STARTERS
AND FINISHERS |
CAR |
STARTED |
FINISHED |
Austin A70 |
1 |
1 |
Austin A90 |
2 |
1 |
Bristol 401 |
1 |
1 |
DeSoto |
1 |
1 |
Ford Anglia |
1 |
0 |
Ford Prefect |
1 |
0 |
Ford V8 |
11 |
2 |
Goliath |
2 |
0 |
Holden |
13 |
4 |
Humber Snipe |
1 |
1 |
Jaguar |
1 |
0 |
Lloyd |
2 |
0 |
Peugeot |
8 |
1 |
Simca |
5 |
1 |
Skoda |
2 |
1 |
Vanguard |
9 |
2 |
Volkswagen |
22 |
11 |
|
The Volkswagen's Were All Conquering - Or Were They?
The "Starters And Finishers" list certainly weighs heavily in favour
of the trusty Volkswagen's of the day, however it should be remembered that Volkswagen
in Germany sent trained service technicians to maintain a mobile workshop which
serviced all Volkswagens entered into the event throughout the route. This was
arguably the very first time Australia had seen an International standard works
service and support team.
Also during this event, the lack of supervision and adequate scrutineering allowed
many competitors to virtually rebuild their damaged cars at will. Vacuum (Mobilgas)
depended greatly on CAMS to provide adequate supervision and organisation, but
instead CAMS were busy prosecuting those that had taken part in the Ampol event.
More so than the Redex trials that had preceeded the Mobilgas event, the days
of a privateer being successful seemed numbered. This led Tom Farrell to write
in Modern Motor Magazine: "The moral... is that trials are big business
now.
Win a major trial and you'll sell more cars, while your competitors sales
dwindle correspondingly. And to win, it is no longer enough to have a good car
and crew; you must also be able to provide spare parts and trained mechanics
along the way. The private entrant? He's had his chips - unless he does well
enough in the early stages to be offered the repair facilities of his make's
official team."
The most difficult stretch on the Mobilgas route was the 73 miles (117 km) from
Kajabbi to Mount Isa. The organisers were concerned they had made the event a
litte to demanding on the participating motor cars, and so cancelled the tough
elimination sections toward the end of the route in South Australia and New South
Wales. But such changes, seemingly made by the seat of the pants, did not engender
harmony amoung the competitors.
Many became dissatisfied with the events organisation, or lack of. Imagine having "nursed" your
car throughout the trial, even losing points at times so that your vehicle received
less punishment, thus allowing you to put the pedal to the metal over the last
few "deciding
"stages, only to have these cancelled. The money and manufacturers
may have been with the Mobilgas trial, but many believed the earlier
"unsanctioned" Ampol event the better of the two.