Day 1, done and dusted.
5 pm and the Baggers have finally arrived in Warrnambool for a night at the Mid City Motor Inn where about 180 people will hear from David Parkin and Sue Miller on the two sides of Prostate Cancer. We also have Sam Mitchell, 4 time premiership player and premiership captain here to share about the success he has achieved. Not bad for a guy deemed to short and too slow.
No doubt Parko will share a footy ode or two.
If we were an airline, we would have delighted our passengers, air traffic control and the ground crew this morning; with a scheduled departure time of 8 am, after some last minute instructions from the lead rider Matt Subbs and Safety Officer Mark Harris the boys left at 7.59 am.
It’s really not that hard to get to Geelong from Melbourne, especially when the departure point is in sight of the entry to the Westgate, but like a space ship where early separation is undesirable, the front 4 left the rest behind at the first set of lights.
It wasn’t long before your scribe, who was in the front 4, started to get concerned that Houston may have had a problem, as there were no bikes in the mirrors as we headed over the Westgate Bridge. As it turned out our first NAPA nomination was being born. Greg Smith, newly named Sergeant Men Hy on his first Male Bag odyssey had not travelled more than 20 km and had broken down 3 times. It turns out it was not his fault. A recently acquired machine supplied by Mark Harris, had decided that today was the day for the electrics to expire. NAPA nominee # 2 Mark Harris at 9 am.
The Geelong Bypass does just that, and for good reason, Sleepy Hollow is not called that because it is lively… Unfortunately for 2 riders, they failed to take the correct corner by turning left instead of right and ended up heading back into Geelong after using the bypass. NAPA Nomination to David Parkin and the Rev. The scribe is loving the amount of material being dished up.
All riders on board, refueled and remounted. At said fuel stop, instructions clear to all that we would not be going near Torquay… The driver and passenger seat jockey in the lead vehicle must have been absent at the time. That could be the only excuse they have when they decided to turn left at the roundabout upon re-entry to the bypass, heading for Torquay, as we set forth for Anglesea.
Discussions between the writer and his alter ego scribe inside the helmet assessed that Kelly Slater (or Maybe Mick Fanning) was driving and just wanted to check out the Bells swell 6 months early and placed the riders in jeopardy of not reaching the day’s final destination on time. And even if they did there was a chance the wrong turn would mean a wet tail on the day, fortunately not to be, but NAPA nominees found, Tony and John.
The rest of the ride remained largely uneventful with a ripping piece of road for viewing and motorcycling.
All riders and support crew are safe and sound in Warrnambool where hopefully some generous donations will be generated to support the cause.
Don’t forget that donations are gratefully accepted at www.themalebagfoundation.org.au and please share the links on facebook and the website.
Well done men, stay upright. An early night will serve you well.