GREAT weather, great scenery, great roads and great food ... those are the over-riding impressions of a group of Wairarapa Vintage Car Club members who last month took part in "the Nobs' Tour", a run from Masterton to Cape Reinga and return.
One car didn't make the start, Rob and Pat Knight's 1924 Buick suffering a blown engine on day one. The Knights switched to a modern and completed the journey. Apart from that there were only minor incidents as the old cars covered a total of 2100 miles.
Organisers Tony and Myrna Lane, of Masterton, had deliberately limited numbers to keep the group together. The roads they chose (and which they recconoitred twice before the run were generally minor tarsealed ones and they avoided retracing their steps as much as possible.
Those taking part, and their cars, were Doug and Carilyn Banks, 1962 Mk3.4 Jaguar, Gordon and Frances Clode, 1960 Ford Prefect, Ian Cutler and Margaret Doyle, 1992 Subaru Legacy, Peter and Nola Groves, 1972 HQ Holden Belmont, Will and Ruby Holmes, 1924 Austin 20 tourer, Rob and Pat Knight, Nissan Maxima, Paul and Judi Lamb, 1972 350SL Mercedes Benz, Tony and Myrna Lane, 1951 Citroen Light 15, Tom and Jean Mitchelmore, 1958 Rover 90, Peter and Shona Nightingale, 1930 Ford Model A and Howard and Marion Sims, 1951 Jowett Javelin.
The run took the cars to Auckland via East Cape and on to Whangarei, where they joined the Northland and Far North Vintage Car Club branches' Far North Tour to Taipa.
Most of the Wairarapa contingent continued north from Taipa to Cape Reinga, returning via the Hokianga (and another ferry trip, from Kohukohu to Rawene), down the west coast to New Plymouth and home independently from there.
Competitions were held each day, with prizes ranging from chocolate fish to cars, the latter being of the Matchbox variety.
Day one took the cars from Masterton to Wimbledon and Havelock North. The convoy had left in rain which ended at that point, the rest of the trip being in improving weather.
Day two took the convoy to Gisborne, via Mohaka Viaduct, Wairoa and the Tiniroto Tavern lunchstop then on to Gisborne. A bus took the Masterton team to the Gisborne VCC branch, where a barbecue dinner was laid on.
The following day took them to Tolaga Bay and a minor mishap. They came across several thousand sheep being driven along the road, and in clearing the road the Rover reversed into a hole. No damage done and the car was easily recovered.
The ruins of the NZ Shipping Company at Tokomaru Bay and the beautifully-carved Tiki Tiki Church of St Mary attracted a lot of attention. At Te Araroa most of the cars diverted onto gravel and the 21km drive to the cape and back.
After a night at Hicks Bay, overlooking the sea, they travelled on to Te Kaha.
Fuel was about 20c a litre dearer in that area and most chose to wait till nearer civilisation before gassing up. However one had to fill up, and when tail-end Charlie came through and asked if the service station had seen any of the cars, they were told the Rover had been in and taken $60 worth.
"I reckon the gross domestic product of Omaio went up 60 per cent when Tom filled up," said Tony. "The guy probably shut up shop and went home for the day after that."
They cruised on through Opotiki to Whakatane and dinner with members of the Eastern Bay of Plenty VCC and a visit to the adjoining truck museum, and the following morning drove to Te Aroha via Lakes Rotoma and Rotoiti, the Mamakus, Tirau, Te Poi and the Old Te Aroha Coach Road, which skirts the foothills of the Kaimais.
"A perfect day for motoring," reports Tony.
After lunch they moved on to Ngatea, where a gemstone factory was visited, then on to SH II to Maungatawhiri, where they branched off to Aparimu and Drury. The only casualty was the Rover, with a puncture.
Day six saw the convoy skirt Auckland to the west and drive around the head of the harbour to Kumeu and on to Wellsford. After lunch they headed for the east coast, travelling through Mangawhai, Lang's Beach, Waipu Cove and then Whangarei, where the Far North Tour was to start.
Day seven was a rest day, and day eight saw 83 cars, of all shapes, models and sizes, putter north through Hukerunui and Whakapara before branching off onto the celebrated Russell Road.
Generations of children have parted with their breakfast on this narrow, winding gravel road that skirts the coast to the Bay of Islands.
To the disappointment of many, the Russell Road is now sealed, and that part of the run passed without problems. Morning tea was served at picturesque Oakura Bay before the cars continued the 40km to Russell and lunch at the local RSA.
That was followed by the first of two ferry trips, across the harbour to Opua, then on to Paihia and Waitangi, enjoying spectacular views along thre way.
The Waitangi Forest section was a challenge. This is a privately-run forest, and all cars had to be checked in and checked out again, the deadline being 3.30pm. The roads were all gravel and very steep in places.
Will and Ruby Holmes in the 1924 Austin 20 Tourer had the misfortune to get a puncture. That shouldn't have been a problem, but his two spares were chained together and padlocked, and when it was needed the key wouldn't unlock the padlock.
Will was part-way through cutting through the chain with a file when another car arrived and he demonstrated how the key had failed to work.
"Lo and behold, it worked," said Tony. But the loss of time saw them exit the forest at 3.28pm, with just two minutes to spare.
The cars continued on to Kerikeri and to their destination, Taipa, with stops at Kaeo for icecream and a diversion in to Maunganui for the views.
At Taipa, the end of the Far North Tour, 200 people sat down to spit-roasted lamb and pork, with all the trimmings.
"Well done, Far North branch," noted Tony.
While the tour headed south again, most of the Wairarapa contingent set out for Cape Reinga, the last 20-odd miles on gravel.
"We were so lucky," said Tony. "The day was perfect, not a cloud in the sky and there was virtually no wind as we stood by the lighthouse and watched the meeting of Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea. It was wonderful." said Tony.
A bottle of bubbly near the cape and then they were off again to Awanui and then Kaitaia, where they visited the Ancient Kauri Kingdom showroom and admired a log so large that a spiral staircase had been hewn inside it.
The next day, day 10, the cars left early to make the Kohukohu ferry by 10am. The Austin by now had two punctures, so it and one of the "moderns" stayed behind, hoping to catch up at Kohukohu.
The ferry runs from The Narrows, at Kohukohu, to Rawene across the Hokianga Harbour. The main bunch made it in good time but two cars arrived too late and had to wait another hour.
The Waipoua Forest and Tane Mahuta were visited and the cars then made their way to a maritime museum just north of Dargaville.
On this run the first major problem occurred when Tom and Jean Mitchelmore's Rover broke a fan blade. It was towed to the lunch stop and after much deliberation the fan was removed completely and the car continued on through Matakohe, Paparoa and Wellsford to Warkworth.
Here there was a happy hour for members who would be breaking off the next day in Auckland. The Rover was fitted with a new fan while the rest headed on to Waiwera, Kaukapakapa and Kumeu, Waitakare and Swanson.
The Model A left at this point, as did Ian Cutler's Subaru, which had a mechanical problem necessitating a long, slow limp home.
Crystal Mountain provided an interesting stop, with semi-precious stones shaped into statuettes and jewellery. The Rover caught up again here.
They then retraced their steps to Drury, Pukekohe and Tuakau, heading to Raglan and the end of another long day.
"We were down to eight cars, the stayers, but the Austin decided to leave us for the day and rejoin at New Plymouth," said Tony.
The remaining seven cars travelled on to Kawhia over some "indescribable" roads, and the tiny settlement of Marokopa.
The Ford went astray at this point, due to some roadmen who were working on the signpost. They eventually caught up again on the way to Awakino.
"The next stretch seemed tame, recalls Tony. "Our cars were grey from dust and a slight drizzle over Mt Messenger was enough to clean the windscreen but nothing more."
They met up with the Austin at New Plymouth and all went out for a "last supper", prizegiving and lots of fun.
Five of the crews agreed to meet at Patea. It was on this stage that the Jowett fuel pump packed up. Howard Sims just happened to have a spare in his kit, and that was replaced at the side of the road.
The Citroen suffered a loud bang, but seemed to run okay and continued on to Patea.
From that stop the cars drove on to Marton, where the Banks detached in the Jaguar and headed to Wellington. The rest continued to Feilding, Woodville and Pahiatua where Tony discovered the cause of the Citroen's bang ? the radiator cap had fallen off.
Finally, at the end of 13 days of motoring, the remains of the convoy arrived at Willow Park Drive around 4.30pm. The Ford and the Holden had had no problems at all and all the Citroen needed was a new radiator cap.
Pretty impressive for a bunch of old-timers, all at least 30 years old.
Tony and Myrna Lane have already been asked to do another run, and they're thinking hard about it. Tony has something in mind, shorter but much more interesting.
The Lanes are, however, delighted with the success of the run.
"The all seemed to enjoy it, and they're a great bunch of people," said Tony.
Vintage car tourists ready for more
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