Our Touring Past

Well it's on again, CARnivale on Aus Day for 2016, however, due to digging up the city for the light rail the event will be held at Parramatta Park. The following has been provided in the email I received.

"To register for CARnivale go to: http://www.australiaday.com.au/get- involved/carnivale/.

2016 marks the 30th anniversary since the start of this great motoring display and we want it to be a fitting celebration. We encourage you to forward this e-mail to people with a car eligible to enter CARnivale so they too can enjoy all that Parramatta Park has to offer on Australia Day."

Vehicles must be at least 30 years old and entries will close on 13th November, 2015 or earlier if the quota is filled.

I wasn't going to take a van next year but with the change of venue I might reconsider that. Put in an entry and come along so we aren't like a shag on a rock again with the only van on the day.

George

Over for another year. The new venue caused a few headaches listening to various people, but nothing that can't, or shouldn't be overcome in the future, and I understand there will be a future event at the site as the city will be out of action for three years.

I thought the new venue might produce a few different cars and it seemed to, but the event I should think was no where near as big as in the city. It is hard to tell without doing a count. I took a couple of photos with a view to sticking them together to show pretty much the whole car display. The big gum tree in the middle provided a joining point and if the guy behind the orange v dub hadn't moved it would have been better, just ignore the fact he has two heads! There were another two rows behind me, so a fair showing.

We of course took the Velox and the bondwood, now with the offside fully stripped back to a coat of paint that went on sometime before 1996, and, I polished the two portholes too. I used the Hutchinson Dolly Wheels with it for the first time and it seemed to tow quite nicely on the Freeway and I could maintain my 80-90 kph with it OK, even on some of the inclines so it seemed to do the job. They were a source of much interest during the day with all sorts of questions raised, do you need to register it?, do you need an articulated vehicle licence?, has the RMS approved it?, how do you reverse with it?, do you actually use it on the road? Well, crikey, give it a rest, apart from the obvious, yes I use it on the road and with difficulty in regard to reversing, the others were, dunno, don't care, it's a piece of motoring history which as far as I know has never been outlawed. I've certainly no intention of going to the RMS asking a lot of silly questions because I KNOW I'll get a lot of silly answers! Anyone who might have any knowledge about them would be long retired or dead I'm sure. I thought someone might know something about them but there wasn't one sole who had ever seen them before, so no answers to any of my questions forthcoming. One bloke reckoned he wanted a set to use with his modern van and thought he might get some made in China and make a quid!

Here's a few of the cars that took my interest. I don't think this one would be good as a tow car. Something you don't see too often. Plenty of towing capability. Some V8 power here too. What can I say, I just liked it. Yep, a roadster, my kind of wheels. This one too, and it keeps the luggage of of the weather. One for Richard.

We were the only van again, but a lady from Wollongong with a Chev and her father's home made van, who has been to Macquarie Street in the past, said she might make it next year with the van. It proved a good hide out for a chat and a drink with various mates, I had the bed pushed back with the lounge cushions on it, you can get about eight people cheek to cheek on it!

Cheers

George

PS. On the way back I decided to stop along Woodville Road for some nice cheap petrol. Not being familiar with the place I overshot the 98 pump and had to back up. I thought, it's not far, this will be ok. Wrong, all over the shop with those dolly wheels, van at a funny angle but just close enough to stretch the hose to the filler, phew!! Practice needed.

Geo.