Superloop to Nerriga Pub
02 July 2016 / Words by Brendan Barr, Photos by Bryan Shedden & Brendan Barr
The Saturday morning routine was proceeding smoothly …. coffee, tasty toast and the paper. The morning solitude is loudly interrupted by the ringing of the mobile.
Spotting the caller’s name, I answered, anticipating the reason …. "yes I know the run is tomorrow, I saw your text yesterday."
"Well if you read it, you would be here ready to start, because it is today!" came the retort.
Crap, how could I have managed to get it so wrong? With no one to blame except myself, it was time to grab a warm coat and head for Bundanoon and hope to catch up.
A solitary drive up Macquarie Pass in the winter sunshine, uninterrupted by slower cars is a great start, leading to thoughts of a F1 début. (Yes, dreaming, that Verstappen youngster beat me to it.)
The traffic red lights at the washed away hairpin bought my dreams to an early halt. A slow crawl through Robertson, then the confirmation of the temperature as a car emerged from Pearson’s Lane, covered in ice, with a windscreen viewing hole carefully scraped for the driver to peer through. Which is probably why he didn’t see me as he pulled in front….
In contrast, a warm reception greeted me as I caught the ‘Super Loop’ crew at Bundanoon and with barely a murmur of "late to your own funeral" from the crew, I settled in for some wonderful coffee and cake.
Time to meet the two new members, proud owners of a shiny new Soul Red MX-5. Polite conversation ensued until Bryan mentions that "there are nearly 50 NDs in the club now."
"What’s’ an ND?" enquires new owner. Laughter from long term members is followed by explanations that started with, "well an NA is like the VB Commodore …."
Light-hearted lesson over, we head off for Nerriga Pub via the back reaches of Bungonia and Mountain Ash Road. What a great drive, winding through beautiful scenery and scooting over flowing rivers and streams.
A random member of the public spied the arrival of 10 MX-5s at Nerriga pub. Seizing the opportunity, he approaches the group ….. "I own an MX-5 and I have been trying to buy this part for it but can’t find it anywhere…." Naturally someone actually had one in the boot of his car! Satisfaction is always guaranteed with the Illawarra Chapter!
Lunch and plenty of chatter later we were ready to hit the road again. Most headed for Nowra, for another exhilarating drive. As we cruised along the side of Shoalhaven River, Tony, who was leader of the pack pulls a sudden left, which we all follow, only to find him heading into Two Figs winery. A couple of cars bailed, but a hardy four motored on. What a great view we were presented with, a vista over the whole Shoalhaven delta and out to sea!
Even better was the winery, with excellent tasting, judging by the number of cases that were packed into boots before departure into the setting sun for the run home.
Jan tried to over indulge by drinking straight from the barrel.
A fabulous day, admirably organised by Graeme and Carol, many thanks to them for the effort.
The Barrel Girls were gorgeous!
When’s the next run? I might even get the day right this time!
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