Welcome to the Niggle Branch Pages.
The Niggle Branch is a trail ride we undertake each year in memory of our very dear Mate Neil "Niggle" Campbell who died in 2003 at the too young age of 47.
In 1990, Niggle and Steven Matthews put together the first Gary Branch which was a trail ride that took about 30 very dubious characters through the Ngarkat National Park.
Niggle had a somewhat dry sense of humour as he demonstrated the first night....
But on the second night, all on his own, Niggle pulled off the legendary "Buried Bike Prank" for which he will be forever remembered.....
We went on five Gary Branch rides in all, and it was at Niggle's wake, while discussing the fun we had on those trips, that we decided to organise a ride in his memory.
The first Niggle Branch was held in June 2004 at Millicent. We had so much fun we decided to keep doing it. We held five rides at Millicent in the southeast, hosted by our good mates the Winter Family. Since 2010 we have tended to head off to different areas including the Mallee, Flinders Ranges and the Far North.
Another old mate of ours Murray "Muzz" Tune has been the main organiser of the runs. As well are mapping out the routes and organising all the details, Muzz also produces the Trophies which are handed our each year.
We've had a few special Niggle Branches along the way. In 2007 after some of our families were impacted by cancer, we held a Pink themed run and had an auction to raise money for breast cancer research. (I still think Tom Matthews took the pink theme just a bit too far!)
In 2013, another great friend of ours, Gil Harris, passed away. Gil had a great love for the reliability trials and was also a fantastic teacher of young riders. His wife Sandra allowed us the great privilege of taking Uncle Gil's ashes for one more ride and we spread them from one of his favourite spots in the mid-North.
That same year also marked the tenth Niggle Branch that we'd run. Muzz and Peter Hennekam were recognised as being the only two who have been on every run so far. (that remains true in 2017). (Note to self, must find some way to nobble Muzz next year.)
The story of Beverly...
WARNING.....Not for those of a sensitive disposition.
The Niggle Branch has grown into something very special and is a great way for us to remember a very special mate. It's also fantastic that Niggle's old DT has been restored and was once again part of this year's ride.
I hope you enjoy scrolling through these pages, they brought back a lot of great memories for me. Just click on the year you want and you will go to that gallery, click on the stubby holder at the top of any page to come back to this page. There are more pics in some years than others (2011 was a particularly lean year).
Hope you enjoy them.