Worst Ride In Australia

Just a heads up for all the Interstate riders – if you come to Adelaide don’t bother with a ride in the hills.



To be polite to my mate with the Yamaha FZ6 I went for another ride with him last Sunday morning.
What a shocker!
I was already preened up for a nice cruise through the City where I could share the straight roads with my fellow motorists and truckies and have plenty of time to admire my reflection in shop windows as we tootled from one stop light to the next.
What does he do?!
Starting at his place in Coromandel Valley we are straight out into the cool greenery and curvy road making our way through Ironbank and up to foggy Stirling. Not a straight stretch of road to be found! Lean left, lean right, trail brake into this corner, accelerate out of the next – I was actually having to move around on the bike! Where was the opportunity to blast along at 200 + kph with the thrill/fear of Police lights flashing at any moment? I hardly saw the posted speed-limit reached the whole ride – what, with all those 55, 25, 40, 35 kph bends in the way.
After Stirling it was worse! Through the fog and up to the Norton Summit road via, Piccadilly – Uraidla, then Ashton – Lenswood – Lobethal; do you know how many bends there are? Hundreds! And each one requires you to think, and adjust your speed; your position on the bike; your position on the road, whilst watching your mate ahead and watching out for cars and bikes coming the other way. I noticed that the riders of the bikes coming the other way were appearing to be smiling, but I know they were just anxiously grimacing as they rushed at high velocities to get off the road and back to their lawn mowers and domestic duties.
The sun had broken through the fog at this point, so I also had to cope with the bright sunshine and clear blue sky.

I tell you I was glad to see the Suzuki Dealership at Lobethal – which was strangely labelled the Amberlight Cafe. I knew it was a Suzuki Dealership however because there were four 2011 Bandits out front including a naked 1250 with the new headlight and dash, and a new fully-faired job – they must also be an agency for Korean Bikes because I saw a Hyosung 650 and a red "Du – you – cateye Nine Hundred And Sixteen" (?) [A strange name for a bike -it will never catch on in Australia I'm sure.] The dealership didn’t have Sales staff present but they did offer great coffee and cake for a very reasonable cost. I think they were offering test rides for prospective clients because each Bandit had a rider and a couple of them had a passenger as well.




After my well-earned break my mate lead the way to the main road that runs through Woodside and Oakbank and back to the Murray Bridge to Adelaide Freeway – unfortunately he became confused and turned off early – taking yet another curvy road that ended up taking us through Mt Barker and on to Macclesfield. I tell you it was next to impossible to enjoy the green scenery, the full farm dams and the contented cattle with all the swinging left and right, up and down and not always on glass smooth asphalt either.
I had to spend the whole time virtually focused on riding as smoothly and intelligently as I could.

[I will cut in on myself at this point and say that I was disgusted to discover when I got home that there was hardly any unused rubber strips on the edges of my tyres! I was almost rubbing metal parts on the road! How on earth I will get 12000 kms out of these original tyres, as I’m sure you all do, I will never understand.]

Anyway, same old, same old, from Macclesfield – Kangarilla – Clarendon and back to Coromandel Valley – slow speed turns, curves and wavy bends the whole stretch, and hardly a truck or farm machine or convoy of slow cars to get behind and enjoy. It was awful.
The whole run was a piddling 150 kms or so – I’m sure that many of you in Sydney or Melbourne would be able to find traffic jams that long! You probably go further on glorious suburban streets and roads at a highly commendable 50 or 60 kph just to get out to one of your magnificent and abundant bike roads.
So you see, there is no reason for you to bring your bike to South Australia where you would only crowd the road and possibly have to stop at a winery or country pub – no, you focus on burn outs and top-speed runs, just like on You Tube. The fastest run I have seen so far showed 260 kph.
Think of me sympathetically as I politely stick to the tail of a little red FZ6!

Oh you poor man
How far is it to Adelaide from Albany? Hmmmm not too far I think

Nice work
Some of us live in places like that and like to keep the secret

The naked Bandit looks horn...............
There is not much in front of you when you're at the bars though. Would take me a bit to get used to that.

EDIT: I see the cat converter burns on these too!

150km

What did you do after 10:00am

I'm sure the actual ride was better than the warm up.

2wheelsagain wrote:Some of us live in places like that and like to keep the secret

Like posting videos that show the street names.

Re-Cycled wrote:150km

What did you do after 10:00am

I'm sure the actual ride was better than the warm up.

2wheelsagain wrote:Some of us live in places like that and like to keep the secret

Like posting videos that show the street names.

I only let the chosen ones in on my patch Peter lol

Looks very nice. If you see my mate Jimmy Bandit coming across the Nullarbor in the next few days headed for Tassy say gday. He has a '96 1200 Bandit which is streetfightered. I believe he may well be taking the long way through SA and then onto Tassie for some real twisty action.

what a wonderfull ride through the hills - do it every chance I get . Yankalilla - South Australia

Going to get my bandit dynoed in Adelaide sometime after xmas.
Looks like I need to go 4 a ride in the adelaide hills.

Very NICE. and love the pipe/can

Anyone know if those radiator side covers fit the silver engined B1250?

2wheelsagain wrote:Anyone know if those radiator side covers fit the silver engined B1250?

Was thinking the same thing mate. The new radiator on most of the 2010 bandits isn't as wide and have more height.
So not sure if they fit.