Territory Stories

The Northern Territory news Sat 23 Jan 2010

Details:

Title

The Northern Territory news Sat 23 Jan 2010

Other title

NT news

Collection

The Northern Territory news; NewspaperNT

Date

2010-01-23

Description

This publication contains may contain links to external sites. These external sites may no longer be active.

Language

English

Subject

Community newspapers -- Northern Territory -- Darwin; Australian newspapers -- Northern Territory -- Darwin

Publisher name

Nationwide News Pty. Limited

Place of publication

Darwin

File type

application/pdf

Use

Copyright. Made available by the publisher under licence.

Copyright owner

Nationwide News Pty. Limited

License

https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2019C00042

Parent handle

https://hdl.handle.net/10070/216878

Citation address

https://hdl.handle.net/10070/708759

Page content

12 Northern Territory News, CARSguide, Saturday, January 23, 2010 P U B : N T N E W S D A T E : 2 3 -J A N -2 0 1 0 P A G E : 3 1 2 C O L O R : C M Y K 1052863v2 BOB JUST CAN'T GET ENOUGH By MARK HINCHLIFFE TREASURES: Bob Morgan, left, in his Thunderbird. He also has a big collection of motorcycles including an 1897 De Dion three-wheeler, above O NCE you have five of something, then you are a collector thats the view of Bob Morgan. He should know. He has at least five of a lot of things, including speed cars, motorcycles, saws, meat grinders, caps, teapots, American number plates, electric jugs. You name it, he has it stored away in an old shop he owns in Brisbane. In prime position in his jumbled collection is Aust ralias oldest motorcycle, a 1897 De Dion three-wheeler in a glass case to keep peoples fingermarks off it. Morgan, 69, is a retired businessman, collector and former racer on two and four wheels. His racing career started in 1959 as a speedcar driver, becoming the 1970 national champion and the 1972 Australasian champ ion. Consequently his collec tion features several speed cars he is in the throes of restoring. They include a 1947 Kurtis-Kraft speed car he raced in the 60s. It is powered by an Offenhauser two-litre four cylinder DOHC fuel-injected engine. It used to have 200hp (149kW) in its day which was good enough to win races, but you have to have at least 400hp to win these days, he said. He sold it in 1970 to a West Australian racer and bought it back in 1988 as a dismantled wreck. Morgan also has a 1938 Model A Ford speed car with a three-litre, side-valve, four-cylinder engine which he resurrected out of a swap meet about 10 years ago for $1000; a 1940 Plymouth Special raced in Sydney by Ray Revell in 1941 that he traded on a bike; and a 1938 Midget speed car with an FJ Holden six-cylinder engine. Unlike many racers who go from two wheels to four, Morgan did it the other way around, moving to enduro and trials motorcycle events in the 1970s. People usually go from two to four wheels, but I went the other way be cause I was offered an opportunity to go racing enduros and I had to take it, he said Im a dirt man myself. Im more at ease in the dirt. Its more fun when its controlled sliding. He continued his dirt infatuation when he com peted in around Australia rallies in 1995 and 1998 in a 1965 Ford Compact Fairlane. He cant remember where they finished. We finished and that is the main thing, he said. He also performed in the Holden Precision driving team mainly in Asia throughout the 1970s. Now, in his retirement he has a formidable collection of vehicles, including a 1966 Ford Thunderbird with a 257kW, seven-litre V8 he bought for $15,000. I havent had to do anything to it but polish it, drive it and have fun in it, he said. Bob said he had seen people spend $100,000 on a car when it was worth only $50,000. I just do it as a hobby, he said. His bike collection is extensive but it is the per fectly restored polished brass and burnished leather De Dion which stands out. It is powered by a 200cc single-cylinder engine which has the first mass produced engine with an enclosed flywheel. It was so successful Harley-Davidson used it in their first bikes. The De Dion also fea tures a one candlepower headlight. Morgan doesnt know what it is worth, but said other models of the French motorcycle had fetched several million dollars. However, he said he had no interest in selling any of his collection or lending it to a museum. If someone offered me to buy the lot that is fine, but people want to pick the eyes out of it and leave me with the rest and Im not interested in that, he said. BEST BUY of the Week $18,990 07 FORD FOCUS LMVD 348 Stuart Highway, Stuart Park Phone: 8946 4471 8946 4460 m g 3 0 0 6 1 6 MANUAL, ECONOMICAL 4CYL, VERY LOW KMS, AIR CON, P/STEER, ALLOYS. SAVE THOUSANDS DARWIN MITSUBISHI USED CARS www.ntag.com.au $13,990 Proudly brought to you by SHANNONS INSURANCE FOR MOTORING ENTHUSIASTS 13 46 46 mg 300612 Diary Dates 23rd January - Top End Mud Racing, Australia Day Extravaganza 24th January - Karts Club Day 24th January - Motocross 2010 Membership Sign Up/Fun day 26th January - Variety Australia Day Ute Run 30th - 31st January - Territory Quad Association, Rum Jungle 9 hour. 3rd February - Alice Springs Off Road Committee Meeting 7th February - CADRA AGM 7th February - Quads Sign on Day 8th February - RANT Committee Meeting 9th February - Classic Holden Committee Meeting 14th February - Alice Springs Off Road Brekkie Bash 11th February - MVEC Monthly Meeting at Hangar. 14th February - MotoCross Junior Coaching day 17th February - Alice Springs Off Road Committee Meeting 20th February Classic Holden Car Club Quiz Night 14th - 23rd Bombing of Darwin Commemorations and Open Day at Hangar. 10th May 2010 National Sprintcar Championships - Northline Speedway Ist Friday night of month meet at Fishermans Wharf 7.30pm for cruise Last Sunday of month Nightcliff Pool 9.00am Classic Cars n Coffee Calendars Shannons are compiling a calendar/diary of meetings and events of everything motoring in the Northern Territory for 2010. Could all clubs please submit their meeting dates and event dates ASAP. All Motorsport Clubs have submitted and we are now waiting on all but 2 of the Car and Bike clubs. The Diary will assist members of clubs to know what is happening within their club and the wider community in supporting club events and also clubs to support each other. The information provided will only be as good as that received. Join Shannons at the CAMS CARnival! Shannons will stage Australia's first truly national Show & Shine over the NSW Labor Day long weekend from 1-4 October 2010, with more than 2,000 vehicles of all makes and ages expected to converge on EchucaMoama on the New South Wales-Victorian border. CARnival, which is being organised by CAMS, will be the largest national car club gathering ever staged in Australia. It is fully supported by the local Shires and will become an annual festival celebrating our enjoyment of all types of motor vehicles. The Shannons CARnival Show & Shine, staged on the grassy banks of the Murray River, will be the centrepiece and visual highlight of the CARnival Motoring and Motorsport Festival, which has been designed to appeal to all members of all CAMS and invited car clubs - irrespective of whether their interest lies in passive or competitive motoring activities. Shannons CARnival Cavalcades from eight major regional centres in Victoria and New South Wales will bring enthusiasts to the event in co-ordinated funruns. All vehicles will participate in the huge Shannons display, where they will be grouped by Clubs, make and model. Another crowd-pleasing feature of CARnival will be the Shannons Superstars, giving the public the opportunity to see the cars and meet and greet the drivers from a number of major V8 Supercar and Touring Car Masters' teams as they 'pit stop' in Echuca-Moama on their way to the Bathurst 1000 the following weekend. More CARnival details, including entry information, will be available early in the New Year on the CAMS and Shannons website. Top End Motor Cycle Club Membership sign on Fun Day/Pony express, Sunday 24th January. This years Fun Day will once again be running to the same format as we have for the last couple of years. Junior Sign on 7:30am to 8:30am Racing 9am to 10:30am. Senior Sign on 9:30 to 10:30 Racing 11am To 1pm. JOIN THE CLUB - RIDE FOR FREE !! Must have a MA License - One Day Rec License can be purchased for only $20. All Memberships are due for renewal. 2010 Membership forms/info and final instruction for Fun day will be posted late this week. MOTORKHANA Round One of the 2010 Remote Housing Systems NAMSC Motorkhana Series is to be held on Saturday 23 January at Hidden Valley. Sign-on is from 9am. ENTRY IS FREE, however all entrants must have a valid CAMS L2NS (or higher) licence and will need to have 2010 NAMSC membership. Both CAMS licences and NAMSC membership are available on the day - costs are as follows: CAMS L2NS: $50. CAMS L2NS Junior (16 or under): $13. CAMS L2S (valid for lapsprinting as well as motorkhanas): $95. CAMS L2S Junior (16 or under) (valid for lapsprinting as well as motorkhanas): $13. NAMSC 2010 Full Membership: $99. NAMSC 2010 Junior Membership (16 or under): $66. NAMSC 2010 Associate Membership (no voting rights): $66. NAMSC 2010 Family Membership (2x adults, 2x juniors): $160. Profile your club Should you wish to promote/advertise your clubs future or past club events, recognise members and their competition results, get members and visitors along to events then use this column. Please email John Palamountain john_palamountain@shannons.com.au for a free write up.