THE QUEANBEYAN SHOW

by Gerry Rivet.

On Sunday 28^th September four club members, in three cars, set out for the Queanbeyan Car Show. George drove his Challenger, with Tony riding shotgun, Nik drove his VG Pacer and Gerry drove his CL Charger; the collective team representing a good cross-section of club members. Unfortunately the show was not well advertised so we set off not knowing exactly what to expect.

After stocking up on the usual supplies of fuel, munchies and drinks we set off in superb driving conditions; traffic was non-existent, it was a bright cloud free morning and the country air was fresh and invigorating. There were no unusual noises coming from in front of the exhaust manifolds and the sun was dancing off our vehicles polished paint and chrome. All of us were on cloud nine.

About an hour into the journey the bonnet latch on the Pacer decided to give Nik a fright by disengaging and popping the bonnet. No dramas: just push it down and away we go – or so we thought! The problem started to become progressive so it was time to “tinker” with the bonnet latch. The first adjustment was made with a screwdriver. We then tried to carry on, at a reduced speed, but to no avail. A call was made for a hammer and this was promptly produced. Nik then took to the latch in no uncertain terms with the hammer while the rest of us looked on in an uneasy silence, hoping Nik wasn’t going to vent his frustrations on the rest of the car! After that episode we tried to soldier on.

On one stop George had just got out of his car, to lend his “moral” support, when everybody else noticed the parking gap, between the Pacer and the Challenger, starting to shrink rapidly. Suddenly there was a mad dash of bodies, getting in each others way, to stop the unwanted meeting of chrome!

On another stop Gerry had got out of his car, to look “important”, but didn’t quite make it; a disgraceful dismount from the tarmac on to the shoulder of the road sprayed soft drink all over the front guard and engine bay of the Pacer. This was met with much amusement by all present! (Gerry @115kg versus Tarmac = Tarmac victory!) After several more attempts to fix the latch it was sadly decided Nik would have to return home, 80km short of Queanbeyan.

Finally arriving at the show, one thing was immediately obvious; there was a significant lack of Pentastar product present. The Valiant show was overshadowed by Detroit Iron! Sadly there was to be a total of only 8 Valiants, and one of them was parked in the car park! The owner was immediately asked to be part of the display.

On the American side of the show there was a diverse array of vehicles; some had rusted quite badly but others were of a high standard. The highlight of the show for me was the row starting with the Mustangs, then the Corvettes followed by some serious looking Camaros and then finishing off with 2 Challengers and a Cuda. You gotta love American Muscle! There were other Mopars scattered around the field and they were not lost among the scheme of things with one owner winning more than his share of the loot with his 59 “something-or-other” (Mopar).

The swap meet had plenty to offer. Of note was a near complete 318/TorqueFlite for only $150.00 (a pity I didn’t need one!). John Huntington had also made the trip down and was giving everything a thorough inspection. Most importantly an N.O.S. bonnet latch was located for the Pacer!

A trouble free run home gave a good close to the day.

Queensland beckoned….

Epilogue:

When we returned to Sydney, Nik informed us that he had sourced a latch for the Pacer. Apparently on the way back to Sydney, he became quite frustrated with the latch. After closing the bonnet for the umpteenth time he slammed the driver’s door in frustration only to have the bonnet pop open again! This was observed with much bemusement by a lone highway patrolman!

After cooling off, Nik located some cable ties and was able to drive home without further incident.

Bloody Valiants!!!….