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THE AUSTRALIAN MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM


The National Museum is raved about far and wide by everyone I talked to who had visited the place so a bike run up there was only a matter of time. The Museum officially relocated to Nabiac from the Australian Capital Canberra in 2000 and currently exhibits over 700 bikes as well as some of the most amazing memorabilia and accessories from yesteryear ever seen in one place.

It was settled then, Big Damo armed himself with the Dudeworld digital camera and jumped on the back of my Nightrain. In short order we'd hooked up with a couple of mates; Pete on his metallic green '92 FXR Custom and Kev riding his vivid black '05 FXST for the 300 odd kilometer round trip up the coast. Mal ('90 FXSTC) was planning to ride with us as well until he chopped the end of his thumb off in an industrial acident two days before... ouch! - Get well soon buddy.

The Boys jamming up the Highway... wheels pointed North and the taps wide open.




Kev ripping along and rocking out to his iPod at 110.




"Hey Damo... Kev's gonna look about this big when the photo comes out"!




Saw some road hazards that move;




And some that don't - bloody cheesecutters.




After a few miles had rolled by we came across a mini-Ularoo tourist attraction called "The Great Aussie Bush Camp" and Damo yells in my ear.

"Hey Richo, I've been there on a school excursion when I was a kid"

"What was it like"? I asked him.

"It was alright but the food was shit", he laughed, "I wouldn't go back".




The miles rolled on as we did the high speed cruise up Highway One and after a couple of hours we pulled into the Museum's carpark in Nabiac.




We'd only just got off our scoots when a couple of rugged looking blokes pulled in on big trail bikes that sported W.A. plates... long way from home there fella's...




Big Damo standing at the front of the Museum. Looks were quite deceiving here as the floorspace inside the place was vast, plus the building sported another two wings that were packed with bikes!




This is roughly about one sixth of the bikes on display... bloody awesome, man!




The bikes are laid out so they are both densly packed and accessible at the same time. There's no way Damo could photograph more than a tiny proportion of whats there and I really do recommend you get to Nabiac for a visit at least once in your life to marvel at the amazing collection.

This is a drag bike that used two Yammy YZ465 2-stroke engines! Man it must have been pretty wild coming off the line on that thing!!!




If you liked going fast in the late 80's then these two stroke 'mental bikes' would have been on your hit list. An RG500 and an RZ500.




This thing cracked me up ..... arrgghhhhHHH!! its ugly!!




Ahh yes, the good old days... where your bike didn't have an oiling system and you had to pump it in yourself every 5 miles .. haha! - The fuel tanks were often halved with one half for fuel and one half for oil.




Dale Buggins bike and leathers




Hands up if you remember these old things ... for those that can't they are reusable oil top-up bottles that were for sale at every Servo (gas station) before about 1986.




What bike museum could call itself respectful without having their very own Manx Norton on display?




The Museum's loony bin display (sidecar racers)




An amazing 47cc machine built back in '73 to attack the Australian land speed record. This bike took a mind boggling 24 records, 20 of which still stand today.




The wooden sidecar on this old sidevalve Harley was constructed by its owner so he could cart his two kids around with him!!




Righto all you old Greybeards - I bet you've all used these before!




This restored petrol pump is just magnificent.




Just a tiny part of the amazing motorcycle art that adorns the walls everywhere you look around here




A great old "as ridden" Ducati GT750 Bevel Drive




The absolute pinnacle of modern motorcycle technology in Nineteen thirty-something.




In the old days there was not much in the way of motorcycling specific clothing available so riders bought up ex-flyboy gear from army surplus stores, the goggles here are a fantastic example of that era.




Remember your dad's or grandad's oil can? You had to have one back then ... what happened?




This is an Iver Johnson Motorcycle from 1914 or 1915. I don't know what it is about this machine that catches my eye but it really looks amazing in the flesh.




We left the Museum after a few hours of wandering around like kids in a candy shop!

It is a truly amazing place and I for one am glad that someone is protecting our motorcycling heritage and not selling it on eBay for a fast buck...

Off to the local pub we went, keen for a hearty lunch and a cold beer. The Nabiac Hotel did not disappoint either, huge meals under twenty bucks (T-bone steaks, mixed grills, etc) and icy cold beer on tap as well. What more could you want?




The ride home was cruisy and pleasant, the weather staying warm and the wind light. The Pacific Highway from Newcastle heading Northwards has been subject to many rounds of upgrades over the last few years and with the exception of the cheesecutters is now a fast, smooth, awesome piece of road that is a pleasure to ride.

We enjoyed the National Motorcycle Museum so much and their collection is so large that one visit just isn't enough... we'll be back!



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