Archive of BMW Motorrad Club Cape (2006 - 2019)

Beginner’s Trip 1 July 2007 After much planning and discussion, the beginner’s off-road trip finally began on Sunday 1 July (original plan was 24 June – postponed due to terrible weather) The numbers were down from 10 to 7 riders, and in the end there were 4 beginner bikers and Geoff with Nelmarie riding pillion. Terrible weather the day before made the other 3 riders chicken out. Guess what – we had SUPER weather, although slightly on the cold side to begin with. The 4 beginners were Tanya, Jan, myself on F650GS bikes, and Dawie on his 1200GS. We thawed out with some coffee at the Peregrine, which also did nothing to calm our beginner nerves. After quite a long briefing with some good tips and tricks, we were finally off at 10am down the Viljoenshoop Road. Some of the tips and warnings made some of us even more nervous. I’d been down that road a few years back in the Landy, and we had to 4x4 our way through some of its slote, so I was worried….. The briefing at the Peregrine (had some of us quietly worried) Pre-trip briefing from Geoff Getting more nervous as the briefing continues A short way down the road we stopped and waited while Geoff raced back to the Peregrine stall to fetch his sunglasses. And then we were off again. The road for me turned out to be in spectacularly good condition. Some parts were slightly washed away. I remembered 2 trips back where I would have stalled with fright. We stopped a few times for tips on standing up and balancing, also enjoying the scenery around. Stops on the way Explaining about the ruts A rut I would not like to be in The rules of standing up and playing around explained Back onto the N2, we turned off into Caledon, went through heavy brewery smells and turned right again – all tar. Eventually we turned left down one of the little passes and we were back on gravel for I’m not sure how many kms. According to Geoff, we had to skip the Greyton section because of our lunchtime date at Botriver at 1pm. Yes Geoff, I know we were a little slow – but it was good fun. We stopped for a knertsie of Irish Mist and a bush or two, and ended up back on the N2 and headed for Botriver. Stop after Caledon for a "breather" We admired the surroundings and discussed the dirt Tania needs a better view Still stopped The 1st 2-wheel invention? The dirt roads were in good condition despite the rain, or maybe I was getting used to them…..? Lunch at the Botrivier Hotel was lovely and very slow, despite the “slit-my-throat-with-a-blunt-knife” music playlist, which, for our sins, played itself twice through. A "Rustige" Lunch at Botrivier Hotel We hit the dirt again and traveled quite a bit faster due to a bit of extra courage swigged down at lunch time. We ended up at Theewaterskloof Dam wall and “zipped” through the beautiful Franschoek pass, then pumped up tyres and refueled and headed for home. Dawie takes a "breather" Tania can now say her bike, Jess, has been places! Jess has been baptised Dawie’s bike too! Dawie's bike looks distintly yellower: He blamed the extra yellow on Miss Padlangs! And Jan’s… Jan's bike was Un-blackened! Well, Miss Padlangs, what can I say? You’ve got a dirty butt again! No clean butts left! It was a great learning experience for all of us, and gave me a chance to try a few things which I’d not been able to on my previous trip due to excessive nervousness… For those who missed it – you missed a wonderful day. Thanks once again, Geoff, for organizing the trip and for being such a patient teacher! Wish I was going on your Sutherland trip….