raven6241

Well, that was a fun weekend.

Began on Thursday, also known as Australia Day, also known as... Well anyways, left Canberra nice and early and started the long hot drive to Mt Buller for...

THE 2006 MT BULLER PORSCHE RALLY SPRINT!

But I was there because this was the first legal streetluge event in Australia for about 8 years. No way I wasn't going to race in this!!

We arrived in Buller after tailing 6 Porsche's down the road from Benalla (some Vic town...) to Buller at 120km/h, because I didn't want to lose these sweet cars. My arm was sunburnt after 6 hours resting on the window of my car, and then once we got there, we had to setup the course, so that involved driving all around Mt Buller picking up crash mats and tying them to the hairpin (see photos).

First night spent getting drunk only to be told we had to be up to ride at 730am. Fuck me.


So I'm up at 645am and awake to the sound of rain on the window. Fuck. Not luging in the wet, please no.
I go outside and have breakfast and ask around about what's happening with the demo, and if we are still on to ride. No one has a fucking clue, ah well.

So we set up a little display at the town square area and sit down and start watching the cars go past, by this time it's 1pm and nothing's happened. Except it's rained some more.

Finally we get told we're on at 4pm. Jesus, I got up before 7am with a hangover for THIS!? Whatever, I just want to ride.

We rode in the rain, and boy did it rule. Sliding out all over the road. My second run, I tried taking one guy on the inside, lost traction, high sided the luge, and then he kicked me out of his way and off I went across the road without my luge to slide into the pads I set up the day before. Little scratch on my hand, let's do it again.

4 runs, and a lot of dirty lugers later, we're back in the hotel getting ready to drink up again. Woot! Next day there are 4 car races to contend with, so we will have to wait until we ride.


The next day I decide not to ride to instead take photos and just watch what happens. Dumb idea. Beautiful weather, and hindsight (see below) means I don't get to luge again this weekend. Lame-o. Got some good pics though. See below, again. Love watching all the nice cars though. None of this summernats bogan shit, we're talking prestige Porsche's, luscious Lamborghini's, and other alliterations. Drink more that night (sense a pattern?)


Sunday, the final day, we get up late to hear that the rally program is behind due to a guy wrapping his car around a tree and then getting airlifted to hospital. Then someone gets chest pains, and our chance of having one last run on a sunny day down the hill starts to evaporate. In the end, they cancelled the last stage of the rally, and we didn't get a run. No matter, still had fun. I spent the whole morning fixing my luge in case I got to run. New bearings, removed the headrest, cleaned it up and made it look less like a roll of gaffer tape with a luge attached. I need to stop relying on that stuff for everything. I swear, it's amazing stuff though.


We get in the car, and start to drive home. Tired, weary, but we had fun.

Then my engine overheats and we're stranded 500km from home on the side of the highway. Two of our luger buddies drive past and realise it's us in our "Soccer Mom" car (Thanks Smokin' Joe!). He happens to work at the Hummer factory in Michigan and is a ceritfied auto mech, so we're back on the road, heaters blaring, packed up with water, and watching the fuel gauge intently.all the way home. We make it back just after 11pm, after leaving at 3pm. Fuck, that sucked. Whatever, beat staying by the side of the road. Fucking radiator.

Still, all in all a good weekend. If only I wasn't fighting with the girl over the phone for most of it and now not want to see her again because she makes my life a living hell...

PHOTOS!