Bikers get ride into the spirit of Christmas
Hundreds of vintage and classic bikes were ridden from Richmond to Nelson, collecting toys on the way to help brighten Christmas for those less fortunate.
The 32th annual Ulysses motorcycle club toy run took place on Saturday, with more than 200 riders taking part.
For Nelson Adventure Scooter Association president Sam McEachern and his family it was the first time they had taken part.
‘‘I think the last four years or so I missed it for one reason or another, ended up chasing it, not finding it.
‘‘This year we were almost the first ones here, we thought it started at 10am.’’
McEachern said they had gone for ‘‘the safari look’’ with the decoration of their scooters, which included a giraffe head and a bear.
Nelson Ulysses branch coordinator Lorraine Lindsay said the event had become a tradition for the club.
‘‘The aim is to bring all the motorcyclists from the Top of the South together to provide toys for the Salvation Army to give out for Christmas.’’
The riders assembled in Richmond and their ride took them to Nelson, ending in Trafalgar Park. A police escort made sure the ride went smoothly.
A wide variety of bikes were part of the ride, from scooters to vintage, classic and race replicas.
Some were decorated with teddy bears, fluffy monkeys and Christmas decorations.
Lindsay said people lined up all the way along the road ready to donate toys, or to just support and cheer on the riders.
She said the long-standing tradition was picked up all around the country by Ulysses motorcycle clubs, with Marlborough being next on their list.
Lindsay said over the past several years the ride had raised about $5000 for the Salvation Army in Toy Run Badges sale proceeds.
She said they received great feedback every year from both the public and the participating bikers.