Black Dog Ride, National 1 Day Ride - QLD

Sunday 29th April, 2012
Shark Leathers, 6/142 Siganto Drive, Helensvale
Mark it on your calendar and tell your mates! This will be a ride not to be missed!

Be part of a nationwide WORLD RECORD attempt
for most Black Dogs on Motorbikes!

• 8:30am    Check in for breakfast and mental health expo
  
• 9:30am    Ride departs Shark Leathers!
  
• 10:30am  Morning Tea stop in Beaudesert
• 12:30pm  Finish up with lunch in Boonah
  

Our Ride will:

• Raise community awareness of depression and suicide prevention,
• Help reduce the stigma of depression and suicide
• Raise funds for Lifeline.

Flyer:
Download the QLD Ride Flyer here: http://is.gd/BDRLifeline2012QLD {pdf} and distribute it far and wide!

Registration:
To ensure your registration for this awesome ride (and to secure your BDR Mascot ‘Winston’) please choose your ticket type above and click the big green ‘ORDER NOW’ button.

Contact:
QLD State Ride Organiser Kylie by phone on 0408-751-433
or by email kysamotorcyclerides@gmail.com

Black Dog Ride is proudly supporting Lifeline

On Wednesday I had the pure pleasure of a day ride on the back of a Harley Davidson with Wildfire Tours. The destination was Toowoomba, however the route taken was the highlight and not what I was expecting.

Leaving the Gold Coast took us through Canungra, Beaudesert and Boonah heading towards Warwick. The sheer delight of these rides is that you never know where you may end up so the left turn at the Lake Moogerah sign (approx 150km from the Coast) was a surprise but brought absolute awe at the destination. Calm, glasslike lake, amazing scenery and such tranquility. A fantastic place for a Sunday ride and a picnic so go prepared. You’ll want to linger a while. (I’ll definitely be riding back there.) After a nature walk and a looksee at the dam we rode onto Warwick for a short stop. I just love the old buildings and the slow pace of life in the towns we passed through.
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Another midweek run and with Mt Glorious as the destination and the anticipation of a great ride was definitely filling the air.

A smaller than expected crew (Action, Barree, Marika and Tojo) and the normal variety of cruisers and sports bikes got an earlier start from Mudgeeraba at 7.30am (earlier for us anyway) and headed west along the normal route to Beaudesert.
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A favourite ride of mine to escape the hustle & bustle of the Gold Coast is the scenic run through to either  Tumbulgum or Murwillumbah via the rainforest.

Heading down Scenic Drive you will be confronted with spectacular views of the Tweed Valley and Bilambil Heights. As you pass through the tiny village of Bilambil you can either turn right and visit Ilnam Estate Winery or left to ride through the beautiful, lush rainforest. The forest road has several twists and turns and is most enjoyable when riding at a slower speed. With reasonably heavy overhead growth the road can be very slippery through the few weeks of winter.

The peacefulness of this area is broken only by the occasional roar of a motorcycle.
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Two of the biggest biker rallies in the world occur in the country that shares borders with both Canada and Mexico. Daytona in Florida has bike week in late February, early March, whilst South Dakota’s Sturgis bike week is in early August each year.

Both are equally famous as far as rallies are concerned with both wanting bragging rights as to which is the biggest and best.
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To break with convention is a bold and risky move.

It could be disastrous for a manufacturer. Or it could create something unique. A machine that fits no known category of vehicle, but instead defines its own.

And that’s exactly what happened with the Can-Am Spyder.

In creating the Spyder, Bombardier Recreational Products started with a concept and created a machine like nothing else on the road - it’s not a motorcycle, it’s not a car. But it’s the most fun you can have on ….. 3 wheels!

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Sunday morning started out as many do for me - 04:45 awake and walk the dogs in the park.

At 0730 I woke my 18 year old step son. His first pillion ride on a motorcycle and it was to be a grand entry - near 1000 bikes in a slow parade around Ipswich in aid of the Salvation Army through the good work of the Lockyer Ulysses Club (Ipswich).
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A midweek run to Kyogle via Boonah and back up through Murwillumbah and Tomewin, was a great way to get rid of the cobwebs and clear the head.

The normal suspects and a few imports (Ibis, Action, Big Arms, Barree and Tojo) and the normal variety of Cruisers and sports bikes left from Mudgeeraba at 8.30am (we don’t get away early, do we) and headed west  along the normal route to Beaudesert.
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A recent trip to the Australian Motorcycle Museum at Haigslea was a great ride with a fantastic destination.

The Museum is located on the Warego Highway, about 15km west of Ipswich and is definitely worth a gander for anyone with an interest in motorcycles. There are over 200 bikes on display and no doubt a little nostalgia will pass by, on the odd one that may have been a dream in your youth, or your first fang, as the crew that headed out found out.  There are trail, road, old, new, rotaries and a number of bikes from the western block that you may never have heard of.
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As readers might recall, a couple of mates and I (the Three Amigos) recently set out to conquer the big ride in the US, all 48 mainland states of America in just 10 days, called the 48/10 ride. Well, thanks to the gods of motorcycling we did it, due in no uncertain part to a hell of a lot of good luck, good weather (apart from one day of totally wet riding through New England and sheltering from a tornado in Iowa), avoiding the blue light peril and no breakdowns or accidents.
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