If I have not mentioned it before, …. I grew up in Toowoomba in Qld.
This is a BIG country town, so it has its fair share of rural men and there fast machines. To set the scene for you, Mad Max 2 was only a few years old so HOT Falcons were the rage.
I owned a Fiat X-19. (Go figure).
Anyway Toowoomba is positioned on the Great Dividing Range and has a very twisty and steep road to get to it … 2 lanes going down, 2 going up ..
The speed limit on the range was 100kph at the time, and in reality it was near impossible to do 100.
The late night “lappers”, as they were called because they did laps of the main street in their high powered, and some not so high powered machines, would gather at the local Shell servo. Mainly because it had good pies and because it was the only place still lit up at one a.m. in the morning so they could show off their cars.
So in I roll in the X-19 and boy did it cause a stir.
“That’s one of dem kit cars” was a comment.
“Yeah, doh’s VW tings”. Was another.
I said “OK, but I have a rear boot,” which I opened.
Surprise, surprise
“It’s an English thing call a TR something, engine’s in the front” came a call from the growing crowd.
So I lifted the front … More shocked looks …
So I showed them the mid engine layout ..
Now one of these hero’s stepped forward.
“I bet I could steal it anyway” he said.
“Sure, be my guest” as I opened the door and let him take a seat.
The trick with the X-19 is the inside door handles are near impossible to find unless you know where they are.
In he hopped; looked around a bit … touched a few things, and then he tried to get out !!!
He had that ‘how the hell do I get out of here look without having to actually ask’.
I had to let him out.
“All show” came the reply, as he fell out of the low car “but it couldn’t beat me” …
“Well …” I said looking at the tough V8’s ..
Then one little bugger next to me piped up, “he’s the record holder of the range”
Record holder eh …. “So how fast” I said
“I can do 100kmh all the way down” he said. ..
I commented been there done that, …..Well that did it, it was that comment plus the locking of a hero in my car that turned the crowd against me, so it was on .. I had to prove I was as fast or faster, or I was not leaving this Shell servo alive, or well, without dignity.
Basically I could never drive back into this servo again for as long as I could live. Which sounded bad when you were not quite 21.
They elected to send me down with a volunteer to sit beside me from there crew (smelly bugger).
And down the range we went, with the X-19 doing what it was good at, handling. Skinny tires squealing all the way, the rear end just edging to break loose now and then, but coming back into line with a move of my right foot. Only using the brakes for the very tight corners.
110kph all the way (don’t hold that against me I was young)
Now the X-19 was a great car for flat roads, tight corners, going down hill, but had absolutely no horse power at all to go up any thing that remotely looked like a hill.
So the accent was a lot slower.
We got back to the servo, the crowd gathered and was quiet, and it was like they knew the record may have been broken, but they wanted a miracle to happen.
The volunteer fell out of the car, stood up and proceeded to tell them all how fast we had gone down the range.
The crowd looked ashen
Then he added it was as slow as buggery up hill.
Laughter filled the servo.
I got big smiles and pats on the back.
The Local hero shook my hand.
I was always welcome at the servo when they were there, and when on the street I would get a nod from the boys in their V8,s
Ands that’s how I became a sort “Half” a local hero.
