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Published: April 15th 2008
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The Donut
Bryan fixes the flat after our close encounter with a falling rock! Rev up your engines:
Some Friday nights are low-key as we wind down from the work week, and some are energising as we charge up for the weekend. One weekend, Fly My Pretties, a New Zealand compilation band that Pete and Isla had introduced us to, was in town. We joined the pack of dreadlocked twenty-somethings at the Royal Theatre to listen and groove to their eclectic acoustic and electric sounds. The concert was just the thing we all needed to ease us into weekend mode, as it was both uplifting and relaxing.
Pit crew’s first challenge:
While Pete escaped to his family’s farm to start the carb-loading and meditation rituals needed for his up-coming rally sprint race, Isla, Bryan, and Mindy kept the engines revving by driving to Arthur’s Pass. We were looking for a good tramp to burn off some excess energy. Mother Earth was also sweating it out, and we watched the ice thaw before our eyes. Consequentially, rock fall debris littered the road, and Bryan swerved left and right to avoid the big chunks. His smooth turns defied the laws of physics, but the falling rocks obeyed the laws of gravity and tumbled down
Mt Aiken
Mindy and Isla live life on the edge from overhead. Our wee Honda careened right over the unavoidable rocks, puncturing the right front tyre. Bryan changed the flat in record-breaking time, and we carried on at half-pace to the Devil’s Punch Falls track.
Danger was hot on our tail; however, and high avalanche conditions deterred us from proceeding towards the falls. We followed the detour onto the Mt Aikens track and pounced through the deep snow until the track crossed an avalanche path. Motivated to live another day so that we could be strapped into the five-point harness of Pete’s rally car, we turned back. Besides, we had a birthday party to attend. After wishing Mark best wishes for the coming year, we joined in on the birthday festivities. You know that you are surrounded by climbers when party games include traversing the underside of the coffee table and balancing on a rickety chair while contorting into challenging postures. We, the pit crew, considered it all part of our training.
The real deal:
The three of us woke early in the morn like soldiers on a march. We were on a mission, and set off to Pete’s rally race in Loburn. Rallying is a
Table climbing
Bob workes the length of the table with proess! motor sport in which cars have to get from one place to another in the shortest possible time via normal, everyday roads. Our Honda hesitated momentarily before charging through the muddy pool of water that stood between us and the starting line. If it wasn’t for the donut tyre, she may have taken on the sixty-three rally cars that had entered the race. Pete was already geared up in his fire retardant jump suit and slick shoes. He was making last minute adjustments to his supped-up Starlet, which was in the 2-wheel 1300-1600 engine class.
Before the timed runs commenced, the motorists “cruised” the 7 km dirt track in an “Indian file” to preview the layout and road conditions. Mindy suited up, listened to the safety drill, and then buckled up into five-point harness of the passenger’s seat. Her knuckles turned white as she clutched at that harness, trying to be as still as possible in efforts to allow Pete to concentrate on the road as he careened sideways around sharp bends. The sun bounced off the snow at the hilltop, making the road surface slick and difficult to see. Upon completing the Indian file, Pete altered his
Inside the Starlet
With all the bells and whistles ... tyre pressure and slapped some wide black electrical tape onto the windscreen to shade his eyes from the sun. Marty and Chris joined the pit crew before the true test got under way.
Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines! The rally cars skidded off the starting line in one minute intervals in three consecutive sprint races. Pete was accompanied by first Isla, then Bryan, and finally Marty (AKA “The Flash”). The second lap was faster than the first, but Pete wasn’t satisfied. He noticed that some bolts that had loosened in the sway bars, and tightened them before his final go. Cutting twenty seconds off the previous fast time, Pete and Marty flew in on pure adrenaline. Unfortunately, a starting error cost him the top seat, but Pete still placed with his time from the second race.
The cool down:
Ma and Pa Abernethy shouted tea and biscuits back at the farm for the athlete and his crew. Chris, the lone supported who did not ride shotgun, jumped at Pete’s offer to take a spin around the farm. The rest of us watched in awe as the skilled driver backed the car right into a hay
Mindy and Pete
Mindy thanks Pete for allowing her to live another day. trailer. Our hearts sank at the sound of scraping metal and shattering glass, but we breathed a collective sigh of relief as Pete simply stated, “Error” before whizzing off to give Chris a convertible style rally ride.
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Tot: 0.091s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 13; qc: 60; dbt: 0.0552s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
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got your blog. pretty neat. is this the same thing you did last year ,or was it some other race ? .talk this wknd