[News]

My Backyard ft. Geoff Ballard

5 years ago | Words: Andy Wigan | Photos: Salvatore Aloisio, Jarrad Duffy

Some people like riding. Some love it. Some are addicted to it. And then there’s Geoff Ballard; a man whose five-decade relationship with motorcycles borders on obsession. He may be on the ripe side of 60 these days, but “GB” – as he’s known to his mates – still has more enthusiasm for motorcycles than a paddock full of moto groms. Whether it’s riding, testing, adventuring, tinkering or just talking about dirt bikes, GB’s energy is infectious. He’ll ride a bike of any brand or any vintage, so long as he’s behind bars of something with two wheels and a motor.
During a racing career that’s spanned 50 years, Ballard not only won national titles in Australia and USA; he also started and ran his own motorcycle parts and accessories business, launched the Thumper Nats series, and ran official race teams for Honda and Yamaha. And in recognition of his services to the motorcycle industry, he was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the 2005 Australia Day Honours List – joining Wayne Gardner and Mick Doohan as the only Australian racers to receive the honour.
These days, GB splits his time between Queensland’s Gold Coast, where he’s a part owner of online parts and accessories giant, MXstore, and his rustic rural cottage near the NSW Central Tablelands township of Hampton – a stone’s throw from the Blue Mountains, where Geoff first got the dirt bike bug way back in 1972.
So, Transmoto, in partnership with Volkswagen Amarok Australia, is proud to present “My Backyard”, featuring Geoff Ballard in his native habitat: Hampton’s prime riding terrain.

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