Ross Gray. cycle touring. Re Michelle

tried your email but it keeps returning
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Hello Michelle.
I believe we met a number of times years ago in Sydney with the cycle
institute crowd, on rides and at party's.
I read your news post about Ross.
During the '80's Ross and I were flatmates at a number of places mostly
around Darlinghurst, when he was in Sydney.
First met him in '85 when he just got back from touring South America and
was sharing a house with my then boyfriend, Al.
I wasn't into cycling then and thought he was a little strange, with the way
he talked about and looked at life.
We used to sit around after work and talk and I vividly remember one
saturday night after I'd known Ross a few weeks.
An English couple who shared the house was talking about driving around
Australia and asked Ross what he knew, Big mistake, We spent all night
talking about places to go a where to get work,
Ross had maps laid out on the floor and was showing then places to camp and
places to stay away from,
Over about 3 hours he took them right around Australia while they were
taking notes on a pad and marking their map.
I just could'nt believe that he'd been to all these places on a bicycle,
I asked him about South America and out came more maps and beers and we all
spent the whole night talking about places we'd been or wanted to go,
I hadn't been anywhere except Melbourne, but Al and Ross were from New
Zealand and had both been around Australia, Al wasn't into cycling and had
hitchhiked. Besides south America, Ross had cycled New Zealand and India
The English couple had been around Europe and stopped over in Singapore.
I was 19 and hadn't even thought about going anywhere, nowdays I think of
that night as the night I woke up
A couple of weeks later Ross borrowed a bike for me from one of his friends
and I went with him on a days ride through the Royal nat. park. after that I
was hooked,
Following week I went bike shopping with Ross and bought a Clarmont with
full touring kit for a bit under $600 from Clarence st cycles, it was a lot
of money for me and Al and my friends thought I was nuts.
Ross was on and off in Sydney over the next few years and we stayed
in contact, He stayed with me late '86 after you met him in Indonesia,
again mid '87 before he went to Europe and again mid '88 after he came back.
In '88 I did one tour with him, I met him at Perth airport when he flew back
into the country and we spent 7 weeks riding through the desert next to the
railway line across to Adelaide then up to Broken Hill and Sydney.
That was more of a walk than ride in places.
We got ourselves on television when we spent 2 days with a french film crew
doing a program on Diddier ???? trying to windsurf across the nullabor on
a board with wheels.
Never seen the program or heard anything about it, we rode faster than they
were going, so maybe they never made it,
Other than that we went out on day tours around Sydney during the time we
stayed together and put together a few routes for the bicycle inst.
They still have phamplets for some of them .
Ross got married in '89 and last I heard ( 2001) they live in northen
Victoria, but spend most of their time in Thailand
He's not involved in the cycling scene here in Sydney,
Would be great to catch up with him.

..Would also be good to see you again, I'm in Sydney and cycling quite
often, let me kow if your interested.
best wishs.
Susan

Michelle and Susan re Ross,,,

I also would like to contact Ross I've tried your emails so post to this
group also

I'm currently researching australian cycle touring and people involved
he has been mentioned during interviews with other cyclists, anyone having
his contact details or would like to be included in my research please let
me know,



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person your looking for is ross grey,
last heard fom him in1990 when he got married
you could try the bicycle institute of nsw , he used to
do some work for them here in sydney ,
a few years ago when I tried to contact him they told me he was in thailand.

I rode with him for 5 weeks through indonesia in 1986,
I was having all sorts of hassles from the local guys cycling by myself
met ross at the buddust temple near yogjakarta and we were both heading the
same direction,

I'd planned on crossing to singapore from java and going around malayasia,
but he convinced to go up the west coast of sumutra with him
best trip I've done, very hard going , 2 weeks of dirt roads and sharing a
hot sticky tent, rain and mozzies, then another 2 weeks of easy going on
the tar from padang - medan,

we spent a few days in panang and I flew to singapore before coming home
ross was heading for friends on koh samui thailand
if you, or anyone, contact him please pass on my email or supply his

best wish's
michelle shaw,