As I am part of the living history of the club and being around from the time before its inception, I have been asked by the members of my motorcycle club to record the history of our club. A lot of rumors and fantasies have been conjured up over the years by various members and they based their tales on stories that have been retold. While there is some truth in it, not all the legends are accurate.

The Chicken Outfit Motorcycle Club has grown over the years as part of the South African Biking history, and is still carving its path through the current biking scene. We are writing our history in the hearts and lives of many people who are still in the club, and we have written it in the lives of the members who are no longer active. We have also touched the lives of people outside the club, and are still doing so.

We have lost a few brothers and friends to the grim reaper over the years, but they still live in our hearts and legends.

My love for motorcycles started when I got my first bike in 1970. The thrill I got when I got on it cannot be described, but it still feels the same every time I get on my bike. I ride almost every day of my life, and as my shelf life is getting shorter, it is important to me to share the joy of riding with friends.

I have seen a lot of changes to bikes and people over the years, and it is very exiting to be part of these changes.

Helmet laws came to stay. Crash bars went. Front number plates went. Bike rallies went from one a year to one every weekend. Bike clubs jumped up like mushrooms. Day Jols jumped up. Public attitude changed. Traffic patterns changed.

We changed, and it is good to be part of it.

The early years started when I got my first bike. It was a 100cc single Yamaha. It was never my intention to become a biker as I was a surfer at the time, and my station wagon packed up. I had to have transport, as I just moved from the beachfront to Morningside in Durban. I got so turned on to riding, that instead of surfing, I went riding. I got up early in the mornings to ride for an hour before work, then at lunch time I was in the saddle, and after work I was off somewhere again. I could not wait for weekends to explore Natal, and spent many happy hours on the roads.

Soon to follow was my friend, Jannie Weitz, who bought my bike when I upgraded to a 250 Yammie. Jannie also got turned on to riding and upgraded to a 250 as well. My brother Louis bought a BSA Shooting Star, and the three of us started riding together.

Louis upgraded to Triumph Tiger, Jannie to Triumph Trophy and I upgraded to BSA Gold Flash. We were later joined by Pete Limey on a Triumph Bonneville and Alan de Billet on one of the first Honda 500’s in Durban.

Louis lived in an abandoned hotel in Warner Beach, and every last Friday night of the month we had a party in the lounge of the hotel.

Soon other Durban bikers heard of our parties, and joined us on these nights. We joined up with them at the LA Hotel in Durban on Saturdays for Bored Meetings where we would spend many bored hours drinking beer.

We also started off road riding in the back bush at Warner Beach with the locals. Soon there were two groups of riders we were involved with. Both groups would party together at the monthly parties, but riding was shared between road riding and off-road riding.

There were a lot of Pete’s in the groups. To distinguish between them there were “Piepies, Pete Limey, Pete Norton” and Louis referred to me as Brother Pete. Everybody called me that after a while, and the name stuck over the years.

The name Chicken Outfit was used by Louis as a reference in jest to the road riding group of our biking friends. One day Pete Limey asked Louis if he was going to ride on the road or in the bush on that day. Louis replied “No I am not riding with that Chicken Outfit today”. The reference stuck and we referred to the road riding group as the Chicken Outfit, much to their disgust.

There was no official club called Chicken Outfit as it was just a reference.

My first rally I attended was the Buffalo Rally in 1971. In 1972, Louis Jannie and I rode together, and took our women along (Jannie & Louis took wives and I took my girlfriend) to the Buff. In 1973 Louis, Jannie & his wife, Allan de Billet and I were together at the Buff. 1974 was the petrol shortage year and we all stayed at home. From 1975 we always attended the Buff together but without the womenfolk. It was the beginning of the philosophy that followed later when the club was founded that women do not have a say in the club. The Buff in 1976 was attended by the road crew and us in full strength. The first Rhino Rally started in 1976 and by this time the road crew and off-road crew rallied together.
We were no longer separated and we were all one big happy family of bikers. We all camped together at rallies and our campsite at rally sites soon became known as Durban Street.

The Chicken Outfit

Towards the end of 1977 Louis decided that colours should be worn. Louis made up the chicken in the skull & crossbones as a statement to express that this is a joke on the heavy biker image. The name Chicken Outfit was added to the emblem, and off course Durban to the bottom. All the lettering was hand embroidered by Louis in red. (A skill he learned in the navy, where all seamen had to embroider their names on their shirts).

Ian Hickman and Louis spent a lot of time riding and socializing together. Next to follow was Ian who cut the lettering out of green felt and glued it onto his jacket. The Chicken Outfit Durban was officially born as a bike club in 1978.

They decided that they would appoint Idi Amin as their no. 1 Patron Saint, with Colonel Saunders as no. 2 and Mao tse Tung as no.3.

The whole thing started as a joke.

On the way to the Rhino Rally in Nelspruit in 1978, we went via Swaziland where the Chicken Outfit was reported on by the press for the first time. The exposure of the name” Chicken Outfit” was now officially established in the national biking community after the Nelspruit Rhino.

Swaziland was then then included in our travel plan on our way to the Rhino Rally the next year as we made friends with people in Manzini.

Our group grew as more bikers joined our circle of friends. We went on breakfast runs, weekend camping trips and rallies together as a group of friends. We still had our parties as before. We were now the Chicken Outfit. We helped each other in the form of clubbing in for loans if someone did not have funds to attend a rally, or needed spares. There was no pressure on any of the friends to wear the Chicken Outfit colours. If you wanted to wear the colours, you had to make your own set.

Through the years we made friends at rallies with people from all over the country. At the time apartheid was still very much alive. A coloured biker from Mossel Bay started attending the Buff in 1975. We met and befriended this guy, Pieter. While at the Buff in 1978, I invited Pieter to visit me. He joined us for the ride back to Durban, and spent a week with Linda and I in Durban. We caused quite a stir in the neighborhood with Pieter staying with us. Pieter went back to Mossel Bay to start a Chicken Outfit club there with Louis’ blessing.

In 1979 we went via Swaziland en route to the Rhino at Ofcolaco. Pieter and Freddy rode from Mossel Bay, and joined us in Durban for the trip. We had a jol all the way, and Chicken Outfit Durban and Chicken Outfit Mossel Bay colours were seen at the Rhino. Pieter returned with us to Durban, and Ian rode back with him to Mossel Bay to carry on to Cape Town and on to Joburg on a tour.

On 4 June 1979 tragedy struck. Louis was killed in an accident. I wanted to burry his colours with him and also the Chicken Outfit as it was Louis’ legacy. Ian talked me out of it and into stepping in as president. I did not want to respond immediately as I was in an emotional desert. Louis and I were together all our lives, except for the time he was in the navy, and while at tech in Pretoria during the mid sixties.

After we buried Louis in Jeffreys Bay, I took stock, and then I settled into the idea of running the club. I called all the friends together and we discussed the future of the club. Some friends wanted to have a more official club and some not. We decided to run it on an official basis, but not laden with rules that would impose on individual freedom. There is a thin line between “shall” and “want to do”, and while some members wanted hard and fast rules, others wanted some order without hard and fast.

We had our first official club meeting at the Argyle Hotel in Durban on 13 May 1981.The minutes were taken at the meeting and that was the beginning of a new direction for the Chicken Outfit. Some rules were documented, and as rules were broken, we learned that it was not important to be petty. Through experience we learned that it was good to have guidelines, but as long as they remained guidelines, we would keep the club intact. When the guidelines become rules, the fun disappeared. We were together to have fun. It took time and perseverance to find the right recipe to ensure the survival of the club, but we found it after many mistakes and failures. At the end of it all, only two rules remained: 1) the rider in front of you has the right of way (this is about survival on the road). 2) Women do not have a say in the club (this is about survival of the club).

As Louis’ colours were red embroidered on white, we decided that this would be the official colour. We had the embroidery done by a professional embroidery company, and all colours were standard except that the Skull and crossbones and chicken were hand made. The full set was later done professionally.

Handing colours to new members was only done after the whole club agreed to it. Before the colours were handed over, the new prospective member had to be introduced by an existing member, who had to vouch for the prospect’s behavior. When members resigned from the club, they could keep the colours, and were always assured of a welcome return.

Some of the members were concerned that our colours were a bit loud, as some of us were in professions where colours were frowned upon. We asked our artists in the club to attend to the matter, and some interesting designs came about to wear as shoulder patches. Eventually the designs were put to the vote, and a shoulder patch was made.

Shoulder patches were sewn on the leathers, and were worn with or without full colours.

Day of the Clubs

The first Day of the Clubs was started by Chicken Outfit. This was born at a bike parking protest that we launched in Durban. The bikers were targeted by the City Police for parking fines, and we wanted bike parking in the CBD. We staged a parking protest that finally led to bike parking lots on every street block in the CBD. After the protest all the bikers went to the Beach Hotel where we came up with the event as we were all one in biking spirit although we were in different clubs.

The first Day of the Clubs was held on the last day of August 1981 at Nagle Dam in the Valley of 1000 Hills. We got most of the Natal Bikers together for the day and some Bikers from other provinces also attended. We printed T Shirts which were sold at cost for R3-00. We arranged for firewood and charcoal to be taken to the site by the backup vehicles. The costs were shared amongst the clubs. Bikers just had to bring their own meat and booze. There was even a mobile pub on site.

It was so successful that we decided to make it an annual event. It was organized by Chicken Outfit well into the new millennium, till it was highjacked by another club. The year 2010 was also the 30th consecutive Day of the clubs.

Think Bike

After the successful co-operation of the Durban Bikers, we were invited to become part of the Think Bike Campaign that started as a Motorcycle Awareness Movement.

The campaign grew momentum and was launched at the West Ridge Tennis Stadium. Stickers were made and distributed, and the Think Bike Movement was born.

Chicken Outfit across the country

The Kimberley bikers came to visit us in Durban, and when they left, they were given the go- ahead for a chapter to start up in Kimberley. Calvin, Arrie, Dorian & Eric were the first Kimberley members. The club shut down since.

Paul Wilson moved to White River, and started a Chicken Outfit Chapter along with John Jelly. When Paul moved back to Durban, John joined the Flops and White River Outfit was shut down.

Shaun Comrie and Bobby Landman moved to Port Elizabeth and started a chapter there. When Shaun moved back to Durban, we shut PE down. Bobby still lives in PE but as a country member.

Tys Snyman moved to Joburg and together with Peter Wood were our Joburg country members. Peter Wood left to start the Flops. Tys still stays in Joburg where he runs a successful Bike Shop.
Louis van Niekerk joined us from Vryheid where he stayed as a country member. He left for Joburg, where he was killed in a bike accident.

During the year 1994, the Hells Angels started to hassle the individual Chicken Outfit members at the Rallies about our red on white colours. The hassling became a threat, and we watched the situation with interest, but no change was made.

By December 1995 Brother Pete moved to White River. He handed the reigns of the Durban Chapter to Craig Joubert, and gave Craig permission to change the red on white for the safety of the Durban members. Craig used the shoulder patch that Star Wars designed for us, and put that on the back.

Pete started Chicken Outfit White River up again.

Emmer, who lived in Tzaneen, joined the Chicken Outfit and started the Northern Province Chicken Outfit. When he moved to Nelspruit, Skaballa took over the Northern reigns. Emmer left the outfit to join the Banished Brothers.

Wayne moved to Joburg, and along with Warren, made up Chicken Outfit Joburg, which Warren was heading. Wayne since moved to Durban. Chicken Outfit is no longer represented in Joburg.

Duncan relocated to Cape Town, and along with Johnnie sported the colours in Cape Town, till their resignation. Chicken Outfit is no longer represented in Cape Town. After heading the Durban chapter for 15 years Craig and the Durban chapter resigned and went on to join the Banished Brothers.

Wayne took presidency of Durban and will revive the chapter again.

The Chicken Rally

We visited Ashtonvale Guest Farm in 1980 for a weekend jol, and after that weekend, the first Chicken Rally was formulated. We put out feelers to the other bikers in Durban, and we had a positive response.

We borrowed R300.00 from a biker friend, Alex Steward, and planned our first Chicken Rally which was held on 6 March 1981 at Ashtonvale Guest Farm at Bulwer. The rally was a huge success. The Chicken Rally was on the circuit till 2019 which made 39 successive Chicken Rallies. The first entry fee was R20.00 which included full accommodation in a chalet, or room, and full meals from Friday evening to Sunday Lunch and a metal badge.

The ET Rally

The ET Rally was started by Chicken Outfit in 1998 at Kranskloof, near Pilgrims Rest, as an invitation only rally, and as the popularity of the event spread, the rally goers began bringing friends with. By the year 2010 we hosted the 12th consecutive ET Rally.

In 2000 we combined the ET Rally with a music festival, “Spontaneous Combustion”, where 14 bands played non stop for 48 hours on the stage which was erected on the rally site.

We lost the site as the landlord gave it up to accommodate the new South Africans.

We moved the rally to the Pilgrims Caravan Park, but after a few years the new South Africans took over there as well and the utilities there became unlivable.

The Rally was then moved to Jock of the Bushveld Bungalows/ Boskombuis between Nelspruit and Barberton.

After two years we outgrew the site.

A new home was found for the ET at Elangeni Holiday Resort near Waterval Onder on the N4, where we still are. So far in 2023 we had our 25th consecutive ET Rally.

The Magoebaskloof Rally

The Magoebaskloof rally was started by the Tzaneen Outfit, but unfortunately did not get past two years running.

The Press

Through the years various publications reported on our activities. Some reports are accurate and some contain some accuracy. The press is not always certain of the correct details, and has to rely on their sources, who also do not know the correct facts. It does not matter what they write as long as it is not negative publicity. The reports followed us through the 80’s, 90’s and well into the new millennium.

Some reports went missing over the years, but a fairly representative sample was kept.

The history of the club is still being written at this time and the writing will continue in the hearts of the next generation as Biking is bigger than any one person.