The Roaring Season

Back to the Bathurst meeting. Not quite the magic of the above, but at least it was a good grid.

John McKechnie wrote:Thanks Allen, also explains why it is on a slant.
Dont know the layout of Otago, so didnt know wharves were so close

John Mck - yes wharves were close and the Sprints that weekend were run close by them too !! shades of the Wellington Street Races.

I now struggle with naming/identifying the sports cars. So easy when it was Austin Healeys and Triumphs... Now, trying to track down in what country a car was built is a problem, as dear old Google doesn't always come up with the answers. This is down as an ARES...


Early Radical.


Formula Suzuki.

French get support from the British...



We are now getting some decent support for Formula Libre - at long last. We have so many formulae that have dropped by the wayside over the years that this class deserves support from those who just want to blow the cobwebs out of cars that would otherwise just be gathering spiders.

There is a place for those Formula Pacifics

Warwick Mortimer


Donn White's Mini


A pair of identical Falcons...


Warwick Mortimer - again BMW


Kevin Burke - Valiant Charger - no year stated in the programme... Its bad enough when the programme doesn't have the info we require, but surely, those in charge should at least fill in the gaps rather than leave spaces? I presume they didn't use HRC's on line entry system?


Long time Holden driver, Veen Smith.

French mix.

Dad's plastic Merit kit - I could never afford the Merit kits - especially the super-kits, where there was an engine! I was limited to the 2/- Airfix kits, which was 4d short of a full week's pocket money. Dad gave me 1s 4d - which was supposedly index linked to what he got(!); 6d from Mum; 6d from the lady across the road for doing her shopping on Saturday. I suppose that total equates to about 20c NZ.

Found my first pay packet yesterday. Four pounds 10s before tax and NHS bringing it down to just over four pounds. About $8NZD. Whole pay packet tipped up to my parents and they gave me 25% after paying me back for any lunches I had to buy. No wonder that at 16, I couldn't afford a motorbike or to date girls! I couldn't afford a Ferrari 250 GTO at $10,000NZD either...


British F1 Grand Prix meeting 1977.


Goodwood 2000


Monaco 2012. This is either a different car or the mirrors have been changed.


Goodwood Festival 2002. The sculptures located in front of Goodwood House are always impressive.


Monaco 2012 - Matra F1

Another mix. Recently scanned slides (except the last pic).

Basil Dagge's rapid Imp at Prescott. Occasionally, we'd be in the same class at a sprint, when they threw road modified cars (mine) in with race saloons, (Basil's).


Lyncar. Nicholson engine... Formula Atlantic race Mallory Park, August 1975.




Whenuapai February 1998

The Old Merits don't scrub up too bad

Yours looks so much better with decent wheels and rubber tyres Chaindrive. The originals weren't so hot! I do remember Dad mixing gloss grey and matt black paint to try and get a better look on the plastic tyres. He also tried to get the 'blued' effect on the exhaust. I must dig out his model and take a colour pic.

Just had a few days in Napier, but we couldn't stay for the Art Deco weekend. Apparently, they have 400 cars in the weekend parade - but 600 want to join it! Never seen so many Packards before, either already in Napier or heading that way. There were even two at our motel.

"Hooters" busiest week/weekend of the year no doubt and with the Celebrity Solstice in port on the 14th, about an extra 4,000 people enjoying the town.

ERC wrote:Just had a few days in Napier, but we couldn't stay for the Art Deco weekend. Apparently, they have 400 cars in the weekend parade - but 600 want to join it! Never seen so many Packards before, either already in Napier or heading that way. There were even two at our motel.

"Hooters" busiest week/weekend of the year no doubt and with the Celebrity Solstice in port on the 14th, about an extra 4,000 people enjoying the town.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]51285[/ATTACH]

A true real Original " Pick -up Truck " Model A Ford - great ..thanks Ray .. back in the 1970's NZ Hot Rod Magazine [ the longest running car magazine in New Zealand according to them ] "under the original publishers " ran a series of article on Model A Fords ..
remember when there office was in Grey Lynn /Ponsonby just off Williamson's Avenue and the " Old Ponsonby Council Chambers and Fire Station Building ".

Ray...can you please keep an eye out for and photo my old Packard- 1936 120B, twin sidemount,,was cream with cream leather interior, sold before I registered it.

This one John? Immaculate paint job. One of the two at our motel.

Could it be this one John. It's a cream '36 with twin sidemounts

OK, not this, this is a Roadster, mine was a sedan with twin side mounts......also colour was Old English white- like Jags/Daimlers.
Every Pak is a gem, absolutely top quality machines and of course they built 55,575 Merlin V12s during the War.

I'm guessing that side mounts refers to the spare wheels then! Sorry, but as you well know, Americana and Japana aren't my strong points.

As a former ambulance officer I can only imagine the damage those hood ornaments could do to the human body.

Back to January Caffeine & Classics - next meet Feb 25th. Getting in early when the gates to the far car park open, means a clearer uncluttered pic.

ERC,Ray, I am stealing the Healey "Ross C's car "photo - for my archives thanks Mate