong weight bias towards the back (in and over the sidecar boot and behind the rider, where we have a loaded Esky with all our food). As a result, the outfit is twitchy in cross winds and the steering feels vague at 80 km/hour or above. So, 75 km/hour seems a sensible choice – and, when the wind is really blowing, as it is on some open stretches, we reduce speed to 70 km/hour. This probably drives the occasional motorist crazy but, in general, fellow travelers in cars and trucks have been very friendly and understanding – an old grey-haired couple driving an ‘old’ sidecar outfit elicits interest rather than derision from most people. Certainly there have been plenty of instances of passengers leaning out and taking photos of us as they go past, and lots of thumbs up from bystanders and motorists. We have not had a fist shaken at us so far on this trip. When in Perth I dropped in to see John Van Gemmert at Classic Motor Cycles WA – the URAL agent in Perth. John was most helpful – he fitted two new Heidenau tyres, changed all the oils for me and adjusted the tappets – it was so much easier to have this done in John’s workshop rather than in a caravan park where I have been doing this work so far on the trip. Several challenges which spring to mind are: . Road trains – passing one coming in the opposite direction can result in severe buffeting, particularly under certain cross wind conditions. We are slowing right down and keeping to the left at such times. Being overtaken by road trains can be a bit intimidating but the drivers have been universally careful and courteous – we keep up a steady speed but pull to the left of the road when being passed. . What gear to wear? Wearing a riding suit is clearly the safest option but is terribly hot after lunch. Jan continues to wear a full, armoured, jacket but light trousers. I took the armour out of my jacket but continue to wear it, zipped in the morning but partly unzipped in the afternoon. I have started riding without gloves because of the heat and to let air flow up the arms of my jacket. Jan is wearing light cotton gloves to avoid sunburn. I am wearing either long work trousers or work shorts, depending on the temperature – sunburn is the issue with shorts (and safety, of course – but overheating in full riding gear is a safety issue as well). Tomorrow we continue north and hope to be in Broome this time next week. Cheers, Jake (and long-suffering wife, Jan)
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Post by Piper on Mar 30, 2017 21:46:28 GMT 10
Hi Jake & Jan, Excellent adventures , you both have my admiration being out in the great Aussie outdoors and having a go, love your pics as you progress around Oz.
Cheers
Rob
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roscoau
Life? Don't talk to me about life!
Posts: 838
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Post by roscoau on Mar 31, 2017 7:23:25 GMT 10
Great report! I'm glad you're having fun and it is great to see a mermaid on a Ural...
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Post by brucek on Apr 3, 2017 11:21:10 GMT 10
I hear you re. sidewinds and road trains. On my trip last August heading north from Port Augusta I encountered killer sidewinds. I was wrestling the handlebars all the way with wind gusts buffeting me side to side, throttle almost wide open just to maintain 60-65km/hr. It was a shocker but the winds abated the further north I got. Like you I was overloaded but had a lot of gear stowed on top of the chair which must have contributed to 'the fun'. Then up the Tanami Rd on the 'sealed' section just out of Alice you've only about a 1½ lane width of bitumen for much of the way. Constantly scanning the mirrors and up ahead. If a truck was approaching from behind or ahead I just dropped my speed and got right off the 'sealed' bit and onto the dirt proceeding slowly till it was all clear. With any other approaching vehicle I just moved over enough to drop the sidecar wheel in the dirt and let them by. I'd do it all again in a flash though, great adventure. Good luck on the rest of your trip and hope the Outfit behaves itself mechanically.
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Post by chrisdips on Apr 7, 2017 12:43:20 GMT 10
G'day David & Jan, from Chris in Ipswich. Is this the same David & Jan from the vineyard near Lonny?
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Post by Uralee on Apr 7, 2017 16:27:35 GMT 10
G'day David & Jan, from Chris in Ipswich. Is this the same David & Jan from the vineyard near Lonny? Same David....different bike.....same colour....
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Post by Jake on Apr 8, 2017 7:36:56 GMT 10
Hi there Chris (in Ipswich) - yes, as Uralee says, this is us. Jan and I sold the vineyard in Launceston and shifted to live at our beach shack in Bicheno. I had no shed to store anything so I sold the URAL. I then built a shed and bought another URAL - a secondhand unit from south of Adelaide - also green in colour (obviously we both like green). It is a 2008 model but had only 4200 km on it at time of purchase in December. It has now done a little over 12500 km. Well - we are at about the half way point of our trip - we are overnight at Fitzroy Crossing and headed towards Darwin. Since leaving Bicheno we have covered 7466 km and we are averaging 339 km/day at a travel speed between 70 and 75 km/hour (we are 50 kg overloaded with a weight of 660 kg, heavily biased towards the back, and this has made the front end a bit light so the outfit is a bit twitchy in corners and susceptible to side winds. But at 70 - 75 km/hour all is good. Today is Day 25 - we have taken 2 lay days during the trip (in Kalbarri and Broome) and they are not taken into account in calculating the average distance travelled per day. I have made a number of checks of the odometer, checking it against Google mileages and signposts and I find it is out by about 8%. In fact, my average of all the checks gives me a factor of 1.0835 - ie. if I multiply the odometer reading by this number the result is the Google / signpost distance. The 7466 km travelled so far is a corrected (ie. true map) distance. On this corrected basis, my fuel consumption (with 660 kg gross mass) is 14.3 km/litre in still wind conditions. In blustery wind conditions this figure drops to typically 13.6 km/litre. Our trusty Russian steed is doing a great job - no significant engine / gearbox / tyre problems at all. There have been the usual issues with neutral indicator light (a lost cause on both my URALs) and both brake light switches (front brake and foot brake) have packed it in (the issue may be adjustment - I have not had the time / energy to worry about it). And, as with my previous outfit, the tappets always sound like they need adjusting - I have now adjusted them 4 times on this trip; in each case, one or more tappets definitely needed adjustment. I am not sure why they keep going out of adjustment. However, none of this is a party stopper and, if the unit continues to behave like it is until we get back to Bicheno, then I shall write a letter to Stalin expressing my thanks and admiration. Next report soon. Cheers, Jake (David Jenkinson - Jake is my old nickname)
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Post by Bob on Apr 8, 2017 16:30:33 GMT 10
Hi Jake I am the owner of your previous Ural. More details in your messages. Regards Bob (of Penguin)
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Post by maccaoz on Apr 8, 2017 17:03:56 GMT 10
A great report on the big trip & glad to hear that everything is going well. Are you folk camping or doing the accommodation thing ?
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Post by chrisdips on Apr 9, 2017 8:01:34 GMT 10
G'day again David & Jan; its great to see you enjoying the ride. Would love to catch up with you again when you come down the east coast, Brisbane Ipswich way.
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