TRAVERSE Issue 55 - August 2026 | Page 160

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There is something wonderfully contradictory about a Vinduro. Officially, nobody is racing. There are no championship points, no podium ceremonies, no oversized novelty cheques and no anxious glances at timing screens. Yet by the time the first riders disappear into the Victorian bush, old instincts have already resurfaced. Mates who have known each other for forty years suddenly find themselves charging towards the next corner with just a little more enthusiasm than they had promised over breakfast. A clean hill climb earns a knowing grin. A perfectly executed powerslide through a sweeping paddock corner draws an approving nod from riders who appreciate skill more than outright speed. Somewhere behind them, another rider is wrestling a stubborn kickstarter while everyone else offers plenty of advice and absolutely no sympathy.
Welcome to the world of VERi( Vintage Enduro Riders Inc.) Vinduro.
Held in the historic township of Harrow in Victoria ' s far west, the 2026 edition once again demonstrated why these events continue to grow in popularity. They are part motorcycle rally, part mechanical reunion, part social gathering and part history lesson, all wrapped around a day spent exploring some of Australia ' s most beautiful countryside aboard motorcycles that many people believed would have disappeared long ago.
The rules are wonderfully straightforward. Every motorcycle must have been manufactured before 1988, preserving an era when enduro motorcycles were still relatively simple machines. Air-cooled engines dominate the paddock, drum brakes remain commonplace, twin-shock rear suspension still appears in respectable numbers and even the more sophisticated mono-shock models are now old enough to qualify as genuine classics.
Looking across the rows of motorcycles before the start was like walking through the pages of an old sales catalogue. Yamaha ITs, DTs and XTs sat alongside Suzuki PEs, TSs and RMs. Honda XLs and early XRs were parked beside Kawasaki KDXs, while European marques including Husqvarna,
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