RIP Greg Pretty

[TT]

Those of you with interest in road racing will remember the name.
Sadly, he was killed yesterday while on a ride in the Adelaide Hills. Another rider coming the other way cross over onto his side of the road resulting in a head on collision that killed both of them.
RIP. 

[GD66]

Yeah, that's terrible, Tony. He was only a little bloke, but brave as hell. Unlimited champ on a TZ 750 in 1979, but will be forever remembered for his herculean acts aboard the Pitmans Yamaha XS1100 superbike (yeah, that's right !) against Phillis Neill, Heyes, Johnson, Campbell and co.
What makes it worse is that I read all the time on street bike sites about how they feel compelled to regularly cross the white line to blat round the roads even quicker. For a needless tragedy like this to befall a fearless but safe race star of our past just grinds my gears.
RIP Greg.  :'(

[VMX60]

Sad news

The fastest off the line in the push start days by far. Still remember Pitmans chain drive xs1100 over the hill at Wanneroo with Greg onbroad fighting the pig of a bike lap after lap.

RIP

[DR]

Sad indeed, I only read of it this morning. Which bike was Greg on Tony, the '71 Honda or the later model kawa?

A little snippet from 1979...



http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-2/957706/Greg%20Pretty%203HR%20Win%20015.jpg

[TT5 Matt]

just seen it on the news,ill bet the dude on the old dinasor honda 4 caused that crash another reason i dont go bitchy burning any more

[GD66]

Wrong. Why ever would you assume that ?  Greg was on the Honda, and the Kawasaki rider crossed the white line causing a head-on : it appears he must have run wide.

Spare a thought for the lady whose property the accident was outside, who had to attend and help.

[TT5 Matt]

ok than i was under the impression greg was on the kawaski so full apollagees to all of upset

[TT]

Yeah, I heard that GP was on the old Honda and the other guy caused the accident.
But, as always with these things, it's just what I heard, I wasn't there.
Bloody sad regardless that 2 lives were lost needlessly.
I've been enjoying a bit a bitumen riding on a V-Strom lately, but I avoid the roads that the weekend scratchers are known to frequent. I took my motard Husky down there a couple of years ago and it scared the crap out me how hard some of these guys were trying on public roads.
Don't get me wrong, I've done many, many miles at illegal speeds in years gone by, but old age and different road conditions now mean that I ride more like a Nanna these days. 

[dalesween]

I had a gsxr750k7 and was asked buy the guy that sold it to me to go for a ride one sunday.Turned out about 30 others were also asked so we left melbourne and went through daimond creek up around kinglake to healsville.What i saw was a few show offs trying to show the rest of us how good they can ride and me and a couple of others ended up pulling one guy back up a bank just out of daimond creek.What i saw that day really scared me and that was the first and last time i went on an organised ride with that crew.They had no respect for other road users and i was surprised there was not more than the two minor accidents.I ended up telling the person who organised the trip i,ll just find my own way home ,thanks and see ya later.

[DR]

I've never had a bike licence and never really wanted one. Yes I rode on the streets unlicensed for years (I have a permanent bike learners endoresement on my license so I could ride with open licensed friends but at the time it was a $30 fine and no loss of points if caught riding by myself) It was becoming increasingly more dicey as the years progressed. It got to the point where I'd have someone pull out or cut me off every single day on the short trip to and from work. This became so frequent you could almost sense it going to happen, it scared the piss out of me and the constant scanning for the idiot factor took a lot of the fun out of the riding. In hindsight chances are I may not be here now if I'd held a bike license since my youth, not so much that I'd have tossed it away being an idiot myself but more than likely I'd have been snotted by a tin top driver who would then use the lame excuse of..I just didn't see him!     

[Lozza]

God Speed Greg Pretty :'(

Yeah there is a sad attitude amongst riders to 'keep up' on organised rides (both road and trail) leads to this kind of thing.

[firko]

I was riding my Kawasaki Z1R to work one cold, foggy winter morning and came upon yellow warning lights flashing brightly through the fog. I hit the brakes and was flagged to a stop by a car driver who'd arrived on the scene just minutes before me to find a bus with a motorcycle (I later found it to be an XT500 Yammy)completely buried in the rear engine compartment of said bus. Once my eyes focused through the dark and fog I also noticed two legs poking out of the engine compartment , a woman (the car passenger) in hysterics and the bus driver dry reeching in the gutter. I've never completely got over what I saw that morning.

Not long after I began converting the Kwaka into a drag bike and stopped riding regularly on the road.

If an experienced and talented rider like Greg Pretty can get taken out by a speeding fool, what chance does and old lugger like me have.
My condolences go to Greg Prettys loved ones.

[jimson]

Two people have died its very sad but know one was there the bloke crossing the line might of had the sun in his eyes it doesn't take much to alter your direction on a bike weather your well none or not its a loss of life and its sad. jimson

[MX125B]

Very sad news, Greg Pretty was one of the best in his day, could ride the TZ750 as well
RIP with Alan Hales, from the same era. 

[VMX247]

Greg Pretty's funeral will be this Saturday the 23rd of January at Berry funerals, 200 Magill road , Norwood, SA at 11:00am.

54 year old Pretty, a champion rider and former SA Sports Star of the Year dies last week after a collision on the Macclesfield to Echunga road, near Macclesfield.