Il Giro marches on
Moto Giro Australia 2014 Moto Giro Awards
: OLD BIKE AUSTRALASIA
6-10 August, 2014 – Boonah & Woodford, Qld.
Five days travelling 1,300km around Boonah and Woodford was the perfect way to enjoy the Queensland winter sunshine and produced the best riding yet. Many of the 37 entrants brought multiple bikes, including Aermacchi, Benelli, Ducati, Moto Morini and Moto Guzzi. The Boonah legs were inspiring. Revised routes around the Scenic Rim Region and Gold Coast Hinterland better suited the singles, providing plenty of tight mountain curves. Wednesday’s tour ascended Mt Tamborine, the Springbrook Plateau and Beechmont. Plenty of elevation led to cold conditions at the peaks, another reason to ride in full leathers. A 300m walk at the Springbrook summit led to the Best of All Lookout, with spectacular views through ancient Arctic Beech forests to Mt Warning and Byron Bay. The highlight on Thursday was the long awaited ascent of the Queen Mary Falls. This section had river crossings, steep hairpins and snaking curves under a rainforest canopy opening up to flowing sweepers on the plateau. Steaming coffee and cake at the Falls Cafe proved the perfect tonic before testing our brakes on the descent. Finishing early, we loaded the bikes and travelled north for the next three days based in ‘The Pits’ at the Woodford Hotel. Thanks to our dedicated supporters, this year set a new benchmark in exotic snacks that accompanied the alcohol-fuelled maintenance each afternoon. We’ve now become an institution at Woodford, with many locals attracted by the roar of the morning warm up and mass start. Swelling to our full complement, we launched in tight formation to enjoy a free run through Dayboro, Samford and up the ridge to Mt Glorious for coffee at Elm Haus. After cresting the range we dropped down through the Northbrook Parkway sweepers to Esk for lunch at the Old Bakery. Saturday tracked up the Bellthorpe Road before heading to the Kenilworth Cheese factory for the best ice cream on the coast. Pressing on, the rasping conga line revelled in the newly surfaced Moy Pocket road before striking the only rain on the tour – a light 5 minute sprinkle which was later surpassed by a misplaced irrigation spray.
The ‘Giro Dinner featured a tie in the Tee Shirt competition between club President Brad and Jim Clark, who seconded his impressive young model Nicole to display his entry. It certainly looked better on her. Benny delivered the after dinner speech – an entertaining recollection of his group’s recent six week tour of the USA. Among many highlights, Nathan Bell again rode up from Sydney on his Mach 1 Ducati without incident, only to get a flat rear tyre on day two while Neil Hughes, on receiving his award for oldest combined age, noted that the last rally award he won was for youngest rider! It’s never too late…