Near Sturgis is Fort Meade the home of the famous Seventh Cavalry. In 1875 the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians left the reservations to fight George Armstrong Custer for their sacred land the Black Hills.

The Army sent out three columns to attack in a synchronized manner to force the Indians back onto the reservations. Lt. Colonel George Custer led one of these columns the Seventh Cavalry. Custer however, ignored the order to wait, and attacked a small group of 40 warriors in the hope it would prevent them from alerting a nearby village.

Custer was unaware that in the village was a force of warriors three times bigger than his column. He sent a squadron of soldiers to attack the southern end of the village, but they soon discovered that they were in a battle they could not win, so they retreated uphill, pursued by the Cheyenne and Sioux.

He sent soldiers to attack from the northern end; they were confronted by Cheyenne and Hunkpapa Sioux who forced them across the Little Bighorn River to a high ridge. Then the Oglala Sioux led by Crazy Horse engulfed Custer and his soldiers, killing them all in less than hour.

The Indians fled when they discovered the other two columns were approaching.

After the battle, the Indians mutilated the soldiers’ bodies believing that by doing so, their souls would remain on earth and not go to heaven. For some unknown reason they stripped and cleaned Custer's body. The Sioux and Cheyenne with Sitting Bull won two battles over the US Calvary during 1876 and Little Bighorn was the Indians greatest victory. Unfortunately, the white men were unforgiving towards the Indians because of Custer's death, (Custer at that time was a decorated Civil War hero). In retaliation, the whites took the Black Hills away from the Indians and opened it up for white settlement, and the Sioux nation was destroyed within a year. Sitting Bull 1878 "Custer's Last Stand was their last stand”.

The original rally was started by the owner of the motorcycle shop J.C. "Pappy" Hoel, and the Jackpine Gypsies Motorcycle Club, while the Black Hills Motor Classic Inc. ran the event. The first Sturgis rally was held in 1938 with 19 races running the half mile track. Five thousand spectators watched 150 racers run the Sturgis half mile in 1940.

The rally was not held during the war, but in 1947 some 400 riders were involved in the Gypsy Tour and motorcycle races. By the 60’s the rally was gaining popularity and many new events had been added. In the 80’s much larger crowds were attending and by 1998 there were 360,000 people. Today the Sturgis Rally and Races, Inc. run the event.

The motorcycle rally just keeps growing with concerts featuring famous artists; they are advertising it as a 5 day rock festival as well as a motorcycle rally. There are a lot of local attractions to interest everybody – the breathtaking Black Hills, including Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Crazy Horse Memorial, Custer State Park, Wind Cave National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Black Hills National Forest, Devils Tower National Monument and the Centennial Trail. Only a few miles away from Sturgis are incredible hiking tracks, mountain biking, boating, hunting, fishing, skiing and snowmobiling. No wonder they get 500,000 people it sounds like a great place to visit.

Peter and Alan are planning to go to the event in August 2008 and Peter has found a tour where you hire a Harley Davidson from Los Angles and ride to Sturgis with everything organised by the company www.ridefree.com

On the way to Sturgis you will visit Las Vegas, Yellowstone National Park, Salt Lake City and Death Valley. You just pay your money, ride each day, and they take care of your accommodation, all meals, fuel and provide a backup vehicle for around $2300 plus your air fares. Peter estimates all up it will cost around $5000 for 15 days.

Peter did say that Virgin Blue would be flying to the USA from Australia next year, so that ought to reduce the price a little. It sounds like a fantastic trip and I’m sure there would be quite a few members who would just love to go ……. if only we had the money!!!! We will follow with interest the boys’ holiday and look forward to some great photos when they get back.

Oh! and one more thing, the Star-Spangled Banner became America’s national anthem in Sturgis. http://www.sturgis.com/

Seems there are some exciting trips for motorcyclists.

Happy riding
Wendy

Classic Bikes of Yesteryear Pt IV

A brief history of the Benelli Company.

After the death of her husband in 1907 Teresa Boni Benelli was so resolved that her 6 children would not work in the fields of the family farm, she sold some of the fields to finance her sons dreams with the purchase of some lathes and milling machines and had them installed in the family home, and thus the Benelli Machine Shop was born.

Benelli is one of the oldest motorcycle manufacturers in the world. It is also the oldest Italian motorcycle manufacturer in business, being established in 1911.

The company first made spare parts for the first cars and motorbikes that were starting to show up on the local roads. And later gears for a local car manufacturer, then branching out to shot gun manufacture. (And STILL produces some of the best shot guns in the world.)

The Benelli Machine Shop specialized more and more in the fine machine parts. But in 1916 an earthquake destroyed most of the house, making the rooms of the machine shop unusable and dangerous.With the help of their relatives they found a new place and relocated the machinery in Pesaro.

In 1920 the company built its first complete engine in-house, a single-cylinder two-stroke 75 cc model, immediately adapted to a bicycle frame. A year later in 1921, Benelli built its first motorcycle, using their own engine which had by then become a 98 cc model.

Benelli racing motorcycles were renowned in the 1920s & 30s winning a number of Italian and World Championship titles.

The youngest son Tinino nicknamed "Tino the terrible" displayed natural talent as a rider, and embarked on a very successful career which confirmed the company's exceptional capacity for development and production. Riding a Benelli 175, Tono Benelli won four Italian championship titles in five years: in 1927, 1928 and 1930 with the single overhead camshaft (SOHC) version, and in 1931 with the double overhead camshaft (DOHC) version. Unfortunately, a bad crash during a race in 1932 cut short his brilliant career and in 1937 Tonino died following a road accident.

In 1939 Benelli produced a four cylinder 250cc supercharged bike which won the Isle of Man TT lightweight race.But with WAR looming production was ceased. The factory suffered heavy damage with the outbreak of War and production did not resume till 1949.

By 1951 Benelli was offering a range consisting of 98cc and 125cc motorcycles (the Leoncino or lion cub) and 350cc and 500cc singles. The Leoncino was available in both two-stroke and four-stroke forms. The need for cheap transport in post-war Italy meant that these lightweight models became immensely successful. Similar models were offered by Moto Guzzi, Ducati and Laverda, and the same economic conditions led to the growth in popularity of Vespa and Lambretta scooters.

In the early 1960s Benelli was producing 300 motorcycles per day and was a leading innovator in motorcycle design.

But by the mid to late 60’s Benelli suffered ( as did all manufactures) with the arrival of the Japanese entering the motorcycle market with there multi-cylinder super bikes, and the company was sold to Alejandro de Tomaso.

New bikes such as the twin cylinder 650S and the 650cc Tornado were produced during the 70’s but did not have much impact on the market.
With new money becoming available for research & development during the late 1970’s and early 80’s models such as the 350cc & 500cc Quattro’s and the beautiful 750cc & 900cc Sei models fitted with 6 cylinder Moto Guzzi engine flowed from the assembly line.

The 750ccSei was a 5 speed SOHC air cooled six cylinder 4 stroke, with a 56mm bore x by 50.6mm stroke. 747.7cc which developed a max power of 71 HP @ 8900rpm. Compression 9:1. - 2 valves per cylinder, 3 Dell' Orto Carby’s fed the 6 pots the maximum speed was rated @113mph. 1/4 mile SS 14.4secs. Fitted with twin front disc & a drum rear brake. Italian machines have, in the past been criticized for their poor instruments and switch gear but the 750 Benelli goes someway to alleviating this. They are legible and easy to use. Underlining the fact that this is a touring motorcycle, the fuel tank holds no less than five gallons, giving a cruising range of up to 300Km.

The 900Sei is a 905cc air cooled in line OHC 6 cylinder with a Bore x Stroke:60.0 x 53.4 mm, Compression ratio: of 9.5:1, developing Max Power: 80.00 HP (58.4 kW) @ 8300rpm with a Max. Speed of 193.0 km/h (120 mph) 18 inch tyres on front and rear

The Benelli 750 & 900Sei were in a class of there own, both as an expensive piece of two wheeled technology, and as a smooth and relaxing tourer, the engine was said to be a master-piece of sculpture, To sum up the Benelli 750Sei & 900Sei they were a fantastic motorcycle, been described many a time in press reports as having a jewel of an engine, but unfortunately the bikes were plagued with poor electrics and aero-dynamics and production ceased in 1988 when the Benelli Company was sold to its competitor Moto Guzzi, creating “Guzzi Benelli Moto S.p.A.”

Benelli is now part of the Qianjiang motor group, which still produce motorcycles in China.

You can view a 750Sei running, and other Benelli bikes on line at You Tube athttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-s0TsjtQLA

Photos courtesy of Vintage Bike.

WazzA

Tips 'n' Tricks ~ Brakes

Tip: Brake fluid absorbs moisture over time and becomes less effective. Replace brake fluid every one to two years and your brakes will preform the best they can.

Motorcycles have up to two brake fluid reservoirs, one for the front, usually found on the handlebars and one for the back. Both should be checked regularly. Topping up should only be done from a new, sealed bottle as brake fluid tends to absorb moisture over time. If your brake pads are thin and due for replacement. Beware - brake fluid, if spilt on paintwork eats right through to the bare metal.

Also check the thickness of the brake pads. If you allow them to go right down to the metal your brake disc will be damaged resulting in an unnecessary and expensive replacement. Fitting braided steel brake lines will increase the performance of your brakes by roughly 50%

Ride Calendar

ZAMBIA ORPHANAGE

It was wonderful to have Leno safely back in the fold after his adventures in Africa, which he was kind enough to share with members when he and his friends attended the General Meeting. Leno explained they spent 2½ weeks at Chibobo working to improve the conditions for the children.

Lauren, a teacher with the Overnewton College, described how happy the children and adults were to see them again and greeted them with a welcome song. Sadly the founder of the orphanage Abeauty Chibuye had passed away, but his wife Agatha was carrying on his fine work.

A new dormitory had been built and the orphanage can now accommodate up to 100 children. We were shown pictures of the children playing happily on the playground equipment that we had donated, which was fortunate as the children use the equipment so much, that they actually wear it out. The teachers are working towards improving the children’s literacy and numeracy, English is the common language and books were provided for the children to read.

The children attend the local school, which is quite a long walk. However, they love the playground equipment so much that when they break for lunch they walk home to play on it, unfortunately they don’t go back to school.

The people of Chibobo are a Christian society that is supported by the local Baptist Church, but the children are still taught their traditional culture. The community is self sufficient; they plant crops of maize, sweet potatoes and soya beans and raise chickens to feed the children and to sell.

Nerida a nurse then spoke about the building of the new medical clinic where 100 patients are seen a day, some people walk 60 kms just to see the doctor. They are hoping to build the doctor a house as he operates 7 days a week. The most expensive part of the building is roofing iron as the walls are made of mud bricks. They need solar panels to help provide some basic necessities like electricity. Nerida and I chatted after the presentation and she provided me with some of the basic needs that the medical centre requires and the common health problems faced by the Chibobo community.

Basic Needs

• • Thermometers
• • Torch
• • Forceps
• • Scissors
• • Suction bulb (blower) – for wounds etc
• • Wash basin
• • Gloves
• • Bandages
• • Cotton wool
• • Adhesive plaster
• • Soap

As you can see these really are basic requirements but with this equipment the doctor and nurses can make a huge difference to the health of the community.

Common Health Problems

• • Malaria
• • Cough
• • Pneumonia
• • Fever
• • Sore eyes
• • Worm infestation
• • Headache
• • Chest pains
• • Earache
• • Abdominal pains
• • Backache
• • Toothache
• • Skin rashes/sores
• • Scabies
• • Cuts, wounds
• • HIV/AIDS
• • TB

The people of Chibobo really have some enormous problems to overcome and yet despite their disadvantages they are a happy, loving community who are extremely grateful for any help given.

Overnewton College greatly appreciate the continued support of the Chibobo Community by the Westgate Wanderers and wish to thank members again for your kind generosity.

Sponsors

YOUR COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Tommy's Corner

I WAS WONDERING

• I was wondering how much deeper the oceans would be without sponges.
• Is a pubic hair a type of rabbit?
• Is Spread Eagle an extinct bird?
• Is a G-String part of a violin?
• Are testicles found on an octopus?
• Is masturbate what is used to catch large fish?
• Is a condom an apartment complex?
• Is an umbilical cord part of a parachute?
• Is a chicken crossing the road, poultry in motion?
• If you didn’t pay for an excorcism would you get repossessed?
• If a thief stole a calendar, would he get 12 months?
• If a thief fell into wet cement, would he end up a hardened criminal?
• If Whitney Huston married Gene Pitney and had a fight with someone, would they say “Don’t shit me Whitney Pitney?”

DID YOU KNOW

• I got picked up for doing 53 where I should have been doing 35 and I told the cop I was dyslexic.
• Eds fell into his upholstery machine but he’s fully recovered now.
• The theory of earthquakes is on shaky ground.
• A boiled egg is hard to beat.
• Bubba has a photographic memory but it hasn’t developed.
• The roundest knight at King Arthur’s table was Sir Cumference.
• Tupperware and Walrus’s both like a tight seal.
• Bubba was cooking Alli dinner a couple of weeks ago (as a surprise of course) and he asked her if she wanted her rice done, steamed or fried and she replied, “thrown”.
• When we were living in Adelaide, Helen and I went to a beach down south of Adelaide called Maslins Beach. This was the first nudist beach in Australia and as we were walking along looking for anybody that we knew, Helen said, “Look over there isn’t that Dick Brown?’ and I said, “Yes dear, they go that way in the sun”.
• She was only a whisky maker’s daughter but he loved her still.
• So, a dyslexic walked into a bra.

VIRGO August 23 to Sept 22

• You are the logical type and hate disorder. This nit-picking is sickening to your friends.

• You are cold and unemotional and often fall asleep while making love. Virgos make excellent bus drivers and pimps.

And lastly, remember, the difference between purple and pink is the tightness of the grip.

Tommy