Bingo & Poker run Sun 20th Dec 2020

Pics courtesy of Peter Barclay & his daughter Michelle 


Ride reports by Graham Aitken and Peter Townsend (follows the photos) and Peter Barclay (at the end).

Peter Barclay organised and led this year’s Bingo/Poker Run. About 22 happy riders met at the Corio Roadhouse at 9.30am. Patt volunteered as tail-end Charlie. It was pleasing to see Peter’s children Leigh and Michelle joining us on the ride. The weather was perfect for a day of riding. Cards and Bingo numbers were drawn and then we headed off. 


Our first stop was Moriac where another card was drawn then to the Barwon Heads Airport for Morning tea. Gentle and Richard had the Chuck Wagon set up.  Di, (Peters wife) had made her famous Cup Cakes and Cookies, delicious.  Another card and Bingo numbers were drawn.


After refreshments we headed to Breamlea where another Card was drawn then a loop around Bells Beach finishing up at Barwon Heads Airport for a BBQ lunch. Another Card and Bingo numbers were drawn. 


Winners were announced and my name was not amongst them however I did receive a Beanie made by Di Barclay. Thank you Di for the Cup Cakes and Beanie. 


Thank you Peter for a magnificent job organising and leading the ride. An excellent job.

















 
 A to Z of the POKER & BINGO RIDE --  20  DEC. 2020

 
 A – Is for airport, our ride destination for both morning coffee and lunch.
 
B – Is for Barwon Heads road which was bloody busy.
 
C – Is for the chuck wagon which kept us watered and fed.
 
D – Is for Diane’s delicious cupcakes and home-made bikkies.
 
E – Is for entertainment, of which there was plenty.
 
F – Is for five playing cards which make up a poker hand.
 
G – Is for good friends and company throughout the day.
 
H – Is for helicopters buzzing above our heads.
 
I – Is for insects of the kamikaze variety, adding colour to visors and screens.
 
J – Is for the jackpot, which I did not win.
 
K – Is for kettles providing hot water for tea and coffee.
 
L – Is for lucky people who won lucrative prizes.
 
M – Is for the megaphone which our Bingo caller didn’t need.
 
N – Is for ninety-six – the Bingo number that was called twice!
 
O – Is for other people (partners etc) that joined us for lunch.
 
P – Is for parachutists threatening to land in our midst.
 
Q – Is for quiet concentration experienced during Bingo calling.
 
R – Is for the rain which stayed away.
 
S – Is for sausages and savs cooked to perfection by our own Gordon Ramsay and Gentle.
 
T – Is for Torquay which kept making an appearance throughout the day.
 
U – Is for unanimous appreciation of a well organised and planned ride.
 
V – Is for velocity which was at a relaxed pace.
 
W – Is for weather which was sunny and pleasant with a cooling breeze.
 
X – Is for Xmas as this is our last formal ride prior to this.
 
Y – Is for yarn which is something our ride leader enjoys spinning.
 
Z – Is for zig zag, which is the Ulysses preferred means of getting from A to B.
 
                   Peter t.


AND LAST, BUT NOT LEAST .... PETER BARCLAY'S TAKE ON IT


Three questions.


1/ Were they pushed, did they fall out or did they jump?


2/ If we travel up and/or down the same road 3 times on the same ride can we claim it as our own road?


3/ What's the difference between 18 and 81?
 
1/Smoko and BBQ breaks had entertainment supplied. I guess they jumped 'cause we had sky divers all afternoon landing near our Chuck wagon. Most of them were 2 up. I guess some were having the first abandonment of a perfectly serviceable aircraft. Great to watch. The WestPac Rescue helicopter was doing some training flights, taking off and landing numerous times right next to our BBQ site.


2/On our ride we travelled up and down Messmate road three times. First time was on our way to "smoko" and then to and from Bells Beach on the second portion of our ride. From this day forward it will be known as Geelong Ulysses Rd.


3/When calling the Bingo numbers, it's advisable to hold the number the right way up. I called 81 twice, until I was informed that 81 had already been called. Opp's! Turn it around and it's 18. Next number out I had to check with Mal if I had it the right way up. His reply is yep your right. It was number 11. (True story)
Anyways it was a great day. Weather was perfect, traffic wasn't as bad as I thought it may have been. (Sunday before Xmas) Great turn up, with some making an appearance at our meet site because of other family commitments. Thanks for making the effort.


Big thank you to Gentle and Colleen for carting the Chuck wagon around, doing the shopping, setting up and along with Richard doing the cooking. Much appreciated by all. Mel for organizing the bingo cards and sheets, and the playing cards. Thanks mate.


My wife Diane for supplying the famous cupcakes and biscuits, as well as the Geelong Branch Beanies and dish cloths (Prizes) Thanks Dizie. For me it was a family day. My son Leigh (VTR Honda) and daughter Michelle (Ducati) also rode with us. What a pleasure/honour to have the whole family involved.


I didn't note the distance travelled, but I think we travelled between 120 to 150 k's. The greatest distance from Geelong was probably Bells Beach. We didn't venture far from home at all. And thanks of course, to Pat for "wagging the tail" (She likes to keep us blokes inline and well behaved) And thanks to all that turned up for our last ride for the year. We had a number of non-riding family members there as well. 


Thank you to all that were part of the day.
Peter B.