Car Rally

A large group of happy Probus Club Members gathered in the public car park, all keen and eager to get going on the annual car rally.  But first……we had to roll the dice, depending on how many were in each car.  Not as easy as it seems, of course, and after a few tries, we had rolled number two and were all set to go.

Rolling the dice before we head off

So off we went, armed with pages of instructions and questions to answer, and some toffees to keep our strength up.  And just in case we got completely lost, our destination was included too, only to be opened in dire emergencies. 

Our instructions and supplies

The first instructions was “turn right out of the car park”, and off we went, going around corners, criss-crossing over the railway line, up hill and down dale, counting rumble strips, turning at tee junctions and cross roads.  The beauty of a car rally is that it often takes you away from the suburbs and along unknown country roads.

One question was to identify the steel and concrete object standing in the paddocks.  Luckily we knew about the now defunct Opiki Toll Bridge – a suspension bridge constructed of reinforced concrete and opened in 1918.  The local flax industry was flourishing and three local mills (out of 30 in the region) were situated close by.  Previously the flax was carried across the river by flying fox.  The flax industry came to an end soon after due to disease.  A local farmer purchased the bridge, and it became a local toll bridge from 1925 to 1969 when the deck structure was removed and the present bridge opened.

Opiki Toll Bridge

Another interesting piece of local history we had to identify was the rather insignificant wooden marker showing flood levels of earlier times.  In fact, some of the rally participants admitted never having noticing this before, as they drove to and fro along the road.  The Moutoa Sluice Gates and floodway now help to keep the region safe.

Flood Level Indicator

Admittedly there had been a few terse words spoken while driving around, especially when we couldn’t find what we were looking for.  Eventually  we finally reached our destination, The Foxton RSA, where we had lunch.

 

Our lunch stop

What to order, we wondered.  Crumbed scallops sounded like a good idea to both of us, while others enjoyed fish, steak, sausages or burgers.   The questionnaires were marked, and believe it or not, we came in first with the highest score.  And no, we didn’t manage to answer everything, and got several questions completely wrong.  All in all it was a great day out.