Rally Report

[Ian]

Hi folks - I hope I am not boring everyone - but thought I would write a quick report

The rally was held at the Norval conference centre in Halls Gap - its a nice location and it was great to have everyone staying at the same place. All meals were provided which was also good. The cooks did a great job - I am sure we all had too much to eat as seems usual on rallies.

It was great to see lots of Douglases together again. Nev Thomas loaned Doug Kephart a rather nice OB - and I ended up lending my TS to Peter Davey whose MK3 had died at a rally on the way.

Tuesday 28/9

We met after breakfast for a briefing from Rally Director Nev who gave us a rundown on where we would be going. The weather was cold and a few rain showers had come through earlier in the morning so most opted for wet weather gear. Although we did not actually get rained on much while riding it was good to be dressed warmly as the temperature didn't get over 14 degrees.

From Halls Gap we headed up into the hills - on an absolutely spectacular motorcycling road - stopping at Boroka Lookout. The climb was quite steep and windy but most of the bikes made it with no problems. Icing of carbies was the main problem I heard about - in fact I was standing in the carpark at the first stop when a TS came in with a totally white manifold and carby.

Although there was a fair bit of mist around the views were still spectacular.

Following morning tea we rode across the top of the plateau to McKenzie Falls for lunch with a quick stop at Reeds Lookout for more views. At the lunch stop most people went for a walk to the bottom of the falls while some spent their time tinkering with their machines. Andrew McDougal with his lovely ladies Douglas was having some issues initially - these seemed to be partially resolved at this stop.

The ride back to Halls Gap was great - but people went a few different ways as there was some confusion with the marshaling. All ways back were fun and everyone enjoyed the day.

Wednesday 29/9

The weather was somewhat improved on Wednesday - still a bit cool but no rain. We had a great run over the hills again on the way to Horsham. For those who did not want to climb the steep road again the backup trailer helped out for the first 20km. Most opted to ride this bit as its perfect motorcycling road.

After a quick catchup we had a relatively flat and pleasant run to Horsham where we put the bikes on display at the local country show. Many people were interested in the bikes and asked lots of questions. We then rode a couple of times round the arena and proceeded to Nev's place for lunch and a look in his shed.

The ride home was also great - we skirted round the hills through nice farming country and got back to Halls Gap at about 5:30 pm. It was a long day but good fun.

Thursday 30/9

On Thursday we rode to Ararat for lunch. The road was good - mainly rolling hills with a couple of steeper inclines which tested man and machine. During the lunch stop we did a tour of the Ararat Gaol - which was later used as a hospital for the criminally insane. I must admit it was a bit chilling hearing about how we treated these people even well into the 20th century.

The rest of the day was pretty flat running with a stopover at Stawell to have a look at the athletics club where one of Australia's most famous athletics races is held - the Stawell Gift.

I had my only real hiccup on the way from Stawell to Halls Gap when I ran out of fuel - luckily Peter was following me on the TS and there was a plastic bottle on the side of the road. We had about 15kms to run - and I put about 300ml in the tank. I didn't run dry until I was on the main street of Halls Gap and managed to coast to the petrol station.

Friday 1/10

There was no ride on the last day - with most people heading off during the morning. The plan was to have a chat and anyone who had interesting Douglas stuff could put it on display. We headed off mid-morning so I don't know what happened after that.

All in all it was another excellent rally. Nev and the team from the local car club did a great job. It looks as though the interest in these rallies is growing as there are volunteers to run the next two. In 2012 the rally with be held in Victor Harbor in South Australia - which is where Alwyn Hunt came from. Alwyn was heavily involved in the organisation of the Centenary Rally and always wanted to have one in his home area.

I for one can't wait  

[Dave]

Thanks for the report Ian - sounds like it was a great location and good to hear it went well.

If anyone has more photos, please send as many as you like to the address shown in this topic and we'll put them on display.

Dave


Updated details for emailing photos - Dave, 11Feb2021

[wilf]

Ian many thanks for the report I am so sad that I missed it all.   As you may be aware I was not able to attend but looked forward to your reports....hope some pictures were taken.  Also many thanks to the energy and initiatives of Nev for orgainising I am just sorry that I was not able to enjoy it all.  However I hope to see you at Cooma, my bike is finally going quite well thanks to Nev, Graeme and Alan, I may possible keep up with the bunch in the beautiful mountain country.  Wilf         

[Ian]

Hi Wilf - there are some photos up now. Look forward to seeing you in Cooma - we will be there as usual !

[graeme]

Good report Ian, and can I add my thanks and congratulations to Nev and his team for a wonderful rally. The rides were good, the landscape beautiful, the camaraderie as always was terrific and it's great to know that these events are still well supported and will continue into the future. It was great to see some new faces on the rally as well all the diehards we know from previous rallies, and by all reports these newcomers will be out to spread the word as well. I am certainly looking forward to the next rally in Victor Harbour, with the added bonus of the Bay to Birdwood run being on the weekend following the rally.
I think you are the master of understatement when you say we "had a look" in Nev's shed - I think most of us took a little while to register just how much Douglas stuff was in the shed! Surely one of the most impressive collection of Douglases on the planet I would think.
All in all an absolutely marvellous week.
Cheers, Graeme