The second Any Given Reason Burger Meet

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Andrew Coles

As the alarm went off at about 6am on Sunday morning, I awoke to a really odd sound. A constant, almost comforting patter. What was it? Ah yes, rain. And lots of of it. In my early morning stupor I came to the conclusion that I should just go back to sleep, and it probably will stop by the time I need to get up. 7am and the alarm buzzed again, and for some damned reason it was still raining. At least I wouldn’t need to wash the car I concluded, and promptly fell back asleep. Wintery mornings do not welcome the early bird.

Rewind a couple of weeks. After receiving some feedback from the first Burger Meet held on a Friday evening at Fancy Burger in Blackwood, I decided to try something a little different for the second Burger Meet. The main suggestions were that the location was less than inspiring, and that people wanted to go for a bit of a drive as well. So with sunny late summer hills mornings in mind the decision was made to hold the second Burger Meet on a Sunday morning in Mylor, with the burgers served up from the picturesque Harvest Cafe.

Gourmet breakfast burgers? Check. Picture-perfect surroundings? Check. Twisty driving roads to arrive at the venue? Check. Constant rain and freezing cold temperatures? Check. Damn. With this in mind I didn’t really expect a huge turnout, and I couldn’t really blame people for not coming. It takes a strong passion for cars to get out of a nice warm bed on such an awful Sunday morning.

But then one by one, people started arriving in all sorts of interesting cars. Continue reading →

The Easter Historics at Mallala

Posted on April 18, 2013 by Andrew Coles

Easter. A time of year with different significance for different people. Dedicated churchgoers will find themselves at the altar, while most of us spend the break with family or away on holiday. But for hardened motorheads, Easter brings an entirely different tradition – the Easter historic race meeting at Mallala.

Run by the Sporting Car Club of SA, the Easter historic race meeting is the highlight of what’s known as historic ‘speed week’ – several days of dinners, shows, the race meeting and a historic hillclimb at Collingrove on Easter Monday. The race meeting is considered to be one of the last true picnic style historic meetings left. Its very relaxed, very low key and the emphasis is really on camaraderie and enjoying some fine old cars.

So with this in mind, at about 5am on Easter Sunday I put the top down and hit the deserted hills roads, with some Donald Byrd playing to get me in a ‘classic’ frame of mind. Despite some early morning showers, it was shaping up to be a good day.

The day wasn’t purely one of spectating, as I was helping out as pit crew for Brenton Griguol who was racing his 1968 Lola T124 Formula 5000. I use the term ‘helping out’ and ‘pit crew’ very loosely, as I’m sure I probably just got in the way more than anything. But thankfully, and like he did at the recent Clipsal 500, Brenton was happy to have me along for the greater good of Any Given Reason readers! Continue reading →

The second AGR Burger Meet, to be held at Harvest Cafe Mylor

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Andrew Coles

Sunday April 21, 9.00am, Harvest Cafe, Mylor

The second Any Given Reason Burger Meet will be held in the picturesque township of Mylor in the Adelaide Hills from 9am on Sunday April 21. With a huge choice of some of the best driving roads in the state to get there and a special breakfast burger served by the lovely folks at the charming Harvest Cafe, it is shaping up to be a relaxing morning of all things automotive.

You’ll find Harvest Cafe at 240 Strathalbyn Road, on your right coming from Adelaide. Burger Meet will be utilizing the Mylor playground carpark, which is on your left a little further on from Harvest Cafe. Note – don’t go into the main oval entry; the playground entry is another hundred meters down the road. Look for the Skate Ramp sign.

The second Burger Meet will follow the same formula as the first – a whole bunch of car people standing around a carpark talking about cars, to the accompaniment of good burgers and coffee. And like last time, it doesn’t matter what you bring. Sports, modern, rally, race, Euro, Jap, American, stance, classic, vintage, motorbikes, hot rods, insane off-roaders – it’s all welcome so long as it’s just a little bit interesting.

You can read about the first Burger Meet here, and ask in the comments section if you’ve got any questions about the day. I look forward to seeing you all there!

Andrew

2013 Willall Mount Alma Mile Hillclimb

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Andrew Coles

Have you ever found yourself out driving on a sunny afternoon, and purely by chance discover an incredible little section of road you never knew about? You drive it for the first time with a grin on your face, and maybe even double back for another go at it. And then you start to think…. ‘wouldn’t it be cool if we could close this little section of road off for a hillclimb competition?’

That’s precisely how this previously unknown little country track, 10km out of Victor Harbor on the Yankililla road, became the fastest hillclimb course in the state. Now in its fourth year, the two day Mt Alma Mile event has quickly gained a reputation as a showcase for the state’s high performance tuners, as well as an accessible challenge for grassroots amateurs looking to test themselves against both the hill and other competitor’s cars.

You would very rarely ever find yourself at Mt Alma on the other 363 days of the year because it’s a road that kind of links nowhere to nowhere, and the fact that it turns to dirt at its summit even further reduces the likelihood of using it.

This is a huge shame, and every year I attend Mt Alma the sheer beauty of the countryside slaps me in the face, as if almost in laughter that this stunning countryside is just over an hour from the city yet I only ever come here once a year. Motorsport aside, you could just come here for a lazy Sunday picnic and have a great day out.

This has to be one of the most scenic pit paddocks in South Australian motorsport. Continue reading →

It’s time to do it again – the second Any Given Reason Burger Meet

Posted on April 6, 2013 by Andrew Coles

Save the date – Sunday April 21, 9.00am, Adelaide Hills

It’s time to do it again before winter sets in! We received some feedback after the last meet that a Sunday morning might be a good idea, so we’re going to give it a try. Burgers for breakfast? Why not! Or maybe we’ll change the name to Bagel Meet? Either way, it’s the same formula of a whole bunch of car people standing around a carpark talking about cars. And like last time, it doesn’t matter what you bring. Sports, modern, rally, race, Euro, Jap, American, stance, classic, vintage, motorbikes, hot rods, insane off-roaders – it’s all welcome so long as it’s just a little bit interesting.

Some feedback we received after the last meet is that you guys would like to incorporate a bit of a drive (that’s what Any Given Reason is all about, anyway), so the location this time will be in the Adelaide Hills, mostly likely somewhere around Mylor or Hahndorf. We’re currently searching for a suitable cafe, and the exact location will be advised once this has been locked down.

For those that didn’t make it last time or have no idea what I’m talking about, click here to read about the first Burger Meet at Blackwood.

Hope to see you all there!

Andrew

All Japan Day 2013

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Andrew Coles

All British Day, All American Day, All French Day… it seems each major car manufacturing nation has its own day, where respective enthusiasts gather to celebrate their favorite cars that somehow share similar traits based purely on their place of manufacture.

But All Japan Day is a little bit different. Whereas most All <insert country> Day’s seem to be run by traditional clubs and have a heavy influence of restored and stock standard cars, All Japan Day is populated by a much younger crowd who like to modify their cars. Whether its drift, grip, race, rally, street, show or drag, pretty much every car at All Japan Day was modified in some way. This sheer variety alone makes for a fascinating show, and I think the photo above highlights what I mean. There’s a Toyota Sprinter built for hills use in the foreground, a drift hack S13 in the middle, and the limited run, three-quarter-million-dollar V10 Lexus LF-A supercar in the background.

Even most of the stock looking cars packed a surprising punch…

This super clean first generation Mazda 323 sported a subtle 13B rotary conversion!

Andy from Autosport brought along his new daily driver Evo 5, which looks super aggressive on its 10″ wide Rotas. With 240kw at the wheels, it’s plenty quick enough for the morning commute to work! Continue reading →

2013 MSCA Sprint Round 1 and why I like driving slow cars fast

Posted on March 29, 2013 by Andrew Coles

The first track day of the year is always an exciting affair. New cars, new modifications or just simply a chance to blow the cobwebs out, the heart always skips a beat as you drive through the entry gates for the first time.

First there’s the nervous wait for scrutineering, and then the ugly pause before the first session begins. It’s been four or five months since some of these cars have had a decent scoot, and the mind wanders to all of the little things that need re-checking. Everybody just wants to get on with it!

Drivers briefing has never been a more painful affair. ‘C’mon, just let me on the track already!’.

It was the first time out for Garren in his new NB MX-5.

Garren is usually found behind the wheel of a Fiat, and was a longtime competitor for many years in his quick 124 BC. Life and family and kids etc got in the way and he was forced to give it up for a while, and this was his first event back in over 7 years. You couldn’t wipe the smile off his face! Continue reading →

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