Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by terry heney on July 9, 2012 at 12:46

No way.. I will be working my widdle ass off.. Unlike some others who can take time off to ride LOL

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Pete Roberts on July 9, 2012 at 19:54

Good to hear your on the mend Terry. 
Take it easy, and come back soon, Fitter and Stronger than ever !

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by john mills on July 9, 2012 at 11:51

Good to see you back in high spirits Terry. Hope you can take those pills and go out and chase Mark and Carl again, worry free. My wife tells me that the only thing that stops me having a heart attack on the bike is the handful of tablets I have to take each day. Two of them for the high blood pressure problem. But your's sounds to be a different issue. I would say there are many of us out there having fun on the bike only because of the miracle drugs. (We would fail those TDF drug tests I think.)

As far as the ride goes, I am really annoyed with myself that I wasn't there to enjoy it with you. I was planning on arriving back in Adelaide by mid afternoon on Friday.

I headed home from Birdsville at 12 noon on Wednesday, after losing at least an hour because the lady at the Birdsville Roadhouse did not understand that the ROAD CLOSED sign for the Cordillo Downs route to Innamincka was faulty. I eventually found this out by visiting the Information Centre. So thanks to that I finally reached Australia's largest shearing shed, at Cordillo Downs about 20 minutes after sunset. It was a very rough track for about 120km down from the main east west road in southern Queensland. After that the road instantly improved, as the Cordillo Downs people must travel south to civilization, rather than north.

There were some beautiful lagoons in the creeks up there, surrounded by barren, gibber plains. I saw several large birds, almost as big as brolgas. And lots of curious dingos. They all were very curious and did not run off. Just walked back and forward in front of the car looking at me. One lone dog even started running after the car after I continued down the track. When I stopped, it waited, and then when I took off it started chasing me again!

After Cordillo Downs it was a 4 hour night drive down to Innamincka. As I said, the roads were mainly great. Smooth as a billiard table in many places. Full moon allowing me to see a bit of the country side. Occasional hitting the anchors where the smooth clay surface was churned up and rutted due to flooding from a nearby creek. Even had to lock in the hubs a few times to make sure I didn't get bogged. For joy, for joy!

The main problem was signage - or lack of. All signs were to oil wells to the left or right. Only once did I see a hand made scribble INNAMINCKA,on a bit of old iron, pointing down the road in the direction I was travelling. I was wondering whether I was lost out there on a maze of mining roads. And again, lots of dingos to be seen darting across the road, especially closer to Innamincka. I tried to find a spot to park the car for the night on the Town Common, but it was full. So drove down the track towards King's camp site ( where he was found in 1862 - the lone survivor of the Burke and Wills expedition ) and camped on the side of the road. ( I have a bed in the car ). That was Wednesday. Still plenty of time to get back for the GW ride.

Next day it was a lovely drive down roads I had not travelled before. ( I had come up to Innamincka along the Strzelecki Track and home via Cameron Corner this time last year.) I turned east instead, at the T junction 50km south of Innamincka and went exploring along smooth mining roads. Eventually hitting the main state road travelling north/south, and headed down to Tibooburra. A bit further south I revisited Milparinka, and as the sun set I headed off for Broken Hill.

This time it was kangaroo country. They were everywhere. I must have passed a hundred or so on my way down that road. But they were all well behaved. I was driving at a about 60km/hr and they showed up well in my new PLUS 100 driving lights. So was able to slow right down and safely pass every group, and watch them bounce off into the dark. Lots of feed for them now. Mick, the roo shooter at Milparinka, should be doing well this year. Spent a great evening with him last year, but wanted to push on tonight. GW beckons!

But that's when mechanical problems intervened. Firstly I stopped for nearly an hour to help a family heading north in their old Hilux. Their battery had slipped into the fan and had a hole punched through the end cell. Acid all over the side of the motor. Luckily he had a spare battery in the back, and we did a swap over and he was on his way. Then I had to stop to change over from petrol to LPG. That needed the timing to be re-adjusted. At the same time I re-tensioned the fan belt because of the awful screaming noise that had eveloped that evening when I left Tibooburra.

Then a bit of a miss in the engine. I wish Terry was with me because when I told him how I kept stopping and mucking around with LPG mixtures, and points settings, he just laughed and said - plug leads! I wasted another hour or more adjusting the point gap, and then resetting the timing, and playing with the three LPG controls for the fuel/air mixture. Finally the car seemed to be going well. A bit of a rest stop at Packsaddle pub and then another hour of driving. I slept about 120km north of Broken Hill. That was Thursday. Plenty of time to make the GW ride.  

Friday, and I found myself in Broken Hill at a nice early 10am. I had a shower at the caravan park and then rang up a fellow who I had met on the goldfields last year, near Tibooburra. He was a pig shooter and a clay pigeon shooter and was up there fore the bi-annual Milparinka FIELD and GAME meet. A real gentleman, and a handyman. He had fixed my leaking joint in the LPG piping by using my little camp stove and a few bits and pieces in my tool kit. That night, last year, we camped together at Milparinka, and he introduced me to Mick the roo shooter. We even went out just before sunset and he showed me what pig shooting was all about, after we saw some pigs crossing the road just out of town. I must admit I was a bit worried about camping out with a stranger with a gun! I don’t know a thing about guns. And I did see Wolf Creek!

So we went out for lunch, and then I bought a new set of points and fitted them in the driveway of the old house he was restoring, as he continued with rebuilding the back fence. Luckily his handy man skills came in useful again, because he was able to use his round file to adapt the new points to my worn out distributor camshaft.

I was hoping to leave Broken Hill by midday initially, but I finally only got away about half an hour before sunset. Just as we were bidding each other farewell, my friend says “Now John, you be careful mate. There are some bad fellas out there in the bush. Don’t you go and get too friendly with anyone out there. YOU NEVER CAN TELL . . . . Make sure you park your car well off the road where no-one can see you when you stop for the night . . .  “ I had a little laugh and told him how I didn’t sleep too well the first time I met him last year!!

It was going to be a late arrival home. Maybe about 11pm. Still OK for GW the next morning.

The new points turned the car into a speed machine. I was a bit worried about the ‘roos, but saw none all evening - thankfully. I was cruising along at about 90 to 95, and the foot was just barely touching the pedal. Amazing what a difference a new set of points can make! I was trying to stay ahead of a big semi that I could see about 3km behind me. WAYLON JENNINGS blasting out from the tape deck ( hope you approve Frank ), and 'Adelaide - here we come!'  Straight through Yunta. Stopped at Oodlawirra for the first time since leaving Broken Hill, for a cuppa and a pie for tea.

Bugger - stuttering and missing when I headed out of Oodlawirra. Up with the bonnet, adjusting LPG mixtures again. Seemed to help a bit. A few km down the road, stopped again. Another fiddle. At the turn off to Peterborough I fitted the spare coil. Maybe the coil was dying. No joy. Then I thought - 'Surely not. Could it be the plug leads. Plug leads it was! Where were you Terry? Fixed! Didn't need new points. Didn't need LPG tuning. Didn't need a new coil. B...dy plug leads! Two minute job. Maybe it was those corrugations on the tracks around the touristy spots at Innamincka?. ( Even though every day I had wiggled and re-seated the plug leads in the dizzy cap, because I have had that problem on previous trips. Today I had not thought to do it again.) Maybe one was a bit loose on one of the spark plugs.

So to cut a long story short (LOL) I arrived in Adelaide at midnight. Had a nice chat with Jenny who was waiting up for me, and didn't get to bed till about 1.30am. So no GW for me - again! Made up for it by coming out for a chat later in the morning, and having a magic ride the next day, with fellow GW’s Paul and Dave, with the Gully Grinders.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by terry heney on July 9, 2012 at 12:30

Reads like you had a wonderful time away John.. ummm oops maybe not hehehhee.. Engine miss firing check out the leads always first you silly bugga..Maybe I should have gone with you then perhaps my own body engine might not have missed a few beats. What kind of an excuse is not coming out with us Sat just cause you went to bed 1.30am Friday ? you BIG SISSY!!!!!!!!!!  Still spewing bout not going with you guys GG route. Was looking forward to that bugga :( 

Catch you next week Millsyyyyyyyyyy

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by john mills on July 9, 2012 at 12:46

Yep, had a great time Terry. I don't mind mucking around with the old Patrol on the side of the road. Feels good when you can fix it yourself instead of having to wait for the RAA. And it's a long wait when the RAA is hundreds of km away! Well I learned something from you anyway. So much to learn, so little time!

And I met a couple of really nice blokes up there. First one was a German adventurer who just loves Australia. He started coming out here for four wheel driving and scuba diving adventures in 1998 and has returned 18 times since. As well as other destinations around the world for his scuba diving. Was seriously thinking of detouring to cross the Simpson with him. But the Simpson can wait. Did go out to play on Big Red, a big sand hill about 40km west of Birdsville.

Also met a nice guy from Melbourne, about 100km south of Birdsville. A retired teacher. He nearly joined me for the trip down through Cordillo Downs. But had to return back to Adelaide via the Strzelecki Track to pick his wife up from the train station a day earlier than planned. She must have missed out on getting a seat on the plane, and had to do the Overlander trip instead.

Yes, that ride up to Chain of Ponds gets nicer each time we do it. Instead of worrying about how hard the hills are going to be, as you do the first time, you can relax and enjoy the scenery instead.

Have a good week Terry, and I look forward to doing a GW ride for the first time in six weeks next Saturday!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Keith Davies on July 9, 2012 at 16:34

Terry, was sorry to hear of your problem over the weekend and now glad to hear you have it under control. Hopefully you won't get another episode. Makes my cold/flu seem trivial.

Missed Saturday's ride as I had to be at the airport 10am. Had intended to do GG ride Sunday but felt like c--p and slept till 11-30 which for me is unheard of. Anyhow the wife and I are having a break so won't see you all until 28 July.

Until then keep them wheels turning happy riding to one and all

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by terry heney on July 10, 2012 at 22:08

Keith... I hate a MAN COLD so you can keep that mate... See you Sat I hope

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Keith Davies on July 10, 2012 at 22:52

Sorry Terry will miss the next two rides. By the time I get back the cold should be gone, but I will probably have a couple of kilo's handicap

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by terry heney on July 10, 2012 at 22:54

Opps damn I forgot your back on 28th.. Enjoy the break Kieth :)

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Barry Norsworthy on July 10, 2012 at 19:55

Am really shocked to hear of your heart scare Terry. Am glad all ok and you are on the mend. I't great to see nothing affects your spirit and humor !!. Fantastic to have good friends to call on if have any problems, well done Lee And GW all !!!! Apart from the good advice of calling O00 if experiencing heart problems of course. Really hope it is not going to effect your health and activities too much.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Lee Bakes on July 10, 2012 at 19:58

You reckon you are shocked Barry!?!  How do you think I felt?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by terry heney on July 10, 2012 at 22:07

Thanks Barry.. All's good as you can read :) I will be back stronger than ever mentally anyhow :) although some might say I am mental anyhow :) So guess I have to let my legs do the talking

• ▶ Reply

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• …
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• Next ›
• Page