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Sistership formed with Bundaberg Branch    

The Ulysses Club

About Our Branch

Our branch's first meeting was held on Wednesday 4th October 2000. The driving force behind the St George Sutherland Group's creation and the group's first president was Don Phinn. 15 people attended the meeting. Today our meetings are held on the 2nd Monday of each month at the Gymea Bowling Club, Kingsway Gymea - usually 60 - 80 members attend. The St George Sutherland Branch holds regular group rides and social events.

As with all branches in The Ulysses Club, the club is primarily a social club for mature riders who enjoy a slightly different lifestyle than that many people perceive of us "oldies". We enjoy a friendship and bond amongst members and just let our hair down (if we still have any) and enjoy life.

Our motto - Grow Old Disgracefully pretty much sums us up. We love a laugh and a ride on our bikes. We either go solo or take our partners. We have women riders who keep up with the blokes - no worries! We ride anything from Harleys to Hondas, scooters, vintage, classic or brand spankers. 

We'd love to see you as a part of our branch if you enjoy fun, wind in the face and most weekends with a ride to somewhere, whether it be long or short. Our New Members rides are specifically tailored for.....New Members!!! Anyone can go, but we take a shorter run, mark a few corners, have a bit of a talk and stop for coffee and cakes. Have another talk, then maybe go home. It's all very casual.

Our day rides can vary from short to long, depending on what the ride leader has planned for us. The long weekend rides and overnight stays are a hoot. We go all over the place and see many sights that you just don't normally go to - especially in one of those things called a car! The Ulysses AGM's are a spectacle to behold for the new members. 5000 or so bikes, all converging on one town at the same time for a week long party. AGM's are held all over Australia. Past locations have included Broken Hill, Mt Gambier, Snowy Mountains, Mudgee, Canberra,  Tasmania & Coffs Harbour, to name a few, and future AGM's will be held in  Townsville Qld 2008, Penrith NSW 2009 & Albany WA 2010.

Garry Palmer (red shirt) shaking hands with the Bundaberg President at the Coffs Harbour Fisherman's Club where St George Sutherland and Bundaberg Branch formed a sister club relationship. Garry, is our Past Branch President and winner of the inaugural `Best Day Ride' trophy - awarded at the December 2005 branch meeting. Garry's Thursday rides start at the Caltex Service Station, Heathcote at 9.00 a.m. each week, weather permitting.

These rides offer a veritable smorgasbord of back roads and cuisine. Everyone welcome, every week.

The Ulysses Club

How it all began
The original suggestion for a motorcycle club for over 50’s was put forward in a letter by Stephen Dearnley published in the August 1983 issue of Bike Australia. This grew two significant responses; one from Rob Hall, a reader at Albion Park NSW who suggested the present name and motto for  the club; the other from Peter Thoeming, then the editor of Bike Australia, who sketched the logo and offered support from his magazine if Stephen could get the club off the ground. This was done at an inaugural  meeting in Sydney on 6th December, 1983 when the five people present approved a basic constitution and the Ulysses Club was duly formed.
From that tenuous beginning it has never looked back and the club now  boasts a large and extensive network of members throughout Australia, with sister clubs formed in New Zealand and South Africa and a growing number of countries all around the world.

Why ULYSSES Club Inc?
The name comes from a poem of the same title by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. It  tells how the great Greek hero Ulysses, now middle aged and securely in charge of his kingdom of Ithaca, is getting bored with things around him and longs to go adventuring again with his shipmates of old. It describes  very well indeed the sort of person who still has enough spark to go on riding into middle and later years. Too long to quote here, you will find it in any good poetry anthology such as the Albatross Book of Verse.

What are its aims:
To provide ways in which older motorcyclists can get together for  companionship and mutual support.

To show by example that motorcycling can be an enjoyable and practical activity for riders of all ages.

To draw the attention of public and private institutions to the needs and views of older riders.

What does it do?
It publishes a quarterly magazine, Riding On, which contains information about forthcoming events, provides a forum for members’ views and carries articles on topics of interest to geriatric bikers. It also produces a membership directory which lists members’ names and addresses throughout  Australia so that a stranded traveller may not be too far from help and companionship or a member can find a convenient neighbour when looking for company on a ride. Through a number of regional branches, it arranges  regular meetings, outings and social events.

The Annual General Meeting of the Ulysses Club Inc. is held sometime before the end of May and takes the form of a major rally. The venue is a suitable location anywhere in Australia and is a great occasion for widely
separated members to meet each other.
At selected rallies the club banner is raised as a focal point where members and their friends can join in good companionship.

Who can join?
Any lady or gentleman who is over the age of 40, and who holds a current  motorcycle licence, or who is a regular partner of such a person, and over 40, is eligible to join. Until you reach the grand old age of 50, you will be a "junior" member, but with full membership rights and privileges. It’s  just that you might have to help some of the "seniors" off their machines sometime.