Libby Kingdon drove her 1966 Jaguar Mark II from Stanley for the annual car show in convoy with her partner Michael Rowe’s matching model. Photo: Andy Wilson
The Northeastern Car Club held its first show after a two-year COVID hiatus, at Tarrawingee Showgrounds on Wednesday, February 1.
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Organiser Peter Whitten said more than 180 cars participated in the popular meet, which drew a crowd of more than 750 enthusiasts.
There were also 30 motorcycles, three tractors and two heritage fire trucks on display.
The show was first held in 2015 and has been a popular event, drawing a large variety of cars and people mostly from north-eastern Victoria.
“We have about 50 members of the club marshalling the show and have found that a Wednesday evening is the best night of the week because people are relatively free then,” Mr Whitten said.
The club’s origin was based at the local race circuit, which is known as the track on which racing great Allan Moffat spent time early in his career.
“We had an Allan Moffat reunion 10 years ago, which he attended, as well as a few replicas of his racing cars,” Mr Whitten said.
The club is known for its driver awareness program which is run for children aged 12 to 17.
“All the money raised tonight goes toward the program where we run low-speed events and put proper emphasis on safe driving for young people,” Mr Whitten said.
“This gives them the skills before they hit the road and some of the kids who’ve never got behind a wheel find that after three years, the experience really makes a difference in their driving.
“There’s a lot of variables in rural driving that you can’t experience learning with mum and dad on city streets.”
Former Skipton pastoralist Michael Rowe travelled from Stanley with Libby Kingdon to display their fully restored pair of 1966 Jaguar Mark II cars.
Ms Kingdon said her car, named ‘Clarice’, was her “sexy lady”.
“She goes like the clappers,” she said.
“She’s beautiful, absolutely gorgeous, and warbles along nicely.”
Daryl Howe and daughter Megan had two 1959 Holden FCs, from their collection of 12, on display.
Mr Howe also displayed his extensive knowledge about the model and the work required in its restoration, chatting to passers-by about the car’s history.
Dan Howe and daughter Megan took great pride in displaying two 1959 FC Holdens from Mr Howe’s collection of more than a dozen which he restores on their Tarrawingee farm. Photo: Andy Wilson
“The hardest part to restoration is any metal work; I find that a challenge,” Mr Howe said.
His model on display was recovered from a shearing shed and required a patient wait of four years until he was able to purchase it.
“It only had 77,000 miles on the clock when I got it; the bodywork and paint on this one are all original, with just a few touch-ups,” he said.
Ms Howe took equal pride in her father’s collection as she did in her FC ute, for which she has plans to drive to Broken Hill with her boyfriend.
“I love this car; it drives like a cut cat,” she said.
“But in winter, because it has no heating, I need to wear beanies and gloves to get to work.
“The upcoming Broken Hill trip gave Dad the incentive to get mine completed for today’s show.
“Dad collects cars while my sister and I collect horses.”
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