[Kent DuncanMember]

I have done my own thing before, Hydraulic repairs and Hydraulic Hose manufacture.
It was making decent money but I always worried about where my next dollar was going to come from.
Once I sold that it was a HUGE weight off my shoulders and swore I’d never do that again.
Used to hate having to do paperwork every night after working all day or doing it on the weekends then BAS statements and every man and his dog wanting their cut of the takings at the end of every month. The more I made the more they wanted- Ins, workers comp, tax etc. Was a draining experience.

I could quite easily do a mowing gig though, funnily enough I like mowing. I have 5 acres up here and mow approx. 3 acres including fire breaks every two weeks in the wet season. Dry season, not so much.
As a kid I mowed approx. 6 acres and loved it, used to ride down the servo (12klm’s each way on push bike) just to get fuel for the mower so I could do it during my school holidays.. ridiculous, I know but its just something I liked doing…

Looking forward to this Ops manager position up here though, had a standard HR phone call from them the other day and have been short listed. If I get the role I’ll do it for a couple of years then head to the East, wherever that may be. Its a national company with branches all over the place. Its only $10K more than what I get now. However I might be able transfer within the company at a later date. I will then have that under my belt which should be more of a recognized skill as opposed to running/ recovering subsea infrastructure.

[Kent DuncanMember]

That’s good way of looking at it STM.
An issue I have with regards to work is always putting in 110% and trying to be the best, seems to always happen. I’m normally the first there and one of the last to leave, never have sick days ( I have over 660 Hrs sick leave) and just hate not being there. Doesn’t matter where I work, the same thing happens time and time again. Its great for the employers and if they’re looking after me I don’t mind putting in the Hrs, its effortless.
I can’t sit back and wait to be told what to do, its just not my bag. I feel guilty doing that sort of thing. Don’t get me wrong I hate having to work but unfortunately it must be done.

Guess it all stems from my old man, he worked at the same place for 36 years and would often come home and talk about a certain few people he liked to call ” clock watchers”. The ones that come and go right on the tick of the clock, take their breaks the same way. Instead of putting in the effort in order to gain the satisfaction of a job well done. The guys that are just there to kill time and get paid for it. What they don’t realise is that when they want something like time off to go here or go there its going to cost them A/L time as opposed to the person that puts in a hard day gets to take off early to pick his kids up, go to the dentist, doctor and not worry about his pay getting docked etc. The good guys get looked after, normally.

With the move I’m looking at taking, wherever that may be, I don’t want my life to revolve around work like what always ends up happening. I dont want to/ can’t take the piss and become a clock watcher either, just goes against every cell in my body to do that. I need to find the balance, for mine and my family’s sake and I think I’m going to struggle with that.

Think I need to win the lotto….… even then I’d probably still front up for work in case I missed out on something important.

This is the sort of sh!t that normally runs through my head when I’m riding, especially when your slabbing it for 800 odd klms. You know that sh!t you think about when your on your own inside your helmet floating down the highway…

[Kent DuncanMember]

You’ve got 10 years on me Eags, where are you located?

[Kent DuncanMember]

I’m hearing you on that Eags, the offshore O&G industry is booming up here and in WA and is only going to get better. There’s at least 10 years solid work up here booked and being waited on getting done, not enough players to do the work. Not enough people to fill rigs either, lots of kiwis coming over to play.
Issue I have is at some stage I need to get back over East, the experience I have in this industry doesn’t account for much if anything on the east coast.
However, I’m a motor mechanic by trade with 14 years hydraulic/ pneumatic experience, I also have my cert4 in Project Management so I can fall back to either one of those, although I do HATE fixing cars…mugs game.

Just feel as though the time has come to stop living to work and begin working to live. I have spent so much time trying to get in front I have forgotten to live life and the last 10 years have just dissapeared. My daughter is now 6 and I need to make a move sooner rather than later, for both our sakes. Being stuck on rigs and vessels, missing out on a lot of her younger years its time to get out and do things for her now. I think she misses out on a lot of things up here being so isolated and I know her grand parents have missed out on a lot of her growing up too.

[Kent DuncanMember]

Cheers for the input guys, looking like the Port Macquarie area keeps coming up.
I’ll have to have look around there for jobs and see what’s available.
I have applied for an ops manager position up here which will keep me at home and away from the floating time bombs (drilling rigs).
This is the next logical step in my career which will be more transferable to different areas of the country as opposed to the current subsea engineering work which is too geographically constrained. Great in Darwin or Perth but not so much on the east coast, not sure what this would look like on my resume in a Port Macquarie business? Need to start drilling holes in the ground off the coast.
Anyhow, if I get this new job up here it will push me back a couple of years away from moving, but good to get some feedback from you guys as to where to actually go to, just in case I don’t get it.
Be glad to finally get out and ride in some hills/ mountains and camp in some cool weather for a change.

[Kent DuncanMember]

I’ll have a read, thanks for that Mick. I see ocean with waves….purdy
Thinking that I will get some biased replies, its great that people are proud of where they live.
Just need to get them to place their thoughts on here for me to see or provide links as you have done. Would prefer people’s own explanations though.

Keep em coming guys.

[Kent DuncanMember]

Removed the leaking counter shaft seal and solved my oil usage problem at the same time.
Two birds, one stone…

[Kent DuncanMember]

Midas C-02 Stoneking, I get a great run out of those things. (XR650R)

Wet bitumen they tend to slip and slide but other than that great wearing, tuff sidewalls and haven’t managed to tear off any knobs either.

[Kent DuncanMember]

toes wrote:

Just heard that KTM has purchased Honda Japan.
There will be no new Hondas as of 2015.
unbelievable.When will they learn.

KTM might become reliable….pffft

[Kent DuncanMember]

When’s “Ride ADV” coming to Darwin???

I’m in for that one, bring a fishing rod with you too.

[Kent DuncanMember]

Cheers guys, thanks.

[Kent DuncanMember]

Reckon I’d be keen for this ride, looking at doing a lap around Tasmania next year.
Just have to find a nice 660Ten, I’m on the hunt..(cash money)
Not to mention the time off work.

Proper Prior Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance.

[Kent DuncanMember]

Nato wrote:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUHHhE75ke0

How awesome was that, just the sound of those bikes brought back memories.
Have often thought of getting my hands on an old CR500, trouble is they’re all worth a million dollars these days..

[Kent DuncanMember]

lotsa wrote:

Zoro wrote:

Does anyone know where I could possibly try on this helmet in/ around the Gold Coast area?

I’ll be down that way in the next couple of weeks and was really looking forward to trying on an -4 on as no one up here stocks them. Would most likely be a $1000 helmet by the time the local dealers up here got their hands on them.

Zoro, your local dealer should be able to get it in for you, let you try it on, sell it for the RRP or let you walk out of the shop without buying.

Thanks Lotsa but if the local dealer does not have any I doubt very much that they will get any in.
NT stands for Not Today, Not Tomorrow, Not Tuesday, Not Thursday…..
No competition for business up here and the shop keepers know this, if I was to go and see the local dealer and ask them to get me a helmet in to try they would charge me for the freight to get it here like they do with everything else.
Example, I paid $48 for a pilot jet and main jet for my XR650R, approx $20 of that was airbag (which takes 2-3 days) from the local Honda dealer and that is through a good mate that works there, would hate to see what it would normally cost. Like to see what the comparable items would cost down south/ east coast.
This is what its like for most things, not just motorbike stuff, we have to pay freight on nearly everything we buy up here.

[Kent DuncanMember]

Does anyone know where I could possibly try on this helmet in/ around the Gold Coast area?

I’ll be down that way in the next couple of weeks and was really looking forward to trying on an -4 on as no one up here stocks them. Would most likely be a $1000 helmet by the time the local dealers up here got their hands on them.

[Author]

Posts