Sydney to Mildura - The best way??

Bretto, I didn't know you where into Death machines mate. I'm a member of the South Queensland Power Boat Club, not that I like going fast at all, but I've been using the ramp at Yeronga for about 25 years. Boat's, there for towing you, right?

Cam, small world, eh??
As a member of SQPBC, no doubt you would be aware of one long standing member losing his life recently - Neil "Fish" Coddington died doing what he loved in Blue Max (blown alcohol classic hydroplane) in February at Somerset. Neil, and brother graham, are both almost life long members of SQPBC. Graham still races but Neil's accident shook him up a hell of a lot. I raced classic hydro's since 1979 until about 5 years ago when Darryl Hamilton lost his life in one here in Sydney - and that was enough for me, and then Fish's accident really did it for me.
You would know Ian Dobbie too, great eccentric engineer, and with a temper to match.
Yes, I could go one forever...
Most importantly is a name you would certainly know - Barry Hay. Old Barry (nearly 70 now) was a fierce competitor, and now has a lot of KW's running about Brisbane with "Hay Bros. Haulage" plastered all over them and generally named "Pure Dynamite" or something with the word Dynamite in it as that was the name of his boat.
My boats - WASP (the famous Ernie Nunn world speed record holding boat), SWAP (again another Australian record holding boat), and Blew-By-U which was originally Rant-N-Rave from Howard in QLD. we had all three of them at the same time and raced all in the same class, together with the Coddington's and many others.
Like I said, could go on for hours but enough said :
Bretto

Well Bretto, I've been watching Neil and Co for a fair old while. The old Blue Max used to sound pretty good when it had that Dodge (I think) motor in it, and I don't know, but much about them things, except to keep well out of the way. But when he put that souped up 350 in it, the first crash, just after they fitted it would have been enough for me, and Niel walked/swam away from that, and I saw the boat,those things are made of nothing, with old milk bottles and oil containers for floatation, then they got another hull and stuck the motor in that, and Neil wasn't that lucky that time, that definatly would have been enough for me, but he kept going back, I think it's in the blood, their dad used to race in the 60's I think. They are nice blokes as well, I ski from that ramp a lot, and some of the racing blokes can be a tad up themselves and act like they owned the ramp, but Neil would have a chat. Mind Sommerville House will probobly end up with the ramp. > > :'( :'(

Cam, we better get off this thread as it has nothing to do with the subject, but just one more thing..
Neil & Graham were speedway racers, Neil especially; Neil was a 4 X World Chamion in speedway solo, he raced in England and alll across Europe over more than 20 years. After a horrific crash at Bathurst NSW, he gave riding away and got into the boats like Graham and their dad.
Blue Max was a dud with the Dodge in it, and grossly overpowered with the Chevy in it.
The second boat, The Wench, was resurrected after he crashed Blue Max.
The Wench crashed badly and that is how Neil ended up with a dead arm.

The day he crashed the Wench at Yeronga, I crashed my boat at almost the same time of day at Windsor in Sydney.

When I rebuilt my boat, I put a blown V8 Lexus in it. Neil was so impressed with my set up that he copied it. It killed him.

That is the end of my boat racing forever, it deeply upset me and Wendy (my wife) as neil was a close family friend through the racing.
Bretto