tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2538593790810124847.post2160093975935178610..comments2023-12-26T13:32:40.503+10:00Comments on REPCO RELIABILITY TRIAL 1979: Mount Isa to CairnsIan Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04050908061599090884noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2538593790810124847.post-11461151370867986232012-02-17T13:13:38.608+10:002012-02-17T13:13:38.608+10:00The Mount Isa stop was a bit frustrating as we wer...The Mount Isa stop was a bit frustrating as we were all getting very tired and the dealership hadn’t organised breakfast or showers etc. The service boys were there and checked over the car as well as replacing the punctured tyre. Geoff got in the back upon departure and I navigated Wes but we forgot to refuel and had to turn around and go back a few kms. We felt a bit silly but it was symptomatic of our fatigue and a reminder that we needed to be careful.<br />Wes drove the Kajabbi stage which he seemed to enjoy, but it was really quite rough and rugged so I didn’t get any sleep! The 14 minutes we dropped were our only penalties on this division. It was nearly 11 am at Kajabbi and it was the hottest day yet. Geoff drove up to the Burke and Wills Roadhouse while Wes slept and I dozed in the passenger seat. Wes managed to get a shower at the roadhouse while we refuelled and grabbed milkshakes. Geoff kept driving up to Bang Bang where we were pleased to lay down for a few minutes in the shade of the control official’s tent. It was bloody hot!<br />I drove the Norman River stage which was absolutely flat chat on good station tracks for much of the first half, only punctuated by numerous gates. Once onto the fainter track up to Claravale it was slower going but we were so far ahead of schedule that it would have to be really bad for us to lose time. At the Norman River there was a maze of tracks with lots of deep sand. Someone appeared and said that the Commodores had gotten through OK so just charge at it, which we did, but got stuck about 100 metres beyond. We paid the guy $15 and told him to get organised. He was still positioning his 4WD when the Porsche passed us on the left and disappeared. We were soon pulled out OK and when we exited the river the Porsche appeared on our left, having taken the wrong track. He tried to do a drag race with us on the narrow track, knocking down the shrubs, so I backed off, being uninterested in such manoeuvres! It was still very sandy and at a mallee gate a few kms further on we found both the Mehta Commodore and Porsche at the gate with Barry Lake and Roland Kushmal trying to open it. Geoff got out and joined in! Soon enough it was open but the Porsche sped off much to Aaltonen’s disgust. We were last and left to close the gate. The remainder of the stage was fairly fast and open with a few gates and a tricky corner over a brow where someone ahead of us had gone off (my guess was the Porsche as Jurgen seemed to be fired up!). We were all early at Croydon so went back into the original order and Jurgen apologised to Geoff for his “ungentlemanly” behaviour back at the Norman River!<br />I drove into Croydon where our service boys checked over the car and I tried to buy flavoured milk but could only buy plastic bags (yes, bags!) of milk which were a bit tricky to drink! I continued to drive eastwards towards Georgetown while both Wes and Geoff slept. There was a small crowd at the Georgetown refuel but we didn’t need to stop. The sun was then setting and kangaroos were everywhere, sometimes in groups of five or ten on the road, so there were some hairy manoeuvres at high speed on the single track bitumen as we tried to avoid them. We arrived ten minutes early at the start control for the Almaden stage with Wes and Geoff still asleep.<br />I was soon in the back sleeping as Wes drove into the stage at 7.35 pm. I slept soundly except when we punctured and I shuffled the wheels in and out of the back. The Porsche passed us but we were all early, in fact very early, and resumed positions. We headed off towards Cairns at 9.35 pm with Wes still driving and me still sleeping. There was a big crowd at Cairns where we arrived about 11.30 pm. Our service guys didn’t arrive until we were nearly due to leave, but Dick’s parents were there and provided us with food and coffee. The short break passed quickly and we needed to fight our way back through the crowd to get to our car!Ian Richardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04050908061599090884noreply@blogger.com