{"id":114587,"date":"2026-04-11T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/lismoretimes\/?p=114587"},"modified":"2026-04-08T22:10:29","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T12:10:29","slug":"northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/lismoretimes\/news\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\/","title":{"rendered":"Northern Rivers man breathes new life into old postie bikes"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>AFTER years riding modified postie bikes in offbeat flat-track races, longtime Tumbulgum local Dave Baker&#8217;s latest project \u2014 fitting a sidecar for a companion schnauzer \u2014 is set to turn heads.<\/p>\n<p>The custom-built sidecar, using a body sourced from an old fairground ride, is shaping up as one of the region&#8217;s more unusual modes of transport.<\/p>\n<p>The idea grew out of Dave&#8217;s ongoing care for a schnauzer named Ruby Violent Soho.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;As with everything in my life, the sidecar just sort of happened through a series of events,&#8221; Dave said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124408\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124408\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-124408\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2026\/04\/IMG_2485_27503.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124408\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dave Baker and Ruby, the schnauzer. Photo: Supplied<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I often take care of a companion dog called Ruby for a friend who is time poor and lives in an apartment.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;As time has gone by Ruby has become a surprisingly important part of my life.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Ruby regularly joins Dave during work shifts and visits to Tumbulgum Tavern, becoming a familiar presence.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;She&#8217;s the most popular staff member at work,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Dave said the sidecar was driven by both novelty and practicality, with rising fuel costs making the bike a cheaper option than a car.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124409\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124409\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-124409\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2026\/04\/DUSTHUSTLE1_04641.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124409\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dave Baker racing his Vespa along the Ellaspede Dust Hustle dirt track. Photo: Josh Baker.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Apart from its obvious use as the perfect dog transporter, in the present climate of high fuel prices it will become an essential shopping vehicle as it costs so little to run,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;But more importantly, it will be fun to own and to look at.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He enlisted neighbour Paul Nichols to help bring the idea to life, with the pair adapting a sidecar found at a swap meet into the postie bike design.<\/p>\n<p>Dave expects the build to be finished within a week, with the bike meeting road safety and registration requirements.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124410\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124410\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-124410\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2026\/04\/DUSTHUSTLE2_04911.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"419\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124410\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dave Baker racing his Vespa along the Ellaspede Dust Hustle dirt track. Photo: Josh Baker.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>His connection to postie bikes began through the Ellaspede Dust Hustle, a flat-track event that encouraged riders to compete on unconventional machines.<\/p>\n<p>Run by Brisbane custom motorcycle garage Ellaspede, the event became known for its mix of riders and improvised bikes.<\/p>\n<p>Dave competed for eight years before it ended last year due to rising insurance costs and track closures, riding everything from a Vespa to a modified postie bike.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The modified bikes still had to have a back brake, and they still had to be considered track-worthy,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I modified my little postie bike and set it up like a flat track speedway bike.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124411\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124411\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-124411\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2026\/04\/DUSTHUSTLE3_05172.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124411\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Dust Hustle delivered a comedic spectacle, showcasing a wild mix of riders on unconventional racing machines, and the entertaining chaos that inevitably followed. Photo: Josh Baker<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>He said the appeal was in building something from scratch.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Anyone can spend money on a competitive race bike, but building one from what is essentially scrap gives an enormous sense of achievement, especially if I&#8217;m in front,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>The Dust Hustle also drew a wide mix of riders and machines.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was such an eclectic mix of people and bikes,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124412\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124412\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-124412\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2026\/04\/DUSTHUSTLE4_05435.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124412\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dave Baker racing his Vespa in the Dust Hustle. Photo: Josh Baker.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;There was one guy on an old Harley-Davidson Knucklehead, another on a 250 Yamaha set up like something from Mad Max, with the rider wearing this strange old gear.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;People would be racing everything from converted road bikes to full race bikes and everything in between.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Dave said the event encouraged a strong DIY culture, with riders constantly building and modifying their own machines.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I have a friend who seems to have built a new bike for almost every event he went in, all of which were bought for next to nothing and heavily modified,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124413\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124413\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-124413\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2026\/04\/DUSTHUSTLE5_05709.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124413\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dave Baker racing his Vespa in the Dust Hustle. Photo: Josh Baker.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Alongside the sidecar project, Dave is already planning his next build with neighbour Paul, turning their attention to chopper-style bikes.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;They will have a big front end and handlebars, and Paul and I are going to build one each, so that&#8217;ll be pretty wild,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>For Dave, the motivation remains simple.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s just basically recommissioning old junk,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>AFTER years riding modified postie bikes in offbeat flat-track races, longtime Tumbulgum local Dave Baker&#8217;s latest project \u2014 fitting a sidecar for a companion schnauzer \u2014 is set to turn heads. The custom-built sidecar, using a body sourced from an old fairground ride, is shaping up as one of the region&#8217;s more unusual modes of [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-secondary understrap-read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/lismoretimes\/news\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\/\">Read More&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":251,"featured_media":114588,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-114587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Northern Rivers man breathes new life into old postie bikes - Lismore Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Meet Dave Baker, the Tumbulgum local building custom postie bikes and sidecars for his dog. 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A tale of DIY grit and fun rides.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/lismoretimes\/news\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Lismore Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-10T18:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2026\/04\/LZ-33.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Pancho Symes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Pancho Symes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Pancho Symes\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c86ef402d46be52abeea0498231a318a\"},\"headline\":\"Northern Rivers man breathes new life into old postie bikes\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-10T18:00:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":748,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/32\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/LZ-33.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/\",\"name\":\"Northern Rivers man breathes new life into old postie bikes - Lismore Times\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/lismoretimes\\\/news\\\/northern-rivers-man-breathes-new-life-into-old-postie-bikes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/32\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/LZ-33.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-10T18:00:00+00:00\",\"description\":\"Meet Dave Baker, the Tumbulgum local building custom postie bikes and sidecars for his dog. 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