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Guest Speaker Report Wednesday 15 June 2011 by Rotarian Ian Johnson (reporter) Our guest speaker was Peter Cobon who spoke to us about his “Outback Bike Safari”. Peter works for Fraser’s Motor Cycles and is a BMW specialist. Peter was introduced by Allan Teale. Peter has done a lot of touring around Australia on a motor bike. He has found this to be very rewarding and has had some exciting times. Peter pointed out that if you stick to the main roads you can travel around Australia in six weeks. However he recommends taking longer by venturing off the bitumen to find out what Australia is really like. Peter told us that he grew up in country Victoria and took his first motor bike ride at age twelve. He found this to be very exciting and this excitement still remains. Since that first ride he has been on many long bike trips including a tour of Vietnam where he rode all the way up to the border with China. Peter then told us of his Outback Bike Safari. This was an epic trip starting at Port Augusta and then riding up to and around the Simpson Desert in the centre of Australia. He told us of the Oodnadatta Track which follows the tracks used by the Afghans and their camels going from water hole to water hole. Peter and his friends then travelled along the Plenty Highway into Channel Country in South Western Queensland. He showed us many photos of the dramatic scenery and told us stories of the characters he met. Peter also told us of his rides into the Victorian High Country and the New South Wales Snowy Mountains. On some of these rides Peter and his riding companions have the benefit of a support vehicle. With all the beautiful scenery and challenging tracks it is easy to understand Peter’s passion. Peter was thanked by fellow two wheeler David Martin (Snr) |