levo
Hero member
I am in the fortunate position of having a mate called Rob Turton who used to be my boss at a place called tyres for bikes (now called Overlanders) until my bike and I had an argument with a pesky commodore which I lost, which ended my career in the motorcycle industry.
Now Rob also has another feather to his bow which is motorcycle event backup which entails taking pre bought and spare tyres and fitting them to events such as the BMW safari,Ktm rallies,Fink Desert race & adventure tours throughout Australia . He has a dirty great big MAN diesel 4wd truck which seats 6 has a full kitchen on one side and a full workshop on the other.
So about a month ago he says to me hey Levo do you want to do the Southern again ? I say where to this time ? he says Cairns......I say err I've never been there so OK . Then he says this is what ya gunna do(I love it when he says that cause it always means there is some kind of adventure coming up)... i say what am i gunna do ?.... he says we are going to put your Lav in the trailer and take it out in Townsville cause the roads are pretty straight and boring before that and you can do all the twisty bits you can find all the way to Cains ...... I say Sweeet
So the southern cross event is a charity run in aid of sick kids and this year raised in excess of $60,000 It is a mixed bunch mainly old farts just like us but not like us as most are on Harleys and jap cruisers oh and one Lav mine, I had to keep it hidden cause I think I may have upset a few of them along the way but that is a tale for later. This year the event started in the Atherton tablelands just above a town called Mosman.
The trip up to Townsville was a hoot as there were two other guys with us who were pretty witty and as some of the people on this site who know rob he is a very very funny bloke as well as being really fast on tar and dirt so it was heaps of stories, dirty jokes and lots of laughter.
First night we camped just south of Rockhamton , then next night Bowen, every where you looked groves of mango trees smothered in flowers looks like a bumper year(I fuken love mango's) and acres and acres of tomatoes . I like Bowen nice town.
Next stop townsville on Thursday we left on Tuesday had to be at the start by sat arvo. It was time to pull the ax out of the trailer (I call it the ax as in Grandfathers ax it has had two handles and three heads but is still the same ax) Geared up and went for a skid around the town .It is a bloody big town with two cool twisty roads up these mountains a few cars lots op pedestrians walking up the roads so just checking out the views . I know we don't really have mountains in Aus but to me they are mountains much taller than on the sunshine coast. Townsville nice place.
Next bit to Innisfail was mainly on the Bruce Highway our national highway lots of roadworks but that was good as there is a fair bit of traffic so every time you stop at the red light just idle down the side to front of que light goes green clear road sit on 120 130 till next light and do it again good fun. Camped just south of a place called Millaa Millaa in a layby now we were getting to the real tropics different birds rain forest very nice more laughs more jokes life is gooood.
So it is now Saturday I am told this is where all the good stuff is and he wasn't lying the roads up here are really good wide and well made so i'm fanging the Lav is purring and then I come to the famed Gillies Highway OOh WAA hold on to your britches what fun corner after corner after corner up and over and onto the outskirts of Cairns got about 5 k from Cairns and couldn't help myself turned around and went and did the Gillies again only this time I had a bit of company had a nice scratch with a bloke on a UJM then headed back through Cairns ,busy place, then along the coast sorta like The Great Ocean Road in Victoria except warmer . Then check out Port Douglas very swanky lots of expensive resorts Ferraris parked in the streets beautiful views especially the female backpackers .
Nice place but not for me.
Then a mad fang up these incredible curves from Mosman to the starting point for the rally . Gave a few of the boys having a smoke on one of the bends a thrill ,they got to hear the ax on full song in 2nd and 3rd going away up the hill I know its a wank but i was digging it i was having FUN. Got to the first camp in this sport field packed out with bikes tents and people sat down with the boys rum in hand time to come down.
Now Rob also has another feather to his bow which is motorcycle event backup which entails taking pre bought and spare tyres and fitting them to events such as the BMW safari,Ktm rallies,Fink Desert race & adventure tours throughout Australia . He has a dirty great big MAN diesel 4wd truck which seats 6 has a full kitchen on one side and a full workshop on the other.
So about a month ago he says to me hey Levo do you want to do the Southern again ? I say where to this time ? he says Cairns......I say err I've never been there so OK . Then he says this is what ya gunna do(I love it when he says that cause it always means there is some kind of adventure coming up)... i say what am i gunna do ?.... he says we are going to put your Lav in the trailer and take it out in Townsville cause the roads are pretty straight and boring before that and you can do all the twisty bits you can find all the way to Cains ...... I say Sweeet
So the southern cross event is a charity run in aid of sick kids and this year raised in excess of $60,000 It is a mixed bunch mainly old farts just like us but not like us as most are on Harleys and jap cruisers oh and one Lav mine, I had to keep it hidden cause I think I may have upset a few of them along the way but that is a tale for later. This year the event started in the Atherton tablelands just above a town called Mosman.
The trip up to Townsville was a hoot as there were two other guys with us who were pretty witty and as some of the people on this site who know rob he is a very very funny bloke as well as being really fast on tar and dirt so it was heaps of stories, dirty jokes and lots of laughter.
First night we camped just south of Rockhamton , then next night Bowen, every where you looked groves of mango trees smothered in flowers looks like a bumper year(I fuken love mango's) and acres and acres of tomatoes . I like Bowen nice town.
Next stop townsville on Thursday we left on Tuesday had to be at the start by sat arvo. It was time to pull the ax out of the trailer (I call it the ax as in Grandfathers ax it has had two handles and three heads but is still the same ax) Geared up and went for a skid around the town .It is a bloody big town with two cool twisty roads up these mountains a few cars lots op pedestrians walking up the roads so just checking out the views . I know we don't really have mountains in Aus but to me they are mountains much taller than on the sunshine coast. Townsville nice place.
Next bit to Innisfail was mainly on the Bruce Highway our national highway lots of roadworks but that was good as there is a fair bit of traffic so every time you stop at the red light just idle down the side to front of que light goes green clear road sit on 120 130 till next light and do it again good fun. Camped just south of a place called Millaa Millaa in a layby now we were getting to the real tropics different birds rain forest very nice more laughs more jokes life is gooood.
So it is now Saturday I am told this is where all the good stuff is and he wasn't lying the roads up here are really good wide and well made so i'm fanging the Lav is purring and then I come to the famed Gillies Highway OOh WAA hold on to your britches what fun corner after corner after corner up and over and onto the outskirts of Cairns got about 5 k from Cairns and couldn't help myself turned around and went and did the Gillies again only this time I had a bit of company had a nice scratch with a bloke on a UJM then headed back through Cairns ,busy place, then along the coast sorta like The Great Ocean Road in Victoria except warmer . Then check out Port Douglas very swanky lots of expensive resorts Ferraris parked in the streets beautiful views especially the female backpackers .
Nice place but not for me.
Then a mad fang up these incredible curves from Mosman to the starting point for the rally . Gave a few of the boys having a smoke on one of the bends a thrill ,they got to hear the ax on full song in 2nd and 3rd going away up the hill I know its a wank but i was digging it i was having FUN. Got to the first camp in this sport field packed out with bikes tents and people sat down with the boys rum in hand time to come down.
