Les Harris, 69 and from Torquay, died at Torbay Hospital on February 17 from a progressive lung condition, which he suffered from for more than 10 years. Mr Harris leaves behind his wife Shirley, his children Carole, Debbie, Angela and Chris, and 10 grandchildren. Mrs Harris said: "Les was a decent, very hardworking man, with an all-encompassing passion for work, life and his family. He had a mischievous sense of humour and an irreverent intolerance for snobbishness. He also had a dress sense all of his own. "Les has left behind a great legacy in our children and grandchildren and our lives have been immensely enriched by his larger than life character and absolute unconditional love for us all."

A motorcycle enthusiast, Mr Harris set up his own business in 1974 manufacturing and selling spare parts for classic motorcycles. As British motorcycle firms Norton Motors, BSA Small Heath and later Triumph collapsed, Mr Harris would pay for and store parts to be delivered straight to customers. As the parts stocked up, L F Harris International Ltd started trading out of a warehouse in Newton Abbot before acquiring an engineering company in Leighton Buzzard and opening a retail shop in Paignton. Mrs Harris said: "With the demise of the Triumph motorcycle factory in Meriden, Les and I made a bid for the rights to the Triumph name in 1983. Unfortunately we were unsuccessful in this; however, we were offered the opportunity to licence the name for five years and so an incredible journey began with the move to a bigger factory and warehouse." Press coverage of their venture was global and resulted in an invitation to Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament. In 1987 the Harris' were visited by the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. "Les was so proud of these visits. For years he has been hailed as the saviour of the traditional classic Triumph motorcycle all over the world. He loved this time, making many new friends as he dealt with customers around the globe," Mrs Harris said. In 1988 the couple decided not to re-licence and Les began to design his own motorcycle, producing The Matchless G80. The production of the motorcycle ceased after 1990 in the midst of the recession and the business returned solely to the production of spare parts for classic motorcycles. The family-run company now trades from Pavor Road in Torquay. At his funeral this Saturday, six soldiers from the Royal Corps of Signals White Helmets Motorcycle Display Team will carry the coffin and provide a 'throttle roar' as Mr Harris enters and leaves the church. Mrs Harris explained: "Les was not in the White Helmets, but our company built their bikes and donates motorcycle spare parts to them." Mr Harris' funeral is at 1pm on Saturday at St Matthias Church, Babbacombe Road, Wellswood, Torquay. A wake will follow at the Palace Hotel in Torquay and a private cremation will be held on Monday, March 2 at 2pm."

Are you into Volkswagen Beetles and Kombi's ?

Then Click here to check this out

Triumph factory in Chonburri Thailand. Visited on my recent trip over there.

Gallery feature: Wayne Knight (SLUTDOKTA)

New CD Happy Ending Feb 2009

Gallery Feature Tracks: 1.Sad 2.Alice Springs 3.Castaway 4.Girl 5.Secret Disco purpose 6.Jam Night 7.Sun

Australia Day
Celebrated January 26 To find out more go to.
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OZZI
OZZI

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Iron Maiden World Tour

'SOMEWHERE BACK IN TIME'

Gallery special. Iron Maiden's 'SOMEWHERE BACK IN TIME' World Tour will open in Mumbai India on Feb 1st, and continue through Australia, Japan, Los Angeles and Mexico, followed by the band's first ever concerts in Costa Rica and Columbia, and then on to Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Puerto Rica and New York, before finishing in Toronto, Canada, on March 16th. Over the 45 day period it is anticipated that Maiden will play to well over 400,000 fans in 21 cities in 10 countries, flying close to 50,000 miles in the specially refitted plane

Cannot wait till they play Sydney!

February Fri 1st - Mumbai, India - Bandra Kurla Complex Mon 4th - Perth, Australia - Burswood Dome Wed 6th - Melbourne, Australia - Rod Laver Arena Thu 7th - Melbourne, Australia - Rod Laver Arena Sat 9th - Sydney, Australia - Acer Arena Sun 10th - Sydney, Australia - Acer Arena Tue 12th - Brisbane, Australia - Entertainment Centre Fri 15th - Yokohama, Japan - Pacifico Yokohama Sat 16th - Tokyo, Japan - Messe Tue 19th - Los Angeles, USA -The Forum Thu 21st - Guadalajara, Mexico - Auditoria Telmex Fri 22nd - Monterrey, Mexico - Arena Monterrey Sun 24th - Mexico City, Mexico - Sports Palace Tue 26th - San Jose, Costa Rica - Saprisa Stadium Thu 28th - Bogota, Columbia - Simon Bolivar Park

March Sun 2nd - Sao Paulo, Brazil - Skol Arena Anhembi Wed 5th - Porto Allegre, Brazil - Gigantinho Fri 7th - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Ferrofcarril Oeste Stadium Sun 9th - Santiago, Chile - Pista Atletica Wed 12th - Puerto Rico - San Juan Coliseo Fri 14th - New Jersey, USA - Izod Centre Sun 16th - Toronto, Canada - Air Canada Centre

Picture gallery, with music!!!

ROOTY HILL SURFERS

The picture was taken at the Muso's Club Jam nite

The bass guitarist (Al) is with Bondi Cigars. For more information on them and other bands, Click on the picture below of the Rooty Hill Surfers.

Gallery special "Telling Tales"

Cannot believe I have at last got in contact with Janette Geri !! Saw her at the Canberra National Festival in 95 (13 yrs ago!) when she was promoting her album - Describing the sky. (Pic of cover above, with a link to more information about her on the picture). I fell in love with her voice (OK and her) :-) Gallery News. Janette has just released a new CD called Telling Tales, Take it from the gallery, it is well worth a listen.(click here & scroll to Janette Geri)

Led Zeppelin Picture disc, Spiders Album and much more can be found by clicking here

Click here to exit Gallery. Diary part 1

AUSTRALIA DAY JANUARY 26 "OZZI OZZI OZZI - OYT OYT OYT!!"

Gallery picture on Right. Welcoming Ceremony (tying of strings to wrist) in Sakon Nakon.

"UMMMM
YUM YUM!!"

Gallery Recipe Roasted Witjuti Grubs

. 4 Witjuti grubs (frozen)

. I teaspoon oil for frying

Do not let the grubs thaw or they will go limp and blackish. Warm the oil in skillet on medium heat and put in the frozen grubs. Turn the grubs often to stop them from leaking like sausages and losing their tasty content. Fry until brown and crispy.

Enjoy

Frozen grubs can also be roasted in a hot oven but toss regularly

Bogong Moth Toasted

Handful of bogong moths 1 teaspoon macadamia oil Mozzarella cheese Burrawong bread fingers

In a mortar and pestle, mash the moths to a paste onto burrawong bread fingers and grill them. The spread can burn quickly so only grill long enough to heat the moths. Top with mozzarella and place back under the griller to melt and brown the topping. Serve hot

Enjoy

For more recipes (inc Burrawong bread) visit www.musicswapshoppe.com/information.html

Gallery still shots from the video for "Caroline" - from Billy Sheehan Compression CD. The big secret was -- the girl was completely naked the whole time.

In Billy's words " We used camera angles to obscure any naughty parts."

AUSTRALIA DAY 26 January

Taylors Taysty Morsels

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