| Author | Message | ||
     Paul Marshall Experienced User Username: welshbentleyboy Post Number: 11 Registered: 4-2017 |
An acquaintance of mine, a Brian Field,( now sadly no longer with us ) was a well known rally driver in the 60's and was a competitor in the 1968 London to Sydney rally in 1968. On the last leg to Sydney he stopped to help the drivers of the Royal Navy car who had a Morris 1800 with many common parts with Brian's Maxi. He got them going again but dropped from 25th to 28th in the overall. At the presentation the senior officer of the Navy team came over to thank him and have a few drinks together. At the end of the evening the Officer asked Brian if he could give him a lift home. Brian said he was only staying opposite the hotel. "Oh no said the officer. The RAF have sent a Hercules transporter and there is room for you and the car"!! | ||
| richard george yeaman Grand Master Username: richyrich Post Number: 917 Registered: 4-2012 |
A nice story Paul, sadly there isn't many Brian Fields left, nor is there many Morris 1800s or Maxis either. Richard. | ||
| Chris Gillings Prolific User Username: chrisg Post Number: 120 Registered: 4-2001 |
Well, that's spooky. Just today I was following a random train of thought and recalled (for the first and only time in decades) that a family friend and RROCA legend - George Harris - participated in the 1977 London To Sydney Marathon. George was larger than life; he owned and drove - hard - a wide range of RRs and Bentleys, plus a WO Bentley and an Aston Martin. They're just the cars I recall he owned. As a twelve-year old I almost fell out of the WO on a ride once. On another memorable ride in the tiny back seat of the Aston along a local suburban street I watched the speedo hit 96mph. George was a wild one. He was a founder of the Sydney grocery chain Harris Farm Markets and is celebrated in their George Harris Nut Mix; which strikes me as singularly appropriate. | ||
| Mark Aldridge Grand Master Username: mark_aldridge Post Number: 497 Registered: 10-2008 |
My son uses his Austin Maxi as his daily driver. his previous car to the Maxi was a Wolsley 2200,the 6 cyl version of the landcrab 1800.Also in his fleet,is a merc 190e, Merc 280ce, 2 Morris Minors , a Morris 1100 and the Shadow project. Mark | ||
| Paul Marshall Experienced User Username: welshbentleyboy Post Number: 12 Registered: 4-2017 |
I never had a Maxi but I had a Morris 1800, a Morris 2200 and a Wolsley 2200.All good cars. The only George Harris I can trace in the 1977 Rally is in no.57 Entrant G.W. Bartlett T.W. Hollidge Ltd. Drivers Gerald Bartlett (AU) Geoff Eldridge (AU) George Harris (AU) Citroen CX2400 Est. 49:52:34 431:54:14 1168:33:14 Overall Position 44 I also had a CX2400 GTI Brilliant Car! | ||
| David Gore Moderator Username: david_gore Post Number: 2824 Registered: 4-2003 |
I was on the Hume Straight at Warwick Farm where the the cars arrived to finish the Marathon in December 1968 and spoke to many of the drivers afterwards and there were many interesting anecdotes and comments about their experiences being shared. I was somewhat surprised that there was only a small crowd of on-lookers present however this was to our advantage as we were given every opportunity to "get up close and personal" with the participants. Being a long-time Ford enthusiast, I was particularly exuberant that the 3 Falcon XT GT's entered by Ford Australia had won the team prize. Even better, was my father buying a new Falcon XT V8 Fairmont and gifting me the family XL Falcon complete with 2 speed Fordomatic transmission as a 21st birthday present for my final year at University which I immediately replaced after my graduation with a new Falcon XY GS 351CID 4speed manual with all the GT options - I couldn't afford the insurance on a GT for drivers under 25 with only 1 claim-free year [I now have a no claim status of 49 years with my insurer with several high-risk cars, the Corniche and a few "basic family transportation" vehicles over the years]. | ||
| Maxwell Heazlewood Prolific User Username: tasbent Post Number: 145 Registered: 9-2017 |
Not forgetting of course that it was a lowly Hillman Hunter that actuallt won the Rally  | ||
| Paul Marshall Experienced User Username: welshbentleyboy Post Number: 13 Registered: 4-2017 |
Won by Andrew Cowan who went on to win in 1977 with a Mercedes 280 E. From the ridiculous to the sublime!! |
