Returned rider Alan Maxwell has a familiar history with motorcycles, but has ended up triking with a family of trikes and even a trike travel business!
(Readers are invited to tell us about their bike history by sending their details via email.)
Country biker
When Alan married Johanna, he owned three motorbikes: a Honda 125, Yamaha 200, and a Honda 400 Twin, plus a 76 HX 4 door Monaro.
“Being a country boy from NE Victoria, I enjoyed outdoor life and spent many an hour in the hills on my little Honda with my mates,” he says.
After getting married, he and Johanna moved to Melbourne and along came a mortgage at 19% interest, two baby girls, a bigger mortgage, city life and everything that comes with it.
“Some may remember the wildcat train strikes,” he says.
“If you didn’t have a motorbike, you’d never get to work in the city. (Yes I’m old.)”
Familiar tale
With a growing family and extra responsibilities, one by one Alan’s bikes moved on, finally trading his Monaro for a family car.
Over the years he has added a bigger house, school fees and finally our two girls made it University along with a HECS debt.
After his girls were off their hands with their own jobs, Alan pointed out to Joanne that they now had a few dollars left in their wallet.
“We were free to be just us again,” he says.
“So I asked: ‘What about I go out and buy a Harley and we can get out and about again on the bike and enjoy riding like we did all those years ago?’.”
Johanna agreed, so Alan began looking for a suitable Harley.
Triking
OzTrikeHowever, his research led him to a Chopper 4 OZTRIKE not far from where he lived on the Mornington Peninsula.
“So, after enquiring I went for a ride,” he says.
“My first impression was that I can’t fall off this, remembering lots of gravel rash when I was 19.
“The rest is history.
“I’ve been riding trikes since 2007, a trike tour business (Melbourne Trike Hire) for 12 years, graduated from Australian built Chopper 4 OZTRIKES to German-built BoomTrikes, plus a great friendship with Johann Kastner, owner of OZTRIKES in Somersby NSW, an absolute Australian Legend of three-wheeled motorcycling.”
After selling his last BoomTrike in 2017, Johann made Alan an offer too good to refuse last year to buy a 2018 1.6-litre automatic BoomTrike called Kermit for obvious reasons.
Kermit“I’m am close to retirement age now, have a small but great circle of friends in ThreeDom Trikers Victoria who meet and ride regularly,” Alan says.
“I’m looking forward to another biennial TrikeFest in Western Australia late in 2021, which will be TrikeFest number four for us.
TrikeFest“I could never have imagine all those years ago that triking is a lifestyle and I don’t believe I will be retiring any time soon; from triking, anyway.
Now tell us your biking or triking story! Send your details to us via email.