May 30
Off to Canbera to see the Queen.........No that can't be right, Ossies don't believe in the Queen..................It must be off to Canbera to see Kevin Rudd.

Inspired by NZ National MP Shane Ardern and his driving of a Fergy 35 tractor up the steps of Parliament buildings in Wellington a few years ago................Henk and Mike decided introduce themselves to the Prime Minister, seen as they were in town that day. They were sure that Kev would want to see the bikes even if it was just to see the damage that Ozzie outback roads could do to Japanese bikes.

The welcoming party was quite unexpected as they hadn't phoned Kev to say they would be dropping in. Then Henk and Mike realised that they were not being welcomed with outstretched arms, but rather with hands firmly clasped around the hand grip of Australian Security Service issued Browning 9 mm side arms. As the welcoming party closed in on the visitors a stern voice came booming over a loud hailer telling them that they had been monitored by surveillance cameras for the last 1000m. They were to stay on their bikes, leave immediately or be taken down.

As Henk tried to catch a red ant on his chest Mike noticed that the welcoming party was being bolstered by sharpshooters on the roof tops aiming silenced 222 rifles fitted with red laser dot sights in their direction. The red ant wasn't going to be caught and unless Henk and Mike moved soon the red ant was going to bite.

After considering their options Mike responded "We're a bit pushed for time really. Tell Kev we'll catch up with him another day". With that they rode back down the steps and out of town to find some more gum trees to hide behind and camp for the night.

May 31
Kev wasn't able to see them but Greg Murphy might be practicing at Bathurst. Henk and Mike went out to Mt Panorama and were surprised to find that the track is actually a public road. Greg was nowhere to be seen so Henk and Mike did a couple of practice laps of their own on the Transalps.

June 1
Last ride day back into Sydney via Dubbo.
Time to clean the bikes up, do some shopping and see the sights of Sydney before flying out on the 5th June.

Some facts and figures
Total distance...........19573 km
Fuel cost...................A$2025
Fuel cost/km..............10.4c
Accommodation cost......A$1870 (4 nights motel, 4 nights Hotel, 10 nights cabin, 2 nights tent, 16 nights under fly, 1 night backpackers)
Av cost/night.....................A$24.50

Big Big Thank you
Henk and Mike want to thank everyone that helped make the ride such a success. Selena and Terry of BIKESCAPE in Sydney. Without the help of these two wonderful people we would never have been able to do the deed. BIKESCAPE hire out bikes and help with scenic tours and also do chauffeured rides. They have at least 30 bikes to hire out and have customers in every day. Selena and Terry are a must contact for those who want to do a ride of any size around Australia. Check them out at www.bikescape.com.au. Thanks again guys.
R&M MOTORCYCLES at Katherine. We stopped at numerous Honda shops on the ride but found John and staff the most helpful.
Big thanks to Steve Woolhead owner of CLUB HOTEL CROYDON This is a really amazing place up in NT. A must for the traveller who really wants to see the outback at its best then finish the day off at the best pub in Australia. Hey thanks again Steve your place is the best! Keep up the good work.
The best RSL in the country is in Ballina just S of Byron Bay. We tried out a few RSLs and on the whole they were all very good but Ballina really stood out among them all. Go Ballina RSL!
The best breakfast goes to the POSSUMS CAFE run by Helen Milne in Woolingong NSW. We had many breakfasts on our way round but this cafe took the prize. We must say that coming in strongly at No 2 was the LOBO LOCO in Mt Molloy NT. This place is owned and run buy a Swiss guy and his Mexican wife.
Well I guess this must all come to an end. Well for a little while anyway.......
There are still a lot of people out there who helped us out in many ways and we would like to say a special thanks to you all. You will know who you are.
Thank you everyone who followed the Blog and we will endeavour to keep in touch for our next adventure.
Cheers Henk, Mike, Colin, and Robin.