Team 1970 - The Three Amigos

“si, the beautiful senoritas”

mark — 2009-08-29T07:28:00Z

“si, the beautiful senoritas”

The drive into Perth is in beautiful sun – that is unless you are behind Dino's combi which is burning about 6 litres of oil per hour!

The procession into Forrest Place through the hills and Guildford is cool fun. Perth doesn't know what hit it as the streets fill with noisy, smelly, badly dressed bashers.

The cars all parked in Forrest Place are an awesome sight!

But our families are even more of an awesome sight!

The Three Amigos split up for the first time in nearly two weeks and head home before the final night dinner at the Sheraton - Mark takes the Amigomobile and his three little Amigos!

It was an outstanding experience and one which will always be remembered – massive thanks to Tom and Sean for agreeing to be part of it, our families for letting us disappear for two weeks, everyone who donated and our other supporters!

“what do the wiggles, the amigos and santa's elves have in common”

mark — 2009-08-28T07:24:00Z

“what do the wiggles, the amigos and santa's elves have in common”

They all snore!

The day starts with brekky at the school – grants are made by Variety to a bunch of very worthy causes. We miss the start line and head for the mech workshop.

Geoff Watson however has had no luck and with no replacement diff he sends us to Coles. Three bananas installed in the differential and we set off to catch up with the others.

Taking it easy on the bitumen road to Southern Cross where we reach another school – kids are having all a ball and making sure that the bashers are well fed and watered before we head out through the bush to Bruce Rock.

The diff is making a hell of a racket but when you drive offroad we notice it less so we take the bash route rather than the bitumen. We want to finish what we started and are determined to.

About half an hour out of Bruce Rock it starts to rain and the road turns to mush. The Amigomobile gets a bit of sideways actions but holds up well.

Driving in the rain is no issue – but what about sleeping? Tonight almost all the bashers are sleeping in swags and tents and on arrival at Bruce Rock people are pitching up under the eaves of all the local establishments…..because everywhere else is soaked!

We end up sleeping in the kitchen at the local campground along with Santa's Elves and the Wiggles. The ground is hard, the snoring unbearably annoying but at least it's dry and tomorrow we get home!

“Kalgoorlie, what's the diff”

mark — 2009-08-27T07:21:00Z

“Kalgoorlie, what's the diff”

On to Kalgoorlie today. And maybe we can get the diff sorted, maybe.

We are off earlier than the pack so that we can prepare for “sombrero the gringo” before the others arrive. “si, this ees a traditional Mexican game, only 5 pesos for three throws of the sombrero”

After this it's a bash through the bush to the Broadarrow pub, next to a minesite and adorned with the names of everyone who has ever visited. A beer and a burger – just the shot!

As we head to Kal we are pulled over by the police for a breath test. We get a canary (yellow sticker)! The whole thing is captured by a local television crew.

(see WIN News 28 August)

In Kal we go searching for a diff. No luck but Geoff Watson Autos reckons he might have one in the morning. Of course he might also have shares in the local greengrocers!

“Menzies, the town not Australia's longest serving prime minister”

mark — 2009-08-26T07:17:00Z

“Menzies, the town not Australia's longest serving prime minister”

Heading down the central road to Laverton today!

All is in order until we are pulled over for a random breath test. Mark is breathalysed and patted down and the police find drugs on Tom. We are not sure what is going to happen but we are finally let off with a warning and a small fine.

There was something not quite right about those police women but we can't quite work it out.

When we reach Laverton we hit bitumen. And then we get to hear the result of the earlier missing bash plate bolts – the diff is making a little bit more noise than it should. But we are in Laverton and the mechanic shrugs his shoulders and suggests we carry on to Kal.

Further down the road we pull off into a sacred site near a dam. We are greeted by Lionel, Edwin and Moreton. They allow us to have some special photos with them for a fee and provide us with a rather unique souvenir!

“Warakurna, cars will roll, don't drink by the water hole – midnight oil, 1987”

mark — 2009-08-25T07:15:00Z

“Warakurna, cars will roll, don't drink by the water hole – midnight oil, 1987”

We are quick out of the start today but we make a stop to check wheel studs at the Olgas and to ensure the atmosphere in the car does not reach dangerous levels of flammability.

The road is long today – real long!

The great central road is a great road however, but it has been recently graded. The landscape rips by, ever-changing as we head towards Warakurna!

We make it to Warakurna without drama but the Flintstones are looking at their bus and finding they need to be welding stuff up again.

We ask for Loctite and we get Araldite. No bolts at the roadhouse but there are spare parts for the taking in the car cemetery next door – the locals are not sure what to make of three Mexicans and a set of spanners but we manage to acquire 4 bolts of the right size and the peace of mind that goes with them.

With Midnight Oil playing we leave the fair town behind and soon pass the Teletubbies who have taken the words too literally.

The road is long today – real long!

We make Tjukarilja around 5 and throw camp together. It's a cocktail party tonight so Mark gets out his textas and draws on a perfectly good white tshirt.

With camp fires blazing, at the most remote roadhouse in Australia, we drink cocktails poured from garbage bins!

“standing on, well next to, solid rock”

mark — 2009-08-24T07:11:00Z

“standing on, well next to, solid rock”

Today is a straight run to Uluru! Plan is to get there in time for some sight-seeing.

The road from Kings Canyon is tarmac these days and much easier than the road that claimed Mark's landrover the last time he was in this area.

When we arrive we can't check in so we head out to the rock – what else could we do. (well there was something we should have done which was check the car)

It's impressive!! Postcard scenery - spoiled only by three gringos, a dark green HR and some funny hats.

On to the Olgas – no, not a group of Russian girls but instead a fantastic, natural domed shape rock formation in the middle of the desert. The Amigos take a walk – ignoring the strange looks our Virgin vests get us.

We have to be ready to get on the bus by 4.45pm for dinner. There will be no other way to get there. We head back in plenty of time and arrive back at 4 to check-in and get ready. That's when we look under the bonnet and see that we are missing two of the four engine mounting bolts……

Where did the tin go with all the spare bolts? Everything comes out of the car! Tin is nowhere to be found! Time is passing! We beg for two bolts off Wiro (one of the mechanics) – they look OK. The HR has a huge engine bay with lots of open space – easy to work on, except where the engine mounts are……we finish with 5 minutes to spare and throw everything in the car and our room with Herman (the backpacker who apparently is sharing our room with us).

We get on the bus. Phew! Heading out to the desert for Sounds of Silence (an award winning tourism attraction). We have pre-dinner drinks on a dune with Uluru to the south and the Olgas to the west – it's a hard life!

We watch the sun go down just north of the Olgas (which look remarkably like Homer Simpson lying down from this direction) before returning to the bottom of the dune for dinner and a few reds.

We were all warned we needed to have an early one – tomorrow is over 800 kms – we are sure that some people heeded the warning but the Ayers Rock bar still seemed to be doing OK…..

“hello baby”

mark — 2009-08-23T07:08:00Z

“hello baby”

A slower start to the day - a few hangovers being nursed but the Amigos are firing on all three cylinders!

Today we hit the Giles track for Kings canyon. Dirt road, corrugated, through some beaut landscape. Mark relaxes in the back while drinking plenty of fluid to clear his head while Tom navigates and Sean presses the pedals.

We make the Kings Creek Station without trouble.

Bash plate bolts still in – check!

(other bolts? didn't check, maybe we should have!)

What to do now!? A couple of beers and a helicopter ride at sunset over Kings Creek Canyon sounds like a good idea so that's what we do.

The scenery is fantastic and we land just in time to attend the masquerade dinner – dressed of course as Banditos.

A quieter night - many are in need of sleep, and tomorrow we are heading to the Rock – but the auction that is held goes exceptionally well and a lot of good money is made for Variety.

In true Amigo style, Tom serenades everyone to sleep from his swag……

“livin next door to alice”

mark — 2009-08-22T07:02:00Z

“livin next door to alice”

Today we drive on bitumen. A short trip! No breakdowns allowed because we are going to Alice!

The usual fanfare and mayhem at the start line and the amigos make it out as one of the early cars. On the way to Alice the landscape changes as we start to enter the area surrounding the MacDonnell Ranges – this area of Australia is wonderful.

When we make it to the gap that is the entry to Alice we all pull off to muster ahead of a procession into town. Today is the start of the NT's famous “Henley on Todd” regatta and festival – and bash cars from six states are in the parade.

We pull out and are soon driving down the main drag, handing out lollies to the kids, waving to the crowd and….watching the water temperature rise! The ambient air temperature in Alice today is unseasonally high – 35 degrees – and a few cars have to pull out as they get too hot. But the Amigomobile pulls through. Just!

We park in an area near the bottomless boat regatta. There are bash cars everywhere – and some brilliant vehicles in that lot!

We can't sight see just yet though. The two rear bolts that hold the front bash plate (below the sump) are missing so we seek out a mech workshop to once again hoist the old girl up. The boys at Sprint help out, and Captain Underpants are there for the same reason. We put the bolts in – lucky too since they are also supposed to hold the gearbox to the cross-member! Something that might explain the earlier uni-joint mishap (and some of the upcoming issues…..)

Back at the accommodation there is time for a swim and a beer before we are all rustled off to the biggest shin-dig in Bash history. A 25th anniversary party with over 1900 people!

The entertainment is awesome, the beer expensive, the toilets well the less said about that the better! Dick Smith (who started the first bash) gives a speech. Wilbur Wilde and Frankie J Holden wind up the crowd. John Williamson sends chills up the spine with “True Blue” and “Raining on the Rock”. The Screaming Jets do what they do best!

A great show!

A few quiet beers back at the accommodation (just to be sure) and then to bed for a somewhat brief but heavy sleep.

“two amigos and a mini driver go to the centre of Australia”

mark — 2009-08-21T02:45:00Z

“two amigos and a mini driver go to the centre of Australia”

There was something in the food last night and Tom and Mark are a bit slow moving. Breakfast doesn't seem to help.

Sean takes the helm, Mark takes the terratrip, Wayne takes the back seat and Tom gets into the mini.

According to Tom the main problem with the mini is that it's back end wants to go faster than the front – and today's route was a great one to find out about this.

The mini is quite a different experience to the HR. With an effective lack of suspension, a loud motor and very little in the way of room or ground clearance, it's pretty rough. The racing seats, racing harnesses and intercom headsets contribute to the experience. It was a good thing to do but Tom says he'll never do it again. We'll see. The mini lost it's trip meter early on that day – that makes navigating a bit more difficult. It hit a couple of the washouts pretty hard and that's probably what caused the rear shocky to part company with the rest of the car. It might have also been the major cause of the front left wheel nearly coming off. One wheel stud broken and the rim is cracked and U/S. It's debatable whether it was the washouts or the corrugations that broke the strap that holds the fuel tank in and caused the fuel cap to disintegrate. Despite all of that and the mini driver (Tony) having some issues with the jack, the mini made it to Erldunda.

The road is winding, harsh corners, sandy bogtraps – pretty full on. Several cars get bogged, including the mini in the first section and the second section. $20 donation buys a tow out. The HR sails through with Sean on the wheel.

The side road to Lambert (geographical centre of Australia) is a cracker. Single lane traffic, big ruts, boggy areas.

The track so far is bad enough that Wonder Woman's Porsche doesn't make it and they are towed out. The other mini (Mr Bean) loses all but third gear.

We make the centre – and it's pretty awesome to be at this place with 50 plus bash cars and support teams. Never been done before! Unreal! A stainless steel plaque, commemerating the visit, is unveiled.

Lunch is dished out in plastic bags at the start of the Ghan railway service track. We have permission to drive the road. This is also very cool. Mark takes the wheel back for this leg. There are some big boggy bits and a lot of bulldust but it's pretty straight and the single lane means overtaking is not even an option.

We all arrive in some shape at Erldunda where they put on a great spread and we are entertained by a guitar\didgeridoo band. Everyone is looking forward to the next night – Alice Springs, where all the bashers from all states are meeting for one almighty shindig!

There are quite a few cars receiving attention from the mobile workshop boys. Those guys do a fantastic job until all hours of the morning sometimes.

“are we dare yet?”

mark — 2009-08-20T02:25:00Z

“are we dare yet?”

Breakfast at the school including a choir was a great start to the day. This time Tom was driving and Sean on the terratrip.

We lose the spare tyre of the roof on the way on the first leg of dirt road. It's not the last time but it is the only time we will actually notice.

This leg was to take us through the Moon and Painted deserts. The Moon desert looks more like you imagine parts of Mars – massive flat landscape, dirt and stones (lots of them). Some of the road is extremely windy (that's windy, not windy) and skinny where a wrong move will result in a stone spearing our tyres. We pause at a creek and collect some wood for a fire tonight. Tom steers the course like a rally driver and we make it to lunch.

We arrive at Oodnadatta for lunch. Stocking up on supplies, we discover that the town is out of ice – a serious condition given the 50 odd cars that would like some. One carton of beer = $72. Pretty much a one street town and the start of the famous track that bears it name. We pay $1.78 for each litre of fuel. It's getting warmer as we travel inland.

The next leg is easier until we get close to “dare”. We make Mt Dare around 5pm and pay nearly $2 for fuel. This is a camping spot. We get a great spot, set up and go to work on a couple of beverages.

Tom agrees to swap with Wayne (Car 99.9, Mini) so that Wayne can get some kip in the back of the HR tomorrow.

When the sun goes down the sky lights up – with absolutely no large towns for hundreds of kilometres the sky is spectacular and the beer tastes even better, especially to Mark and Tom.