| #325 | |||||||||
|
|
Lano - Cervantes & back
Report by Roley - Lano to Cervantes 2/8/08
ColMc called the ride hungry to get back in the saddle after spending a month in the Mother Country. 17 gathered to face the elements after a very stormy week. As it turned out the conditions were perfect, lots of puddles & mud, and the sand hard packed and very grippy! The best thing no rain - though ColMc was dressed for the wet in his Moose Racing suit (including giant condom-like water-proof boot liners to keep his socks dry!). Interestingly while ColMc called the ride and was clear about the start time he was the last to arrive and boot up - not a good example for the newbies, even TigeR was ready to go and waiting! It was also noted that the night before Buddha posted ".will be at Lancelin tomorrow if not pissin down when I get up." - can only assume he is a fair-weather rider! As well Pete displayed his new Scotts boots - very Star Wars and drew comments about how he squeaked when he walked and reference to Jeff Vader (you need to see the Darth Vader leggo film clip).  The pack moved at a surprising pace with the only real mishap to Wedge being Tom testing the depth of a large mud hole. The ride from Wedge along the beach was a little bit challenging given the high tide and the need to get the timing right as the waves rolled in from a very angry sea. The first helmet off rest was at the end of the beach where "someone" called lets do a photo for ColB's absence and everyone raised their finger in unison in the now Crusty tradition!  Lunch was at the usual Cervantes servo having got there before 11.30, fueling up and downing a burger or three. The biggest excitement of the day was with ColMc leading and coming head-on at speed to a 4WD coming in the opposite direction on a very narrow part of the track with high sides. ColMc elected to go bush and some how missed a potentially serious encounter. A lesson to be remembered on these tight tracks frequented by 4WDs. The ride back continued at good pace with the beach run much improved given the tide was receding, leaving a hard packed surface! A dead dolphin was spotted washed up on the beach just north of the Wedge settlement, which Wrex reported to our friendly Ranger who was parked up the beach surveying the surrounds. Mr Ranger commented positively that it was good to see the Crusties observing the riding of licensed bikes. We then rode out past the Time Trial section towards Cataby to go on the inland tracks back to Lano. It was here CRFMark discovered he had a front flat tyre (for once it was not Choko) - guess what no heavy duty tube! The usual group tyre change then took place giving everyone a well earned breather. At this point Hayden and Choko made some "girlie-boy" comments about promising their wives they would be home early and took the opportunity topeel off due to the tyre change delay. The group agreed they could split the pack and the two returned on the main track at a cracking pace (by the sounds of their exhausts),presumably fearing the wrath of their respective partners!  From the writer's observations there seemed to be a clear pattern emerge as to who was mostly doing the Cornerman. It seemed to be frequently Gazza and Choko eager to be at the front of the pack. pushing ColMc along. With CRFMark, Hayden, Lucky Pete, Tony, Pounce, WRRob and TigeR all were pushing to be up the front and Pete in his usual Sweep role. Steve rode well all day and had no stacks. The ROTD must go to Leah who put in an outstanding performance riding 180 kms at a very respectable, consistent pace for the first time on her new WR. She was all smiles and so was her proud partner MarkG. She proves girls can do it in the dirt and do it well! We look forward to Wrex's footage from his new helmet cam. Does it get any better!         -- The 2nd ride report! --- Great Report from Roley, here's another perspective of a yet another awesome Lano to Cevo and return run. Firstly, for Col Mc as lead rider .. for me as an almost a CQ legend (haha 44 rides) .. at the beginning of my CQ career there was very little understanding of a lead rider 'cos the standard CQ ride for me was so fast I was flat out making it from corner to corner ... 44 "events" later .. it's still flat out corner to corner ... i.e. I'm still slow (but consistent) ... - over time I learned respect for the guys up front who can take on a corner with a potential 4WD coming the other way. Respect. Personally I think the amazing thing about CQ is the "just rock up and ride" attitude which people respond to .. which is great, but without the understanding of the lead rider. Thanks Col and all lead riders!!! Anyhoo, here's my ride report... Wake up at 4am -- rain pounding -- I should have had those 3 more beers I planned on. 4.30am .. maybe I should have had 4 more beers. 5.00am .. if I'd had 5 more beers - I'd be looking for more now. 5.24am .. doh! .. I should have been up by now ... why did I have those 2 Swan Lights? .. and why don't they market such an amazing beer internationally? Something about a Lano run makes me sleepless ... I've done it ten times or more ... but apparently the baboons cut the original track ... and it's haunted ... sometimes you can see dead dolphins! The beauty of a Lano run for me is the drive up ... a week of "CBD biz ness" ... and then driving north of suburbia and seeing the local indigenous age-challenged non-female racially not white trees just wipes away the pressures of a booming economy ... why do I now worry that a cheese sandwich is $9.50? ... but I digress. We rocked up .. the Crusty Demons wannabes jumped the dunes .. the RTRA kept this place open, did they care?, who knows? but the lack of protective equipment showed their devotion to the Seth Onslow "go for it and be f@rked attitude" ... a ten DVD career can't be far away. Back to the "oldies" at their trailers ... Rumours of a bleak day were about to be underestimated ... Col Mc made a typically just in time ready for the off entrance and kitted up in a resplendent-in-blue Moose all-weather suit ready for the "Right Way Up" tour .. he's just a little bit Charley and a lot of Ewen. 16 other crusties showed-up - but without the ubiquitous (try spelling that without a spell chequer!) Col B. I think it's the first ride I've been on without him here .. I'm scared ... where is that word of encouragement going to be when I can't conquer that big hill climb? ... okay, there are no hill climbs but they might have built one, where is it Alannah?! ... but Roley & Jeff Vader are here, so it's all good. All were previous CQ's ... I'd been out with a ride with most before ... Choko "I'll be a legend before you and was faster than you after three rides" was there, Hayden "I was the only guy at the Oz-All Blacks game with a KTM jacket on" was there, Rex "I've never even seen a dirt bike and am faster than you" was there, Pounce "Steven Spiel-Husa-berg" was there, Leah "I've got 3 kids and am faster ..." ... yep, the usual crew was out. Tom had the gear for a perfect storm, either it was going to be wet or we were going to get an unprecendented cray catch on this ride. The predictions of Buddha were looking ominous. Grey clouds abounded. Where was Daza? .. apparently he had got a real job and was struggling with the concept of week and week-end. And where was Cliff? ... with the appearance of the Brit-Pack he was appparently stung by the Friday Night beer-bee. We cruised out .. as I have have 10 times before .. but the beauty of this run is it just is so different every time you do it. On we went through the first section, with some nice almost whoopies, stopped at the first corner. Situation Normal. Oops, Col Mc's KTM wouldn't restart. Much KTM bagging followed .. but was quicky retracted with the realisation of the KTM sponsorship of the upcoming Capel Trail Bike Rally. We all resolved to have KTM's as our next bikes ... his bike had been parked for a month while he was off in blighty. It wasn't happy with the separation - but soon conceded. Off we went. What ensued was your typical Lano <-> Cevo run, but it was different. Firstly I had some new MXretreads with 400kms on - I like 'em. Daza used 'em to show me how to change tyres. "It's easy mate" he said ... after 2 hours ... we both agreed that if I ever get a flat on the trail I should get airlifted out -such is my skill at changing tyres; Luckily I had ticked the Western QBE "helicopter insurance for Office Boy hands" box. Charley & Ewen would be proud. As we rode out I was thinking "Winter & muchos rain = muchos traction" and that was true, but it seemed that the rain had washed so much sand away that the tracks were almost slick and slippy. I haven't seen so much water on the tracks before - Col Mc had warned before to avoid "filling in" fellow riders ... but anybody who has ridden these tracks before can attest to the deep 4WD wheel ruts in the middle so riding through is foolhardy at best. But Tom had to do a cray dive in one of the deeper tracks. Apparently Kawasaki do dirtbikes as well as Crayboats. The Wedge beach run had the sea as close to the edge as possible ... a reported dead dolphin was sighted. Where was the Col B? - it was looking ominous. On the run back, Col Mc took us through the inland trails, including the lauded time-trial with the Guinness world record 55-yard final crest jump by H, few people are known by a letter, fewer still by an uppercase letter. It was at this section that the Brit-Pack shone. Hanging back, and then raging to the front. At one point when I thought I was riding particulary fast "from within my helmet"; Gazza shot past me at 45 degrees around a corner. Another point of note is Roley & Steve, both mates ... good. But matching bikes and matching gear? ... I think your missus' must be worried! I was following Roley on one section, or was it Steve, no it was Roley, maybe it is Steve? - those two are harder to tell apart than the Bros twins. I resolved to catch up, but the yellow machine was scooting along ... it's definitely Roley and he's on a charge. Time for another one of our epic fight for 15th place battles. Try as I might I couldn't catch him, we pulled up at the next re-group and the smile on his dial spoke for itself. Roley - sweep one day ... charging like Reedy the next. Next time! And Leah ... well ROTD says it all. |
