MORE than 70 members of Hawks Nest District Probus Club gathered to hear about the desert exploits of fellow member Hugh Ross, who participated in the Shitbox Rally in June.
Hugh and his team, the “Cessnock Flyers”, were among more than 500 participants covering over 4000km in eight days – from Perth to Darwin via the dusty Pilbara and hidden beaches of the Kimberley.
As the rally’s name implies, all participants’ cars must be “shitboxes” priced under $1500, but safety repairs are allowed to ensure they at least start the journey.
“We averaged 600km per day, because my group chose to drive to Perth just to begin the rally,” Hugh said, “then decided to drive all the way back home [from Darwin] to the Hunter!”
The rally started with a drizzly morning in Perth, but the desert soon took over, with the road fraught with all kinds of new realities.
There were sump-splitting hidden rocks and plenty of punctures.
“One car suffered five punctures in two days.
“Of the 250 cars, most needed petrol, not the diesel that is more prevalent out there, so the fuel queues were always long – taking hours.”
Cars worth less than $1500 will always have mechanical issues.
Hugh said some were fixed at night by real bush mechanics while others were declared “dead” and “cannibalised for parts”.
Their crews then joined other teams for the rest of the journey.
“Trees, though rare at times, were very important for ‘Code Brown’ or ‘Code Yellow’ situations.
“Occasionally, toilets and showers were brought in… and accommodation is mainly swags or tents.
“Being able to set up on grass is a luxury out there, especially free of burrs.”
The oppressively long driving was overcome with rally theme days, where people got dressed up.
After-hours games had the highest of stakes: the right to leave at the head of the pack in the morning, and not drive through a dust trail.
“Drivers of cars that were not sealed properly resorted to wearing face masks, their bodies covered in dust by the next stop.”
The Gibb River Road was a rite of passage for many – a 660km 4WD track through the remote Kimberley, which is only open during the dry season.
The rally was founded by James Freeman who lost both his parents to cancer in the same year, when he was 31.
Over the last 14 years, the rallies have raised over $42 million for the Cancer Council and cancer research.
Spinoffs now include the Mystery Box Rally and Lunchbox Rally.
By Thomas O’KEEFE
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