My activity with the Christian Motorcyclists Association (CMA) increased greatly this year.  I participated in most of the monthly Saturday & Sunday rides, but the big feature was the long distance tours.

From 6th to 8th January, a group of 8 of us went to Mount Gambier (430 km from Adelaide), and shared a cabin in a camping park.  We met several of the local CMA members, and visited one of them on his farm at the foot of Mount Schank (an extinct volcano which I climbed 50 years after first seeing it in 1964).  We also did a day ride through far western Victoria.

From 10th to 20th May (including 2 days travel each way), CMA members from several states converged at Alice Springs in the Northern Territory (1,530 km from Adelaide), attending the Ulysses Club AGM rally.  Our purpose was to setup a marquee tent for Ulysses members to stop and chat with us while walking past.  We had a lot of conversations about motorcycles, spiritual faith and other things.  In addition to this, we had day & half-day rides to destinations such as Ross River Homestead, Simpsons Gap and the Tropic of Capricorn.  My photo album for this run can be seen at www.flickr.com/photos/49370989@N04/sets/72157644564621358.

Loaded up and ready to leave on the 10th.

CMA tent in the traders area at Blatherskite Park Showground rally site.  (Me on the right)

From 6th to 8th June, 9 of us attended the Wintersun Run rally at Mildura, Victoria (400 km from Adelaide). It was held in the grounds of the local motorcycle club, where a Speedway racing event for classic era motorcycles was held. My photo album for this run can be seen at www.flickr.com/photos/49370989@N04/sets/72157649491256929.

On the weekend of 29th to 31st August, a large number of us attended the Peregrine Motorcycle Rally at Jabuk (only just big enough to be called a town), 160 km south east of Adelaide.  Not a long trip, but we met several friends from interstate.  This rally is an annual event organised jointly by the CMA and Pilgrims Christian Motorcycle Club.

From 30th October to 3rd November, a group of us attended the CMA National Run rally at Stanwell Tops, NSW (slightly north of the coastal city Wollongong).  A few days before departure, I had doubts about the ability of my gold coloured bike (1977 BMW R100RS shown above) to do a 3,000 km trip, so brought my other bike (1977 BMW R100/7 with RS model fairing) out of 16 years hibernation.  After changing the oils, brake pads & tyres, it performed exactly as it had when I parked it in 1998.  The only disappointment on the trip was that, after 2,000 km (with 1,000 km still to go), the engine oil seal began leaking very badly.  That bike is now in a mechanic's shop, awaiting repair of oil leaks and many more serious problems that I didn't know about.  Such is the cost of running an old motor vehicle.  My photo album for this run can be seen at www.flickr.com/photos/49370989@N04/sets/72157646804447743/.

You might think that's enough activity to fill a year – but you'd be very wrong.  Please read on.

I continue to be an active member of the Prospect Road Uniting Church.  There are still 2 of us who equally share the load of operating the computer during Sunday worship services.  Our ordained minister Wendy Prior prepares her own PowerPoint presentation of the liturgies, hymns etc., but our lay minister Donald Sarre (fortunately still with us through the whole year) relies on us techies to prepare the PowerPoint files.
I've continued leading the Monday afternoon Bible Study group.  Usual attendance is 6 to 8 enthusiastic people.
During the second half of 2014 (and continuing slightly into 2015), Donald Sarre has been leading a Bible Study group for the Leadership Team, going through the book of Acts – I have been attending regularly on Tuesday nights.

My involvement with the Gideons continues, being the Treasurer of my local group.  As in previous years, I placed Bibles in the rooms of several motels along Main North Road and in North Adelaide, as well as distributing pocket testaments at 2 universities and to Year 8 students in 2 high schools.  I spoke in 4 churches about the work of the Gideons.  If you are a customer in a motel room where there is no Bible, please ask the manager why the room is not fully equipped for visitors.

On Sunday 23rd November, I attended a reunion of my 1971 school class (final year).  There were fewer people than I had hoped, but it was still good to meet a few people that I hadn't seen since school days.  1971 was a strange situation for me – I'd reached the end of classes offered by Kapunda High School (Year 11), and had to attend Nuriootpa High School to matriculate (Year 12).  At the time, there seemed to be no point in getting to know people in a much larger school for just one year.  It seems that several of my fellow students from Eudunda thought the same way, so we became better acquainted at the reunion than we had at school in the strange town.

I continue to be an active member of the Hillman Car Club of South Australia, participating in most of the monthly runs.  At the Annual General Meeting in August, I was again re-elected to the position of Social Events Officer (planning ahead & co-ordinating the people who volunteer to organise specific events).  I have also continued through the whole year as Newsletter Editor (producing news magazines) – an extra task that I took on early last year.  I also continue in the appointed position of Webmaster (since 2001).
Photo below:  Some of our cars & people at the annual Rootes Group clubs run (Hillman, Humber, Singer, Sunbeam) – a picnic in Oaklands Reserve.

Late in October I had the party for my 60th birthday, at the Empire Hotel in Kilburn.  It was held a few days early because I was riding to the CMA National Run on my actual birthday.  59 of us filled the function room to capacity – all of my most regular current associates: the Gideons, the 2 Bible Syudy groups of my church, Christian Motorcycle Association run participants, Hillman Car Club committee, and cousins.  I would like to have invited more people, but they wouldn't fit!  The chief organiser of the party was Rosslyn Brown, a past president of the Hillman Car Club.
Photos below: The 4 faces of the birthday cake had the logos of the 4 organisations invited.  Dad and representatives of the groups took turns to make speeches – it was like eulogies at a funeral, except that I'm still alive.
 

Having reached the age of 60, I applied for & received my South Australian Seniors Card.

If you say "Season's greetings" – I ask "What season is that?" Please remember that this is the Christmas season – not simply "the festive season," nor a season created primarily for shopping.  As my church calls loudly: Don't forget the baby! Picture at left from Wikipedia: by Gerard van Honthorst (1590–1656)