June 2005 Who’s News 

 

Membership Fees are due. If you are unfinancial this will be your last magazine. The password to the home page will change one week after the Social Sip (ie on the 14th of July) and the login will change to mstcv (was mtcv) to better reflect our new(ish) name. A membership renewal form is attached on the last page that describes the various methods of payment. Note: there has been no fee increase, a situation that may change next year as it is distinctly possible we will run at a loss this year. We need your support.

 

The MSTCV Home Page took 445 hits during June and has taken 24,459 since April 1996.  A myriad of changes have been implemented on the new look web page – same address: www.mstcv.unimelb.edu.au.  The design was generated by Tamzin Knight, a sometimes club rider on an R6, who thought our page looked dated and generously donated her time and web skills to developing a more modern look. Much appreciated.

 

Apart from the obvious cosmetic changes, I have made other changes to almost every page, most significantly adding a photo gallery. The gallery resides in the password protected Members area and currently has photos from nine rides this year including new photos from Tasmania – different from the blogspot ones.  I plan to put up lots of photos from 2004 as time permits. In fact, there is still tons of work to do including putting up mug shots of your committee, and standardising the look of all the previous magazine pages and itineraries. If you have any constructive ideas on what you would like to see on the page let me know.

 

The Guestbook has been fixed. I got a bit over zealous when removing spam from the entries and deleted a vital piece of code that took a guru an hour to find and fix. It is all working now.

 

Look out for Ron “Balls” Solomon (Suzuki GSXR1000 K5 and Yamaha R1) appearing on Two Wheel Torque on Tuesdays at 7 pm on Channel 31. He gets a few minutes every week to talk about bike related topics. The Club will get a mention along the lines of “rides every Sunday, rain, hail or shine; very well organised with leaders and rear riders, planned itinerary well in advance, very professional, very experienced riders – with more info to be found at the web site.

 

Seen at Mark’s Place at the Social Sip:  Ian Payne and Kerrie Gooding, Ben and Julie Warden, Anne and Trevor Harris, Peter Feistl, Martin Hastie, Paul Southwell, Ron Johnston, Dave Ward and Bronwyn Manifold, Stoimen and Vicki Stojanov, Lyn Duncan, Jacinta Thomas, Tamzin Knight, Bill Wee and Dave Moore. 19 people including eight women. Another successful evening, though the hosts got a bit of a shock when Jacinta got there early and booked a table for 50!

 

The Club Participant of the Year is based on aggregate points accumulated at 1 point per ride, an extra point for leading or being rear rider, and 1 point per Magazine article (maximum 2 per Magazine). Attending one or more days of a weekend event scores 3 points for leading, 3 for rear riding duties and 2 points for participating.  After two months of the new year a few reprobates have accumulated points: Ben Warden (20), Lyn Duncan (13), Ian Payne (9.5), Ron Johnston (9), Paul Southwell (8), Joel Haley (7.5), Martin Hastie (7) and Breht Emmerson (6). It is good to see the Committee very well represented over these colder months.

 

Nigel Hellyer’s Buell is in the wars again, this time the rear shock has blown a seal – catastrophically.  Nigel has already had it rebuilt once and a  replacement aftermarket unit is a very costly alternative.  Hence the quandary. We wait with baited breathe on the decision.

 

Email from Ron Johnston Monday 4th July: The Bandit saga continues: “I cleaned carbs out on Saturday because of contaminated fuel. On my test run around the block, the bike developed gearbox problems: second gear/selector fork, etc. I will have to drop engine out and get it looked at, so I will be off the road for a while.

 

Front Cover:  Toora Lookout 3rd July, 2005. Tim Walker, Breht Emmerson, Steve Cowburn (sitting), Joel Haley, Jason Peters, Renzo Cunico and Ron Solomon. Ben Warden behind the lens.

 

FOR SALE:  dirt bike tyres. Call Lyn Duncan on mobile 0407-122-742 or home phone 93091640.

New Trelleborg 110/100 18 754 tenmaster

New set of Michellin 90/90 21 M12  and 120/90 18 S12 cross competition.

Slightly used Dunlop D903F Enduro  and 2x Trelleborg 914 80/100 maxigrip

That’s 3 brand new tyres and 3 good second hand fronts, all for only $250.

 

To ward off the threat of a fee rise next year, please encourage people to advertise their business in the magazine. Our cheap rates are:

  • $100 / half A4 / 6 months  black and white
  • $200 / half A4 / 12 months  black and white
  • $200 / full A4 / 6 months black and white
  • $400 / full A4 / 12 months black and white.

 

Art work is supplied by the advertiser. Coloured pages can be appended to the magazine, such as Steve Cowburn’s ad for leathers, as a once off at $30 per month, at least 80 pages must be supplied.

 

Looking for some pain and suffering? The BMW Icicle Ride is on again, starting midnight Saturday 16th July and finishing at dawn, Sunday 17th July.  Start BP Service Station, corner of Hume Highway and Cooper St, Somerton, Melways reference 180 F9. Cost  $25 per rider and $20 per pillion. Includes badge, soup stop and cooked breakfast.  For more info contact Peter Matthews at [email protected]

 

Ben’s CBR929 had its third service recently at 151,000 km. It was only in for shims, plugs, sychronising the injectors and a new cam chain. The rest I do myself. The engine needed 10 shims, but none were under the minimum clearance, just close to it. A couple of lobes were pitted – ignore, and the cam wheels were showing wear, though the crank sprocket was fine. The new cam chain quietened the motor down at idle and the bike feels stronger after the service. Redwing, who performed the service, picked up a small hole in the exhaust system which is rapidly getting louder. They also noted the exup valve servo motor is dodgy with the warning light is now appearing quite frequently. I have spare exhaust bits including the servo motor and so will spend half a day replacing; the radiator has to be removed to get access. Apart from the noise, the bike is running well, though the option of inserting the spare 954 motor is starting to sound more tempting. Watch this space.

 

I have no hesitation in recommending Redwing for bike servicing.  The work was excellent and the price very reasonable.

MotoGP in Malaysia on September 25th, 2005. Those interested should make a commitment now and discuss with Bill Wee. Places are filling fast. Email Bill on [email protected] 

Towong, Saturday 29th October to Tuesday 1st November. The Committee has booked the spectacular "Snowy Mountain Holidays" house and two cottages accommodation package, right on the Murray River at Towong, 11 km out of Corryong. The Melbourne Cup holiday falls on the first Tuesday of November giving us the opportunity of a 4-day weekend and allowing us to take full advantage of the great location.

The plan would be to ride up Saturday, ride around the hills Sunday and Monday and return to Melbourne on Tuesday. This means three nights accommodation. You'll need to take annual leave for the Monday, so book your leave now. See past years' magazine articles on the web page for daily ride routes.

Cost is around $35 person, per night. Note: accommodation payment is by cash only. A $70 deposit is required to secure a berth, payable to the Club. Note: a number of people have indicated that they plan to attend but have not made paid the deposit. Their position is in jeopardy.  See discussion on web page under Holiday Planner. Ten people have indicated they wish to attend. If we get many more people interested I will investigate additional accommodation.  Otherwise make your own arrangements.

 

 

BALLS High Performance Motorcycle Tuning
and Crash Repairs

 

 

·        Service and tuning for all makes and models

·        Crash Repairs

·        Suspension tuning – Ohlins stockist

·        Specialist carburettor and fuel injection remapping

·        Major engine repairs (cam grinding, gearbox rebuilds, top end work)

·        Tyre fitting and balancing

·        Custom work

 

 

Shop:            18 Fourth Avenue Sunshine Victoria   3020

 

Ph: (03) 9364 8993              Fax: (03) 9364 8992

 

Email:            [email protected]

 

Web Page:      www.ballshpt.com.au