State Special

Destination: NSW



“I’m not coming in
today – oh, and not
Monday neither…”



You can’t blame a rider for saying,
“To hell with it, I’m going for a
ride in NSW!”





As Captain Oates said as he left Scott’s tent, but for a different reason, “I’m just going outside and I may be some time.” In NSW you can pack your bike, head anywhere you like and you, too, may never return.
  
The roads and trails of NSW are so seductive they have long led to a plague of none-too-convincing Friday and Monday morning “I’m too sick to come in” calls to long-suffering bosses who may never understand the call of the road but are forced to put up with it nevertheless. Because, let’s face it, when you’re at work you’re a champion. In your own lunchtime, anyway!

There should be more long weekends. Life’s too short to rush through what NSW has to offer. There are so many glorious roads waiting for you.

Close your eyes and stick a pin in a map of NSW. No matter where it ends up you’ll find riding nirvana — even in the Outback. NSW has thousands of kilometres of twisties, fabulous scenery, heritage buildings (code for great old pubs) and roads alongside pristine beaches, plus enough forest by ways to send you punch drunk on eucalyptus fumes.

Just tick off anywhere on the following list and you’ll find paradise: the spectacular cliffs and hidden valleys of the Blue mountains; big-sky New England and its forests; the fabulous Snowy Mountain roads; the north coast and its hinterland; the back trails of the south coast; and the bucolic Hunter Valley. And, increasingly, we can choose from road bikes that are able to cope with the dirt, too. Whereas we once were shy of taking
ourroad-going beauties into the dust, now you can choose among bikes (without so much precious chrome) that’ll that do it all in style.

In this issue, The Bear takes an on road excursion through the fascinating Carcoar region and Stuart gets down and dirty on and
off road through the Hunter Valley to the World Heritage-listed Barrington Tops. And we go camping!

Now that we’ve got you revved up, go to www.visit nsw.com.au for plenty of information about the state. The RTA website (they’ve got to be good for something) will give you details of road closures and about pesky roadworks to avoid, at www.myrta.com. The NRMA has an online travel planner.

Most of all, make sure you have a copy of the Hema Maps Australia Motorcycle Atlas, which is a compendium of good riding roads everywhere.

New South Wales — the Riding State!