Hoofseun said:
We had another incident in '85. The Guys from 2 SWAPES left Onathinge bridge at night back for Okatope Base. The Platoon Sgt (Cpl) left after the rest to ensure everything was fine and then tried to catch up with the rest. He ended up riding into the rear end of the last bike in the squad. He did not make it.
I have heard about this incident. Apparently he wasn't wearing a helmet and hit the tar road head first. Anybody know more?
Confirm the Stubbs accident. I'm in northern Uganda at the moment, at my bro Patrick's, he was the officer in charge at that show. Durban, if I remember correctly. Stubbs got pissed and belligerent, was ordered to go sleep it off and disobeyed, left the barracks again, passed out under a SAMIL and was run over. He was very flat around the chest. Patrick told me the story just the other night. He picked Stubbs up and put him in the ambulance, the others wouldn't touch him. The investigation determined that he had acted absolutely correct, witnesses testified the same.
That makes at least 7 okes I know of who died while in bike squad. Only one was operational.
2 weeks before I got there in January 1981, a Lt named Burger was killed at the back of Berede, where the road went between the lane of trees by old Commandant Stark's house. He raced the MX nationals and had his own CR 250 in the camp, went screaming down the road out the back of the base and hit an old Bedford garbage truck at the left dogleg between the trees back there. Some of my other B/S corporal connections talked to him as he was leaving camp and less than a minute later heard him hit the truck. Killed instantly.
About a week later L/cpl Swanepoel hit a cheese mine near Oshigambo in Ovamboland. Patrick was the rider right behind him, he's told me the story in detail. Then a few weeks later, one of the new loots who had arrived with me, Neil Johnson from Cape Town, was killed at Brickor MX track in Edenvale near Joburg airport. Just past Corobrik. He raced 125's and crashed after the start and a bunch of bikes ran over him.
Re the bikes on Gumtree (what is that, an online classified or something?) the one in the foreground is either an 81 or 82, front fender looks 81-ish. The bike's been afro-engineered to a certain extent. Frame is silver, brown paint ?? Looks in decent shape for an 81. Doubt if it's ex-SADF. All those were pretty well trashed. Can't see any evidence of luggage rack welded on behind the seat - it ended up breaking the subframe on almost all the bikes.
I have 2 82's in a container that just docked in Cape Town yesterday, and one at my dad's house in Florida. I like to sit on them - the muscle memory is very enjoyable.
The bike in the backgound is not 81 or 82 - check the engine and exhaust. It's a wreck, from the looks of it.
Do any of you 84/85/86 okes remember Sgts Ruben de Kock and Joe D'Abreu? And De Wet? He was a nasty piece of work, sadistic PF type, was 6 months junior to me. We didn't see eye to eye, needless to say. Came v-e-e-e-ry close to a rumble in the jungle a few times :biggrin: He didn't enjoy being called a PF p**s, apparently. Sensitive type, below the skin.
I'm still collecting stories and info about B/S for the unit history, running a bit behind cause I'm out of the country at the moment. Please contact me, your story will help complete the project.
Cheers
