50 replies to this topic

[graeme]

Hi all, guess i'll start the ball rolling. Its important to learn from whats gone before so i will put up some observations about TDUT 2010 that can be used in planning the next.
These comments are in relation to the Omeo location and of course while there were suggestions during the rally about having it here again, that is part of what has to be decided. If you wanted to have it here again you would be most welcome to. The observations may be relevant for elsewhere anyway.
*Having it in October to tie in with the PI races was a good idea but had no real impact. While 3 riders from Queensland did use the races to lead into the TDUT they wont be coming to the races next year, you may have seen Rob's (BMW) letter in 2 wheels about the increasingly poor situation for spectators which has led to their group of 12 who have been coming for years deciding not to in the future. Apart from that, from what i have read the races are going to be moved to early in the year in 012 anyway. We were lucky with the weather, it is a difficult time of year. Autumn is a good time weather wise.
* 4 days of riding seems to be the optimum. We were planning 5 for 2010 but it didnt suit anyone and so we ended on the saturday.
* Weekdays seems very good.
* Out of holiday period essential in this sort of area.
* While it looked like about 20 were going to come we ended up with 10 for most of the week.
* If it were held here again we would do a two day ride in the middle that took in the snowy mountains area and stayed somewhere there overnight (Trotski could advise)

That will do for a start--------------------
cheers Graeme

[brentong]

Good to see you getting the ball rolling Graeme.
I would be happy to return to Omeo. I agree with your comments about the riding and the overnight trip to the Snowy Mountains area sounds good also.
We were fortunate with the weather in 2010 but my Autumn riding calendar is full and by October I am Itching to get on the bike and do some distance.
There's my two bobs worth

[dapleb]

Glad to hear yar planning on doing it again. And look forward to be jealous about yer plans.

[graeme]

Thanks Dappers, we will endeavour to make you as jealous as possible.
Brenton, Gidday, good to hear from you. Here is a "whatif" This was suggested, by Rick i think, during TDUT 2010 as a possible scenario. That is, having it every two years. Even if it was just to "adjust" the timing for this year the "whatif" is---- we didnt have it in 2011 but did in 2012 in the Autumn, would that suit you at all? And what do others think?
cheers Graeme

Edited by graeme, 24 January 2011 - 11:05 am.

[Snigdog]

Graeme that sounds like a good idea to me.....allows some time for ideas, planning and a desire to evolve....TDUT10 was brilliant, almost need to do something different (ie location, time of year) to avoid comparison !

......on a personal note I am between TDM's as they say....
I sold the golden haired one to make way for Honda ST1300 which I have specifically bought for a 2 month long service meander from VIC up thru NSW to Queensland with my wife starting in early March this year....its not that the 850 couldnt have done that but felt I would like to try a larger bike for such a trip. When/if I go back to a TDM it would be a 900

Cheers,
Rick

[graeme]

[quote name='Snigdog' date='Mon 31st Jan 2011, 09:49 PM' post='193108']
Graeme that sounds like a good idea to me.....allows some time for ideas, planning and a desire to evolve....TDUT10 was brilliant, almost need to do something different (ie location, time of year) to avoid comparison !

......on a personal note I am between TDM's as they say....
I sold the golden haired one to make way for Honda ST1300 which I have specifically bought for a 2 month long service meander from VIC up thru NSW to Queensland with my wife starting in early March this year....its not that the 850 couldnt have done that but felt I would like to try a larger bike for such a trip. When/if I go back to a TDM it would be a 900

Hi Rick, 2010 was good and absolutely agree with you about the comparison thing. Shane(tdmtoraneko) said very early on that he would be hopeful of having the next in Tassie while someone else had said the NT for the next. Shane is active with the Tiger Screen again i see, so we might hear from him about this. Certainly a fairly lonely discussion so far, eh? (that was for the queenslanders). Speaking of whom, hard to believe you are under such threat again, from Yasi this time, and its all happening tonight, so all the best, hope you all come out of it ok (and there are no TDM's parked in garages in low lying areas).
All the best for the big trip!!

cheers Graeme

Edited by graeme, 02 February 2011 - 09:56 am.

[Trotski]

Hi all, I've been have a think on this and I agree that early Autumn 2012, (maybe April-March) is a good time, giving plenty of time for planning and such, perhaps we should be looking at a gathering every second year given that most will have a long trip just to get to the venue(no matter where it is)

I was spoilt last year only having a 6 hour trip to Omeo, and would do it again in a heart beat. However I think to be fair to the rest of the riders we should consider other areas aswell.

To Graeme's question, on a trip around the NSW Snowy Mtns,
If we have Omeo as a start point and some dirt is ok, then up Mitta-Mitta rd and across to Corryong, and then to Tumubarumba and the Eliot Way to Adaminaby is a good ride (about 6-7hr by goole maps)overnighting there and then through some back roads I know to Bombala and Delegate and the excelent Bonang hwy (105km of twisty rd) into Victoria and back to Omeo, another 6-7hrs ride.
These times are straight off Google Maps and are probably a bit long for a bike.
Adaminaby has a range of Accomodation from Camping and Cabins to Good motels and Backpacker style places.

I can Identify roughly 10 different Day trip loops from the Mountains to the sea on good fast roads or dirt or both based out of Cooma and the local area, and also I'm familar with most of the roads from Narandera in the Riverina, to the Coast , north to Bathurst then East to Nowra and back south to Orbost, including some interesting back country roads.

If we choose not to return to Omeo this time, perhaps we could run as a "Moveable Feast" meeting in a more central place and touring over a large area, camping(or Moteling) in a different town each night (so many roads so little time), of course this would probably a nightmare to organise, but just a thought.

I await your comments

[OzMOTO]

Hi all!!

Certainly autumn and spring and out of school holidays are the best time to travel.

Other than that I'm happy to meet just about anywhere!

Might even put some new tyres on the bike before the next getaway.

Craig

[merlot]

hi all....i missed last year TDUT but it was a time of upheaval for me and i wont dwell on it....i've still got the cake i bought for grim and will present it to him this year(fridge magnet) ....last year closed in on me and the only day left for me to attend (mildura via wagga) was friday...so what stopped me?....it was the thought of riding for a large number of hours then having to bunk with twenty or so other blokes in a dormitory ....sorry but i want a motel room....maybe there were motel rooms on offer but all the feedback i was getting was "all in together, snorers"..................now whats all this rubbish about every 2 years? if someone cant make it for whatever reason(tiger) then its 4 years between drinks ......ulysses agm is every year....the other thing that winded me was the prospect of taking my bike on dirt roads ....f.m.d. i own a dirt bike which does dirt roads brilliantly..i wont be taking NINER down any dirt...i dont care if it is supposed to be a dual sportie..mines a road bike......it has michelin dual compound whatevers on it and they dont like dirt...the gas gas has michelin s12's front and back for dirt..horses for courses....TROTSKY whats vthis about 6-7 hr days in the saddle? i mean i can do it (i rode niner to hobart at xmas from mildura) but isnt this a social event? a 2 hr ride down a winding road with good company to a brilliant coffee shop sounds right to me, then back to a nice club for some bench racing....some guys just rode 4 x 7hr days to get here and need to do the same to get home.........just my 2 bobs worth

GRIM you wantede some feedback so i'm giving some....i'll be coming this year no matter what the format is or where it is but i need to know dates soon to juggle work....thanx mate............ russ

[Trotski]

Hey Merlot,
it's just that now I have a company car, I don't get much chance to ride, so when I do get out I don't like to stop, but that said I like coffee and war stories too.
We need to decide on timing and format and area, Omeo is a good starting point, and there is stand alone accomodation at the Alpine camp, and you could always use earplugs.
More input required (as an ex-Girlfriend once said)

[graeme]

hi all....i missed last year TDUT but it was a time of upheaval for me and i wont dwell on it....i've still got the cake i bought for grim and will present it to him this year(fridge magnet) ....last year closed in on me and the only day left for me to attend (mildura via wagga) was friday...so what stopped me?....it was the thought of riding for a large number of hours then having to bunk with twenty or so other blokes in a dormitory ....sorry but i want a motel room....maybe there were motel rooms on offer but all the feedback i was getting was "all in together, snorers"..................now whats all this rubbish about every 2 years? if someone cant make it for whatever reason(tiger) then its 4 years between drinks ......ulysses agm is every year....the other thing that winded me was the prospect of taking my bike on dirt roads ....f.m.d. i own a dirt bike which does dirt roads brilliantly..i wont be taking NINER down any dirt...i dont care if it is supposed to be a dual sportie..mines a road bike......it has michelin dual compound whatevers on it and they dont like dirt...the gas gas has michelin s12's front and back for dirt..horses for courses....TROTSKY whats vthis about 6-7 hr days in the saddle? i mean i can do it (i rode niner to hobart at xmas from mildura) but isnt this a social event? a 2 hr ride down a winding road with good company to a brilliant coffee shop sounds right to me, then back to a nice club for some bench racing....some guys just rode 4 x 7hr days to get here and need to do the same to get home.........just my 2 bobs worth

GRIM you wantede some feedback so i'm giving some....i'll be coming this year no matter what the format is or where it is but i need to know dates soon to juggle work....thanx mate............ russ

Hi Russ, am keeping a special spot on the fridge. Hope life is more settled for you now, and stays that way. Fully understand why you wouldnt come all that way for, well nothing as it turned out, because friday was the last day, the weather had turned and all got wet going home on Sat. As mentioned in the start post, it also seemed to make it clear that 4 days of riding was about the right length of a rally.
The Alpine camp was all ours which meant that there were people in seperate rooms in the house, two mates in the flat and some spread out through the two dorms, and there were still unused spaces if privacy was the issue. Its a big joint. By the way everyone, i gave Damian $1100 bucks for our week of staying and he was pretty happy. But, i understand what you say about the motel thing as opposed to the "dorm" thing, i'd much rather pay the money and have a motel room. But on this occasion, with this number, in this place, it was just great.
Can fully appreciate the desire not to sully the 9er on a dirt road but have to say that i too run road rubber (PR2's then and Angel st's now) and am still impressed at how the 9er copes with dirt, not nasty stuff, just good dirt roads. It was an eye opener for at least one other 9er rider who said something like " i've never taken it on dirt before but that was fun". And they are just a way to get from one good sealed bit to another one. But having said that, i see that most would prefer to stay on the sealed more and thats fair enough.
As to how long you ride for, well, how about riding for an hour or two, having a coffee and then riding for another hour or two and having another one and doing that three times? Personally, i want to spend my rally time riding with the group on as many roads as possible for as long as possible and having as many "sporting" ride bursts as possible (and sensible), not to mention seeing some good country and interesting places along the way.
Plenty of time for the "post ride" over dinner and drinks surely?
And of course you sleep very well after a good days ride!
But your feedback is just exactly whats needed Russ, thats for sure!
Lets have more!!
cheers Graeme

[merlot]

graeme...trotski....just a thought....you both live next to the ride......what if you didnt?....if the meet was at newcastle then think of it from that perspective....i think thats where im coming from...if people were coming to mildura from all corners of the globe then sure id be planning all sorts of day rides of varying degrees of greatness....when maybe the punters would be happy with just the meet and a chance to catch up...i cant say, i wasnt there, but 2010 needs feedback from those that turned up so you can guage 2011...am really looking foreward to 2011 and will post pics of my new seat soon sorry here it is

[Trotski]

If someone wants to put foward any different destinations, I'll be happy to ride there, be it QLD,VIC, SA,TAS , maybe not WA/NT without a long leadup time .

Graeme really did well organising TDUT2010 and I think there are a lot of blokes who are sitting back and waiting for the "few" (Graeme) to present them with tha package.

I need at least 3 month notice to sort work arrangements , don't know about others, but if we want a TDUT this year we need to be choosing a destination and format soon, so that we can be locking in accomodation and the like.

Come on Blokes raise your hands and lets hear where/what you want.

[merlot]

sorry trotski....i thought you were near grim, but i just had a look on google and youre miles apart...youre in DSMRA country....no wonder you were talking dirt roads....back to the topic.....i think we need a TDUT president or committee...he or they come up with a venue then post it....e.g." the 2011 tdut will be held at wauchope 2nd week in october, book your own accomm at the wauchope van park, rides to be announced the day before, see you there".....just a thought

[graeme]

sorry trotski....i thought you were near grim, but i just had a look on google and youre miles apart...youre in DSMRA country....no wonder you were talking dirt roads....back to the topic.....i think we need a TDUT president or committee...he or they come up with a venue then post it....e.g." the 2011 tdut will be held at wauchope 2nd week in october, book your own accomm at the wauchope van park, rides to be announced the day before, see you there".....just a thought

Hi Merlot,
it doesnt matter much what you call them but someone has to be prepared to put their hand up and commit to organise the details of a rally.
I did that for 2010. It isnt very hard to do but because the outcome rests (to a great extent) on the organiser there is a bit of worry etc involved. Indeed an organiser who doesnt worry and think about the details, options and outcomes continuously in the lead up is probably not doing a very good job either (i would suggest).
Its very easy for that organiser to then take control of the organising of future events but this is not necessarily a good outcome for everyone.
I really dont want to be seen as doing that and in fact would really like to just attend a TDUT as a participant.
Every effort should also be made to allow for someone else to put up their hand to take on the organising and hopefully they will make a good job of it and it will be a great TDUT etc---
That is what this thread is trying to do.
Go back to the first post and you can see that. Go down a few posts to Trotski's post and you can see that he understands all this and has made a really good suggestion about how we can build on 2010.
I havent spoken with Trotski as yet but if he would like to work with me on this then i will put my hand up. Snigdog assisted the last time and if he would like to then i would be really pleased to have him help also.
Likewise i would be absolutely delighted for him (trotski) to take it on and base the thing in his area if he wants to.
Likewise, anyone else who wants to make a pitch should do so, you are most definately welcome to take it on!!!!!!!!
In the event of neither of the last two happening, THEN, I would be suggesting that Trotski and maybe Snigdog and myself be the organisers (subject to their agreement)
That we base it at Omeo over 4 riding days with 2 days in the middle based on what Trotski outlined in his earlier post.
That we skip 2011 and go to early 2012, looking at the school holidays and easter (which we want to avoid), then 19-24 march 2012 looks good.
This does not rule out the formation of a formal group and the associated committee etc, if anyone wants to do that then go for it-----and i will abide by your decisions.
If not then its just an informal group and we are all acting in good faith without any liability.
cheers Graeme
(really like your seat Merlot)

Edited by graeme, 19 February 2011 - 10:46 am.

[Snigdog]

All,
The thought and organisation put into the 2010 ride by Graeme was pivotal in making the 2010 ride such a sucess. The location, weather and of course the fine band of men who turned up for it were also factors

Its an important point that this obvious level of organisation gave participants the confidence to take time off work, ride long distances to spend a week with people they had never met before.......

In the absence of an alternate option evolving on this forum I am supportive of the early 2012 suggestion as outlined by Trotski and Graeme and would be happy to assist if I am able !
Cheers,
Snigdog

PS Our forum has been hacked...Ive received three emails from it selling fake watches!

Edited by Snigdog, 19 February 2011 - 08:37 pm.

[Trotski]

e.g." the 2011 tdut will be held at wauchope 2nd week in october, book your own accomm at the wauchope van park, rides to be announced the day before, see you there".....just a thought

Now there you go, the Oxley Hwy is an interesting prospect, this is what we need some Ideas on where the majority of attendees want to go .

I think that if we can get, say 3-4 alternatives in a poll (i don't know how to do this) and see how many votes we get on each, once we have a destination, we can go from there.

So
1. Omeo, Similar program as TDUT2011

2. Meet and end at Omeo with a 2 Day run up through the NSW Snowy Mountains and the Bonang Hwy.

3. Meet at Wauchope and run on the Oxley Hwy (Accom could be at Port Macquarie or Armidale)

4. ????????

number 3 is tweaking my interest as I haven't had a run on the Ox for over 8 years, a quick Google shows not much accomodation a Warchope, my pref would be Armidale and personally I am prepapred to camp at a caravan park.
The more I think of this the better it sounds.

Lets hear it Guys

[graeme]

Now there you go, the Oxley Hwy is an interesting prospect, this is what we need some Ideas on where the majority of attendees want to go .

I think that if we can get, say 3-4 alternatives in a poll (i don't know how to do this) and see how many votes we get on each, once we have a destination, we can go from there.

So
1. Omeo, Similar program as TDUT2011

2. Meet and end at Omeo with a 2 Day run up through the NSW Snowy Mountains and the Bonang Hwy.

3. Meet at Wauchope and run on the Oxley Hwy (Accom could be at Port Macquarie or Armidale)

4. ????????

number 3 is tweaking my interest as I haven't had a run on the Ox for over 8 years, a quick Google shows not much accomodation a Warchope, my pref would be Armidale and personally I am prepapred to camp at a caravan park.
The more I think of this the better it sounds.

Lets hear it Guys

I thought the "Wauchope" thing was a "for example" fiction by Merlot. But its real!, is it?
Graeme

[graeme]

[quote name='Trotski' date='Sun 20th Feb 2011, 10:20 AM' post='195710']
Now there you go, the Oxley Hwy is an interesting prospect, this is what we need some Ideas on where the majority of attendees want to go .

I think that if we can get, say 3-4 alternatives in a poll (i don't know how to do this) and see how many votes we get on each, once we have a destination, we can go from there.

So
1. Omeo, Similar program as TDUT2011
2. Meet and end at Omeo with a 2 Day run up through the NSW Snowy Mountains and the Bonang Hwy.

3. Meet at Wauchope and run on the Oxley Hwy (Accom could be at Port Macquarie or Armidale)

4. ????????

Hi Trotski, not no 1 please, i dont want to try and replicate that. No 2 is the logical development if its to be here at all.
cheers Graeme

[brentong]

My vote is for #2 And the date in march will also work for me.
Brenton