Abrupt end to my “Ride around Australia” for now?

Sunday 18^th Sept. 2011 @ 7:45am, my ride around Australia came to an abrupt end.

Where: 50km north of Tennant Creek, NT

What happened: This was to be a short 270km ride day going from Tennant Creek to Elliot, NT. I had a 4 trailer Road Train ahead of me doing around 90-100kph, he signalled for me to overtake. I looked and the road was clear and straight. After passing the first 2 trailers, which were closed, the next 2 were open trailers. My front started to wobble, I tried to accelerate to get control - nothing; tried to decelerate - nothing. The wobble was getting pretty violent, and I was only about 1 meter from the truck tyres. Survival mode kicked in and I layed it down to my right and hoped for the best. My speed at the time was around 110km. One of the Ambulance guys, who is also a biker, said I was very lucky and the probable cause was bad air coming from the open trailers causing the front to wobble. He called it the death wobble; I didn’t like the sound of that and thankful it didn’t happen to me.

Injuries: fracture to the left elbow, 4 fractures to right ankle and multiple abrasions. All-in-all, a good outcome.

Special thanks: All those that assisted me at the scene, a UK traveller, who was also a nurse (sorry did not get her name), the Ambulance guys, the Police, Dr  Amin at Tennant Creek Hospital. I do want to give a special mention to a nurse at Tennant Creek Hospital, his name is Jason Woodward. Jason was tremendous in looking after me in hospital, but also after I elected to leave hospital and wait for my wife to pick me up and fly me back home. He went way over the normal duty of care; by bringing me dinners, taking me to get medication and just being a friend when I needed it most. Thanks Jason.

My wife (Pat) also a big thanks for keeping a cool head and coming to my rescue. Pat quickly flew to Alice Springs, then drove an additional 530km to Tennant Creek. The next day she drove me back to Alice Springs, and we stayed at a nice resort (Lasseter’s Resort Casino) and no I didn’t play Texas Holdem there. We flew home on Thursday and now recovering. Next week I see an Orthopaedic specialist to see if I need any surgery on my foot; I hope not.

I hope to one day continue my ride around Australia. My wife and I will just need to agree on the mode of transport I use.

Also very big thanks to those that donated/sponsored to MS Australia. It really is great cause and I thank you on behalf of MS Australia.

Also QANTAS were very helpful in getting me back home. In Alice they used a special forklift to get me on the plane as the only other way was walking up the stairs. See pictures below.

 A view of the Tennant Creek district

 My wife in front of Devils Marbles (near Tennant Creek, NT) they are known as Karlu Karlu in all four local Aboriginal languages. This remarkable site is a sacred place to Aboriginal traditional owners

 Having a rest at Tennant Creek Hospital

 My Kevlar lined jeans, worth every penny I paid.

My Dryrider boots, yep they took a beating, but saved my foot.

 
Me getting onto the forklift to board the plane

Week 2

Day 10: Tennant Creek. An easy 251k, it’s actually shorter had I not taken some interesting side trips. Road great, weather hot… elapse time around 2 hrs.

OK, I was told to look out for Roos, Emus, Camels, Donkeys, but nobody said that there would be free range cows all over the place (no fencing). I must have counted over 20 dead on the side of the road. Road Trains wouldn’t have a problem, but I would. This region is called Barkly Tableland. Apparently has the best grazing land in all Australia, and this is from the locals. The countryside is lush with grass, so it could be true.

I did a few side trips and took a few photos (see below samples).

I don’t want to be negative, but I got in at around 10am local time (NT is 30 min. behind Sydney time). I found a cheap place to stay, well relative to others around; it was a Pub/Hotel. There was a very long queue waiting to get in for a drink. Unfortunately they were all indigenous.  I knocked to get in and the owner saw that I was not a local and let me in. 

Another note to self: Keep an eye on speed; I am really using much more petrol because the speed limit here is 130km. It does sound like allot, but it was only a few years ago that they put this in, they didn't have one before. The roads are good and straight, it is easy to do, and even easier to go was over. I am trying to stay on the 120 -130 limit @ 4500rpm.

This will be a very easy week of riding. Tomorrow I’m off to Elliot (270 km). There is only one place to stay. I called ahead and chatted with the owner, and he gave me a terrific price $35. All I asked after hearing the price was does it have a bed A/C and a loo? Yes it does, good enough. Day after I head off to Katherine for a couple of days, then Darwin for a few more days. In Darwin I will catch up with some friends and service the bike.

 An old steam generator - surrounding district of Tennant Creek - I won't complain about Sydney prices (regular unleaded) - Downtown Tennant Creek.

 

Day 9: Barkly Homestead, NT. Distance travelled 480km, weather hot, roads good.

I kicked off at 6:30am so I could get a few Ks before the heat set in. I decided to stop at Barkly Homestead. I arrived around 12 noon and called it a day. I asked about the cost of a room for the night; $110. Option 2, was to ask if I could pitch a tent at the back. They agreed. All it cost me was a $20 deposit on the washroom key, which I will get back tomorrow. Good deal. I did promise my wife that I would use the tent at least 4 times, so it could pay for itself. 3 to go.
I noticed that my SPOT 2 was not tracking. I must have forgot to push tracking on my device. Will take more care tomorrow.

Other than Telstra, there is no phone reception. Lucky my portable Wi-Fi is from Telstra and works.

Day 8: Mt Isa sightseeing, weather warm around 31c.

Mt Isa is a town of about 20,000 people in the remote north-west of Queensland. The town is located alongside the, silver, copper and lead mining and smelting operations of Mount Isa Mines Limited (MIM). The smelting that takes place here produces sulfur dioxide emissions that they say is not very good for you. There is an inquiry on it now. Things are pricey here and not what I would call my type of town. I talked to a few locals today and they are afraid for the towns future. Other than mining, there is no plan B.

Tomorrow, I’m heading into Northern Territory (NT). My Plan A, is to go to Tennant Creek (about 670km). My plan B is to stop at Barkly Roadhouse (460km) then up to Elliot next day. It all depends on how hot it gets in the day. If I stop at Barly Roadhose and Elliot, the chances of me having any phone or wireless reception are very low. so my post may wait a couple of days.

I also had to do some bike maintanace. I had used some oil and coolant over the last 3000+km. I only had to add 300ml of oil and similar with the coolant.

 

I know what your thinking who is the prettiest.. Now be nice, Just cause I shaved off my mo.

The fun begings

Day 7:  Mt Isa, Qld.  End of Week 1

Well today saw me riding from Longreach to Mt Isa. The distance was around 660km and took around 8:30hrs in all.

The road was OK for the most part, with some under construction and hard packed gravel. The bike felt OK on it. The weather also for the most part was good, except in stretches I had NE heavy winds and I was travelling NW. It felt like I had to lean constantly to the right to maintain myself in the middle of the road

Road Trains, I think I am getting the hang of how to cope with them. In Queensland, they can only do 80km, so if I do around 85 - 90km when passing them all is good. Any faster and it feels like I hit a wall.

I was talking to another rider today (Bob), he is near the end of his trip and did it clockwise (going south from Gosford, NSW). He told me to be very careful near the top part of NT. The most dangerous animals are wild Donkeys & Camels.  He said they are so dumb, that they could be 200 meters away and hears a vehicle, then run to it to inspect it. Apparently there are a large number on the road being hit by Road Trains. On Camels, well Bob said they will run through wire fence to see what is coming. Interesting times ahead. He did say that as long as you alert, it should not be a problem. So it won’t be, because I am always alert.

Some trivia on Road trains:

They are not exclusive to Australia. The USA, Canada, Argentina & Mexico also have them but are called by other names. Australia does have the longest legal Road Trains in the world. They can be from 3 trailers to the largest one built is for 12 trailers and that from Winton. That the town that I went through today and also the original home of QANTAS.

The ones I have been passing are “Quads” and are around 53 metres long.

 

Day 6: Longreach sightseeing

Today was a relaxing day. I went to Longreach QANTAS Founders Museum and a walk through the Stockman Hall of Fame. For those that don’t know, a stockman is like a US Cowboy, only better. Or so they say. The weather was dry and around 30 Celsius.

I have been in many planes, but never had a chance to investigate all the nook and crannies of one. Went into the cargo hold, stood on an engine, sat in the pilot seat, looked at their rest areas, etc.. plus now I have a good understanding of all the failsafe systems that are built into a large plane.

I explored Longreach for about 15 minutes and that about covered everything.

Yesterday I said I wanted to ease off on the number of Ks I do in a day. Well I am breaking that again tomorrow and heading straight to Mt Isa. That’s about 660km. I will have another rest day there and go look at some mines and big trucks. Yes Mt Isa is one of our largest mining towns. From Mt Isa I will head off to Tennant Creek (670km), which is in Northern Territory (NT).  From there it’s slow and easy north to Darwin with a couple of stops in between.

I have booked my 1^st service of the bike in Darwin and it will mark 1/3^rd of my trip, about 5,000km. I am having new brake pads put in and usual service.

 

Day 5:

Distance covered 690km, averaging 24.2km per ltr. Elapse time on road 9:30 hrs.

Today I left Rocky and my plan was to stop in Alpha. Once there, I saw a Caravan Park, and a Truckers Road station. New plan, it was only an extra 250km to Longreach, so I continued. I must admit that long rides do take their toll on me. I have to remind myself that I’m doing a ride around Australia, not a race around Australia. This was the 4^th consecutive ride over 550km per day. To date I have travel over 2300km, with 1 rest day in between.

The ride was uneventful for the most part. I say that because there was one occasion that took my heart rate up. I make it a habit of stoping every 90 min. On this occasion I saw a rest stop and pulled in, without looking too closely at the surface before going in. Yep, very loose gravel. My bike was dancing all over the place, with me trying to control it. I could not touch the brakes as I would have come unstuck. I wasn’t worried about being physically hurt as I was only doing about 5km, but my pride would have taken a nock. Memo to self; pay attention.

Tomorrow is sightseeing day. I plan to go to the Qantas Founders Museum and the Stockman Hall of Fame. Yeah, plus do some laundry.

QANTAS was actually started in Winton (e few hundred km away), but relocated to Longreach about 1 year later.

On the way to Longreach. Stop at Alpha QLD.

Day 4:

Distance covered 530km, averaging 23.1km per ltr. Elapse time on road 7:30 hrs.

Left Noosa Heads and headed up north to Rockhampton (Rocky as the locals call it), the weather was great for riding as were the roads. This was a very uneventful ride, great countryside. Along the way I stopped in a town called Miriam Vale for lunch. I had a homemade spinach pie, it was great. The place was called The Big Crab, go figure (picture below).

I arrived in Rocky, and found a great Motel (Golden Fountain Motel). The owners, John & Elmy were great and gave me a terrific rate for the room after finding out what I was doing, thank you.

I was chatting with one of the guest and talking about what he was doing (going to visit some mates in Mackay), when after he found  out my name, laughed and said, you’re the famous Rocky Graziano. He said get it… Your in Rocky and you name is Graziano.. I also laugh, but only because it was so lame.

Tomorrow I had head west to Alpha.

Day 3:

Distance covered: 11 km, fuel used: 2 Gatorades.  Walking time 2 hrs.

Today I spent a few hours walking and enjoying the sites of Noosa National Park. I did the costal track. This is 5.5 km one way. I didn’t pay too much attention that it would be the same distance going back; Dah.. I did spend some time around Dolphin Point, yes I did see them. I was so amused at how they were playing, that by the time they were done, I thought about taking a picture, it was fun to watch.

I then did the tourist bit and walked around Hasting St (Noosa Head), that’s the tourist strip. Yep, I could live here.

Those that know me know that I am a major Rugby League lover. My team the Manly Sea Eagles played the Townsville Cowboys, yes my team won 42 – 8.

Tomorrow I am heading off to Rockhampton.

Top photo is from Hells Gate, second is looking at Noosa Head. You will notice, no high rise build, this is by regulation.

Day 2:

Distance covered 540km, still averaging 22.3km per ltr. Elapse time on road 8 hrs.

It had been raining all night in Coffs Harbour, but had mostly cleared by the time I left at 7:30am. Only a few light showers until I hit Tweed Heads. It got so bad that I had to pull in under a bridge. Waited for 15 min, it had eased up a little, and then continued. Bad moved… Torrential rain, followed by steady rain, and strong winds, then has I approached Sunshine Coast, it got better. Enough about the weather!

I am staying in Noosaville (a suburb of Noosa), in a fairly nice Motel. I caught up with a friend and ex CA Technologies colleague of mine Bob Pyette, who recently retired and decided that Noosa Heads was the placed to be. I can’t blame him.  We had a great dinner (Italian of course) and chat .

Tomorrow is a rest day, and I might do a 4km walk in the National Park here. It trails along the coast and the views are supposed to be brilliant. After spending all day on a bike, a walk is mandatory.

Along the way and before the bad weather I stopped at Ballina. They have the Big Prawn. This is being worked on as you can see, it does need some TLC.  I also stopped at Macadamia Castle in Byron Bay. They are supposed to have the best pancakes in Australia. I put that to the test and YES, they are the best I ever tasted.  I had to laugh when I got my plate and a kid came over and said he would be willing to swap his pancakes and shake for mine. His mother heard him and quickly apologised, I laughed. I liked his attitude, but I still kept my mixed berries pancakes.

Day 1
My plan was to leave at 6:30am from home and head off to Coffs Harbour. As all good plans, I did not leave until 7:30am and 15 minutes into my ride I got a call from my wife to say I had left my wallet at home... took a big breath and thought oh well it's all part of the experience. My wife was kind enough to bring it to me, thanks honey.
Distance travelled on Day 1:   570km, and averaging 22.3km per ltr. Not bad for how loaded the bike is and the city traffic I had to get through. I arrived at Coffs Harbour (Sapphire Beach actually) at 4:30pm 8 hrs elapsed time of travel.
The ride was uneventful (just the way I like it). I had my wet weather gear for most of the way because I had light showers most of the way. In Taree, the weather turned brilliant, and I removed it. 30km before Coffs Harbour and the skies opened up. Yep Murphy was at it again.
Now I am relaxing at Sapphire Beach Camping ground (in a cabin) and enjoying a good Cigar. More later...
Yep took a picture of the Big Banana at Coffs Harbour.