Ulysses Club - Clarence Valley Group

Ian Thomson

Adventure before dementia

Profiler: Ian Thomson interviews Eric Eckert

(Daily Examiner, Saturday, September 2, 2006).

TRAIL BLAZER: At 73, Braunstone's Eric Eckert ponders the road ahead. Photo - Adam Hourigan.

Easy rider copes with tragedy by heading down a new road

  Eric Eckert was devastated when he lost his wife to cancer in 2000 after 43 years of marriage.

  They had moved to the Clarence Valley from Sydney in 1988, building a house on a four hectare hobby farm at Braunstone and revelling in the rural life. The Big Smoke was light years away.

  But Eric's life was shattered when his soul mate died. "I was at a total loss," Eric says. "When Robin passed away I went to pieces. I received a lot of support from my daughter and friends , but I still didn't know how to carry on."

  The answer was delivered on two wheels. A year before Robin's death, Eric Eckert had joined the Clarence Valley Branch of the Ulysses Club - a group of people on the darker side of 50 with a passion for touring around on powerful motorcycles.

Eric, who's now 73, has been a keen motorcyclist since a teenager when he shelled out 49 pounds ($98) for an ex-US Army Indian machine. He was the proud owner of a series of British-built bikes after that, and remains just as keen to this day.

  The bike he brought from Sydney to Braunstone was a 1977 Honda 400 Twin. Eric hadn't actually hit the road with other Ulysses Club members, confining his two-wheel activities to veteran rallies and toy runs.

  But after losing wife Robin to cancer, he decided to become a full-time Ulyssian. He started with the old Honda, but quickly realised a change of bike was needed. He kept the beloved Honda, but bought a 13-year-old, 1000cc BMW Tourer for the long hauls.

  The club, and his BMW, turned Eric's life around.

  "There is no doubt the Ulysses Club was responsible for me being able to get on with my life," he says. "It's more of a social club than a motorcycle club, Everyone has been so supportive. They are a tremendous group of people."

  Since his first tour four years ago, Eric and the 'beamer' have covered more than 100,000 kilometres - seeing parts of Australia that many people half his age will never get to see.

  It was through a mutual Ulysses friend that Eric met Gwen Ware, a Clarence Valley woman who lost her husband, Reg, to cancer nine years ago. Eric and Gwen had plenty to talk about.

  Now they tour together on the BMW with the Ulysses Club.

'There is no doubt the Ulysses Club was responsible for me being able to get on with my life.'

ON YOUR BIKES: Clarence Valley Ulysses Club members prepare to leave Grafton for the Red Centre in July.

The latest Tour de Force by the Ulyssians snaked out of the Jacaranda City on July 1 this year. Organisers Lynne and Bob Cairns of Grafton had mapped out a course to the Red Centre and back.

  Twenty three people - most over the age of 50 and two of them over 70 - would travel 8000 kilometres in three weeks. You'd expect some dramas on a hike like that, but there was only one major mishap - and it involved Eric Eckert.

  The brave BMW, with Eric at the controls and Gwen in the pillion, spat the dummy at Port Augusta in South Australia. An electrcal problem requiring the replacement of a part that would take three weeks to deliver, meant the end of the road.

  Or did it? Eric and Gwen, with help from fellow Ulyssians Ross Blewitt, Sue Chapple and Rod Green, scoured Port Augusta for a vehicle with four wheels, found an unregistered 1975 HZ Holden ute, bought it for $1500, re-registered it, tied the BMW in the back and joined the tour a day later.

  "I wasn't going to miss the trip for anything," Eric says. "Besides, the ute came in handy for carrying some of the members' gear, and the bonnet was often used as a table for the barbeques we had along the way."

  Several times on that trip, Eric was asked: "Hey mate, did you buy an old motorbike?"

  Each time, Eric would reply: "No mate, I bought an old ute."

  Tour organisers Lynne and Bob Cairns, who both piloted 900cc Yamahas on the July adventure to the heart of Australia, admit to being lost for words to describe the scenery and the sights along the way.

  "It was a fantastic journey with a wonderful group of people who share an interest in motorbikes and having fun," Lynne said.

  "None of us will ever forget the experiences we shared. It was just magic."

LONG HAUL: The route taken by Clarence Valley Ulysses Club members on their 8000 kilometre haul to Uluru and back.

HOLDEN TOGETHER: Eric Eckert and friend Gwen Ware packed their broken BMW into a ute to finish the Ulysses Club tour in July.

  The Ulysses Club was formed by Stephen Dearnley, a self-confessed motorcyle tragic who came to Australia from Britain in 1947 after going through hell in World War Two. His aim was to create a movement that encouraged older people to get out and enjoy life in their later years.

  That movement has grown from just five members to more than 20,000 across the nation.

  Stephen Dearnley's wife, Jo, died in 1996 after a long battle with rheumatoid arthritis. That's why the Ulysses Club's major charitible beneficiary is the Arthritis Foundation of Australia. Stephen Dearley still rides motorbikes. He's 84.

  The Clarence Valley chapter of Dearnley's Ulysses Club opened the throttle in 1996. Members come from all walks of life, including public servants, nurses, teachers and people from the public sector.

  Almost half of them are retirees who refuse to spend their autumn years knitting, fishing, playing golf or hauling a caravan.

  Such has been the public impact of the Ulysses Club that it's motto: Grow Old Disgracefully is well known.

  Eric Eckert has his own motto: Adventure Before Dementia. And that sums it all up. I tip my helmet to a group of people who lust for fun and adventure when others think their years ahead depend solely on a warm blanket and an occasional visit from the kids.

  To the Clarence Valley branch of the Ulysses Club... happy trails.

ROUGHING IT: Ulysses tour organisers Lynne and Bob Cairns about to enjoy a desert dinner with Uluru just 20 kilometres away.