Healey’s West                                                                                                               April 2008 February 2008

I am sure there are going to be a few articles about the 20008 Seachange National Rally so will not go in to any great detail here.  The Salamander Shores Resort was the perfect location for a national gathering.  Perched on high land at Soldiers Point overlooking the waters of beautiful Port Stephens we were lucky to have a room with a balcony and the magnificent views. As we were on the fourth floor we could look down at all the Healey’s and call out to friends from WA and all other parts of Australia as they arrived.  This is one of the greatest things about a national rally, you get to catch up with people you haven’t seen for at least 12 months or more.

I believe there were around 80 Austin Healey’s, and other exotic cars such as a TVR.V8, Porche and special bodied BNI Healey with a racing history.  It always intrigues me in such a large gathering of cars, that when a bonnet goes up the men come from everywhere to gather around to offer advise or just get a look.  There were many stories exchanged about who had done what to their car.

 

All of the evening events were held around the resort which meant we could walk to everything. The day trips were also within easy picturesque drives.  The district of Port Stephens is very beautiful and although well populated still quite rural. There were many interesting drives and walks to take and visits to light house, air force museum, plush oyster beds - so lots of fresh oysters and other seafood were always on the menu. 

 

After six days of meeting, greeting, driving, eating, drinking, catching up with old friends and meeting new ones, it was time for us to depart to visit Arthur’s 92 year old mother in Tweed Heads before driving south to meet up with Noel and Imelda Gorn and Tony and Faye Mellor at Port Augusta for the trip back across the Nullabor.  They were travelling down the south coast of NSW and Victoria to do the Great Ocean Road.  Mike and Nigel were off to do their bicycle tour of the Blue Mountains (after packing up Nigel’s “new” car, but that is another story).  Tony Ash and Anne went back to Sydney before Tony takes off on the next leg of his epic voyage.  Graeme and Gail Shearer were also headed for Sydney and other delights before retuning home.

 

Whilst the return home was not as exciting as the drive over, it was very pleasant with wonderful driving weather (cool that is), great company and good stories to tell.  We all parted company in Norseman on 1^st April with Noel and Imelda travelling home via Coolgardie; Tony and Faye going to visit friends in Esperance and Albany; and we went home via Esperance and Lake King – a fourteen hour drive from when we had left Caiguna in the morning until we arrived home at 10.30 that night.

 

It was a whirlwind trip of 18 days, most of which were full days of driving.  But it is a great way to travel to and from a Rally, see this wonderful country of ours and all in a 55 year old Austin Healey that ran beautifully the whole time.

 

And we are still getting text messages from Mike about their bicycle tour so I am sure he will have a very interesting and humorous article to write when he gets back.

 

Congratulations and thank you to the Austin Healey Owners Club of NSW for a great Rally 2008.

 

Arthur and Sandra Wallis

WA contingent with Graeme Shearer

hiding behind Gail