Mount Buller 2019
Renault and Alpine crews
A rushed video put together from photos taken by Renault and Alpine teams and some video I (Rodney Apcar) shot. Apology to those friends who did not appear in this video
A rushed video put together from photos taken by Renault and Alpine teams and some video I (Rodney Apcar) shot. Apology to those friends who did not appear in this video
The RCCV 2020 Melbourne F1GP Display . . . that lasted one day
We were invited by the Euroa Show and Shine Show as guests to be featured at the show. There were over 800 cars and the overflow had to park in the streets. The town’s population is 3000, but expands to 10,000 on the weekend.
We all started the run with breakfast and coffee at Daughters Hall in Hall, a little village on the edge of Canberra at around 10am. From there we all proceeded to Coppins Crossing and then Uriarra Crossing. It was a cold start with some fog but the weather turned sunny later on to allow us to view some beautiful countryside on the outskirts of Canberra.
After a short drivers’ briefing in the car park at Uriarra Crossing, we all headed up Fairlight Road and then Mountain Creek Road to Wee Jasper and return. The road had some fast flat stages along with some tight turns that really suited the Alpines. We all gathered for a photo shoot in the park west of Wee Jasper and then on the bridge over the Goodradigbee River which feeds into Burrinjuck Dam. Fortunately, no one encountered any roos or livestock on the run. However, speedy Matthew did miss the turnoff back to Uriarra Crossing and found himself heading towards Yass.
From Uriarra Crossing we all headed to the Cotter along Uriarra and Brindabella Roads and then Paddys River Road towards Tinbinbilla. Again, some missed the turnoff on to Brindabella Road and there were late arrivals for lunch at the Moon Rock Cafe at the Tinbinbilla Space Tracking Station. Not surprise that the cafe was packed with tourists for the 50th anniversary of the lunar landing. The slow service for lunch allowed time for the late arrivals to catch up and then some were running low on fuel requiring one new Alpine to drive for fuel to Tharwa (no name mentioned!). Then it was a fast run along Discovery Drive (the access road to/from the Space Station) onto Paddys River Road to Corin Dam Road to reach Corin Dam. Apart from some slow moving tourist vehicles, this run was fast and offered up some incredible scenery. We witnessed a stray cow on the right hand side on the return journey but thankfully it stayed off the road. I did come close to hitting a small wallaby.
Next stop was the National Arboretum for a photo shoot against a setting sun. We lost some new Alpines along the way but four did arrive for the shoot and we all braced ourselves against a very cold westerly wind.
We finished the day with dinner at the 1882 Bar and Grill in Hall for a few beers, wine and food as well as having a good chat about our runs and Alpines generally.
Big Thank you Barry for organising and providing the above commentary
It’s a mess out there now.
Hard to discern between what’s a real threat and what is just simple panic and hysteria.
For a small amount of perspective at this moment, imagine you were born in 1900.
On your 14th birthday, World War I starts, and ends on your 18th birthday.
22 million people perish in that war.
Later in the year, a Spanish Flu epidemic hits the planet and runs until your 20th birthday.
50 million people die from it in those two years. Yes, 50 million.
On your 29th birthday, the Great Depression begins. Unemployment hits 25%, the World GDP drops 27%.
That runs until you are 33.
The country nearly collapses along with the world economy. When you turn 39, World War II starts.
You aren’t even over the hill yet. And don’t try to catch your breath.
On your 41st birthday, the United States is fully pulled into WWII. Between your 39th and 45th birthday, 75 million people perish in the war.
At 50, the Korean War starts. 5 million perish.
At 55 the Vietnam War begins and doesn’t end for 20 years. 4 million people perish in that conflict.
On your 62nd birthday you have the Cuban Missile Crisis, a tipping point in the Cold War.
Life on our planet, as we know it, should have ended. Great leaders prevented that from happening.
When you turn 75, the Vietnam War finally ends.
Think of everyone on the planet born in 1900. How do you survive all of that?
When you were a kid in 1985 and didn’t think your 85 year old grandparent understood how hard school was. And how mean that kid in your class was.
Yet they survived through everything listed above.
Perspective is an amazing art. Refined as time goes on, and enlightening like you wouldn’t believe. Let’s try and keep things in perspective. Let’s be smart, help each other out, and we will get through all of this.
In August 1978, 43 years ago, the French filmmaker Claude Lelouch mounted a gyroscope camera in the front of a Ferrari 275 GTB, and invited a friend, a professional Formula 1 driver to make a journey in the heart of Paris at the greatest possible speed before the break of day.
The film was to last 10 minutes and the route would go from Porte Dauphine through the Louvre to the SacreCoeur basilica. Lelouch did not get permission to close any streets on the dangerous journey. The driver completed the circuit in less than 9 minutes, reaching up to 260 km per hour at times.
The film shows him passing through red lights, dodging pedestrians, scaring pigeons, and driving one-way streets at dawn.
Yes, it’s IS what it sounds like. Diecast (Hot Wheels) model racing.
It’s a hoot – more fun than it sounds. As Rob Belcourt says ‘more fun than looking at the V8 Supercars’
Go on, overcome your skepticism and have a squiz.
This is the first round. Others are lined up by Youtube at the end of each.
Credit to Rob Belcourt for finding this
The Round-Up for 2021 has been rescheduled to February 21st, from the originally planned 14th of Feb.
The venue has changed to be Mornington Park – originally booked to be at Caribbean Gardens again.
The Caribbean Gardens has sadly fallen victim to the Coronavirus and has closed permanently. Our car show, as with many others, has had to find a new venue.
The Mornington Parks looks to be a very pleasant location in close proximity to numerous shops, eateries and facilities. Plenty for the family to do as well as looking at a heap of gorgeous (or otherwise) Renaults.
Naturally, in these pandemic days, Round-Up plans are subject to change without necessarily much notice. While we hope and anticipate restrictions will be eased by next year, the virus will of course be still around (cures, vaccines, treatments likely still yet to arrive / roll-out) and it’ll depend on how well controlled we have it.
The RENAULT CAR CLUB of VICTORIA proudly hosts its Annual show of RENAULT cars.
This years Renault Round-Up is back at Caribbean Gardens and Market, Scoresby on Sunday 16th February.
As always, this event is open to members and non members alike and there is no charge to display vehicles, however Caribbean Gardens does charge $2.50 to enter the venue.
Where is Caribbean Gardens and Market?
1280 Ferntree Gully Rd, Scoresby, 900m east of the Ferntree Gully Rd exit off Eastlink Freeway.
Entry: Melways 72 G7, or 72 J8 (Stud Road) – bonus door prize entry if you show map on entry
ROUND-UP is open to ALL Renault owners of any model or condition.
Awards on offer
Best pre-2001 Renault | Best post-2001 Renault |
Best Sporting Renault | Best Alpine *new award |
Best Renault in Show | People’s Choice |
CARS CAN ARRIVE FROM 8.30
The club entered two teams of four in this event at Bryant Park. Team 1 was Glenn Armstrong, Michael Carabella, Angelo Simonetto and Mike Neil. Team two was Geoff Rasmussen, Joel Bryar, Leon Deminey and Peter Stathis.
Each person had five runs on the day. They then calculated the difference in time between each persons two fastest runs. They then added the three smallest differences for each team to get a team score.
Team 1 totaled 3.039 seconds and Team 2. 2.785 seconds giving them the moral victory. Unfortunately the winning team had a total of .452 seconds as a total. This was less than any one of our competitors.
Beyond all that, it was a fun day that all enjoyed and I think all want to do it again next year. The cost was $300.00 per team (5 drivers) and included lunch. Hopefully we can get a few more members next time.