Any Ulysses riders here?

[Holy Roller]

Now that I'm old enough to join as a junior member and have attended two mandatory runs all that is left is to pay the subs.
How long have you been in Ulysses?
How many Rallies do you go on?
Any advise for a young un....
Gordon

[Two Smoker]

Now that I'm old enough to join as a junior member and have attended two mandatory runs all that is left is to pay the subs.
How long have you been in Ulysses?
How many Rallies do you go on?
Any advise for a young un....
Gordon

Im a infant in Ulysses Club terms lol.... although i went on the westpac Fundraising Ride..

[Lou Girardin]

I've thought about it, but it's the last step in the biker ageing process. Maybe when I buy a Bandit.
Lou

[Blackbird]

I've thought about it, but it's the last step in the biker ageing process. Maybe when I buy a Bandit.
Lou

I'm 56 but NOT a Ulysses member. Some branches have a good mix of people and machinery, but my local branch are just into cruisers and that is definitely not my scene! I go along with growing old discracefully though!

[White trash]

They're not too disgracefull though, are they.

I'm looking forward to growing up and joining, so I can be called a wanker and told to piss off for my riding style

[merv]

I joined in 1996 Wellington Branch. I always liked the monthly runs many of which you can see the pics of on my website http://bikemerv.topcities.com/

I've never bothered with the rallies as I'm more into the comforts of home at my age than to be sleeping in a tent or a cabin.

Ulysses always seems to suffer on and off from too much bureaucracy - they are an incorporated society I think, so there is always the officialdom that goes with that, so there's all the election of officers, rule books and stuff like that. Me I'm just a rider and I don't get into the politics of things. I like to leave all that kind of stuff at work and relax in my time off.

The real key to how enjoyable it is for me is who takes on the role of runs coordinator and where they decide the rides should go. They do need to make up a runs schedule that suits all types as there are some faster riders and there are some very slow ones. So the success or otherwise of all this is very dependent on who is taking charge at your local branch and whether you like the way they do stuff.

In the last year I have not been on one of their runs for a number of reasons. One is few of them seem to have embraced the technological age and they don't keep in touch electronically so unless you go to the monthly meeting (and I don't - can't be bothered put up with the smoke filled air at the Petone Working Men's Club - just go to the annual AGM each May) you never know where the next run is going to. Next reason is I have been run off my feet of late doing other stuff in my time off work and lastly just about every week the Ulysses monthly ride has been on wake up Sunday morning and look out the window, the weather's been crap so back to bed. Case in point was February's ride was due to go to Apiti on Sunday, by Monday the area around Feilding was a disaster area and it was pissing down in Wellington on Sunday - rang my mate who's a fellow Ulyssian and we agreed yeah back to bed. No point being stupid just because we are old.

When I first joined others seemed to ridicule Ulysses for being nothing but a pub crawl - it may have been before 1996 - but it has not been like that in our branch since I have been a member. We stop at pubs at times for food and minimal drinks - me I stick to soft drink. There may still be others in other branches that drink too much but I haven't met them.

I have also been a member of e-Riders since 1994 (it started as Sawyers by invitation club so I got invited along when I bought my VFR) and it runs altogether a whole lot easier than Ulysses - no rules, no fees just fun and with Lynda at the helm now we are all kept on our toes and everything is totally informal and we seem to have no hassles. All communication is now electronic except when we are actually together face to face. The guys starting Club 250 and others on this site are probably taking a similar line and my advice to them would be keep it simple, just enjoy.

With this website there is now such an easy means of people being able to meet each other. Ulysses have a threaded discussion page on their website but its not so easy to use and is not as active. I am up for membership renewal end of this year for Ulysses - $55 for 3 years - can't begrudge it really and you get a quarterly glossy mag for that. I still pay my membership of Hawkes Bay Motorcycle Club too and I haven't lived in HB for 31 years but I started my riding with them and have continued to support the club.

Look out for me as I have a Ulysses badge on both my bikes #3590. Motu you shouldn't have any problem recognising me at Pukemanu anyway as I doubt there will be too many short arse WR250s there.

[Cajun]

Now that I'm old enough to join as a junior member and have attended two mandatory runs all that is left is to pay the subs.
How long have you been in Ulysses?
How many Rallies do you go on?
Any advise for a young un....
Gordon

Well i'm a little young to be in Ulysses but my father in law is the Presient of the Tauranga Ulysses branch.

Most of our local ulysses know us, cause we help out at lot of the local events/rallys they hold, so we are pretty much members go on all the rides can go on all the events.

We normal go on 2 rallys a year father in law goes on a good 6 to 7 a year. Its really up to you how many you go on what you feel like, you should always go to your local clubs rally, and often just choose different rallys each year to go to, if you tryed to go to everything you would be out of the house all weekend which normal doesn't go down well with rest of family most of time. He has been a member for about 10 years now.

Not all ulysses clubs are slow, there are quiet a few of them in the tauranga branch which are on rf900 vtr1000 and so on and we go for a good blast, there are the others at other end that don't go over 100km/h but thats what its all about.

One of the best things i have found is alot of the old members know alot of the old country roads and find many different ways of getting places.

[Blackbird]

Well i'm a little young to be in Ulysses but my father in law is the Presient of the Tauranga Ulysses branch.

I've probably met your father in law then as I showed a whole bunch of riders from Tauranga Ulysses round the Kinleith pulp and paper mill a while back. Great bunch of people and some good machinery, including an Aprilia.

Cheers

Geoff

[Andrew]

Hey KK - How long till we can join the Ulysses club?

[Two Smoker]

Hey KK - How long till we can joing Ulysses club?

About a million years........, 40 to become a junior member

[Cajun]

I've probably met your father in law then as I showed a whole bunch of riders from Tauranga Ulysses round the Kinleith pulp and paper mill a while back. Great bunch of people and some good machinery, including an Aprilia.

Cheers

Geoff

Yeah could of done he is a fat man with a bmw k12rs(horrible machine these)

[bondagebunny]

Now that I'm old enough to join as a junior member and have attended two mandatory runs all that is left is to pay the subs.
How long have you been in Ulysses?
How many Rallies do you go on?
Any advise for a young un....
Gordon

they should down da gang HQ eh boy, wiff da rest of da bro's

[White trash]

they should down da gang HQ eh boy, wiff da rest of da bro's

What the.....?

'Bunny, you crack me up every time!

[Yarg]

I've been in Ulysses since 1997. Never been to Rally yet but working on it.
need to pick the runs that interest you and pic the right RIC.(Rider in charge)
I have certaintly found more interesting roads to ride since I have joined and most members are happy to share their knowledge.
each to their own I guess.

[NZred]

They're not too disgracefull though, are they.

I'm looking forward to growing up and joining, so I can be called a wanker and told to piss off for my riding style

Shucks.. you don't gotta be a member for us to bad mouth you.. we can do that now.