kid dressed in black ( down to his black Doc Martins ). He had purple hair , a stud in his nose and a surprisingly enthusiastic attitude given his punk appearance . He was a parts assistant at the local Suzuki dealer where I spent a lot of time and money trying to keep my Suzuki PE175 serviceable for next weekend ’ s enduro . Over the years I found him to be one of the most windswept and interesting individuals that I have ever met . He was artistic and a great salesman and communicator , eventually owning a very successful clothing store dealing in trendy T-shirts and Doc Martins . This made him into a local identity , a bon vivant and his shop a place to hang out and talk crap about motorcycles . His taste in motorcycles was perhaps even worse and more eclectic than mine - over the years he owned weird things like a Gas Gas 50 Motard , and an MZ Saxon County . We did some crazy shit over the years , riding off road and on , running a road racing team and entering a fancy dress moped mayhem endurance race … Unfortunately , like a lot of artistic people , Rick had some problems – problems with the “ black dog ”, illicit substances and ruinous relationships . I ’ m not sure which one drove him to the other , but I think they both eventually drove him crazy . And maybe it was just the crazy talking , but before everything turned to shit , all he wanted was a Ural .
Kiwi Rider ’ s Publisher has a Ural and it is pretty cool . It ’ s two-wheel drive and Rick loved it . In the meantime , somewhere in the early 90s another mate of ours , Ian , secured a near new Dnepr out of one of the war-torn countries that end in “ stan ”. I never did figure out what he was doing there , but he only features briefly in this story , so it doesn ’ t matter . It was a 1991 Dnepr MT10 with a single wheel drive . I think it ’ s the domestic model ( of a Ural ) for the locals . Yeah , you knew it was coming … Anyhow , Rick wanted a Ural , and Ian wanted to unload a Dnepr . So , I introduced them . In the meantime , I ’ d been having a bit to do with Dneprs , Urals and the like . A buddy , ‘ Stretch ’, and I helped The Publisher with his Ural Adventure Weekend . It was pretty cool , and they actually did the business too - we went over the 42nd Traverse and Fishers Track , not easy trails . There were cool people too . Mike Dobson knows more about Urals and old Bimmers than most . Then there was Jurgen , or maybe Hans , I don ’ t recall rightly . He came dressed for a Berlin Disco on an R75 ‘ something ’. He was about seven foot tall with the demeanour of a Bond villain . I swear I saw him lift that rig up with one hand . I thought these things were cool , I ’ m not sure I wanted to own one , but they were a great gang to hang with . However , my autistic son loved
A Ural in its natural environment is pretty capable ... of inflicting pain and suffering on its rider . No , it ’ s not like riding a bike