The Roaring Season

Support Classes:

Minis - Brian Audas + Bruce Melville etc



Classic Cars -



F/Pacifics - Dave McMillan RT4



Bluebird Celebrity Race

Awesome photos. Can't believe how laid back with track safety we were back then. I keep looking at the crowd with nothing to really stop a car saying hello big time lol.

TonyG wrote:Awesome photos. Can't believe how laid back with track safety we were back then. I keep looking at the crowd with nothing to really stop a car saying hello big time lol.

Or should that be "realistic with track safety"? Perhaps it's just a bit Over the top now?
After all how often did the (perceived) problems actually happen?

Too true !

Wow, Martin, these are fantastic! Is there any chance I could get larger copies for the article?

Sure, Let me know which ones, some have been scanned from negs, some from prints - quality varies slightly.
what resolution/pixel level do you require?

Thanks Martin, I will send you a pm.

Steve,

Sorry I am VERY late to this party as have been away for too long.
Here are my photos from that first race

http://s18.photobucket.com/albums/b123/leetra/Wellington%201/#!cpZZ1QQtppZZ24

If you find any you can still use still LMK and I can email you the original scans.

Cheers
Lee

Hey thanks heaps Lee, I'll go through those and pick some out.

Martin, did you get the email I sent you?

I ran over two guys after I jumped the banking at Bay Park early 70s. A kid who was sitting on the back of a spectator car got clipped and ended up on top of my car, think he was burned by the exhaust manifold of my Begg. The guys were very close to being decapitated and John Hatton just reminded me that I was wrapped up in the 5 wire fence and almost strangled so I'm all for updating safety standards.....
Grant Ellwood

Oldfart wrote:Or should that be "realistic with track safety"? Perhaps it's just a bit Over the top now?
After all how often did the (perceived) problems actually happen?

Does anyone know if the Belbin Brothers VH SS started, and if so what colour was it???

The Belbins Commodore in pitlane on practice day, after coming together with Walkinshaw Rover - see photo above
of bent door - i think from memory they started from the back of the grid or maybe pitlane.

Hey Martin, cool photos.
Look closely at the fourth one down, at the hairpin and the flag Marshall in shorts standing on the block wall.....that's me!!

I remember those first few events very well, great times

Thanks Martin. It would appear it isn't my car, as mine was the yellow/white one they had.

PhotoSmith wrote:[ATTACH=CONFIG]6104[/ATTACH]

The Belbins Commodore in pitlane on practice day, after coming together with Walkinshaw Rover - see photo above
of bent door - i think from memory they started from the back of the grid or maybe pitlane.

I have this recollection of seeing the yellow car in the parked in the pits (by this stage as a "road car") whilst the black one was being raced. Id have to think about the year as i was only a kid then.
The reason it sticks in my mind is that, i recall them trading at at premium at this point possibly as high as $40,000.00.
and bearing that in mind, your car was parked up their, having been roughly rubbed down all over with wet and dry sand paper. and looked a disgrace.
Cant have been more than a couple of years old at this stage
Seem to recall they went to the Big House not long afterward.

Oh and i mean parked at Puke not wellington

That would explain why Robert was so cagey about it when I rang him a few years back. It went into a finance company ownership after them, with a plate change and sold on. I think they had two loans against it, but thats a rumour

crunch wrote:Hey Martin, cool photos.
Look closely at the fourth one down, at the hairpin and the flag Marshall in shorts standing on the block wall.....that's me!!

I remember those first few events very well, great times

Hi Crunch,

well spotted, here's another that a bit easier - 10 years later - towards the end of Whanga coast Stage.

The shorts are colour coded with the Falken colours, looking into the future ah Crunch (hope were not still wearing them)