Tenere 700 Rally
32 owners of the popular twin-cylinder adventure bike congregated at the Wauchope Country Club ready to tackle a four-day adventure in a variety of challenging terrain and conditions. Special guest and Yamaha legend Stephen Gall and 1988 Finke winner Alan Roe were on hand to offer riding tips and advice.
This advice would be used to the full on the first day when a massive downpour threatened to derail the adventure. Closed tracks resulted in a detour via a greasy, muddy stretch near Bellingen, NSW that was soon dubbed the Valley of Doom.
“It was a real adventure,” explains RideADV head honcho Greg Yager. “The fog was so thick that vision was down to less than 40 metres. We all pitched in to cut up fallen trees and to push the support vehicle through a creek and up a bank,“ he continues. “We arrived back in Coffs Harbour well after dark… in a thunderstorm,” he adds.
“It was pretty epic … and the riders loved it. I had many saying that it was the best day ever and asking how the ride could possibly get better on day two… “
Without the mud and rain, day two delivered a a more cruisey experience along Old Grafton Road with 335 km of adventure riding utopia unrolling before them. Average speeds increased as the spectacular scenery around Inverell came and went on the 460 km long day three. Day four closed the loop back to Wauchope via Nundle.
With logistical support from Team Cox in the Mercedes Unimog and the assistance of the RideADV crew, the inaugural Destination Yamaha Ténéré 700 Rally was a huge success. Despite the conditions there were no breakdowns, no serious injuries and many happy riders eager to join the next Tenere 700 event.
“The camaraderie on this ride was top shelf, everyone helped each other out when the going got tough. The group really stepped up to the challenging conditions and embraced what turned out to be one of the most memorable adventures we’ve run,” finishes Yager.
2021 Destination Yamaha Ténéré 700 Rally by the numbers
- Longest travelled 2800kms – Mark Battersby
- Special guests – Yamaha Legend Stephen Gall and 1988 Finke winner Alan Roe
- Day 1 320kms. Wauchope, Pembroke, Kempsey, Collombatti, Taylors Arm, South Arm, Bellingen and finished at Aanuka Bay Resort Coffs Harbour
- Day 2 335kms. Old Grafton road trail, Nana Glen, Nymboida, Dalmorton, Gibraltar Range, Deepwater, Rangers valley and Glen Innes showground.
- Day 3 460kms. Kingsland, Elsmore, Inverell special test, Inverell, Delungra, Bingara, Lower Horton, Upper Horton, Barraba, Garthowen, Moore Creek and Tamworth
- Day 4 383kms. Nundle, Nowendoc, Mt George, Bago and Wauchope
Participant – Phillip Truebody
“I feel like I’ve re-fuelled the soul with premium. This isn’t my first rodeo and based on my experience over the four-day event, I’ll be back as often as my body lets me. Greg and his team know what it takes to etch a grin on your face. Totally professional and organised, even when mother nature had other ideas. Always felt like we were in good hands as the culture he and his team enjoy, seemed to flow into the group of riders. The catalyst to a great adventure rally is the mates you meet and quality of bullshit and banter that gets hurled around. This was plentiful.”
