York and Beverley 3 hotel hopscotch 23-5-2020

[wightman]

Hi All

It looks like the weather wll be bad on Sunday but good on Saturday, so why not tee up a ride for Saturday?

I thought maybe a 8.15 meet at Ascot would be a good start, then hatch a plan to head east........

York via Inkpen and Talbot Road then hit up the big hotel in the main drag for a soda water.

Then Greenhills Pub and check out the plumbing.

Then the Beverley Hotel for another soda water.

Then head west via York Williams Road, doing 25 kms of good gravel via the Kraalkop Hotel ruins on Kokendin Rd, coming out on Brookton highway at Elliott Rd.

Robbo and Jean know this stretch well. Easily done on road bikes.

Last port of call Churchman Brook Dam,

Head for home whilst still time to mow the lawn, shirt off, in the direct sunlight.

Who's in?

[BillB]

May be a goer with this one John. Weather dependant. Mud is too hard to clean off. New bike and all that. Where do you mean “ Ascot” as a start point. Where exactly Ascot is a big area

[wightman]

Shell service station, 472-480 Great Eastern Highway, Ascot

[KoosWA]

.... good gravel via the Kraalkop Hotel ruins on Kokendin Rd, ......??

[pspencer]

John thinking outside the box again. Sounds like a plan for me. With a predicted 27 degrees I cannot say no! See you at Ascot, just down the road for me. The adjacent Gloria Jeans coffee is OK!

[BillB]

BillB and Col DB WILL be at start point at 8.15

[wightman]

Well, Ascot was ablaze with sunshine by the time Lord Spencer, /5 Brian, Colin de la Bosca and Bill Burn loomed large, over the horizon. Noel McNee made a cameo appearance on his HP2, lending some moral support to the troops. It was decided that Lord Spencer would thread a course through the woody, Sir John Forrest National Park, back plots of Mundaring, past the Parkerville Tavern, The Mountie Tavern, Chidlow Inn, then we seemed to disappear up our own backsides a few times, reappearing on Inkpen Rd, scything our way through more eucalypt forest to Talbot Road. Peter performed a pluperfect job and we seemed to miss most of the traffic, except for one small lycra clad mob and one embarrassing spectacle of a car being winched unceremoniously out of the sandy median strip on GEH, by a gargantuan tow truck winch.

York seemed like a Rip van Winkle town, with some city boys on their toys, sports cars and trendy ladies with their best hats on, wandering down the shopping precinct. We phoned Greenhills and spoke to the duty manageress, who sounded squeamish at first, but warmed up instantly when we said that we were respectable gentlemen, riding sophisticated machinery (and were only six).

Colin said that he was feeling peckish and led the charge, at considerable speed, to the pub, where we were welcomed with opened arms by the local residents. We all ordered large meals; I saw at least one crayfish thermidor, a la wheatbelt. As we left, another brace of motorcyclists rode in, their ride leader squirming when he saw my R90S, recollecting the largest mistake he had ever made in his life (restoring a mint Daytona Orange R90S in the 1980's and selling to a BMWMCCWA past president, Nigel, in the late 1980s)

The fillies were in full gallop by now and we streaked, wraithlike across the plains, to Beverley, for a smoke break at the 120 year old platform of the old railway station. I did notice a couple of gliders in the air, taking advantage of great thermals building up over the corrugated iron roof of the Beverley Hotel.

We bolted up Waterhatch Road, turning left into Kokendin Road and up to the mysterious ruins on Kraalkop. Peter and I were lucky that the roads were not too corrugated, as we were on smooth, road tyres. I swear I could hear Bill humming the Peter Paul and Mary tune "Where have all my Karoo's Sprues gone?" but mentioned that his brand new 1250 was riding very well. From there, we darted down Dobadery Road, heading back towards Brookton Highway, stopping for one last photo stop on the corner of Edison Mill Rd. Edison Mill Road was a bit more chopped up than we would have liked but the troops managed to sustain about 70-80 kph down most of it, before entering Brookton Highway.

We evaluated our fuel and reckoned all would make it to Perth, so we headed off to Churchman's Brook Dam, down soldiers Rd. The gardens there were pretty full with picnicking punters, which was pleasing to see.

Apparently we are in for a bit of a blowy for the next couple of days, so it's time to batten down the hatches. But for today, those that took a punt, were richly rewarded. Thanks to Lord Spencer for leading/sweeping as required and to Colin, Bill, Brian et al for enduring my vagaries and whims, on such a magical day.

John

[BillB]

Some photos of the ride. Thanks to the Whiteman for organising a great route. New tyres are definitely scrubbed in now. The guys on road bikes did well on the loose gravel

[pspencer]

Thanks John for organising a very interesting ride into the Wheatbelt in perfect weather. Great ride report and photos. I was very happy the way my RT handled the gravel roads and a quick squirt with the hose removed the resultant dust. You certainly picked the right day. Nice to catch up with Bill and Colin who we have not seen recently.