I have just returned from the Model T Ford club of Victoria's annual four day tour held over the 'Melbourne Cup' horse race holiday weekend.The tour was held in around the country town of Maryborough Victoria and it is surrounded by some excelkkent T touring roads
30 T's and crews attended including some interstate guests and some regular forum participants.I hope you enjoy the pictures and I hope others will add more once they arrive home.
Great photos! Thank you for sharing them. Love those steam tractors.
Drive carefully, and wear a funny hat! W2
Of course the T's are nice.......but those Showman engines are in a class by themselves!........
Thanks for the photos Warwick.
For the benefit of our Northern Hemisphere friends, I'd like to mention that the large building with the clock tower is Maryborough's railway station. In 1895, Mark Twain visited Maryborough—which he dryly observed was: "A railway station with a town attached".
Craig, in Australia we call those traction engines. There was a beautiful full showmans engine at the site, complete with all the brass trimmings. When I can get hold of my wife's camera, I may be able to post a photo of it for you.
The grand parade featured about 30 of them, Winding engines for ploughing, road rollers, traction engines, threshers, steam lorries and even a steam powered Volkswagen combi utility truck!
Allan from down under.
Great pics Warwick, l missed a good event.
David.
I am finally back on board, it has been a busy week. Here are some photos from the rally where we visited the 100th Lake Goldsmith Steam Rally. It was heaven!
I know that my wife had to wait for me on numerous occasions as I "savoured" the atmosphere, but a that long that a tree grew was a bit of a whopper even by her standards!
Cooking snags on the steam box. I asked, but he was hungry and wouldn't share his lunch!
And of course this gem sitting in a shed. I hadn't seen this car since the Geelong National in '98.
great camera work David C, they look fantastic, seems as though a fair few of us missed what was a great weekend of T driving and sight seeing.
Bruce Cs...a well put together tour on your behalf, from the discussions at the club meeting last night and the pics emerging over the past days.......well done....
David.
It was one of the most enjoyable rallies I have been on in a long time. The company was fantastic with 5 "Crow Eater" 'T's joining the weekend. What was even more pleasing was seeing Emily Dhillon driving her dad's 1924 Tarrant on 'P' plates. It certainly makes my day to see our hobby being enjoyed by the children and hopefully perpetuate beyond us.
Thanks for posting the pictures David, there's a few $$$ hanging on the walls of those sheds if all those fuel signs are not repro's.... was what looks to be a steam shovel in one of your photos actually in steam ?
Regards,
Bede
Bede, there were two steam shovels, both operable. The one with the curved tin roof was rail mounted. A second on, a Bucyrus, was mounted on crawler tracks. The last time I saw one of these was on the 1992 rally to Griffith. It was an engine powered one which was used to develop the channels in the irrigation area.
Allan from down under.
The grey shovel was a working display and not slow by any means, 3 men to operate, 1 for the controls, 1 for the boiler and another to climb the boom ladders while working to lube all the moving parts, he wasn't needed just to show how it worked. The red one was built to roll on rail tracks
Bede-
The Lake Goldsmith Steam Rally site has been in operation for over 50 years. The event we attended was the 100th event held at that location so was very special for all concerned. Steam and Vintage machinery enthusiasts are able to erect thier own buildings on one of the 'streets' to store and display thier engines,Machinery,signage,tools etc. some of the displays are quite spectacular. I was very impressed by the store in one of the pictures I posted. It is complete with authentic boiled lolly jars etc. It was truly like stepping back in time. The Shovel was an operating steam version. the great feature of this event is that everything is working!
Allan, Kerry and Warwick,
all I can say is WOW. Thanks so much for posting. Those steam shovels are impressive, I've just watched a couple of youtube videos of it working. I'll have to put the place on my radar for next time we are over, with that and all the mining history in the area I could be stuck there for days...
Regards
Bede
I'll wager that bi-bicycle takes a bit of practice to ride!
An incredible event! Thank you for sharing it with those of us less fortunate. (Us not being in the Southern hemisphere!)
Drive carefully, and wear a funny hat! W2
Our 12 year old son Chris took these on his phone. I have just down loaded them. I thought they were quite good and captured the brass & black of the model 'T's.
Our 12 year old son Chris also took these photos of "Barney" passing our "mabel" on a back road after visiting the site where the 2,283oz "Welcome Stranger" gold nugget was found on 5th February 1869. Great photos Chris!
Thanks Dave for posting and for Chris for taking them! Dad and look like a couple of hillbillies in old 'Barney'!Looks like the secret is out! Cup weekend next year might be huge!