Cobaw 9 July and definitely not dry

[Rat Finke]

I have an odd ‘life rule’ that I don’t mind riding in the rain provided I don’t have to get dressed into my riding gear whilst standing in in the rain.

10km from Cobaw and what started as gentle drizzle progressed to the auto wipers in the car struggling to keep up to pace to keep the windscreen clear. What I learnt from this was that the BOM rain radar image is not always what it seems.
Arrived at the designated meet spot and after lots of meet and greets got changed in the back of my car to avoid getting wet whilst the rain continued.

Riles led us around with the rain helping to make things a little sketchy in places. We were generally at the 2+ end of the advertised 2 – 2+ range due to the wet conditions. At a re-grouping position KMatts55 leant over to me at one stage and said ‘I thought I was coming out for an easy ride’

The group moved around very well all day with a capable group of riders. There was the odd hold up with a flat tyre, unplanned rider ground time, navigation re-orientation and metal on metal rear brakes but nothing serious to detract from a great day riding

All up we covered just under 45km, finished at around 1pm – changed back into my street gear in the back of the car out of the rain – and was comfortably home for dinner in time for lamb roast.

Huge thanks to Riles for leading and the rotating sweeps – including Hoff who, when I asked to divulge any sweep assisted rider clean ups early in the ride, said that a good sweep never tells . Also thanks to the whole riding group for the camaraderie and companionship which made the persistent rain irrelevant in the scheme of things.

[riles]

Thanks Rat Finke for starting the ride report.
Good group and despite constant drizzle, we got around and in general I saw smiles on faces.
Some thanks from me for a few things
It was me with a flat rear tyre late in the morning – and with help from lots of people it was changed in about 20 minutes = Jim, thanks for the gas bottles and adaptor. I forgot to give you some when we got back to the cars. Next time. Various others including Ross450 and Kmatts and young Nick for doing the hard lifting/levering and assisting.

Thanks H&Q, team Yamaha, for your input - and for a go on your very well running and sorted YZ125X. I could hear you behind me regularly!

Cobaw was very wet yesterday, every puddle was full and the mist and drizzle just hung around all day. We all expected it to clear but it was not to be. Victorian Winter for sure.

[mOtOcHiCk]

Thanks Riles & crew for a great day out.
We both had a blast.

I was skeptical on wearing the spray jacket for the day as I thought I would be too hot but the rain barely stopped and we were absolutely drenched so it proved to be a good move!

No goggles ended up being a trend throughout the group; the spares didn't last long. Another set of gloves in the backpack came in handy.

A few thrills and spills along the way proved to be all part of the fun!
With disembarks over slippery logs plus a rutted downhill with a bike rider in what appeared to be folded up underneath the bike which was nasty looking & a bit scary.

The mud from Cobaw is a type that washes straight off OK..so there are 2 x clean bikes in the shed now, however our boots will be in front of the woodfire for many days to come drying out

It was great to catch up with some we haven't seen for a while

Yet another great ride

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[mOtOcHiCk]

One of many adjustments to the goggles

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[hoff300]

Thank you Riles for leading another great ride, I had a ball. Thought I would sweep the first stint, and everyone rode perfectly, no mistakes all day!!! I also crossed over to the dark side, yes I rode Kmatt's 4 stroke. Normally I won't swap bikes, because the debrief on who has the biggest knobbies can be painful!! It was fun, I also rode young Brian's KTM 300xc, all fun. So thanks to Ross for taking on the sweep duties and also to the group for the fun and banter.

[kbuxx]

Thank you Riles for leading a great fun ride, and thanks Hoff and Ross for sweeping up our mess. I looked at the forecast for Sunday and seen very low chance for very little rain. I would have put money on a dry day! Not sure what area I thought I was searching the weather forecast for but it did not reflect Cobaw at all as it was quite wet for most of the ride. Not cold though so did not take any enjoyment away at all. Cleanup after was pretty easy (like stated above) with only $4 at the servo and a spotless bike to take home, Not like that wombat clay

The wet conditions changed some of the tracks level but the capable group had no trouble at all. Only trouble for the day was a puncture but with the quick draw McGraw (was it Nick?) had the tyre changed in no time. Also near the end of the ride Quick draw McGraw ended up under his bike with the throttle stuck on and the rear wheel spinning wildly just inches from his shoulder and head, You are very lucky mate!

Thanks all for the fun day.

[kmatts55]

Yes agree with all above, was a great fun day out. The trail mix was perfect for the Gas Gas 250F. I'm starting to gel with it.
I got to test ride quite a few different bikes, so many thanks to all who bike swapped.
The only problem for me it was to wet and cold to get a bit of firewood post ride.
See you all on the next one