Hides and Leather

Some time ago the government in its infinite wisdom allowed the water buffalo in the NT to be culled thus almost rendering them extinct. I had become rather fond of these huge lumbering creatures during my time working in South Thailand in the 70’s. I loved riding through the jungle on the back of a motorbike seeing them look up curiously just metres away. So it was disappointing to learn that outside of a zoo type enclosure we were very unlikely to see them in the wild. Read on…!!!!!
After pulling up at the Victoria River Roadhouse we chose to park at a safe distance from the river (still huge salties around) but a huge distance from the other two campers which has become my preference. I’ve grown used to sleeping at the open window with just the fine mesh between me and the annoying mosquitoes. I was even starting to regret not packing a swag (Gary keeps asking ‘who are you and what did you do with Ev?’). It’s magnificent going to sleep watching many more bright stars than I’m used to seeing in the city.
I awoke around 4am to a snorting and shuffling near my window – thinking it was the local croc out for a stroll I mentally thanked my lucky stars that I hadn’t followed the swag idea and sat up to receive one of the biggest frights of my life. There snorting in my face – with only the fine mesh between us – was a huge, moon-illuminated water buffalo! I shrieked; he - or she - snorted in return (I wasn’t a picture at 4am either) and with a disgruntled curious snort in my face again it shuffled away down to the river. The next couple of hours my fragile mind pictured the front page of The Age had I of been in a swag “Stupid Melbourne Woman Trampled to Death by remaining NT Water Buffalo”.
My next close up and personal contact with leather clad objects was behind the window in the BP Service station in Wyndham. My beloved had been a tad panic stricken realising that the winder for the van was somewhere on the roadside after we were stopped at the border to relinquish all of our fruit and vegies. (These were of course freshly purchased in Katherine the day before to see us through ten days in decidedly non-fresh fruit and vegie territory! For public record it was not me who left it attached to the van after being stripped of every vitamin.) Whilst Gary was negotiating a solution with the petrol attendant about 20 leather clad bikies roared in to the station. They all dismounted and as they were removing their helmets my eye caught the look of the old man in the middle of them (I later worked out he was my age!) He looked positively ill and was getting greyer by the minute. Then the penny dropped. I left Gary and the kids without a word and waltzed into the middle of them to prop this guy up. He had fallen of his bike at 100 km/h and they were trying to work out how to get him to the local hospital. Not much in the way of taxis and ambulances out in Wyndham so we persuaded them to let us bundle him in the front seat of the car (literally – Gary had to lift his legs into the car!) and, leaving Gary and the kids standing there, I headed off – complete with van – with a huge bike escort. Poor Eddie (the injured motorcyclist) was in agony and was very fearful of the hours to come. Half way there I suddenly remembered all the horrible stories of the Coffin Cheaters (based in WA) and tentatively asked my new friend if ‘they had a particular name that they rode under’. He chuckled and said they all got together every little while for a week away riding and camping in the bush. They ranged in age from 19 up to Eddie’s age and were all from Katherine. I stared ahead at the road not wanting to read what was on his sleeves! He went on to explain that most white top enders have come away from something bad somewhere else. The ensuing conversation was an amazing insight into why a lot of people rough it in the outback. It’s still not as rough as the journeys they have already been on. After getting Eddie to the hospital, we checked back in the next day to discover that he had been transferred out with possible internal injuries but expected to make a full recovery. What did hit me at the hospital was the amazing community spirit that these bikies had – they genuinely cared about each other’s welfare and their passion for motorbikes was the glue that held them together. Churches could learn a lot from this bunch……!
Note for mother: It was you that said not to judge a book by its cover – just remember that before we talk on the phone next!