A man of the land by inclination and a versatile mechanic by vocation, Martin Kotvojs, a twenty-three-year-old immigrant from Austria, was becoming a little toey. He just knew there was more to his adopted country than living in the big-smoke, building three cylinder shearing plant engines for Moffat Virtue. He’d much prefer the wide expanse of sheep country so, come December 1952, his employers allowed Martin a two-month break.
With the addition of a pair of canvas army surplus satchels, each carrying a one-gallon tin, Martin’s daily commute – a 1951 CZ 125 – became an adventure bike. He headed south from Sydney on what was designated as the Hume Highway, a thoroughfare so potholed that when Martin’s overloaded machine suffered a puncture, it went unnoticed due to the stiffness
