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The Ulysses Club is a club for motorcyclists over age 40 in Australia. A sibling organisation of the same name exists in New Zealand. ==History== The Ulysses Club was formed for motorcyclists aged 40 years and older at the instigation of Stephen Dearnley in Sydney, Australia in December 1983 in reply to a letter in the now defunct ''Bike Australia'' magazine, the editor being Peter "The Bear" Thoeming. The name ''Ulysses Club'' was the idea of Rob Hall, while the club's motto of "''Grow Old Disgracefully''" was devised by his then-girlfriend Pat Lynch. Peter "The Bear" Thoeming sketched the "old man" logo that is still used by the club in its original hand-sketched form. The inaugural meeting of the club was held in Sydney on 6 December 1983 when the five people present approved a draft constitution and the ''Ulysses Club'' was duly formed. From this meeting a draft constitution was adopted, and the three basic principles or purposes of the club were formulated. These principles are: # To provide ways in which older motorcyclists can get together for companionship and mutual support; # To show by example that motor cycling can be an enjoyable and practical activity for riders of all ages; # To draw the attention of public and private institutions to the needs and views of older riders. These original purposes are entrenched in the club's constitutions and have stood the test of time unchanged. At that initial meeting the five founding members became an interim management committee, until two months later, on 7 February 1984, 11 of the club's total membership of 25 members attended the club's first annual general meeting, formally electing the very first National Committee and adopting the club's constitution.〔(1) - from the Ulysses members handbook.〕 The name comes from ''Ulysses'' by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. It tells how the great Greek hero Ulysses, now middle-aged and securely in charge of his kingdom of Ithaca, is getting bored with things around him and longs to go adventuring again with his shipmates of old. It describes very well indeed the sort of person who still has enough spark to go on riding into middle and later years. It is the largest organisation of its kind with over 138 branches in Australia and it now has branches in Germany, Vietnam (2008), South Africa (1997), Norway, Zimbabwe, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom, and members in Italy, Papua New Guinea, Shanghai, Singapore, Fiji, China, Austria and Thailand.〔 Membership of the club is open to any person, subject to National Committee approval, who has attained the age of 40 years and who holds a current motorcycle licence. Additionally, the spouse or regular companion of a member, who has attained the age of 40 years, may also be admitted as a member on application.〔 Until a member attains the age of 50 years, he or she shall be deemed to be a Junior Member, but nevertheless has full membership rights and privileges.〔 Membership has now passed 29,000 (Source: Natcom Meeting Minutes, October 2010, Page 3). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ulysses Club」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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