Hi, my name is Stuart. My first posting, under the exciting topic "Disability", earned me a gentle slap on the wrist for not introducing myself. Quite right!
The first bike I went on was a Matchless in about 1957, the first I rode myself was a CZ in 1962 and the first I owned was a Zundapp in 1963. The latter I bought with my wages from 10 days work in the Xmas hols at R1 per day. Yes, the bike cost R10! My annoyed dad went back to the seller to buy the helmet for R2,50 which I couldn't afford.
I'm not a "fanatic" biker but have owned a few bikes over the years - Zundapp 50; BMW R26; Gilera Saturno Sport; BMW R69S; Yamaha RT1; Triumph Bonneville; BMW R80GS; Honda CBX; BMW Funduro; Honda XR200; Yamaha TL250 and my present bike, a Yamaha XT600E.
I haven't done any really hectic rides and don't consider myself particularly competent on two wheels. Which is why I usually just tootle around on the back roads near my home in Pietermaritzburg at my own relatively slow pace.
Two weeks ago, I did the kind of ride I enjoy. Pmb to Malkerns in Swaziland via Tugela Ferry, keeping off the main roads and busy border posts. Saturday, riding some of the remote dirt roads in southern Swaziland and out the Onverwacht border. Sat night in Pongola watching Sharks vs Bulls in a little pub with David Kramer's "manne" calling out in their quaint, old fashioned terms of endearment each time a previously disadvantaged player handled the ball. Lekker! Sunday morning watch the sun rise over the bushveld from the hill at Magudu and a lovely ride through the remote centre of Zululand, with game wandering across the road. A stop in Ulundi for Chicken Licken, to pay homage at the memorial to "The Brave Zulu Warriors who gave their lives protecting the Old Order", and to admire the many varieties of SA National Flower thriving on the fences and thorn trees. A stop to savour the historic significance and beauty of JZ's home "town", Nkandla, and home via Middeldrift across the Tugela in time to see Ewan and Charlie tackle the roads around Cape Town.
IMO my XT, with its 23l Acerbis tank, is about the most suitable dual purpose bike. If you're going into the sticks, I think you need long range, a high front mudguard, air cooled motor, simplicity and relatively low weight. I'm amazed at DS bikes with tight clearance on the front mudguards - the okes who design them have obviously never ridden a wet, clayey road (like to Sordwana) and had the mud seize the front wheel and throw them on their faces.
I suspect many Wild Dogs are Livingstones, Hilarys and Shackletons - they like to tackle and accomplish great "missions"; they like to suffer and "press on regardless". They enjoy fixing punctures in the dark in a snow storm in Lesotho and they only look ahead when riding. I'm not one of those - I like to look around and "smell the roses". Because, let's face it, the smell of roses is never so sweet as when rammed into your nostrils at 100k/h, with a pink evening glow over the bushveld or Karoo, and a warm rhythmic thumping between your legs.
Sorry, seemed to have got a bit carried away!
The first bike I went on was a Matchless in about 1957, the first I rode myself was a CZ in 1962 and the first I owned was a Zundapp in 1963. The latter I bought with my wages from 10 days work in the Xmas hols at R1 per day. Yes, the bike cost R10! My annoyed dad went back to the seller to buy the helmet for R2,50 which I couldn't afford.
I'm not a "fanatic" biker but have owned a few bikes over the years - Zundapp 50; BMW R26; Gilera Saturno Sport; BMW R69S; Yamaha RT1; Triumph Bonneville; BMW R80GS; Honda CBX; BMW Funduro; Honda XR200; Yamaha TL250 and my present bike, a Yamaha XT600E.
I haven't done any really hectic rides and don't consider myself particularly competent on two wheels. Which is why I usually just tootle around on the back roads near my home in Pietermaritzburg at my own relatively slow pace.
Two weeks ago, I did the kind of ride I enjoy. Pmb to Malkerns in Swaziland via Tugela Ferry, keeping off the main roads and busy border posts. Saturday, riding some of the remote dirt roads in southern Swaziland and out the Onverwacht border. Sat night in Pongola watching Sharks vs Bulls in a little pub with David Kramer's "manne" calling out in their quaint, old fashioned terms of endearment each time a previously disadvantaged player handled the ball. Lekker! Sunday morning watch the sun rise over the bushveld from the hill at Magudu and a lovely ride through the remote centre of Zululand, with game wandering across the road. A stop in Ulundi for Chicken Licken, to pay homage at the memorial to "The Brave Zulu Warriors who gave their lives protecting the Old Order", and to admire the many varieties of SA National Flower thriving on the fences and thorn trees. A stop to savour the historic significance and beauty of JZ's home "town", Nkandla, and home via Middeldrift across the Tugela in time to see Ewan and Charlie tackle the roads around Cape Town.
IMO my XT, with its 23l Acerbis tank, is about the most suitable dual purpose bike. If you're going into the sticks, I think you need long range, a high front mudguard, air cooled motor, simplicity and relatively low weight. I'm amazed at DS bikes with tight clearance on the front mudguards - the okes who design them have obviously never ridden a wet, clayey road (like to Sordwana) and had the mud seize the front wheel and throw them on their faces.
I suspect many Wild Dogs are Livingstones, Hilarys and Shackletons - they like to tackle and accomplish great "missions"; they like to suffer and "press on regardless". They enjoy fixing punctures in the dark in a snow storm in Lesotho and they only look ahead when riding. I'm not one of those - I like to look around and "smell the roses". Because, let's face it, the smell of roses is never so sweet as when rammed into your nostrils at 100k/h, with a pink evening glow over the bushveld or Karoo, and a warm rhythmic thumping between your legs.
Sorry, seemed to have got a bit carried away!
