by popular demand I'm going to change the process a little, pictures first - prose second. enjoy....... this first set is of our visit to Magoo's Street Rods
this is what a ferry ride looks like, we spent most of the time getting loaded in the bar with Squeek and the boys...............
more from the ride down to Rangiora................. opps, I gotta go to work for a while - I'll write the story after work so look for it later.
......... and so we woke up in Masterton. Steve had scheduled a stop at Magoo's Street Rods in town there and then we planned on going to the Southward Museum. Kiwis really like to tour hot rod shops.Wearrived at Magoo's and met Lloyd Wilson, who is Magoo himself. They not only do ground up builds but also carry parts and novelties. They were just finishing a '40 sedan, and had several shoeboxes they were working on. It seems that the hobby is alive and well in NZ as they said they were busy and there was a shop full of guys beating metal and assembling cars. Lloyd is a great guy and Magoo's is a first class shop. After Magoo's we hit it for Southwards. The drive took us through the outskirts of Wellington and back north. We stopped at the top of the hill for a great view looking north (see pics). Steve is a little excited about that blown '40 and is on a mission to only get 2K miles out of a set of rear tyres. I was a bit nervous though when he lit 'em up on top of that hill and started doing donuts - you see there was a dropoff thousands of feet strait down and only a little chain link fence. About 45 minutes north of Wellington we got to Southwards. It is a private museum that had a few hundred cars and bikes. A lot of the stuff was european but most of the cars were very nice, the bike collection was very impressive. I didn't quite expect it to be as big as it was but it was a great museum. We spent an hour or two there and had lunch befor egetting on the road for our ferry ride. Heading South we went back to Wellington and the terminal near downtown. Craig told us to be there early, at least an hour before he boat leaves. We got to the docks and got in line about 5 and had an hour to kill. Soon after we got there Squeek and his boys came along and of course we had a few beers. It was then that I started to hear the stories of rough boat rides across the Cook Strait and became a little concerned - you see I hadn'tquite fixed the e-brake on the roadster. I thought about 30' seas and my car trying to stay put with only being in gear to hold it. Once we got on the boat I stole a wheel chock from them and hoped for the best. The trip is almost 3 hours, most of it being in protected harbours. We made our way upstairs to the bar and started drinking. It was a great ride, had to stop ever so often to go out and take a few pictures for my wife of the beautiful NZ coast. By the end we were a little lit from the bar and ready to get off the boat. We landed in the small port town of Picton and Steve had arranged lodging about half mile from the ferry. At the hotel they had closed up for the night and taped our keys to the door, guess that can be done in a small town. We wandered around town a bit looking for food and a bar. We landed in an old Irish pub and had some sort of Irish/English puddle of mush for dinner. By this time I was getting a little tired so we headed back to the hotel. Ron and the boys retired to the courtyard for some more drinking, BSing, and irritating at least one other guest. Later in the night Steve and Roy climbed through the window of our room and raided our mini-bar. In the morning we started south, we were to be at Craig's Muscle Car Madness in Rangiora (Christchurch) by evening. Our first stop was the Omaka Air Museum. It seems that the fella that made the Lord of The Rings Movies is an airplane nut and financed the museum. Unfortunately it was dark inside and the pictures didn't come out well but believe me, that was a very impressive museum. All of the planes were staged in realistic settings, mostly war stuff, and teh attention to detail was astounding. They had a scene of a WWI repair shop where even the filings coming out of the planer were curled up. It was really a neat museum. After Omaka we started south for Rangiora/Christchurch. We got out and ran along the coast for quite some time. Down the coast is Kaikoura, a coastal town known for Whale watching and other marine tourism. Near Kaikoura Steve knew of a roadside shack where you could buy a lobster, or Crayfish as there are known in NZ, for a few bucks so we stopped for lunch. Once we got back on the road it started to rain - and then started to rain heavy. We opted to sit it out and found a BP to relax in. We were there only a few minutes before cars from a group driving down started to file into the station. We met up with Paul Grace from NZHR and chatted for a while. After the rain broke we hit the road again, this time Steve and Roy took off and we hung back with Paul, the only two gennie '32 around. It was a nice lazy drive down despite the ocassional wetness. Our cars liked the slower pace and nothing looks as good as a couple of 32's driving down a country road. By the end of the day we were near the Rangiora fairgrounds, which was good because it started to piss down pretty good again. Once there I started to feel bad for Craig - it was raining and the place was a total muddy mess. It was Friday night and it didn't look good. So we took off and found Liquorland, and went back to the bed and breakfast Craig had arranged for us across the street from the show. We'll see what tomorrow brings............
Marshall, I've really been enjoying the chapters of your NZ tour. Just a couple of questions I have: Was the '32 reliable throughout the trip? You've covered a lot of miles. Also, (I may have missed this in the opening chapter) how did you go about making the car legal to drive in NZ? Looks like you're still on California plates?
so you missed Duanes "friends" at the other end of the ferry trip then, at one stage I crossed cook straight 8 times in about 3 months, never with more then about a 3 foot swell I figure I have been real lucky it can be very bad !!
You are correct, '32 CA plates the whole time. We never gave any thought to being 'legal', we just rehearsed our excuse in case we got pulled over. We saw several police but never had any problems. I'd highly recommend our approach over trying to do it right. The roadster did good, only one minor problem. In Dunedin the throwout spring broke in the clutch. We pulled over and went to work on it on the side of the road. It took about half an hour to rig it but it worked and lasted till the end. When I get it home I'll throw a new spring on it. It's not hard to make a car like mine reliable, just keep up with the maintenance and catch problems before they put the brakes on you.
Oh and for Duane, they were staying in Blenhiem - thats why they found trouble. We stayed right there in Picton. They were on a serious roll by the time they got off the boat, Good on 'em.
staying in Picton was the plan then, looks like you had a good trouble free trip, pity you couldn't hang around for the Scroungers blowout this weekend.
Wow! I take back every bad thing I've ever said about our Kiwi cops! Thats pretty amazing. Can I expect the same level of hopitality from your boys in blue should I ever want to ship my pile of bolts over for a US road trip?
Steve, there's no guarantee with CA cops but I've seen many a Kiwi talk his way out of trouble whilst trying very hard to stay vertical for the conversation. Also, a very good friend of mine from Nebraska ran for over a year with a Dale Earnhart license plate cover he bought at the car parts store for $5 on his truck. Anything is possible. Have a good excuse ready.
I drove a Cadillac all over the US on a temporary tag which I bought in Florida for $3. It was made from cardboard and was to be placed in the rear window. When it expired ( 6 weeks) I cut the date part off the bottom with a razor and kept driving. Only got stopped a few times, once by a State Trooper in New Mexico... he ended up becoming a friend and coming to visit in NZ for a big game fishing trip. He he. Actually all countries which take part in the Geneva Convention must allow free passage to foreign registered vehicles for 12 months, if driven by the registered owner. NZ allows 18 months Rego law NZ PURSUANT to sections 35A and 48 of the Transport (Vehicle and Driver Registration and Licensing) Act 1986, Her Excellency the Governor-General, acting by and with the advice and consent of the (Vehicle and Driver Registration and Licensing) Act 1986, Her Excellency the Governor-General, acting by and with the advice and consent of the Executive Council, hereby makes the following regulations. Executive Council, hereby makes the following regulations. FIRST SCHEDULE Reg. 3 PART I MOTOR VEHICLES EXEMPTED FROM REGISTRATION AND LICENSING (INCLUDING EXEMPTION FROM FEES) ................................>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> 5. Any motor vehicle that is registered in a State that is a party to the Convention on Road Traffic signed at Geneva on the 19th day of September 1949 or a State that is a party to the Convention on Road Traffic signed at Geneva on the 8th day of November 1968, while the vehicle remains in the ownership of the person who brought it into New Zealand, and--- (a) The owner of the vehicle holds a current driving permit recognised as if it were a driver's licence issued in New Zealand; and (b) The vehicle remains registered in that State and evidence of that registration is carried on the vehicle; and (c) There is displayed on the back of the vehicle a registration number allocated to it by that State or a competent authority of that State, and an appropriate distinguishing sign indicating the place of registration of the motor vehicle; and (d) The vehicle has been in New Zealand for less than 18 months.
Great Info, I guess we were ok all along. Don't expect most US cops to know any of this though. And out on the open highway if you ever meet DOT with a foriegn plate you're headed to Guantanamo Bay. I did carry with me the Carne (shipping docs), my US insurance info, passport and CA drivers lic., and my CA registration. Funny thing is that several guys asked about the registration because I don't have the proper reg stickers on my plate even back home. The '32 plate doesn't have a place for the modern stickers and you're supposed to add them with a little wing coming off the mounting bolts for the plate. I never liked the look of those so I never did it. I've been pulled over 2 times in the 5 years since I put the '32 plates on and niether time did the officer say anything. I keep the stickers in the car so that, if needed, I can show them to the law and prove that it's currently registered. Another example of how not to do it, but it has worked for me so far. By the way, the roadster should pull into Long Beach Harbor today. Should be home by Friday.
Is that vertical as in being DUI, DIC or is that guns drawn on the ground hands on back of head vertical - I remember a story of some Kiwis that brought a muscle car(to travel round in and bring back to New Zealand) that either was or looked very like a drug dealer/ gangster style, they got pulled over and got the full on guns drawn on the ground deal, they were shocked because here our cops dont even carry guns, they walk right up to your window tell you you been bad and hand you a ticket in your window.
Vertical as in pissed, not riding a skateboard. Steve Keys told us an interesting story about being mistaken as a burgler at an antique shop in Orange Ca. and going thru the whole guns out on the ground routine. He was a little shaken by the whole gun deal too.
When I went to the USA, I could'nt stop staring at cops with guns. Definitely a strange sight for us kiwis!
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