28/07/2011 - Tamworth via Putty Road... then the Buckets Way... then a broken con-rod...

Thursday – to Tamworth via Putty Road

The sky was clear and the air was cool as I rolled out the driveway with a full pack strapped to the back of the seat. I was off to Tamworth for a conference. Taking the opportunity to ride instead of flying and adding another day for the return trip via the Nabiac National Motorcycle Museum.

The route chosen for travelling to Tamworth was not the freeway but the windy and what some would call treacherous, The Putty Road.  I had not travelled this road before and understood it to be a great road to enjoy the bike.

Leaving home I headed for Windsor and passed through Wilberforce which marked the start of The Putty Road.  The weather was good and the sun was shining but as I ventured along The Putty Road the air became noticeably cooler as I climbed into the hills and mountains where the road was shaded by the thick canopy of trees.

The first half of The Putty Road was uneventful and enjoyable, with the XS humming sweetly as she climbed each rise.  It was a great sound to hear!

After a good couple of hours in the saddle I came across a Coffee Shop (road house) which has been newly established on The Putty Road.  As I was informed by another rider the Half Way House (which I would pass a bit further up the road) was burn to the ground a little time back and this Coffee Shop has been established recently to take its place.  I enjoyed a coffee and hot muffin while chatting to this rider.  Turned out he only lives a suburb or two away from us, what a coincidence.

Refreshed, I checked the bike and that my luggage was secure and headed off again towards Tamworth.  As I ventured on I noticed that the bike was getting noisy again.  A problem I thought I had diagnosed as a noisy cam chain, but could not rectify before the trip.  As the bike was powering ok I pressed on.

Again I was enjoying the road with its many twists and turns, climbs and downhill drops.  Due to the tree cover and the lowering sun, there were many shadows cast on the road making it difficult to read the best line and negotiate around the rough patches.  The other thing to contend with is the view of shear drops from the edges of the road, which ensured I allowed adequate space between me and it.

It was during this section of the ride that I occasioned a new and annoying feature of the XS.  Something had gone amiss with the gear change mechanism causing me to have difficulty in selecting some gears and also jumping out of gear when you least expect or want it to, such as when going downhill and using the engine as a break.  On a number of occasions I found myself jumping for the breaks, while trying to re-engage a gear and navigating some tricky bends.

After what seemed like ages working through bends and as I was starting to tire, the countryside started to open up which was a welcome relief, as I needed a break.  A little further on I arrived at the small township of Bulga where was able to refuel and have a steak sandwich in the roadhouse for dinner. 

On my way again I negotiated the single lane timber bridge taking care not to be caught in the ruts. Just one of the joys of riding a motorcycle that car drivers don’t get to experience.

The rest of the run to Tamworth was on high speed country roads via Singleton and Scone where I made good time cruising at an average of 100kmph. Even with the layers of clothing and protective gear it got cold, bloody cold, as the darkness closed around me.  It too some time to thaw when I arrived at Tamworth.

The Putty Road gets four stars ****.  It would be a good day ride from Sydney.

Sunday - to Nabiac and Forster via Thunderbolts Way and Buckets Way…

Left Tamworth late morning taking the 'back road' to Nowendoc to join the Buckets Way. As you enter this road there is a sign indicating there is 9km of dirt road. The road is typical two lane country road at this stage with plenty of comfortable bends and ups and enough downs to make it enjoyable.

Then… you reach the climb up to the tableland at Ogunbil.  This is a steep climb with numerous hairpin bends with little to no fence, just a few guide posts, between the edge of the road and some shear drops down into the valley.  This is a section that should be taken with care as you do not see the oncoming traffic until it is on top of you, and then there is not much room to take evasive action if you are on the wrong line.  Out onto the tableland the road opened up again with sweeping bends and good pavement, until you reach the Gravel Road sign.

I had been advised of road works taking place on this stretch of road and was not surprised to see the signage warning of the works ahead.  What I was not expecting was the looseness of the freshly laid gravel which was like marbles under front wheel of the XS.

I had slowed considerably and was travelling between 20 and 30kmph on the freshly graded and firm gravel surface without any problems when I reached the freshly laid gravel sections with little warning of how treacherous these would be other than a sign saying Loose Surface.  I eased back the speed as quick as I could but was still travelling at about 20kmph when the front wheel hit the marbles and immediately dug in.  Down went the boots in an effort to stabilise the, XS while I attempted to desperate as much speed as possible without dropping it.

So for the next 5 kilometres I travelled at the leisurely pace of <5kmph and at times this seemed too fast as the front wheel dug in.  Thankfully the passing cars and 4WDs slowed so I did not get showered by stones.  I would have been an easy target travelling at this pace.

Reaching Thunderbolts Way saw the return to sealed bitumen roads and the opportunity to open the XS up.  After enjoying a few sweeping bends I reached the village of Nowendoc. Lucky for me the general store was open, and under the watchful eyes of some locals in a ute that came to check me out, I was able to purchase a pie and drink for lunch.  After the locals moved I found a spot to sit and eat, only to have the local constabulary make a few passes to check me out also.  As you can imagine after all of this interest, it was good to be back on the XS and on my way out of town.

Thunderbolts Way runs through the forests and national parks with some great scenery and plenty of bends, making it good fun on the bike. Unfortunately due to the bad weather there had been a few washaways in the hills and there was a lot of road works, rough sections and more loose gravel.  This meant there was a need to take much more care and took some of the enjoyment out of this road.

I cautioned that there are a number of steep inclines on the run down towards Gloucester and this also proved to be the case.  These inclines mixed with road works, including a single lane loose gravel stretch controlled by traffic signals, only added to the experience. Next time I come down this road I hope that it is in a better state of repair.

The next township I encountered was Barrington where I stopped for fuel before heading into Gloucester.  Being low on cash it took the opportunity to visit an ATM at Gloucester and road out of town cashed up for my evening at either Nabiac or Forster (I had yet to make up my mind where to stop or the night).

From Gloucester I took the Buckets Way to Nabiac. This is a renowned bike road which did not fail to please.
The Nabiac National Motorcycle Museum closes at 4pm so the timing of my arrival (by chance) at 3pm allowed me a good hour to stroll around at look at the bikes on display. There were many interesting bikes, including many vintage models and a good array of Japanese bikes. Included in the collection was an example of my first bike, a Suzuki GT380 with the air cooled ‘ram air’ engine design. Under-powered but with good lines for its day, my late father in particular liked the look of this bike.

As it was still early so I decided to ride across to Forster to find a hotel for the night. One of the key things driving me to camp a larger town was the increasing noise coming from the motor and the strong possibility of requiring mechanical assistance before reaching home.

For a cheap night’s stay in Forster I selected Golden Sands Motor Inn. Dated but clean.

The Thunderbolts Way and Buckets Way get three stars ***
(would have been more but for the road damage)

Monday - Forster to Home…

After a good night sleep, I packed up my gear and started making tracks for home.  With the motor making more noise than yesterday, I was as gentle with the XS so I could get as close as possible to home.

On the way back to the highway via The Lakes Way there was road works at Elizabeth Beach.  Only a single lane ran around the lake with traffic being controlled by temporary traffic lights.  I enter his section when the lights indicated but apparently did not recognise my bike entering and half way through there was oncoming traffic. As luck would have it there was layby that I could pull into until the cars past and then I was on my way again.  This is something that the RTA should investigate to alleviate the possibility of an accident.

I made it past Newcastle and onto the Freeway near Ryhope and I could feel one of the con-rods 'let go'.  I stopped and determined nearest railway station would be Cardiff and rolled the bike as close as I could.

So the final leg of my run was by train, going to get my trailer to recover the XS…

Here is a map of the full run as planned – someday soon I hope to redo this run on a fixed XS!

Postscript
Upon opening the motor and lifting off the cylinders I have discovered that the right connecting rod has snapped in half. This has surprised me as it sounded like the left cylinder was where the noise was coming from...