Welcome from Penthouse 4 in Thredbo where 10 CRers are roughing it in a five bedroom chalet. It’s a bit difficult as we have to share two spas and it only has a 40″ LCD television. But don’t cry for me Argentina as we’ll make it through some way or another.

Even while waiting at the meet point in Hume it was obvious that something special was about to happen. Looking out to the Monaro highway small herds of every kind of motorcycle imaginable were migrating southward. In just a few minutes I’d be joining the pack. I had just been on that same road coming back from our coastal loop ride just three days before and it is without a doubt one of the most boring of rides. But today was much different. As we drove down the highway every stop and every store along the way was lined with motorcycles. By the time we arrived in Cooma for lunch it was difficult to actually find a spot to park. The entire length of the main street was packed with motorcycles and riders were everywhere. Only in Cooma are you offered a toolbox with helmet cleaner and chain lube along with your cuppa. Stopping for fuel became a social event as every rider asks, ‘where are you coming from?’ as the pack becomes more and more dense.

As we leave Cooma the heavy dark clouds that made for a chilly start began to part. Before long we had panoramic views of the most beautiful fluffy white clouds floating majestically across a bright blue sky. As we turned on to Alpine drive and started to climb in to the mountains the views were just spectacular. After being waved through the gates of Kosciuszko National Park Craig made the serious mistake of pulling over to have a look at a billboard displaying a map of Thredbo Village. When he turned around to get back on his bike some crazy Yank was revving it up in anticipation of a joy ride on a full powered bike. My escape was thwarted however so it was back to my learner legal Suzuki which of course I love dearly.

A short drive in to the village and we arrived at our weekend retreat. Gypsy signed her life away for a deposit and then we drove the bikes in to our secure car park for a well deserved rest and peaceful sleep until duty would call again. I had seen photos of the chalet beforehand but it really is one of the nicest places I’ve had the pleasure to stay in. It’s more like a very expensive home with a million dollar view. Just about everything you can think of is provided and set out ready to go. Of course, it’s designed for winter use so it has all the mod cons such as in floor heating, racks for your ski gear etc. But none of this could compare with what was to come.

[ Random Quotes - Hey look it's a trout farm, let's go plant some trout. ]

After Craig and I kept each other awake with synchronized snoring I woke up to a house full of excited riders. Although we aren’t really morning people, I got stuck in to playing barista as quickly as possible while several others whipped together a banquet for breakfast. Good thing too as we were going to need all the energy we could get for the full day of challenging riding just ahead.

So off we headed to our first destination at Khancoban in absolute perfect weather conditions. I’m told this is the best weather the Snowy Ride has had in the last six years. With 3,227 motorcycles attending the event and dire predictions of new riders being out to kill me on every curve, I decided to ease in to the ride. I had the great pleasure of riding Alpine Way over the Easter break earlier this year so at least I knew what to expect.

The first part of the ride is fairly twistie and about 30 minutes in to the ride I noticed that I had the road virtually to myself. I began to hit my stride and comfort zone shortly after wards. Let me tell you, for me life really begins at 10,000 rpm. I don’t think you could custom design a road for riding better than this road. Although I’m certainly not the fastest of riders I used this valuable time to work on technique. Every turn was a ballet of machine, road and rider coming together for the smoothest entry and exit. My brain was flooded with input as my eyes took in every relevant detail from the surface of the road to scanning for killer roos hiding in waiting to the next corner and beyond to ensure my safety. Although I’m fairly confident that I had plenty in reserve I still felt more like I was in a low flying plane than driving on a road. I was in the zone that we all crave. Satisfaction at last.

[ Random Quote - I think there's something in my pants that shouldn't be there. ]

But it was over far too soon when I came around a bend to find the faster riders waiting at a rest stop. I pulled in with a huge smile on my face. Although no one could see my face through my visor some things just don’t need explaining between riders. In spite of this I finally had to yell just a little bit to release some adrenalin. I waited as patiently as I could for the signal to go and bolted off like a plane off the deck of a aircraft carrier at the first nod of ‘let’s go’ closely behind Dids. At this point the roads open up, become wider and the corners become less twistie and more sweeping. It didn’t take long to get back in to a reasonable pace as we still had the road virtually to ourselves.

It’s nice having an experienced rider in front of you even if they are faster. If you can keep them in sight they provide a preview of what’s ahead and you can watch what lines they take through the corners. Today Dids would have been taking it slower and I was going faster which put us at much the same pace. We flew through the green forests and crisp alpine air taking each bend as it was offered up over and over and over.

This all came to an abrupt end when I was concentrating on a turn ahead of Dids only to notice that something quite odd and unexpected was happening. Dids was on a very strange line, he was braking heavily and a rider appeared from the opposite direction who seemed to be in a similar situation. I didn’t have time to figure out what was happening but it seemed certain to me that something bad was about to happen. I knew that I would be on top of whatever was happening sooner than I could stop, having already lost at least a full second thinking.

The wide road made an escape route to either side of the ensuing event highly plausible. Unfortunately for all of us, the two closing bikes began to wobble in both directions while trying to avoid a collision, making it impossible for me to decide which side I should swerve to. I shed as much speed as I could and took the easiest path on the left. 50/50 odds I thought. At nearly the same time both of the other riders had managed to slow almost to a stop giving them the opportunity to finally commit to which line they could take. They passed each other at a crawl as I went around them simply by tightening my turn a bit.

So the event wasn’t as dramatic as it could have been given how well both of the other riders managed to handle emergency braking. We actually stopped to talk to each other after wards which was helpful. I was surprised at how calm everyone was. We just did what we needed to do. My part turned out to be quite simple. Basically I ended up not being involved. I feel that’s because of what I’ve learned in CR along with spending a lot of time riding with others in many different conditions. As I drove off to continue our fantastic day I remembered Craig’s own words from his L&P ride day where he said that we start out with a full bucket of luck and an empty bucket of experience. Then hopefully we fill up the bucket of experience before the bucket of luck is gone. I think we used a little bit from both buckets today.

So off we head again but now the roads tighten up and the number of bikes on the road increases so we back off to ‘best behaviour’. The scenery was just incredible with mountains flanking both sides. Just outside Khancoban I had to give in to a bit of fatigue and pull over for a rest. Sitting there in the cool air watching the bikes go by I had time to reflect on just how fortunate we were to be involved in such a wonderful event. Ben joined me for a few minutes but the call of the wild returned and off we went to get the first of our three stamps on our rider cards.

We made the first stop, fueled the bikes, had a quick drink and hit the road. But the faster riders were long gone by now on their way to Adaminiby for lunch. Dids and Ben missed the very first turn and for once I decided to take the turn by myself assuming at some point they would catch up. Ben wasn’t long but it was about 40 mins before we saw Dids again. Once again the traffic was heavy and I spent a fair amount of time looking at three small boats being towed by cars. So I backed off and enjoyed a nice gentle cruise through the beautiful mountains. If you haven’t done this ride let me know as I’ll use any excuse to return.

Ben and I did have to pull over for what looked like a fairly nasty accident. There was a rider down. It appeared that a bike had gone across the road in to an embankment possibly caused by an oncoming rider going wide on the corner. The situation was well under control with the rider receiving care. After a quick stop to make sure we couldn’t help, we moved on. Of course seeing such a thing really is sad and immediately brings you down to the reality of how important it is to ride to the conditions. The rest of the ride down the mountains, across several dams and back up the mountain was inspiring. I just wanted to get off the bike, climb a peak, strip down, throw up my arms and yell across the valley how wonderful it is to be alive. Guess the rest of you might reconsider riding with me after that outburst but it’s so hard to contain yourself when surrounded by such awesome beauty.

After the mountains and on the way to Kiandra the road opens up in to the widest and longest sweepers that I know of. You can see several turns ahead and the road is just perfect. Twist the wrist and enjoy the high all the way in to Adaminiby.

When I pulled in to the pub I virtually floated inside to find a group of Canberra Riders having lunch. First person I ran in to was Tess so I had a little bit of jumping up and down to release my excitement and then went over to the table to talk with the rest of the riders about the incredible experience I just had. It wasn’t until a few minutes later that I realised I was talking to MammaLeen and other riders that weren’t actually on the Snowy Ride. Turns out I had intersected with Daniel’s ride out.

Adaminiby was wall to wall bikes and riders. We met fellow CRer Peter who lives there, had a quick drink and then it was time to head out or we would miss the mass ride being held at 4pm in Thredbo. Poor Ben arrived behind me so he and Dids stayed for a bite to eat while I headed off with the CR elite for a jaunt across the countryside and back to the mountains. Needless to say it wasn’t long before I was riding alone with Avartie but we did catch Tess, Mark and Lurch for a gentle ride back to Jyndabyne.

I headed straight for more petrol in Thredbo with just enough time to make it to the mass ride rally point. I headed over to the ski tube car park and drove under the wash of a navy helicopter that was there giving some of the kids rides and taking photos. I have no idea how many bikes were involved but it probably came close to a thousand. The ride didn’t take long as we only went to Thredbo but it was quite a buzz being in a pack of so many bikes. We cruised in to Thredbo and took up every conceivable space to park the bikes. Not long after that the formal presentations were made which were both fun and inspiring. We were told about a L plater who was pulled over for passing a semi truck over double solid lines. As if that’s not stupid enough, he had two motorcycle cops behind him when he did this stunt. But wait, it gets better. It took the cops some time to safely pass the truck and then over a kilometer to get his attention and pull him over. But wait, it gets better. This learner was on a 900cc bike! In the spirit of the ride, rather than carting him off to goal he received a couple of hefty fines instead and told to find another way back other than riding that particular bike.

The presentations of prizes was so much fun. Seat covers, Staintune exhausts, track days and gift certificates were given away to about 8 riders. Then it was time to draw the major prize. A rider from Victoria is now the proud owner of a Honda valued at $25,000. Needless to say he was one happy vegemite. There’s an even sexier one up for grabs to be drawn at the Sydney Motorcycle show later this month. So get your raffle tickets soon and support a great cause. It would be hard for me to convey the emotional content of the various speeches from parents, researchers and staff of the Steven Walter Foundation. While the Snowy Ride is great fun, it also has a significant effect on the lives of many children. In the last six years over a million dollars has been raised to support research in to the effective treatment of childhood cancer. The result of this research last year was that 15,000 children who ten years ago more than likely would not have survived their illness are running around laughing and enjoying all the things most of us take for granted.

The next Snowy ride will be on Sat 6 Nov 2010, the tenth anniversary of this great event. The goal this year is to raise the same amount of funds raised in the last six years. Yep, that’s right – one million dollars in a single year. Part of that effort is a request to the 3,227 riders attending to each raise $100 for the foundation over the coming year. I’m sure CR could do far better than that if members are interested. It’s beginning to look like the Snowy Ride could become the single largest motorcycle event in the country so don’t be left out. The Marketing Director of Honda also challenged riders of other manufacturers bikes to lobby them for support stating how wonderful it would be to see more than Honda and Ducati supporting the event. I’ll be doing my best to get Suzuki on board if anyone else wants to help. I’m in the market for my post learner bike and I will be letting them know that I took notice that they weren’t involved in supporting the Steven Walter Foundation.

Speaking of Steven, it hasn’t escaped my attention that the words of a teenager fighting cancer sparked this entire event. One motorcycle mad kid tells his friends and family that he doesn’t want to see other kids go through what he has and this is the result. What a legacy.

So after a very long and emotional day of riding, events, fun, laughter, sadness and exhilaration I finally head back to the penthouse chalet to attempt winding down. Only a few hours to rest before the Hoodo Gurus take to the stage and fill the valley with vintage rock and roll.

Here is the crowd for Hoodoo Gurus going nuts:

It doesn’t take long for me to begin to fade so up the long catwalk I climb to the chalet. I find Avartie there doing some channel surfing and we have a good laugh at some of the old movies on TV. It’s past midnight and another day of living in motorcycle heaven is only a sleep away.

PART TWO -

As I’ve said before, we aren’t exactly what you would call morning people. Most of the group enjoyed the Sat night concert until late and having had a full day most of us didn’t make an appearance until around 9.00am. Some of us didn’t make an appearance at all. So we lazed around, drank coffee and had long chats about all the wonderful events we have been involved in over the past couple of days. Sunday is a lazy day anyway so there’s no rush to head out.

With Mark having already left, Gypsy decides that she will head back as well. Ben and Craig both need to get back to the ACT as well so we decide to incorporate a short ride up to Charlotte Pass and then come back to Jindabyne for lunch. After that the plan was to ride out to Dalgety and then Cooma. When someone mentioned Charlotte Pass it didn’t really dawn on me what was ahead.

I was first down to the garage where I found eight sexy bikes in waiting. It was nice that they could keep each other company. The usual prep started to take place, bikes were warmed up and off we all went leaving Lurch and Jess to their slumber. The ride down from Thredo is lovely as always and we had yet another spectacular day for a ride. Blue skies full of fluffy clouds and just the right temperature. Just after the lake becomes visible and presents itself in full panaromic view I turned left to head up the mountains.

Driving past the snow fields at this time of year is just stunning. The roads are wide, the bends sweeping and you can see the road ahead all the way to the horizon as it merges in to snow capped mountains. I had to interrupt my ride to stop and take photos as I just didn’t think anything I could write could describe what I was seeing. I even had a chance to take a short video of Ben riding up to see what I was doing as he came by so check that out on YouTube

Once we reached Charlotte Pass we found dozens of fellow bikers all who were obviously dazed by both the ride and the scenery. Everyone was just in such a good mood it was more like a bunch of school kids seeing snow for their first time. Avartie threw the first snowball. My advice is to never give Gypsy reason to retaliate if you know what’s good for you. We enjoyed the views, took tourist photos of ourselves and had a good laugh. The ride back down the mountains was just as exciting and I will always remember this as one of my best rides to date.

Lunch in Jyndabyne was hot. We were all anxious to just eat and get back to the bikes. A rendezvous with Lurch failed so we assumed he had gone ahead which was disappointing. The ride to Dalgety was yet another fabulous time. It seems there is just no end of perfect roads for motorcycles in this part of the country. From Dalgety to Cooma was very long stretches of road with unlimited views. This is where your bike can really stretch out and do what bikes do best. I actually ended up a bit ahead as I refused to stop with the others waiting to regroup in a selfish act of total indulgence. Yeah baby, catch me if you can. Of course that was no challenge at all for Craig who passed me a few minutes later. But I did have time to stop at a T section and drive in circles a few times just to be silly because I was having so much fun. No way was I putting my feet on the ground as long as I was on that bike and in that mood. After all, life is a highway.

By the time we arrive in Cooma we are all quite happy with ourselves. We celebrate with ice cream while we cool down. As I climb back on the bike for yet another boring ride on the Monaro, Avatie and I thank the others for the best of weekends. They head north to the ACT and we head back to Penthouse 4 in Thredbo. Nothing to report about the ride home as it was basically a gentle run after a couple of long days of riding. The cool air of the mountains came just in time. Thredbo was now back to normal although there were still pockets of bikes here and there. But the mass of bikes from the previous day was now just a memory and I must admit to feeling a bit sad. So now the garage was down to just four bikes.

We returned to find Mel and Tess roughing it out on the balcony with some of their friends. Apparently their ride today involved riding down to Thredbo and getting up to whatever those two get up to. Actually I know, but I’m not telling. The rest of the day involved walking down to dinner and me walking all over the village trying to find someone’s wireless to leech off of because our ‘net connection at the chalet was down. No such luck therefore if you are reading this it will be a bit after the events.

So now I’m sitting in the chalet watching motorcycle racing on TV with Avartie and debriefing about every road we’ve been on in the last three days. But the real thing worrying me is how soon can I get back here for more. I’ll give this long weekend a 9 out of 10 rating.

I just don’t think it gets any better than this. And bad news gang, the above report is about 1/10th of all the great things that happened over the weekend.

If you’ve read through this entire post I hope it’s inspired you to go mark you calendar right now for next year’s Snowy Ride. It will be the tenth anniversary so it’s bound to be the biggest and the best. Although the actual ride is on Sat 6 Nov 2010, do yourself a favour and come down a day early and take at least one day off work after because you’ll need it. Don’t worry about the number of bikes around. If your skills are up to it and you can be sensible in adjusting your riding to the conditions, things should be fine. There’s really no need to be around that many bikes anyway if you prefer not to. Just base yourself here and go for other rides elsewhere. I can honestly say that most of the rides I’ve been on this weekend have had far less traffic than any ride I’ve done over the Clyde or out at the Cotter. How cool would it be to have at least 20 CanberraRiders here and maybe we could even help out the Steven Walter Foundation with their goal to provide far more support to cancer research next year than they ever have before?

A huge thanks to Lurch, Jess, Mel, Tess, Ben, Craig, Arthur, Esther and Mark for the best time I’ve had in a long time. You rock! Photos now online HERE

See you on the roads. Stay safe and have fun.