The old engine whirred along through the Outback heat, its slight mechanical clatter mixing with the sweet exhaust-note staccato that only a 1940s Harley-Davidson V-twin can make. A faint aroma of heavyweight mineral oil wafted up to the rider, who was settled in a comfortable slouch on his tractor-like seat. The rider looked over his shoulder to confirm the exact position of his fellow riders. Their presence was already apparent by the rising and falling of the exhaust resonance that occurs when motorcycles run in close formation. The sound was like a group of World War I biplanes, out on a mission. This was a mission, too. It was an attempt to ride a group of hand-shift, foot-clutch Harleys on a six-week circuit of the continent of Australia.
Seven days in, the rider, Peter McBride, was approaching an almost Zen-like state as he traversed the subtle changes of the lonely Outback. “I found the whole experience of riding across this area mind-boggling,” he said later. “Scenery-wise it was like traveling through the changing suburbs of a city except this was suburbs of nature. There were fields of rock, then fields of giant anthills. There were fields of low shrubs, then one of taller bushes and trees. I found myself really getting into the spirit of the ride and my motorcycle. At one point I reached a stage of concentration where I imagined how the oil was circulating through the engine and exactly what was going on down there mechanically to keep me mobile.”
Four adventurous riders; Peter McBride, Tony Blain, Bill MacNamara and Bill Brice, ready to embark on the ride of a lifetime: a lap around Australia on vintage Harley-Davidsons.
Four adventurous riders; Peter McBride, Tony Blain, Bill MacNamara and Bill Brice, ready t
Peter was riding across Australia’s far north “gulf country” with fellow vintage Harley enthusiasts Tony Blain, Bill Brice and Bill MacNamara. With around 1,500 miles gone, they had another 8,500 miles and five weeks to go. Tony and Bill B. had cooked up the idea after years of adventures on hand-shift Harleys, including taking a group of 22 racers from Australia to Daytona to campaign their flathead WLAs on the Speedway’s high-speed banks.
After two years of planning the four adventurers rode across Sydney’s iconic Harbour Bridge on an early spring day and headed north. “The nerves hit me as we rode over the Harbour Bridge,” said Tony later. “As I tapped into third gear I was sure I heard an engine noise. Am I going to have to battle this paranoia for the next 45 days?”
Peter described Australia’s vast Outback as like riding through “suburbs of nature.” Here the crew traverses a lonely road on the way from Darwin to Broome, in the Northern Territory.
Peter described Australia’s vast Outback as like riding through “suburbs of nature.” Here the crew traverses a lonely road on the way from Darwin to Broome, in the Northern Territory.
Heavy rain lashed the little group as it negotiated its way through the notorious eastern seaboard traffic to Brisbane. It intensified as they headed up to Cairns in the far north. “It seemed we were racing nature,” Peter said. “Behind us the main roads were being closed by floodwaters. One day I was standing by my bike refueling it when I noticed water pouring off my coat and drowning the ignition coil.”
One of Australia’s most famous landmarks is the 12 Apostles, ancient limestone columns on Victoria’s Great Ocean Road.
One of Australia’s most famous landmarks is the 12 Apostles, ancient limestone columns on
Everyone from European backpackers on tour busses to Australian grey nomads in campervans has done a lap of Australia. Most consider that the real Australian adventure begins when you head west over the Atherton Tablelands from Cairns into the savannah gulf country to Darwin. “It was great to be out of the humidity of Cairns,” Bill M. admitted, “although we had to get into another process of starting early to get miles under our wheels before the dry heat struck. Believe me, it got hot all right.
“The little bikes were amazing. We’d clock up big miles on them each day then check everything from the spokes to the regulator (it can overcharge the battery on a WLA), but they just kept going. We had some fuel vaporizing issues in the extreme heat, just as we’d had some water in the fuel previously, but that was it.” The same couldn’t be said of some of the modern technology. On the road into Darwin an iPhone failed and the hard drive of one of the team’s laptops died.
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Tony’s 1938 flathead Harley is the second year of the dry-sump 750cc flathead engine and is designated as a W model, with iron heads. H-D sales were suffering as a result of the Great Depression, but a huge contract in World War II revitalised the company and it churned out hundreds of thousands of the WLA version, nicknamed the “Walla” in Australia. Tony bought his civilian model as an older restoration just a few months before the big trip. Amazingly, the WLA engine lasted until 1973 in the US, powering three-wheeler Servicars for milk and postal deliveries.
Tony’s 1938 flathead Harley is the second year of the dry-sump 750cc flathead engine and i
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Bill B.’s WLA is in Army form, familiar to anyone who knows about World War II’s Pacific, North Africa, or European campaigns. These models, designed for dispatch riders, have alloy heads. Bill has clocked up huge miles on this bike as a daily transport and a tourer over the past 30 years, including trips to Perth, South Australia, and Queensland. Despite the high-mileage his bike has its original, unrestored gearbox. The ancillaries are good, too, such as the generator—he’s only replaced the brushes in it.
Bill B.’s WLA is in Army form, familiar to anyone who knows about World War II’s Pacific,
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Bill M.’s WLA is a refugee from the ’60s and ’70s when they often ended up with metalflake purple peanut tanks and 24-inch ape hangers. Built up from a basket case, at one stage Bill ran it with a supercharger pilfered off a Japanese car. He treated it to a total rebuild before the ride.
Bill M.’s WLA is a refugee from the ’60s and ’70s when they often ended up with metalflake
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Bill B.’s WLA is in Army form, familiar to anyone who knows about World War II’s Pacific, North Africa, or European campaigns. These models, designed for dispatch riders, have alloy heads. Bill has clocked up huge miles on this bike as a daily transport and a tourer over the past 30 years, including trips to Perth, South Australia, and Queensland. Despite the high-mileage his bike has its original, unrestored gearbox. The ancillaries are good, too, such as the generator—he’s only replaced the brushes in it.
Bill B.’s WLA is in Army form, familiar to anyone who knows about World War II’s Pacific,
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Tony’s 1938 flathead Harley is the second year of the dry-sump 750cc flathead engine and is designated as a W model, with iron heads. H-D sales were suffering as a result of the Great Depression, but a huge contract in World War II revitalised the company and it churned out hundreds of thousands of the WLA version, nicknamed the “Walla” in Australia. Tony bought his civilian model as an older restoration just a few months before the big trip. Amazingly, the WLA engine lasted until 1973 in the US, powering three-wheeler Servicars for milk and postal deliveries.
Tony’s 1938 flathead Harley is the second year of the dry-sump 750cc flathead engine and i
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Bill M.’s WLA is a refugee from the ’60s and ’70s when they often ended up with metalflake purple peanut tanks and 24-inch ape hangers. Built up from a basket case, at one stage Bill ran it with a supercharger pilfered off a Japanese car. He treated it to a total rebuild before the ride.
Bill M.’s WLA is a refugee from the ’60s and ’70s when they often ended up with metalflake