The Rally

Friday 21st – At 8.20am we’re ready to hit the road on the last leg of our journey to Geelong.  We are due to depart around 9.00am and head towards Sorrento, where we will catch the ferry. Steve and Robynne left around 8.40am going via the highway towards Melbourne and down to Geelong.   Steve's E-type doesn't like ferries.

We arrived at Portsea at 10.05 just missing the 10.00 ferry but we were on the line-up early to catch the 11.00. The water is a little rough but not too bad.  We were able to get out on the deck and see the other side. I think Peter, Pauline and Rob enjoyed it. While on the ferry Robynne rang to say they had arrived safely at the motel.  We arrived at Queenscliff at 11.40am and drove along heading for Geelong, where we arrived at 12.30pm. When walking in to the Motel to check in we were met by Robynne, Veralene and Andrew. We unpacked the car and settled in our rooms then lazed around the foyer catching up with everybody as they arrived. 

At 6.00pm we went down to the Ground Floor for the Cocktail Party. The food was good and the company was great. I managed to win a lucky door prize of a 2008 Calendar. Graeme thought it was pretty good and will look good in the shed.

We left our lovely B&B in Lavers Hill and drove thought the mountains down to the coast on the Great Ocean Road.  We stopped at some lookouts on the way and managed to see some Koalas from the car - we stopped to check then out a bit more closely.  The Mk 9 loved the twisty-turny roads and the scenery was great.   It was still a bit chilly, but we think this is much better than it being a bit too warm.  We had lunch in Anglesea and arrived at Geelong in the early afternoon.  After checking in we walked to the motel where the others were staying to register and see how their trip went.  Registering this late means that all of the hot cross buns and jelly beans were already eaten (Nic was very disappointed). The walk around the Motel carpark was like a mini Rally Display Day.  While we were at the motel the new XF was being unloaded off a flat-bed-truck, straight from the UK and currently illegal to drive on Australian roads.

Saturday 22nd – We were up early to see the parade of cars on their way to the park (Graeme and I travelled down with Peter). A great display of cars and the venue was just superb with the water as a backdrop. The shopping mall was just up the road and Robynne, Veralene and myself went to check it out as did some other ladies from the Rally. We roamed back to the park to catch up with the boys and Steve, Robynne, Graeme and myself walked back up to get lunch. The boys went back to the park and Robynne and I walked back up to the motel.

Another National Rally Display Day, another great location (Three out of the last four by the sea) and another bright sunny day. As expected there were a great display of cars. Late arrivers would have missed an interesting XJ6 Ute

Of course there where plenty of Jaguars in tip top shape including this fantastic MK IV which was getting a very close inspection from the judges. In the end though this recently restored 1934 SS1 came out on top with a stunning score of 97.40 to take out the overall Concours D'elegance. Second place was a 2003 X350 with a score of 97.28 and Third a 1999 XK8 which scored 96.97

For me though the car of the day was this stunning SS Airline, which has not changed hands for 60 years! But is now for sale. Hard to imagine owning a car for that long. It certainly pulled in a big crowd and rumours spread regarding the asking price. I had to know for sure so I asked the sellers daughter how much they were asking. Needless to say I will not be the new owner..

I was not the only JDCHR member caught drooling, here Steve Lilly is caught eyeing up a whole row of  curvaceous rear ends. I don't think it will be long before he succumbs and buys a MK2 

All along the Geelong water front are wooden carved bollards all created by Jan Mitchell. Spot the Prime Ministers

On Saturday night we went by bus to the dinner which was held at the Ford Discovery Centre. This was like a little museum of cutaway motors, new and old gearboxes, diffs and suspensions as well as cars for the men to walk around and mingle. The meal was delicious and John Goss was the Guest Speaker who spoke of his racing days. It ended around 10pm and some of us walked back to the motel while others opted for the bus.

Sunday 23rd – We had a leisure day. We went to the showground where they were holding the sporting day and also markets were on, so we roamed around for a while. We caught up with Tony Herald and wished him well. Graeme and I  left around lunch time and headed back to the motel for a rest. Sunday night we all got together for a meal at the Bended Elbow Pub then strolled back to say goodbye to the Pointings who were making their way back on Monday and to Pauline and Rob who were leaving early Monday morning to make their trip home (their daughter was getting married next Friday).  

The sporting day was a fairly low key affair this year, I think the idea was to encourage participation by keeping the license requirements and safety equipment simple. I would have loved to try it, but with the MK IX so far from home and 4 people relying on it for transport, I decided not to compete. Sadly most other people must have had similar thoughts. The day was not particularly well attended and sadly there was no commentary to keep those interested that did attend.

However I snapped three XK drivers all going hard on the dirt surface.