Danae
9th August 2009, 20:52
Sunday was the day of the great and magnificent Meremere drag races. Bikers, boy racers, classic car owners and guys in vans flocked to the small town from all corners of Auckland and maybe Mercer.
Naturally the SMC had to get involved. The club has quite a few race bikes; GSXRs, VFRs, RVFs...machines that were made for the fast lane.
So of course we forgo them all and instead decide to take a couple of scooters.
Yes, scooters.
A friend of the club recently received an awesome and almost too sexy scooter for his 21st. As if the fact that it was a Honda weren't gay enough, the scooter was decorated with pretty metallic vinyl and gained the race number 21. I still have a hold of my old Yamaha Vino, a nifty fifty with far too much grunt for what it's worth, and has been living with Squiggles for the last couple of weeks.
As soon as the Honda Dio laid headlight on the Vino, you could see the tension in the air. Super-high frequency photons of jealousy and rage sparked between the two scoots, and they had to be separated before they ripped each other apart.
There was only one way to settle which scooter was best: SCOOTER DRAGS!
However, unseen complications the day before the drags was only the beginning of the problematic journey...our Dio owner friend had managed to debead the rear tyre of the scoot (coincidentally, I did exactly the same thing). Drastic times called for drastic measures, and drastic measures called for Squiggles, the local fixit/unshaven rapist!
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2490&pictureid=29305"></img>
A Honda Dio is harder to put back together than those puzzles that make a sphere...in the end you just stick bits together hoping all is well
He was over in a flash, and the scoot put up a terrible fight as we attempted to remove it's wheel (you would too if someone were trying to wrench one of your limbs off), but eventually the damn thing came off. Unfortunately filling it up with air wouldn't do the trick, and the Tyre Place was closed, so we promptly sat down to watch Star Trek, Harold and Kumar, and Billy Connolly until 4am while drinking.
Oh right, the drags are at 10! Up at the crack of dawn (8:47am) and out the door! PirateJafa is already at Squiggles', busy being a replacement son and eating the delicious breakfast Squigs' mum made. Hang around for a bit, rush off to Cycletreads to resurrect the tyre and steal sponsor stickers. Unsatisfied with acquiring a full licence and driving around legally, Jafa has let his rego go out. We spend the better part of half an hour trying to find an AA or post office that is open but no luck...oh well!
Grab a trailer and go to pick up the scooters. Reattach the rear tyre (which is just as difficult as taking it off) and biff the scoots into the trailer.
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2490&pictureid=29297"></img>
All ready to hit the road! Doesn't that pink vinyl look fabulous?
Right, on the road! Oh crap, it's midday.
Just out of Auckland the scooters are getting a bit friendly. Rather, in true Honda fashion, the Dio is making a move on the Vino. The Yamaha stands resolute and tries to ignore the bumping and grinding Honda. Eventually we feel sorry for it, pull off the motorway and readjust the tie-downs.
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2490&pictureid=29298"></img>
Settle down back there!
We have a rather uneventful drive down. As long as you don't count the fact that none of us have any idea where Meremere is exactly..."South" seems to suffice.
At about 1:30 we reach the Meremere dragway! Hoorah! Apprehensively we approach the entrance, unsure what all the super-hardout bikers and cagers will think of our pisstake...ooh, a sign! Hrm...no eftpos.
Jafa: "I don't suppose any of you have cash?"
Squigs and Danae: EPIC FACEPALM
Naturally the SMC had to get involved. The club has quite a few race bikes; GSXRs, VFRs, RVFs...machines that were made for the fast lane.
So of course we forgo them all and instead decide to take a couple of scooters.
Yes, scooters.
A friend of the club recently received an awesome and almost too sexy scooter for his 21st. As if the fact that it was a Honda weren't gay enough, the scooter was decorated with pretty metallic vinyl and gained the race number 21. I still have a hold of my old Yamaha Vino, a nifty fifty with far too much grunt for what it's worth, and has been living with Squiggles for the last couple of weeks.
As soon as the Honda Dio laid headlight on the Vino, you could see the tension in the air. Super-high frequency photons of jealousy and rage sparked between the two scoots, and they had to be separated before they ripped each other apart.
There was only one way to settle which scooter was best: SCOOTER DRAGS!
However, unseen complications the day before the drags was only the beginning of the problematic journey...our Dio owner friend had managed to debead the rear tyre of the scoot (coincidentally, I did exactly the same thing). Drastic times called for drastic measures, and drastic measures called for Squiggles, the local fixit/unshaven rapist!
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2490&pictureid=29305"></img>
A Honda Dio is harder to put back together than those puzzles that make a sphere...in the end you just stick bits together hoping all is well
He was over in a flash, and the scoot put up a terrible fight as we attempted to remove it's wheel (you would too if someone were trying to wrench one of your limbs off), but eventually the damn thing came off. Unfortunately filling it up with air wouldn't do the trick, and the Tyre Place was closed, so we promptly sat down to watch Star Trek, Harold and Kumar, and Billy Connolly until 4am while drinking.
Oh right, the drags are at 10! Up at the crack of dawn (8:47am) and out the door! PirateJafa is already at Squiggles', busy being a replacement son and eating the delicious breakfast Squigs' mum made. Hang around for a bit, rush off to Cycletreads to resurrect the tyre and steal sponsor stickers. Unsatisfied with acquiring a full licence and driving around legally, Jafa has let his rego go out. We spend the better part of half an hour trying to find an AA or post office that is open but no luck...oh well!
Grab a trailer and go to pick up the scooters. Reattach the rear tyre (which is just as difficult as taking it off) and biff the scoots into the trailer.
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2490&pictureid=29297"></img>
All ready to hit the road! Doesn't that pink vinyl look fabulous?
Right, on the road! Oh crap, it's midday.
Just out of Auckland the scooters are getting a bit friendly. Rather, in true Honda fashion, the Dio is making a move on the Vino. The Yamaha stands resolute and tries to ignore the bumping and grinding Honda. Eventually we feel sorry for it, pull off the motorway and readjust the tie-downs.
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2490&pictureid=29298"></img>
Settle down back there!
We have a rather uneventful drive down. As long as you don't count the fact that none of us have any idea where Meremere is exactly..."South" seems to suffice.
At about 1:30 we reach the Meremere dragway! Hoorah! Apprehensively we approach the entrance, unsure what all the super-hardout bikers and cagers will think of our pisstake...ooh, a sign! Hrm...no eftpos.
Jafa: "I don't suppose any of you have cash?"
Squigs and Danae: EPIC FACEPALM