Run Report ....

Dubbo (AGM), 28-30 March 2008 ....

Gotta love these Club runs that begin with a day off work! Friday saw our weekend start at our meeting point at McDonalds McGraths Hill on a beautiful morning. Those who met there were Scott and Leanne Davidson, Greg and Lexa Hawkins, Mick, Lisa and Cody Aldridge, Les Wilson together with James Davidson and Natalie.

After devouring hot cakes, hash browns, coffees etc. and following several remarks regarding the lack of dress sense the President had, it was into the cars and head west to Lithgow via the Bells Line of Road. This road would have to be one of the more Torana friendly drives to be had in NSW. As per normal, on any Club run, one or two cars always suffer from some kind of dummy spit, and in this case it was James' red LJ (that he'd ' borrowed' from his dad for the weekend), which was suffering from a fuel supply problem. Upon arriving in Lithgow where we were to rendezvous with Rob and Leanne Farnsworth in their freshly completed LH, we pulled over to investigate James' problem. After all the male members of the Club looked down into the engine bay and nodded their heads (as if to know what they were actually talking about!), it was mutually agreed that the fault lay with the regular technician who services this particular vehicle (namely the owner, Scott Davidson). A couple of turns of a spanner and we were off again heading for Torana capital, aka Bathurst, for lunch and to meet up with Mike and Gabbi Holland in Garfield, the trophy award winning LX sedan.

The lunch venue was Shanahans Family Hotel, which is obviously very popular on a Friday for lunch with the town folk due to the size and quality of the lunches served, and this presented us with a parking problem. However, all was sorted and lunch was served to the hungry troops. My, my some of our group can stow it away! Without mentioning names, if we can find a pizza eating contest to enter one of our members' wives, she would be a shoe in to win! Following lunch we headed off to Mount Panorama, which attracted our Torries like a magnet. This would have to be the first time that anybody has seen Lexa driving the Vectra and actually exceeding a speed limit. It was noted that she was clocked at 70 kmh in a 60 zone (yes, shocking isn't it?). This indiscretion has been dealt with internally by the Club. Scott offered Greg a ride around the track in his yellow, Weber powered LH, which resulted in Scott nearly being thrown to the ground and hog tied by Greg in the rush to get to the driver's side door handle! Alas, it was a trip in the passenger's seat and it was much appreciated - thanks Scott. Apparently Natalie was a Mount Panorama virgin and enjoyed the view and taking photos up the top of the mountain. It was also noted that Leso needs to obviously put a decent exhaust system on his little blue LC as it sounds too much like a race car going up and down the mountain. After the standard photo taking sessions and the red mist problem that overcomes most males (and Lexa; see above!) when they are at Mount Panorama, we headed off to our final destination of Dubbo.

It was a glorious afternoon and together with an easy drive and beautiful scenery we arrived in Dubbo at about 4.30 p.m. Our motel, the Matilda Motor Inn, offered security parking for our cars and once we had parked in this safe environment we unloaded our luggage and cracked open our first beer. Out came the esky from the back of the Vectra with cold refreshments all round. As such, our official ' weekend away' had begun. Not long after arriving we received word from Michael Muller that he had had a hellish day at work and that he and Denise would not be arriving until very late Friday night (Mike and Greg made a pact to stay up for as long as they had to so as to welcome the Muller's upon their arrival, or as long as the port lasted; whatever came first! Thankfully, Michael and Denise beat the port arriving at midnight and after being breathalysed upon entry into Dubbo!). Dinner was in the motel restaurant in a private room, which must have been scrumptious because it is not often a group of NSWTC members thrown together at a table are quiet! Unfortunately, we do have to report the theft of restaurant property, being one tablecloth, by one Club member, and again this has been dealt with internally. It is always the ones with innocent looking faces that you have to watch out for the most! After dinner it was refreshments in the car park, chatting about Toranas and solving half of the world's problems. You always have to bear in mind on these two day runs that you cannot solve everything in the one sitting.

Saturday saw us rise to a crisp, yet most perfect day in Dubbo. We breakfasted in the motel restaurant and following our morning ablutions gathered at the front of the motel for our mini bus pick up to transport us to the zoo. Upon arrival at the zoo our group broke up into those wishing to walk, cycle or be bludging bastards and drive around in electric carts. The Western Plains Zoo is certainly a great place to visit for the day and for those readers who may not have visited you should take the opportunity to do so when you can. Things that were observed during the day: some good, some bad The good things first:

Mike and Gabbi circumnavigated the zoo by foot - well done!
James and Natalie circumnavigated the zoo by bicycle - fantastic!
Cody thoroughly enjoyed his first zoo visit and well done to the Aldridges who also circumnavigated the zoo by foot (and stroller).
13 of the group managed to enjoy their visit to the zoo without being either questioned or arrested by authorities - great stuff all round!
The zoo exhibits were of their usual high standard and the weather was picture perfect; not too hot and not too cold.

Unfortunately, we will now have to mention the seedier side of the zoo visit:

Lexa and Leso's electric cart driving was atrocious all round; who would have thought that the Secretary of the Club, who has always been our safety monitor would resort to doing burnouts and doughnuts in an electric cart in the gravel with three other members on board?

Leso (signs and lines are only a suggestion Wilson) was seen and heard doing a doughnut in the middle of a roundabout and then driving the wrong way playing chicken with the cart driven by Lexa. Well, I didn't know what to do, but at one stage leaping out of the passenger seat was certainly an option, however, I had a thought that I may well end up under Leso's cart with photos of it up on the website, so I just closed my eyes and hoped for the best.

On a more serious note two of our troop (names will not be mentioned to protect the authors from fear of retribution!) were discovered by zoo security in an unauthorised area of the zoo and had to be escorted from the area after a thorough questioning (there was mention of body searching as well!). There is always two in every group isn't there? We have been advised that their photos are now mounted in the zoo entry office as persons of interest and future admission to the zoo is doubtful.

Mick and Lisa took great perverted joy in watching (and we believe taking photos?) of two monkeys imitating a sexual act.

Scott, doing his best Richard Attenborough impersonation, as he was watching two tortoises in a sex act described it as ' tortoise porn' ! It really makes you wonder what happens at home?

Natalie, who we must say appears to be a very intelligent young woman (and no you can't use age as an excuse), mistook a small duck for a large hippo - go figure?

Our trusted mini bus was awaiting us at the zoo exit at the allotted time and deposited us back at the motel for a rest break prior to the Club's AGM. The AGM was held on the lovely sunny patio of the motel and apart from the usual formalities, the new Committee was appointed and consists of:-

President - Michael Aldridge.
Treasurer - Scott Davidson.
Membership - Mike Holland.
Webmaster - James Davidson.
Run Coordinator - Rob Farnsworth.
Secretary - Leanne Davidson.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank the NSWTC Members for our thank you card and gifts, which were certainly not expected, but very much appreciated. It was a kind and thoughtful gesture by the members of the Club.

An outgoing Committee Member was also presented, in his absence, with an embroidered Club jacket for his contribution to the Club in its first two years in setting up the Club's website: Lance Haslewood. Thank you and well done Lance!

After the AGM it was off to the motel restaurant for our final dinner together. Leanne D thoroughly enjoyed herself by participating in a pre dinner mudslide followed by a screaming orgasm (apparently these are cocktails?). Unfortunately, Leanne only experienced half a screaming orgasm, but figured half is better than none at all! During dinner the Club held its regular Club fines for little indiscretions that may have happened over the weekend. Some of these were factual and some of them were a little embellished, however, the whole idea was to raise some much needed funds, which shall be donated to charity shortly; keep an eye on the website. To give you an idea of some of the fines, a couple of examples are:

Grand Theft Auto.
Racial Prejudice.
Child Abuse.
Just Being There, etc.

Following dinner some members of the Club had a quiet drink or two in the car park and finished solving the world's problems Part II from the previous night, but all in all we showed what a mature, sensible lot we all are and we were all tucked up in bed by 10.30 p.m.

Sunday morning saw us rise to yet another beautiful morning, but not the Aldridges who were stung by the ' no, no it's not the end of daylight savings mobile phone carrier stuff up' . Other members inadvertently slept in and our departure time following breakfast was a little delayed, which was also contributed to by the motel kitchen's stove chucking a wobbly! We filled our thirsty cars up at the local Caltex and headed for home via Dunedoo and Mudgee. Mike and Gabbi parted company with us on the outskirts of Dubbo to head home to Batemans Bay. We traveled through Mudgee stopping for a refuel and defuel and onto Lithgow for lunch, where Michael and Denise continued on for home. The Davidson family announced they wanted to visit some orchards on the way home so we said our goodbyes following lunch and headed for home. We would like to thank Rob and Leanne for the excellent job they did leading the run most of the way and their informative commentary of local knowledge of the area between Mudgee and Lithgow - well done! We would also like to thank the Matilda Motor Inn for their excellent hospitality and great food. A big thank you to Steph and the kitchen staff who dug into their wallets and made a donation towards our fundraising efforts for charity - thanks guys! Also, a big thank you to Langley's Coaches and the Western Plains Zoo for helping make our visit to Dubbo that much more enjoyable.

Those who were there: Mick, Lisa and Cody Aldridge in ' Cody's Chariot' , Scott and Leanne Davidson in ' Canary Yellow Butterfly II' , Rob and Leanne Farnsworth in ' Confusion' , Mike and Gabbi Holland in ' Garfield' , James Davidson and Natalie in ' Red Baron' , Michael and Denise Muller in ' Muller's Machine' , Greg and Lexa Hawkins in ' Silver Vixen' .

Thanks everybody for a memorable weekend away and we look forward to the NSW Torana Club moving onto bigger and better things, and wish the new Committee all the best for the future.

Apologies: Lance.

Greg and Lexa Hawkins.

Photographs.