20 Oct On Yer Bike – Suzuki AS 50
FMM curator Wayne Harley is a self-confessed motorcycle enthusiast and this month he goes back to school in blazer and shorts…
Every year for the past seven years, participants in the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride rode their classic and vintage-styled motorcycles to raise funds in support of men’s health, specifically prostate cancer and mental health. I have always wanted to enter but always had other commitments and responsibilities that put a halt to my plans. But this year, as luck would have it, everything just worked out perfectly I had the weekend of the 30th of September open. But most important was that I could use the museum’s Suzuki AS 50 that, for those of you in the know, has a very special place in my life as it was a similar bike that got me into riding motorcycles back in the Jurassic period…
As you probably have gathered from the name of the event, entrants need to dress rather spiffy for this ride, so collar and tie is the order of the day, items I really do not own any more… So what to wear? Thankfully, I found my answer in another passion of mine, good ol’ rock music – ACDC to be precise – and the group’s off-the-wall lead guitarist Angus Young, whose stage persona has been a school boy for as long as I can remember. Inspired by this, I borrowed my son’s school blazer bought a pair of grey school shorts from my local PEP stores, loaded the Suzuki and headed into town. “And what a jol it was” says Wayne.
The event started from Harrington Street in Cape Town CBD and looped around Table Mountain via Wynberg and Hout Bay, finally finishing at the Bungalow in Clifton. At 10 am we set off and as we were all asked not to speed and ride at a mellow pace, the 50 cc kept pace very well. On the long hills up over Kloof Nek and Suikerbossie, I must admit the poor Suzi needed most of the cogs in her box to reach the summits. However, on the run down from Llandudno to Camps Bay I gave the little bike her reins, and man did we have fun together as at some stages she was doing over 100 km/h and if it wasn’t for the traffic and that little voice, I’m sure 80 mph was not too far off. In addition, to crown off a perfect day’s ride, I then got to enjoy that afternoon at the Bungalow drinking a cold beer with friends, talking bikes and making plans on what to enter next year.
The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride was founded in Sydney, Australia as a great way to combat the often negative stereotype of men on motorcycles, while connecting niche motorcycle communities together. This year, over 120 000 distinguished gentlefolk in over 650 cities worldwide put on their cravats, straightened their ties, pressed their tweeds and took part in the event. For more info, logon to www.gentlemansride.com/rides/south+Africa.
