Long Ride - Day 11 - Uluru to Marla

Uluru, NT to Marla, SA
Distance - 521km (6093km)
Weather - Sunny, Windy 33 degrees

We were back on the road for day 11 of the Long Ride, with the goal to reach Marla in South Australia.

The day started early to beat the heat, although it never came quite as bad as we have had recently. The Love Bus had a quick check over to make sure she was up for the challenge, and it seemed she was.  The beautiful thing about the ugly old pig is that everyone wants to have a look or wave at us so we had to make sure she could complete the distance, hopefully we can use this attention to our advantage and raise more funds for the PCFA.

We left Yulara at around 7:30am and headed west down the Lasseter Highway, back the way we had come in.  After an hour or so we passed Curtin Springs, we decided to continue on until we reached Mount Conner. 

Mt Conner, the third of the giant
monoliths.

Mt Conner raises 300 metres above the surrounding plains and is believed to be a part of the massive subterranean rock structure that forms Uluru and Kata Tjuta, essentially they are all the same piece of rock.

The giant monolith sits on private land is very difficult to get to however, tours can be arranged.  It's one of those things you would need to see at some stage.

Two little birdies enjoying the view

From here we continued west, the landscape out here surprised me.  It wasn't as flat as I imagined it to be, in fact we seemed to pass a continuous vista of sand dunes, it's believed that many have been in the positions they currently are for the past 3,000 years.  I swear they were here in 1985 when I can with school.

Oh dear, someone has left their thongs
behind.

There seemed to be a much greater number of trees, and very greener, than what I remember.  Does this mean global warming is making deserts much more habitable?  Or is Australia just becoming colder and wetter?  I dunno.

After two and half hours we reached Erldunda, the turning point to head south towards the border.

Erldunda is a roadhouse on the junction of the Lasseter and Stuart Highways which, is actually named after the station it sits on.  It now has a thing called the Desert Oaks Resort, the truth is, it's not much different to our destination of Marla.

We grabbed a bite to eat as well as refuelled the Love Bus.  After a quick chat to a few bikers heading north we set off south.

The road south took us through many changing landscapes, in fact it seemed that every 20 kilometres or so we were passing through a totally different ecosystem, it was all desert but extremely varied.

Small hills covered in trees soon turned to rocky outcrops, before morphing into rolling red dunes and grass lands.  It was quite bizarre yet visually not as boring as I thought it would be.

By the time we reached the South Australian border we were at the highest point of this day although, just 523 metres above sea level.  The border crossing is actually one of the best I have seen, probably the reason a number of caravans seemed to be setting up for the night. Bloody tightarses!

After a few obligatory photos we set off for the final stop, Marla, just 159km further south.

Marla Travellers’ Rest is a sprawling roadhouse, hotel/motel, restaurant, service station, supermarket and much more – all in one place. Located on the Stuart highway since 1982, it provides a comprehensive range of facilities for travellers and locals alike. It takes it’s name from the Aboriginal word meaning kangaroo.  Strange how we think kangaroo means kangaroo.

The Marla roadhouse is also something that is very different to how I remember it.

Shitballs, it's the new location for
Twin Peaks

Situated east of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Lands in South Australia, Marla Travellers’ Rest is very much the heart of Marla. With a population of just over 70 people, Marla is primarily a service town and it's visited twice a week by the historic Great Southern Railway train, The Ghan, which now frequently passes by directly across the road from the roadhouse.

As we got settled into the motel I saw a television report that said David Lynch was filming another series of Twin Peaks.  Marla, must surely be the location.  It's a little weird.  It started with no one around and then suddenly as soon as the sun started to set people came from nowhere to sit at the bar of the pub.  The locals seemed to speak a different language, almost something like that of the Bushmen of the Kalahari (you know, the little bloke from the Gods Must Be Crazy).

Despite what many people had told us, Marla was actually okay, and nowhere near as bad as we thought it might be.  The rooms were very basic and infested with flies, but at least it was somewhere to sleep.  The meals were quite good, and very reasonably priced, and the beer was cold.

A few painkillers for desert, and then it was off to bed ...

Long Ride - Days 9 & 10 - Uluru

Days 9 & 10 of the Long Ride 2014 were more or less rest days, especially after the night of the final dinner at Uluru (meeting place, in indigenous language).

The dinner was a fantastic affair with around 350 riders all getting together to celebrate the ride and what it achieved.

Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, National Chairman, David Sandoe OAM made a passionate speech around men's health and prostate cancer which gave some indication to how important it is that events like the Long Ride take place.

This speech was then followed by Warren Snowdon MP, who again made an impassioned plea for men to take better care of themselves.  Unfortunately, a number of riders felt his speech spent to much time talking about the role the Australian Defence Force plays in the Long Ride.  I too felt that their efforts were over stated, especially considering they are paid to do the event and as a combined effort do very little to address men's health amongst the civilian community.

Regardless, the night was a rounding success and highlighted what the ride had achieved.  At the time almost $300,000 had been raised, of which over $11,000 came from the support you have given me.

This was recognised by Chris Dunne, founder of the Long Ride, who made mention of the effort put in fore us to get to the end of the ride after my accident.  This was extremely humbling, but was really a team effort.

The night continued at the Outback Pioneer pub with a few more drinks and laughs.

I think the night and the effort to get there took it's toll on me as the next day was pretty much spent asleep.  I'd wake in a little pain, take some pain killers and then go straight back to sleep.  All of the plans to explore the region had gone along with my bike on some dirt track in Queensland.

Kata Tjuta, first thing in the morning.

The great news was that the Long Ride again got decent coverage on Channel Seven's Sunrise Programme.  It featured a number of riders and got a great reception with most riders.  A few criticised Channel Seven and the media manager of Yulara, mostly because they weren't able to get on TV.  It's a little disappointing that they have taken the attitude they have, as this is the best media coverage the Long Ride has ever received.

Day 10 was much better.  The days started at 5am to see the sun rise over Kata Tjuta (The Olgas).  It was an inspiring site and in many ways one that I thought was better than Uluru (Ayers Rock).  This lead to a walk into a gorge which was equally as inspiring.

Just one of the dones.

Kata Tjuta are a collection of 36 domes that are made of a composite of different rock cemented by sandstone.  The formation is amazing, and even more so when you realise that the highest dome is almost 200 metres higher than Uluru.  

After Kata Tjuta we drove to the Uluru Cultural Centre and learnt the local history of Ayers Rock.  The indigenous history is fascinating and you can actually see how the legends have come about.

Love Bus enroute to the 'rock'

From here we drove around the rock and visited some of the more famous areas. I remember some of these from a school trip in the mid-1980's but didn't realise how steep the rock was when we climbed it back then - no wonder it is closed on hot days now, and besides the local custodians of the area prefer tourists not to climb it, I wouldn't have out of respect.

OMG that climb is steep.

The funny thing with Uluru is that it creates a very strange optical illusion.  From a distance is looks massive, and then as you get closer it seems to become surprisingly small.  Then as you approach close enough to touch it becomes a giant amongst the insignificant.  Many people say they have a spiritual experience when visiting Uluru, I wouldn't go that far but can understand why people feel that way.

One of the many views at Uluru.

The day finished with a dinner at the Sounds of Silence.  An experience I would recommend too anyone.  We watched the sun set behind Kata Tjuta and cast it's glow over Uluru, as a train of camels stopped nearby.  The grunts and groans of the animals added a great atmosphere to the show.

Sunset over Kata Tjuta

The dinner was just as impressive with a meal consisting of a number of local food sources as we listened to stories of aboriginal culture and then that of the night sky.  It was a great way to finish the stay at Uluru.

Long Ride - Day 8 - Alice Springs to Uluru

Alice Springs, NT to Uluru, NT
Distance - 468km (5572km)
Weather - Sunny 38 degrees

Back on the road the ' Love Bus' was now to be the 'chosen' mode of transport.

Firstly we went to CentreShedWorks for a magnificent breakfast put on by Ian 'Macca' Macadam of the Clontarf Foundation.  A few of the boys were there to help and it was great meeting these guys and the fantastic work they do with indigenous kids, especially boys.

Macca and Bryan Williams both told us stories of success and frustration with the issues some of the indigenous kids face, at the end of the day the work they do pays off and has seen some brilliant success, even with boys now playing in the Australian Football League.  There was little surprise that Macca has had three brothers play AFL.

The stickered up Love Bus at
Stuarts Well

After an hour or shoe chatting to the guys it was clear how passionate they are and it's chats like this that make the Long Ride (regardless of the transport) so worthwhile.

Saying our goodbyes we set off south and headed for Ayers Rock (Uluru).  Leaving the metropolis of Alice Springs I was immediately confronted by the fact that the landscaped wasn't how I imagined it would be, it was actually quite green and full of plant life, certainly not the mars like landscape I had expected.

We continued south west on the Stuart Highway until we reached Stuart Well and caught up with the riders.  It was a quick chance to throw a few more stickers on the Love Bus as well as grab a drink and ice cream, the break was short lived and we set off again.

Cannonball Run memorial

Not far down the road we stopped at the Cannonball Run memorial that commemorates the lives of three people killed in the 1994 road race.  Two officials were killed along with two Japanese drivers when the Ferrari F40 crashed at the checkpoint at very high speed.  The Japanese driver was blamed for the incident however, an event of this nature was always destined to be extremely dangerous.  We paid our respects and continued on.

The road to Uluru

Continuing on we made or way to the Lasseter Highway, the turn off to Uluru, this saw us stop at Erldunda and meet a number of riders coming up from Coober Pedy.  I was able to catch up with Chris Dunne, originator of the Long Ride.  He and his wife asked how we were going and how was my shoulder, he was saddened that I was unable to ride in but happy I was still here.  We had a laugh about the Love Bus and the consequences if my accident and we were then on our way again.

From here the riders stopped at Curtain Springs, a small roadhouse that has become famous with tourists.  Old Long Ride friends caught up and said they were amazed when they heard it was me that had 'stacked' the bike, they too were glad i had decided to continue on.

The plan now was for everyone to meet up just past Mount Connor and ride into Uluru in one group under police escort.  It was an amazing site and I must admit the site made me tear up, all this way and I couldn't be a part of it.

The reception we got at the Yulara resort was fantastic but not being on a bike made me feel I wasn't really a part of it.

After unpacking and a quick shower it was off to the Long Ride 2014 dinner, in one of the most beautiful settings ...

Long Ride - Day 7 - Alice Springs

Day 7 of the Long Ride was essentially a stationary day.  While waiting for the other riders to get in from Three Ways the plan was to organise four wheeled transport to get back to Melbourne.

This proved much tougher than first thought however, after ringing around Wicked Campers came through and provided a one way rental, something that they called the 'Love Machine' and which we quickly renamed the 'Love Bus'.

After a bit of a laugh and a quick look around Alice Springs we set off to meet some of my sponsors.

Alice Springs Massage Therapy was the first call and although I wasn't able to have a massage the support given by Fiona and her team was fantastic.  If you are in the area and need a massage make sure you go and see Fiona's team.

The next port of call was CentreShedWorks to meet Bryan Williams and his team.  Bryan had organised for the local Clontarf Foundations lads to cook us a breakfast the next morning.  Everyone was extremely busy at the workshop tidying things up when we got there, the effort they were going to was brilliant.

After a quick chat we set off back to the caravan park to meet the incoming riders.

Immediately there was uproars of laughter when they saw the 'Love Bus', it was well worth driving this unique vehicle just to see everyone look at it.

After a few cold beers we set off for Star of the Alice  function centre where Lisa Perry had put on a BBQ dinner for us. This place was absolutely beautiful, a real oasis in the middle of the desert, the backdrop of the barren hills was made it feel even more unique.

Star of Alice, a real oasis in the desert

Unfortunately not all of the riders turned up, again the Australian Defence Force riders decided to do their own thing, it seems that they believe the Long Ride is all about them and no none else matters.

This put some strain in Lisa financially and so the riders that were there paid, as well as myself covering a considerable amount of the cost, this money would've eventually gone to the PCFA so it was a little disappointing.  Not complaining though as this was a fantastic night, with great food, at a lovely venue.  It's something you should check out in Alice Springs or Reality Bites Catering.

The night finished with a few more beers and a couple of nice scotches.  The shoulder pain was eased as I slipped into bed and readied for a day back on the road.

Long Ride - Day 6 - Brisbane to Alice Springs

Brisbane, QLD to Alice Springs, NT

Distance - 2779km (5094km)

Weather - Sunny 32 degrees

Day 6 has seen us get somewhat back on the original route however, I feel it has now become like Charley Boorman's "By Any Means".

The day started early with a ride to the Brisbane airport.  The taxi driver was a lovely man who's wife was a former emergency doctor working between Darwin and Alice Springs.  He was pretty keen to tell me how to fix the shoulder and overcome the pain.

The first part of the days journey was a one hour flight from Brisbane to Sydney.  A quick stopover then on to Alice Springs.  I'm not sure if it was all of the travelling and jolting of the shoulder or the pain killers but I started to feel pretty ordinary, so much so that the flight crew were looking a little worried and offered to give me oxygen.

For an hour or so I thought I was going to make this the flight from hell for the other passengers however, a little drink of ginger beer and a nap made me feel a lot better - the pain didn't go though.

Bill has been good enough to sticker
up his bike for me.  Thank you mate.

Once in Alice Springs the plan was to find some wheeled transport, this became a bigger task than we thought.  At the very least I had to finish with the other riders, so the mode of transport is a Wicked Camper which will soon be stickered up with all of my supporters logos.

As for these I have top thank Billy Boy for covering his bike in stickers of mine, the guy is a real saint and has helped immensely, as has Andy.

Both stopped by TJM Mt Isa to thank Lucian and his team where I couldn't, I'm eternally grateful to both Lucian and the lads for the support.  I can't wait to see the picks.

One of the many roadtrains the guys
have had to contend with.

The boys also went and saw the dinosaur digs at Winton, something I really wanted to do after missing it on the Long Ride 2013, looks like I will have to wait again.  The photos coming from the ride so far have been brilliant, I just wish I was there to see it first hand.

Tomorrow we'll be back on the ride, by any means and so the blog should pick up the pace a little ... I didn't realise how much you use your shoulders when typing, weird.

Long Ride - Day 5 - Charleville to Brisbane

Charleville, QLD to Brisbane, QLD

Distance - 700km (2315km)

Weather - Sunny 26 degrees

The morning after the last good night ...
so far!  Thanks De Bortoli

Day 5 was a day of getting things sorted and getting somewhat back on track.

It started with a final visit from the doctors to get the okay to leave hospital and to say goodbye to new friends (get well Ken, looking forward to having a beer with you soon & keep looking for Graham's cat, it might turn up one day).

The staff, especially the nurses, at Charleville hospital, are fantastic, I couldn't thank them enough for the help they gave me.

After leaving the hospital the next stop was Ward's Transport who have been fantastic organising to get a couple of bikes back home - wish the same could be said for BMW (Alliance) Insurance who have been pretty much useless, it makes you wonder whether owning a BMW is a good thing.

Anyway enough of the whining, it was time to get going again.

The last shot of the straight bike ...

The flight on the Qantas-link Dash 8 from Charleville to Brisbane was different.  Taking off was bloody painful as the plane moved around but at least we were able to laugh about the tracks below possibly being the ones that caused the issues.

From Charleville we had to land at Roma to get off the plane and get scanned in, apparently Charleville is the only place in Australia that doesn't have security equipment ... 

The flight to Brisbane was uneventful except for a few bumps and a few resultant expletives, but all good.  The taxi ride was worse, the miserable old git hit every bumped he could and then took us the long way to the hotel.

I think that's the track that took me out.

Once in the room I was pretty much asleep and so ended day 5 ...

Long Ride 2014 - Day 4 - Charleville Hospital

Charleville Hospital, Charleville, QLD
Distance - 50 metres (or so) (1615km)
Weather - Sunny 35 degrees (I believe)

There's not a lot to report for day 4 of my Long Ride 2014, it was spent pretty much on my back in the Charleville hospital, and while everyone else got to work organising things I got to know some of the locals and it seems I became a bit of a legend - in fact the crash might've been good for the coverage of the Long Ride.

Almost everyone who came in to the ward was told about what we were doing.  Ken, one of my ward mates was keen to tell everyone of our exploits.  The old boy was pretty crook, and had convinced himself he was dying.  He spent the whole time plotting his escape from hospital and trying to convince me that Victoria Bitter is the world's best beer.

The only travelling I did this day was to the toilet and back, so nothing really exciting to talk about.

After well wishes from most of the Long Ride group they set off for Longreach and for the most part they didn't let me know what was going on, I guess they knew how gutted I was and didn't want to rub it in. 

The support from everyone has been fantastic, too many people to name, but you know who you are and I love you all for that.

The day ended with the news that I wouldn't need an immediate operation despite thew break being quite bad.  The head doctor was a bike rider himself and says he sees a lot of these injuries around here, so is somewhat of an expert.  He also fully understood that I wanted to get back on the 'ride' as quick as I could.  The physio came and fitted me a brace that looks like it's designed more for walking dogs - I can hear the words 'bring on the gimp', JP, not a word!

The brace causes considerable pain but the physio said that's normal and besides, the pain is relieved by some of the best drugs you could imagine - to the point of making me dream of dancing with piglets in a field of flowers - great stuff.