Gisborne Rally Report

The Gisborne rally has been and gone. Here is a report on what turned out to be a really good rally

The 2019 Ariel Rally

If you missed this one you missed one of the best!

Gisborne was always a challenging venue and then we managed to make the rally on Easter Weekend and did not notice until it was too late! Unfortunately, we lost rather too many attendees as a result. I had hoped the fact that Friday would be free might make it enticing for some to come especially as most of us have either never been to Gisborne or it is many years back since the last time we were there. Well it seems family like to descend on parents and grandparents especially at Easter! Never mind we were enough and the Gisborne classic club members co-joined us as their monthly event so in the end there were a good number of people to meet and discuss things like old bikes just for a change.

From Auckland it turned out to be a 9 hour drive due to getting lost when frustration drove me off the motorway which was stopped at 7:30am but hey, the weather was good, the roads were new to me after about half way and it was a good drive. Our accommodation was waiting and I arrived just 5 minutes before the Manuwatu crowd, Steve Barker, Dave Griffith, Mike Marshall and Allan McLeod. At first the 3 beds seemed an issue but the couch folded out and a foldaway bed was eventually located to give us the 5 needed.

The Meet n Greet at the classic clubrooms was already underway when we all arrived. The sausages were virtually done and the team had put together a fine feast for the evening. All up we were 29 people in the end with a nice lot of Ariels to gather up for the traditional photo. Mike Marshall brought along his Austin 7 Ariel which if you get a chance, you should take it for a ride – goes very well indeed for a 1931 Side valver. Unfortunately we ran out of time before the dinner so no rides were taken which was a shame. The classic club in Gisborne has risen from the ashes thanks as I gather, to the work put into it by Andrew Champion and his wife whose name unfortunately escapes me just now. The Classic team really looked after us with an excellent raffle, great food and company in their very nice club rooms, a perfect start to the rally.

Next day breakfast was at the club house at 7AM! Yep 7AM! Unbelievably most arrived on time if not before. A terrific English breakfast was followed but more nattering and spares sales plus the photo sessions etc. Andrew gave us an excellent briefing and we set off at 9am.

The route was straightforward which was a relief as my rally roller for some reason no longer fitted the VB’s handle bars; not too sure what has changed! In fact the route was, “through the town and keep going up the coast with no deviations”! What could possibly go wrong? Well some managed to get lost for a time that’s what. The start of the run was stunning! The sun was catching the sea and sparkling like diamonds there was no wind, it was warm, there was no traffic, it was in fact perfect! I recently hosted 3 overseas guests and I gave them the choice of the Ariel rally or the National. I could not help feeling how much they would have enjoyed this rally so far! If you want some place to go try Gisborne sometime soon!

Our first stop was just before Tolaga Bay (50 km). An informal halt where one bike had to be loaded on the trailer, the only 500cc twin I think it was. This was not the first casualty though. Gary Alve managed to grind to a halt on the way from Napier to the rally and had to go back and get his – can I bring myself to say it … ok then, his Norton side valve which also goes very well indeed. Brian Read attempted to ride up from Wellington and we were distressed to hear that he had also broken down and would not make it. Sorry Brian, you were very unlucky not to be on this one.

We pressed on to Tokomaru bay where we visited a chap (and a lady but more on her in a minute) who has been building what was said to be a yacht but to my mind it resembled an Ark more than a yacht. He has been working on this for 27 years and the machines laying around like the buzzers and saws looked to have rusted up to the point of being unusable but maybe their job is done. We climbed aboard this Ark via a fully opened up to double height step ladder to find a cup of coffee and some hot cross buns waiting for us! Will the yacht ever float? Well take a look at the road into it: 📷

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How does one get a 65 tonne boat across that!

The lady? Well seems she lives on this land which she bought many years ago. She moved one of the defunct local schoolhouses (about 1880 I would think) on to the site – yes across that river somehow. It is just one big room with the kitchen at one end and everything else at the other. The building was used for hay storage for many years and the pitched ceiling is covered in graffiti that the local kids put there by climbing the bales. But the thing is that this lady has been off-grid the whole time. Hot water is solar as is electricity, wood heating and a bit of gas for the stove. When I say solar power, I mean totally Heath Robinson, just a few square metres of solar panel and the batteries and inverter are just on a table inside with wires hanging all over the place – seems to work and anyone who can escape the utilities has my vote!

Next stop was not the pub but a few had to drag themselves past it. No, we next visited a lady who breeds goldfish!

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Apparently there is a demand and she has turned her more or less unusable land into a 100 tank goldfish breeding centre. She supplies 15 pet shops and sends some overseas. It is amazing how many tanks and other stuff is needed to breed fish for 15 shops but she told me that the average lifespan of a pet goldfish is 3 weeks from the time they leave the shop due to accidents, cats, birds and the list goes on and on. Not only that, the ponds have to be covered because from the viewpoint of a heron, a shag or a kingfisher, this is just a local restaurant! She told me that the tanks start with thousands of sprats and they are gradually thinned out as they grow except if a shags gets to a tank, even with the water totally stirred up , they will eat every last fish in the tank and even she does not know how they find them in the turbid waters. At left is the view down the farm: Notice the ruggedness of the land behind.

But they live on the site of the Harbourmaster’s house which provides stunning views over the bay. All beautiful and we all found this very interesting but it has to be noted that the steep shingly and twisty drive defeated a few of us, most notably and surprisingly almost exclusively the moderns.

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After the fish farm we went back that pub and had a great lunch. The pub is newish and for sale if you are interested – just a bit more than an Auckland letterbox and it must have one of the best locations in the country.

The ride back was diverted out to the Tolaga bay wharf now strengthened after an heroic fund-raising effort by the locals.

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We walked what seemed to be about a kilometre out to the end.

Here we see Steve, Kelvin, Allan and Gregg gathered at the end followed by a view back to the land.

This wharf is probably unique in NZ and saving it for the next generation is a great thing.

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The VB went well all the way back managing about 50MPH on the flat and we won’t mention the hills. In February my overseas guests had replaced the condenser with a new old stock one from the hundreds I have in a box. I was advised it would not last but for this rally at least the old girl started and ran perfectly.

Dinner that night was the RSA who turned out a pretty good dinner for $25 a head – hard to get that low these days. The AGM was held in a room provided. The only change was to elect Paul Boyd from Hokitika as the new South Island rep. Fees remained the same. The meeting approved informally a design for plaques we will use in future for prize winners and a motion to add a joining fee to the club fees was not passed. This was to stop people buying Ariel parts from us when they do not have an Ariel such as clutch splines. Long story short, there were apparent fish-hooks in the proposals considered and the matter was left as is, parts can be bought but you must join the register first.

Having said that, there was a further discussion in response to a letter which from Steve Prince which was read to the meeting. As a result, a motion was approved along the lines where having an Ariel will be a requirement to join the club unless the person joining can provide a recommendation from an existing member to the effect that the intention is to obtain an Ariel or an Ariel will be provided by the referee. When discussed although Steve’s point that the club is in fact a register of Ariels not a vintage club, was totally supported, it was quite apparent from the discussion that restricting membership without some sort of rider on the resolution allowing some circumstances to over-ride the requirement would be detrimental to the club. The minutes will have the exact resolution.

On Sunday the classic club turned on yet another full English breakfast and we eventually packed up and made our way home. This rally was one of the best and our thanks to Andrew Champion, Gregg Pawson and Barry Hilton plus the supporters from the classic club for making us all so welcome and providing such a stunning rally.

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18 Ariels in a line the nearest being just restored by Gregg Pawson and it went very well.

My trip home was marred by a trailer tyre delaminating. The tyre did not go down but the delaminated tread flapped about so much it tore the mud flap off which I did not notice until I returned it to the owner. The trailer jack did not work and there was no handle for the wheel brace in the tool bag but luckily I was near a farm house and could borrow a wheel brace to undo the nuts that were heavily painted and darn near impossible to get off. The tyre was ancient. This after smashing a tail-light and forgetting the ramp when I drove the 50K to return it (100k round trip). I hate borrowing trailers!

Keep on riding