Phillip White has a suggestion about a name change (article below) to reflect our direction, what do you think say we made the cut-off 1980 & all makes, or just stick with B.E.A.R.S (British, European & American) the name could be I.R.C (Iron Riders Club) or the Kickstart Club, even Red Plate Club. We changed our direction 2 years ago now to stop the inevitable decline of older riders not being capable of riding older Indians or new heavier machines, also the number of younger riders interested or able to afford such machines. This in fact helped a steady decline and we started gaining more members as a result, Phillip White has been a member since 2011 and therefore noticed the change, Phillip has also stated he wants to go riding with classic motorcycles NOT necessarily Classic Riders! We could very quickly turn into a Classic Motorcycle Club of Victoria which I personally would hate, they never defined a cut-off and that club is full of geriatrics riding new Triumphs BMW’S and forgotton era Japanese bikes that are on a rolling 25 year Club permit so currently year 2000! I have been a member of the Classic Club now for 47 years and watched it go from guys riding classics to what I have previously noted. We need feedback please as this is a little more than a name change, it is something that will change our direction and affect the future of our membership and also the people you ride with.

I.I.R.A. Re Name

First things first, the AGM is on this coming Tuesday night 29th, it starts off at the Grandview Hotel Alphington  8.00pm and if you want a meal be there early 7.00 as we don’t want meals being eaten during this important meeting, things that will happen are all officials will vacate their positions and any nominations will be up for a change of committee, we need a change of scenery so please nominate for a role. The next thing is Annual subs if you are not financial you can’t vote and your bike will be effectively under the VicRoads permit scheme  unrideable as it has no 3rd party TAC cover! About half of our members have paid already please DO NOT pay your subs at the meeting as it will not be accepted, pay online as I don’t get to the bank often with CASH, All financial members will receive a free beanie of the value of $25 IF YOU ATTEND THE MEETING!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Plenty to like, your Winter Edition of Smoke Signals that went out last Friday, full of info and your subs are due ($60) being unfinancial means your bike has no TAC cover and its a $850 penalty with 4 de-merit points off your licence! The Tassie tour 2026 Expression of Interest form for March 2026is also in Smoke Signals we need at least 10 people on this otherwise its going to get CANCELLED it is all dependant on you getting a Flexi-Fare for the Ferry that way if you decide to cancel its a 100% refund from them after you have booked please ring Phil 0400922022 for accomodation list. The AGM is on this month 29th July at the Grandview at Alphington 7-30pm financial members will get a free gift to the sum of $25.00 from the club thats nearly 1/2  your annual subs returned, we need people to commit to standing for a committee position as all posts are officially vacant, we are really desperate for a Treasurer if anybody would stand for this position please nominate. Your editor Ray has listed a bumper calander of events up till March next year which involves plenty of rallies and rides to get your classic out and active and this is the time to get in the garage and sort all those niggling issues out, no the motorcycle does’nt heal itself sitting in the garage with a sheet over it!

The only thing good about winter is the Winter Smoke Signals E-Mag thats due out and if you wish to include a article contact our editor Ray pronto, he tells me a full calendar will be included of all events with dates up till March next year for you to print off and hopefully attend this will include meetings, rides, rallies and special events such as the Christmas Party. I’ve been full noise on my recent purchase of a original paint Ducati 750 GT as it had hardened its valve guide seals and smoked incessantly at cold start up worse than a London pea-souper, its only done 5,700 klm’s from new but they and it is 51 years old so I suppose it was to be expected. This is the fifth GT that I have now owned and with a couple additions like electronic ignition and the optional twin disc front end make the package very sweet to ride, this one is a rare electric starter model of which only 800 were made, the beauty as well is it falls in this clubs critera of Red Plate pre-1976 so quite the bike to own and very suitable to ride on our Special Events like Tasmania etc. that brings us to the problems and the advantage of Winter Heated clothing is available from Zarkie’s  (click on the link) and ask for Scottie then ride in comfort, I spent $1.200 down there and the difference after years of freezing your arse off is amazing now. Winterizing your motorcycle can be done with a heated seat cover or even a windscreen can help, more important is the condition of you tyres and brakes if they need fixing don’t hesitate.

A lot of people come into my shop around September and usually complain that their motorcycle needs maintenance, almost surprised it has’nt healed itself over the winter months, really,  unfortunately your machine will require T.L.C  even just sitting and nows the time to get into it. Perhaps the annual oil change or new chain maybe a tappett adjustment or something more serious, nows the time as in the Sept-Oct months there will be the Crazy Horse rally at Myrtleford and the Pub & Grub ride in October which can be quite a few miles,  order the parts and be ready!