Johnny's Blog Site » Personal

Oct-Nov-Dec 2011

johnnyflash — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 13:40:28 +0000

Its been a busy month one way or another, though we have managed to get in at least three to four rides in each month, (apart from daily commuting ofcourse) Quite a number just me and Lo, we find we enjoy it just being the two of us every now and again so we have made a habit of doing at least a couple of rides a month by ourselves, then do two and more rides with mates. works really well, its the best of both worlds.
Needless to say its just soooo relaxing when the only one you need to plan for is your own wants an needs, so stop , go head nth/sth/east/west, stop for a minute or a couple hours, real easy choices
Cruising with a group, particularly a small group of say 5-10 bikes is also brilliant, just for the companionship, and to catch up with mates, so a mixture of rides is just brilliant.
Im past the days of riding in large groups, where you have 30 or more other bikes to worry about, and trying to accommodate every ones wishes. Whilst we still like to go and support the large fundraising charity rides of hundreds of bikes, they aint a lot of fun, just too many noddies to look out for weaving in and out, who should’nt be allowed to own a bike let alone ride it, most especially the middle aged born again rider, who rode a moped at age 15 for a year, and as a mid life crisis hits they purchase a large bike and think they can ride.

I have met a few “born again biker” that did it right, actually took lessons again, started on a smaller bike and after a few years upgraded, you can see the skills shine through, and they are a pleasure to ride with. but they are in the minority it seems.

As you can tell, the summer season was coming on and I have noticed a lot of these riders, who only seem to ride in sunny fine days so have no handling skills or road sense when the weather or road surface turns a little nasty in the middle of their weekend summer ride, I wouldnt want to ride within a kilometer of them .

We went for a ride with some cobbers a few weeks ago and it was a joy to watch their ridng skills when the roads turned a bit nasty / slippery, certainly enables us to ride worry free when we know the calibre of the guys n gals riding with us

I know, I know, not everyone is able to ride 20-30 thousand kliks a year, (as we have for the last 40 odd years) but at least they should practice riding on all roads. all weathers. all surfaces, sooner or later even with the best planning you are going to get caught when the weather or road turns nasty.

Ok, my yearly rant re “poser bikers” is over LOL

Mid Winter Day Cruise

johnnyflash — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 02:50:20 +0000

Decided to take the beast for a run around my favorite track and was joined by Brett on his mighty Yamaha. We headed up SH17 and then crossed to SH16 for a blast up the western route, brilliant weather and the vistas looked stunning as we headed higher up the landscape, beautiful views of the Tasman sea on the left and rolling countryside always takes your breath away, well that is if you take the time to enjoy them, A few sporties shot past us like we were stopped, hanging on to their grips like their life depended on it (probably did actually, the lines they were taking).

We were cruising at just on the speed limit enjoying the cruise.
When woodcock rd appeared we hung a right and settled in for a nice comfortable ride through the twisties, road conditions were excellant, no nasty bits of gravel lying in the middle of the corners that the big trucks deposit from time to time.
Reaching the summit is always a buzz and then the tight corners heading back down towards warkworth, where we stopped for a hour or so to partake of some food and capachinos at the Bridgehouse Cafe.
Leaving Warkworth and heading south we took the old road (rather than the tunnel & toll rd) Brett opted for the short route home, but we always get a real buzz coming around some of these corners on the old road to be presented with a vista of the pacific coast blue waters stretching for miles to the south, dotted with beaches and coves.
Another 25kms and we are home, time to test the Powercommander V with the new pipes, it was backfiring on decel a lot and i dont like it, if the power commander doesnt fix it Im going back to stock pipes, I like a reasonable quite ride when Im cruising
All in all a great day considering its winter

HawkesBay Run June 2011

johnnyflash — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 06:59:31 +0000

What a great run south, we left Friday morning and headed out acrooss the harbour bridge, through the morning traffic jams and out down the bombay hills, finally with some open roads and lighter skies. The weather from the North shore was very dark rain clouds and they were going to bucket down any minute, but as we motored south the clouds lightened up and the roads were mostly dry.
Took the back roads to Cambridge as usual and locked in the cruise computer and settled in for a great ride. Seems the road repair team always choose long (holiday) weekends to carry out as much as they can to disrupt traffic, this weekend was no exception, roadworks everywhere, and repairs happening all over, (temporary repairs of course) they never do a job that they dont have to come back to within 6 months and patch it again because of the poor job they di in the first place. Ive driven over 20 countries and on any scale we would come LAST in that department. probably because they insist on using ONLY bitumen, they dont know what concrete is I suspect., and preparation of the sub strata layers, or camber, wash off angles etc etc just dont get factored in to the repair equation, nor fo that matter even making it the same level as the rest of the road. no wonder there are so many suspension repairs done in NZ
None the less the nature of our landscape and hills means that we certainly have some of the best twisties with the most spectacular scenery in the world, especially with autumn running late and the colours of the trees as they moult is just spectacular (even though you spend as much time dodging potholes and when its wet those same potholes filled with greasy oilfilled water holes
We cruised in to Taupo to refill the tank and pay a visit on our great freinds the Dajas.. Dave (though Jude had to work) was right on form and had prepared a feast for lunch. Man what a view they have over lake taupo, spectacular. boy am I envious, all those great backroads to cruise around the mountains and lakes.
After a couple of hours we headed off again up the Taupo/Napier track, this peice of road I have ridden regularly since 1965 and I just love the spectacular scenery firstly through the forest then through the valleys and finally over the mountain ranges, just to come over the otherside into sprawling vineyards and miles of greenery and colour.

Bayview and Napier looks as it always does, sleepy hollow art one end and busy city at the other.

We rode on to our Grand childrens home only to find mum (Aleischa) was home but the kids were still making their way home from school, Well, when the twins stepped in the door I was taken aback, they had not only grown lots but they were just the most gorgeous young lasses you can imagine. Crikey, we just dont seem to be able to get to see them often enough, and it just made us feel how much we miss them.

Dad Gary, called the wayward Jordan to see where he was at and a short while later Jordan arrived, flabbergasted again , our number one grand son has also become a young man, darn near as tall as I am, and will soon tower over me I suspect, man it was good to see him, and after lots of hugs all round with Mum (Aleischa), Hendrina, Keischa & Jordan we also got to say hi to Garys beatuiful daughter Casey, (hope I spelled that right)

Anyway, you now how it goes, one thing led to another and the girls talked Opa into taking them for a few blats on the beast, the twins of course were game for anything and seemed to love it, young Casey was not to sure, so we took her for a wee spin up and down the street, and soon the terrified look was replaced with a smile. and ofcourse the rest wanted another blat as did Casey three biker chicks there LOL

All in all, we had a great day, just loved the time we spent with the Grandkids, thats always a highlight , Finally its pitch black out and time we headed to our motel for the night in Hastings.

After a quick unload of the bike we popped over the grab a bite to eat from a local restaraunt and then headed over to catch up with Lo’s sister Joan and her partner Rangi, also a most enjoyable visit, we hadn’t caught up for some time so there was lots of catching up to do

Saterday morning and its very overcast but no rain, so we loaded up the bike and headed north to Napier and refilled the beast then off up the valley to run the Napier / Taupo track again, stayed dry all the way, and it was a really relaxed cruise. Arriving on the outskirts of Taoupo and its bucketing down, the roads are just awash and greasy as can be, from here on its no more cruise control, I need to control the throttle with utmost care, a little too much power even on a straight piece of road and the back wheel steps out, we had a few moments where I could see the slippery patches but they were right across the road so no dodging them and sure enough the front and rear wheels stepped out a few hundred mm each time, we motored on picking each section of road to dodge the atrocious road conditions, some sections (state highway 1 would you believe) were just so badly engineered that water lay in the huge hollows in the road, full of water and of course also the oil/deisel etc off the roads) I really pity any new inexperienced riders they are riding into death traps. some of the driest parts of the road were actually in the gutters, which is where I went on occassion safest place to ride ..

Arriving at Tirau we pulled in for a hot chocolate and a bite of lunch, this poor restaraunt was ful to the brim, all the travellers pouring out of there cars and heading in looking for tables that didnt exist, service was slow to say the least.

Still raining, we helmetted up and headed north to Cambridge and a fuel stop, once again out into the torrential rain and back via Gordonton, it seems everyone is trying to dodge the main roads today, no idea why, so it was hard going from there all the way to Auckland. the motorway was busy and when we finally pulled into our garage we were glad to get out of our bike gear which was pretty heavy with water, though we were warm and mostly dry, my summer gloves which I couldnt be bothered stopping to change for my heavier winter ones, were soaked through, I just turned on the handgrip warmers and that solved the wet hand problems

Just over 1000kms round trip and a most enjoyable few days. The mighty Vulcan Voyager didnt miss a beat and was a joy to ride.

Busy Month or so

johnnyflash — Sat, 07 May 2011 02:23:23 +0000

Well its been a busy 4-6 weeks, what with a few family birthdays and too many things to do.
We have been out riding of course, out south-west down the Bay Of Plenty, and a few rides north for lazy days out. There is nothing more relaxing than being out on the back roads, little or no traffic and scenery that you just never tire of. Unfortunately after so many years of travelling there are very few roads we have’nt traveled, though it is a buzz re discovering some we have’nt visited for decades.
Winter (NZ STYLE) is nearly upon us, that is to say pretty mild in the north and really seldom less that 3 or 4 degrees celcius in the South, A far cry from some we have encountered in our northern hemisphere travels. so generally it doesnt stop us enjoying the bike all year round, unlike some of our european cobbers, who park up their bikes and winterise them for the duration.
Mind you, riding through 150mm of snow or black ice over the road, whilst fun the first few times is not recommended, and I now only partake when I really have to which seems to still be a requirement a couple of times a year over winter around the central plateau of the north Island when we get caught heading home
The Kawasaki Voyager is proving to be a brilliant package for our type of riding, comfortable yet tons of power and handling, nearly always two up, and well loaded with our personal requirements. Its a gentle giant when you tour normally with the ability to turn into a lithe cougar when you want it to be. They must have had us in mind when they designed it, albeit that they envisioned us a lot younger and stronger when they planned its curb weight
Roll on winter and many more kilometers, its a shame there isnt a bridge across the Tasman Sea, or we would be riding there as well.

Computers and Websites

johnnyflash — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 04:29:54 +0000

Have I told you lately that I hate computers well from time to time I do.
Whilst i have spent many years in computing & IT, i find as I get older that Ive forgotton half of what ive learnt over the decades, which makes me dangerous and from time to time very grumpy . The website has been having performance problems and so I switched Site software to a more updated version but still the hardware (server ) was having trouble so Ive spent the last few months trying to improve the system without spending too much money.’
Needless to say it didnt improve much so Ive had to bite the bullet and invest a bit more moolah in a VPS . Touch wood…. it solved the problem and it now responds a little more quickly .
Now im going to forget about websites and think more about riding yeeehah

My first DUVROC Rally 2011

johnnyflash — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 23:37:56 +0000

DUVROC (Down Under Vulcan Rider & Owners Club) Vulcan Owners in New Zealand.
Wednesday morning and its saddle up and ride from Auckland to Palmerston North, its a little overcast but clearing as we ride south, warming and brightening every minute. We manage with the cruise locked in at 102kph to maintain a very good average, only releasing the cruise for the odd tight corner or township, but mostly we can just sweep through the twisties and blip past any slow traffic without hardly a thought.
Taupo approaches so we pull in for fuel and food, and after an hours relaxing we head off again heading across the Desert road which is just beautiful with perfect blue skies, the mountains are clear and we are in heaven carving the miles away through the ravines and back up to the plateau at around 900m above sea level.
Finally we pull into Palmerston North and arrive at our childrens estate for a coffee and unload.

Thursday morning we headed off for a local ride around the manuwatu and head south via shannon down to Levin and Otaki for a brilliant coffee and pastry, and once again set off to continue our loop back to palmy.

Friday and a late start so we meet at Jazz’s (Kaw Pastures) and once all are assembled we depart at 11am for a ride over the Pahiatua Track, stopping at the lookout for a photo op, then on to the Balance rd to the manuwatu gorge where we turn right and then over the Saddle rd over the ranges towards Ashurst, stopping at the Windmills of course. From here its off down the Pohongina Valley for a lunch stop at the Irish bar, sitting in the sunshine under big umbrellas we are all suitable rereshed, Excellant service too, from the sole charge lass with refreshments and food.
Once again on the road through to Ashurst and then on to Palmerston and the beer fridge its a scorcer day and the BBQ later in the evening is a roaring success with excellent company to boot.

Saterday 9am start today so we are all assembled at Kaw Pasture (Kawasaki’s home in the Manuwatu and raring to go, we set off on a pootle through the back roads of Feilding where the cloud looks a little threatening but it amounts to nothing, Feilds road if memory serves, which winds its way down & up those amazing white cliffs which constantly shed a little something and after some amazing twisties we arrive at Mangaweka and a photo op under the DC3 of course

Then on to Waiouru and a hike across to Tangiwhai where the train wrecked itself on 24 dec 1953, From here its on to Ohakune and a bit of refreshment and some fuel.
After a mighty lunch we are off climbing Mount Ruapehu to the top, well to the chair lifts anyhow (Top Car Park), around 1623m altitude, its rather fresh here, but the little wisps of cloud peel away and we have a stunning view of Taranaki and points south. We are glad to be heading down to warmer temperatures and its onwards to National Park where we arrive mid-late afternoon and after unloading and securing the bikes its off to the Pub next door for some refreshments and later on a meal,
Next morning and its a early start, stowing the gear

We are off further north for some breakfast at Taumaranui and suitably refilled with food and gas we head down the Forgotten World Highway, man this road is still a brilliant road to run, very tight, very bumpy and hours of pure fun. finally running out of seal and onto the 15kms of dirt. Amazing what a great 600kg Dirt bike the fully loaded Vulcan makes, the shocks are pumped to their highest settings, ( I must have had a premonition the night before) and it handled it all very well, just stoked along. Unfortunately Im still carrying around 5kgs of dirt on the bike as I write.
Whongamomona Pub is a stop of course so we work some of the soil out of our throats, The pub is for sale should anyone like to own it
Onwards to Stratford and a Lunch break and a chinwag. From here its on to Wanganui and a tour through the city just for the hell of it and then on to Bulls and back to Palmy for a refreshment or two.
Then its back to our lodgings at the Kids abode, and in the morning a brilliant ride home to the North Shore,
2300kms for this run and its been in cracker weather.
Howard / Rosemary, Dave / Gaylene, Rob / Cathy, Don, Richard, Paul, Clive, Trevor, It was a brilliant few days Guys n Gals, thanks for the company and Hospitality, We enjoyed every second of it.

A short Tyre Scrubbing Run

johnnyflash — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 06:32:38 +0000

Wow, what a brilliant day, too good to waste tinkering in the garage so its off on the voyager, brand new tyres and all.

A lazy run through Riverhead and then cut across to Helensville, just nobody on the road today, few cars and next to no bikes. Once out of the burbs its time to give her some air and lay some sweet curves, I just love riding in the zone, plan every corner and know exactly which square inch of road I will ride over. I can run these roads without any use of brakes its all in perfect timing and planning for the unforseen 100 klicks up the road I rolled to a stop and checked the tyres, nice and warm, chicken strips mostly gone, so its time to head back to home base and catch up with the other half, we need to go shopping a quick check of the tyres once cold, reset the suspension to 28lbs, we are set for the run down the island in a few days. Woohoo.

13 Feb 2011 A forest run

johnnyflash — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 00:33:58 +0000

Damn its another hot dry day and I just cant pass up a short run, Lo, (my better half) has her nose deep in her Kindle, the book must bbe too good to put down so Im off for a solo flight .

We have some excellent back roads within 10 minutes of the shore and they are always a pleasure to ride so Im soon in the groove, laying corners left and right through the twisties and giving her little air in the straighter sections, the beauty of a big Cruiser/Tourer is that you dont need to be doing lightning sppeds to have a ball, these beasts weigh in at over half a ton with rider aboard so need skillful attention to make them perform in the tighter twists and when you power up out of the apex the feeling is just pure adrenalin. Ive ridden lots of bikes in my lifetime and whilst the nostalgia kicks in when thinking of the old school rides the performance, power, braking and handling of a modern beast is just the same difference between a Austin A30 and a modern BMW 7 series.
I was about to head for twin bridges up in northland but my helmet is giving me a problem, the communications kit I have installed is putting pressure on my ears and need to be recessed a mite further in so its time to head back south, A quick visit to Orewa & Silverdale on the way back to have a nosey at the new housing developments , man its stretching out, I used to love this place when I lived here many years ago, now its starting to look like every other touristy spot, overcrowded on weekends. Yuk.
Back on the orad again and off up SH17 for a nice relaxing cruise home, the cruise control is set on 90kph and o the odd occasion when traffic appears in front its just a matter of a slight lean right and left and its clear road once again. must get a cappachino cup holder, feel like one righ now !
All too soon its Albany and suburbia, back down to 50 klicks and idle home.

God I love riding , anyday, anywhere, any excuse

Summer Cruising & Touring 2011

johnnyflash — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 09:49:04 +0000

Well the year has started off well, the weather has generally been excellent and we have had many runs down the north island, starting with a Christmas eve run to Palmerston North to join the family celebrating the new year over three days.
Once back Lo had to go to work so it only left weekends for riding and we made the best of them, more trips to Palmy & Masterton , with a return trip in thunderstorm conditions all the way back up the country, torrential rain and hail to boot, but we had a ball all the same.

February and we ran a loop of the Corromadel Peninsular, a really brilliant ride of around 450-470kms weather was mostly good and whilst the bike got covered in mud from the road works, (there has been some pretty wild weather in this area over the last week or two, totally crazy considering its mid summer. but who’s complaining lots of brilliant twisties on this run so it was a buzz.
Then today we did a run up north with friends which included SH16, (loved by all bikers) then back to Warkworth and the Bridgehouse for lunch and refreshments. then we hiked over woodcocks which is always a real buzz especially when the road conditions are hot ant the sun is streaming over the bush covered countryside. We continued south to Kaukapakapa and then swung left down Peak road and up the old North rd till we hit Riverhead & Coatsville. again just brilliant running through the forest. Back onto SH17 at Albany and down the motorway to the Auckland Harbour Bridge where we parted with our riding buddies and headed home. A Stunning day with excellent company, Washed the crap off the bike from its last two days running, hmm need to get her in for a Service soon, and maybe line up some new tyres as well.
You cant beat NZ backroads for some excellent cruising. Roll on next weekend.

A Salute to Aucky (Wayne Auckram)

johnnyflash — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 06:19:55 +0000

Well its certainly a sad day, my great mate of over 45 years has finally ridden his last ride and passed away today. I first met Wayne (Aucky) in 1965 at the Tawian Coffee Bar (near Wellington) he was there on his bike and we got to chatting, well we never really stopped from there on, we hung out, Tried the TON down the main drag, Tinkered with our bikes, partied, oh how we partied, and rode many miles over the following years until we both slowly moved into married status and started families of our own,

Years later we moved up country but always kept contact and popped in whenever we were down, Wayne ( & Jenny & Trudy & Debbie) had a printing business by then so it was always a stop off point.
A few more years went by and our respective children grew and finally we moved back to the Wellington area and ofcourse straight back into a tight relationship,
By that stage whilst we were still into bikes ofcourse, but Aucky & Jo had progressed into another phase, “Movanning,” Thats building ZMobile homes and touring the country and staying in the most secluded spots.
This ofcourse meant we also wandered into the lifestyle and had many years of travelling NZ and spending weekends away in our movans and enjoying each others company.
Another decade went by and we got transferred to Auckland so we were back to calling in when in the area. Lo and I dropped in on Wayne either in cars or on bikes,and stayed the odd weekend or just dropped in to say gidday,
At this time in our lives we spent quite a bit of time travelling the world but whenever we got back we would make a beeline for Auckys to catch up, and ofcourse Wayne would need a full report on what where and who we had been and done.
Only a short number of weeks ago we dropped by to see him, He was still quite perky as usual, even though he was on the downward spiral health wise, in his usual manner there was no ducking the problem, he knew his life was on a short leash (and he was going to enjoy his last months),
Watching him eat his meals through a straw, and him laughing about the process.
We left him feeling heartbroken, Lo & I rode back to Auckland chatting via the intercom, just how unfair life can be. but amazed by his outlook,
We were just this week planning a trip down on the bike next week to call in and see him.

Rest well my friend. you will remain in our hearts and our thoughts. Our lives were richer for having you as our freind.

To Trudy, Debbie, his grandkids and Jo, our thoughts are with you all,
Johnny & Lo, Richard & Kimberly