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“ We deliberately went with the name SPOKE ‘ cos our festival is about talking bikes as well as riding them ,” he says .
The first SPOKE in 2022 offered a proper beach race like Bert Munro used to ride in and threw in open-entry grass track races for dirt bike riders . And a drag race on dirt . Plus , slow races , gymkhana , moto polo , fourhour Hard Enduro and trials - and even a postie bike race .
“ If you have a two-wheeler , you can bring it to SPOKE and compete , and bring the family for the other attractions too ,” grins Withington .
And boy , do bikers love it . It ’ s not often you see a KTM 1290 Adventure S , a Bultaco 250 vintage trail bike , a Harley Low Rider , and a Royal Enfield Himalayan racing in the same event , but if you ever wanted to marvel , and have a laugh , at the outcome , the SPOKE festival is definitely the place to go .
Another mainlander , Kat Kingsley , had already arranged to visit Tasmania to run some of her womens ’ off-road coaching courses , and decided to drop in to the Mayfield event while she was there .
“ Everything happened on the way here ,” she says . “ I had problems catching the ferry , then I got seasick on the way over , then I drove non-stop in my van to get to SPOKE , arriving late .”
But once she was there , things got considerably better . Kingsley won the grasstrack , slalom and sprint events in her class , and walked away with trophies to prove it .
“ I drove six days straight to get here ; I was so tired ,” she admits . “ But when I did arrive , I felt instantly welcome . The vibe was amazing . I felt so part of it all and got to race against a KTM 1090 and mini bikes too . Mad .”
One of the more prominent “ mad ” riders was local biker hero Matthew Voss . He came from down the road to race , on his banged up KTM 1290 Adventure S . Watching him ride the dirt track , the drag race , the trials competition , and the beach race on the twohundred-and-twenty-kilogram monster was hilarious and showed that you don ’ t have to have the latest tech bike to take part . Just skill , bravery , and the right attitude .
Then there were the bands . The Bad Dad Orchestra , Natural Selection , Gypsy Rose , Saree Salter , Alex Hutchins , and Jack Hickey & The Governors all offered up amazing music under the moonlight in the main arena as the food and drink stands happily doled out energy boosts in the form of beer , wine , fish ‘ n ’ chips and a range of other delicious foodstuffs . The party went until late , extremely late , according to Mandy in the next tent to us .
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