In February 2020, just before the world went mad with Covid, a group of six Australians set off on their motorcycles for a two-week adventure across Tasmania. Here, Tom Gilroy, owner of Purpose Built Moto, shares his experience as one of the bunch. Tom—himself a bike builder, designer, and entrepreneur from the Gold Coast—rode a custom Harley-Davidson Sportster for the adventure. He shared a few words about some of the most memorable moments. You can watch the full documentary at here.
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- One of our six crew, Emma McFerran, got to know her custom Purpose Built Moto Scrambler quickly. Emma is a freestyle Motocross rider who’s known for her antics on dirt track races. Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
Each day the crew found somewhere to camp, often in the middle of nowhere. We opened a few beers and laughed about who fell off most that day. Justin Holmes’ Triumph Speedmaster ended up parked up in a back alley for some repairs at one point. He rode a 2010 Triumph America 865. Justin’s the owner of Popbang Classics. Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
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- Max Duff and I (left) ripped through some Coastal trails in Northern Tasmania, heading for the beach at full noise. Max rode a 2005 Triumph Bonneville T100 Max; he’s a dedicated rider and photographer. I was on a 2006 Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200. Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
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- Emma’s dune crash was a wild highlight of our first day. At that point nothing was going to slow us down. After so much buildup, it was time for the riders to be turned loose on whatever trails lay ahead. Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
Justin pulled up at a desolate dry lake bed. This was our playground for the afternoon. We didn’t have anything better to do anyway. Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
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- Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
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- Fast fixes and roadside repairs were all part of a day’s work for the Wide of the Mark crew. We were lucky to have three quick-thinking bike builders and mechanics onboard. The aptly named “bed in a shed” came complete with a full-scale workshop. Keeley Pritchett rebuilt the top end of his vintage Triumph after a broken pushrod incident. Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
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- Fast fixes and roadside repairs were all part of a day’s work for the Wide of the Mark crew. We were lucky to have three quick-thinking bike builders and mechanics onboard. The aptly named “bed in a shed” came complete with a full-scale workshop. Keeley Pritchett rebuilt the top end of his vintage Triumph after a broken pushrod incident. Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
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- Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
The crew went out hunting for a place to set up camp along the rugged west coast of Tasmania. Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
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- Photo by Alexandra Adoncello
A version of this article originally appeared in Sixtysix Issue 07 with the headline “Tom Gilroy, Wide of the Mark.” Subscribe today.
