thecountrydriver
North East Victoria's
best drives: a local expert's view
Bill Buys | Historic Winton | Paul Murrell
Pictured: Mount Hotham, Victoria's High Country
NORTH East Victoria - plus parts of the Southern Riverina and Gippsland - is home to some of the best driving roads in the country, where every journey encourages you to 'take the long way home'.
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Thousands of kilometres of highways and byways criss-cross Australia's premier inland playground, plus there are so many other interesting back roads through awe-inspiring scenery to choose from.
Expert shares his favorite North East drives
WHAT are your favourite drives in North East Victoria? After 60 years testing vehicles over (almost) all regional roads, local motoring writer/author, Darryl Starr, names his.
So, what are you waiting for? Fill your tank/charge your battery and hit the road to discover for yourself his special tried and tested touring routes.
1: Wangaratta to Bairnsdale
2: Bellbridge to Khancoban
3: Wangaratta to Gundagai
4: Granya (Gap) Road
5: The Magnificent Seven
SANCTIONS don’t really do much.
Joe Biden’s government slapped a trade embargo on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine – but it has made no difference to the number of US vehicles finding their way into Putinland. - Bill Buys . . . more
Historic Winton tickets on sale
ENTRY and camping tickets for this year's 48th Historic Winton are now on sale.
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The two day event will be held on Saturday, May 24, and Sunday, May 25, and tickets can be purchased by visiting www.historicwinton.org, or www.ticketebo.com.au.
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Entry fee (18 years +) Saturday $40, Sunday $50, weekend $80 - Photo - Ian Smith
A strange order
WE all know that the last thing reality shows have is any connection to reality, but I am constantly bemused by the order in which some of the shows carry out ‘restorations’.
Of course, most of these oddities are a result of the editing, rather than the actual order itself.
But far too often parts are removed and then replaced when underlying issues are still being addressed. Things like alloy wheels are refurbished and replaced before the brakes have been rectified or engines are refitted before bodywork is painted. And I notice that Wheeler Dealers is now quoting the number of man hours expended in bringing the car up to a saleable condition, which, as I’ve said before, makes a huge difference to the overall cost of the refurbishment (but still isn’t being factored into the total cost).
According to a bit of investigation, most UK restoration workshops charge £100-125 (around $A200-250) an hour. Taking their figure for one restoration of 28-man hours (seemingly very modest for the work they claim to have done) that would add between £2800 and £3500 ($A5600-7000) to the quoted cost, making almost every refurbishment economically unviable. - Paul Murrell, seniordriver.aus.com
Local motoring history books free to read on line
'The Thomson Diary', by E.L. Holmes, and 'A spirit of progress - 110 years of motoring in Albury-Wodonga', and 'Are we there yet, Mr Holmes?', by Darryl Starr, are popular local motoring history e-books that are free to read online. Click on a book cover and wait a few moments for the book to load.
