Andy Mac

Hi! Andy Mac, long time listener first time (In a while) caller. Haven't been in the buggy for a while either but one of these days maybe? A new kite might have helped motivate a change of those rusty bearings and a dust off of the old Razors. Too slow! D'oh!

Howdy - sorry - bit slow to get onto this as I don't jump on as often as I used to. As Joel said I have one of the old Land Lizards. I inherited it from a cousin who bought it, presumably from Highly Strung (In Elwood I think the shop was) back in about 1992 or '93. At the time he said there were only 5 in the country (Not sure if that meant LL's or buggies in general, and whether there were Peter Lynn versions around or not....it all seemed brand new at the time though). We used to use an 8ft Flexifoil stacker to do downwind runs across (Cowpat mined) paddocks down near Warrnambool. We had two kites stacked for the 'lighter' days but often 1 was enough down there (Pretty windy paddock on a hill directly inland from Peterborough). I may also have been an early pioneer of the landboarding craze, nailing a pair of Dunlop volleys to a skateboard deck (My crosswind performance wasn't terrific) Even in the buggy I never really learned to go across the wind until I lived in Scotland a couple of years later and ran into a number of guys in Aberdeen who flew by the beach on Sunday arvos. They loaned me kites (2 x 10ft Flexi + 2 x 8ft Flexi + 2 x 4ft Flexi's all stacked together!) and gear until I eventually bought a 2nd hand Rapid Rabbit (Basically a LL copy either homemade or made in the UK - slightly stronger headstock and rear axle attachment design) and a 4.0m Skytiger (Very up to date at the time - two line PL Peels were one of the weapons of choice kitewise then. Another quad line called a Spider or something or another that had zip in and out panels for different wind strengths had also recently come out). The Rabbit and two Skytigers (Added a 2.2m to the quiver) came back to Australia with me in 1998) where I racked up about 2.5k to 3000km on the beach between Ocean Grove and Point Lonsdale using a succession of bike speedo's to gauge my speed (50 to 55km/hr used to seem FAST with the Tigers and it took me a lot of runs to finally get a 60km/hr reading on a reach) before eventually running into members of the GKC down at Raffs Beach. The Rabbit was sold to upgrade to a modified PL (The pressure of racing!) but I still have the original LL. It gets a run now and again as a trailer - using one of the Peter Lynn bolt and strap thingos - and it has served me well and still retains mostly original parts (Including the now not quite so fluorescent seat webbing and rather perished rubber on the original wheels!). It has been modified to include a backrest (Essential for cruising and extended runs) and also at the moment has a cantilever additional seat to allow BOTH my nephews to fit on the back (They used to be small enough to squeeze on together....) In terms of todays buggies it really doesn't compare (In terms of strength, comfort, performance). Its simplicity and low cost make it a good entry point though. Given the hours of fun I've had over the years the 'entertainment factor' per $ is MASSIVE

If you blokes read it again carefully before making comment you might have noted that the title of the Thread does NOT list the kite as original. The first line in the description tells you that the frame and fittings are original. It then goes on to tell you that the sail has been replaced. I know the seller and the kite - both top notch - buy with confidence. Andy Mac

Good work to the organisers and congrats to Nigle (Sp?) ) Sorry I missed the entire season - haven't given up but did get slowed down by the retirement of local beach buddy Craig Robin. He'll be missed in the sport socially and competitively (Especially by the South Australians - go the Aussie titles!). See you all on a beach nearby with a bit of luck and a southerly wind. Andy Mac

Cheers Popeye - now I could go back to feeling special.... except that it sounds crap when you say it in mph

A good day at Ocean Grove - was a long time ago and this photo has been in the gallery for ever but never made the list.... 74.5km/hr - two hour session - three trips to the lighthouse and back with the favourite 3.5m Razor

Looks like easterlies and I'm building a deck so probably won't be kiting. Might make it for dinner to the pub though Hope the winds defy prediction and swing to the south for you!

oi! - only managed three photos in my gallery (No more likely at present after a hard drive total meltdown) but one is clearly the GPS with 74.5kmh on it (Good for fourth or fifth - bit disappointing really, give me a race with tacking and upwind turns in it any day) ..... It was a while ago and certainly not a match for 98 (Go Nige !!! ), might actually have been on there before the thread started....

http://www.extremekites.com.au/gallery/members/Andy+Mac/IMG_0674.jpg.html 98.5km/hr - damn! Managed only 74.5km/hr at OG (Photo of the GPS linked above - couldn't figure out how to get it in here...). Was a good session - 69km travelled over 2 hrs, hit 64.5km/hr with a tandem trailer and 70kg passenger on the back too Would love to have seen how you managed 98 Nigel... was that with the Phantom?? (Or the car?)

Bloody Hell. I just was not supposed to make it to Sandy Point. - Thurs: Into Geelong to pick up new mobile phone. Turn into my home street on the way back and the torsion bar on the Kombi lets go with a "TWANG". Up to the mechanic... - Friday lunchtime: Mechanic can't get a torsion bar for love or money. Weld a sleeve on it and says "Nurse it to Sandy Point and we'll fit a new one when you get back. Decide to head down Saturday. - Saturday: Wind looking ordinary and guests down so go for a surf in the morning. Load up the trailer with all the gear and all set to head off after lunch. Hook up trailer - Kombi won't start. Wiring fault since rebuild (After a fire - that's ANOTHER story) means cant have trailer AND lights AND run the engine... Unpack trailer, cut down on gear, load up Kombi. Drive almost to Korumburra before nursing the last 25km into town at 50km/hr after persistent dodgy noise escalates to loss of power. RACV declare van stuffed and call for a tow - all the way back to Ocean Grove (Total of 7hrs travelling and stuffing about). New mobile wont transfer numbers - made it that close and couldn't call anyone! Happy to be back in OG - will fetch the buggy from the van (Parked out front of the mechanics) tomorrow and get it back down the beach here - photo any good gps results and pretend I'm racing you guys down there. Crap.

http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/vic.asp Looking good if you can get there for the morning low tide on Friday - otherwise Monday is looking the best unless the wind swings in time on the Sunday morning. Fingers crossed... In other news - bloody old car issues continue. Kombi van threw a torsion bar on the front end as I took the home turn this arvo. Currently at the local garage with a promise to fix tomorrow if a spare can be found. So, I'll be down Friday night or more likely Saturday arvo - In time for the BBQ

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Toys-models/Outdoor-toys-structures/Other/auction-88002265.htm hope the link works - it ALMOST sounds too good to be true!! Gotta like the safe handling suggestion about passing it on to the kids.... Hang on - it gets better... http://www.trademe.co.nz/Sports/Other/auction-88003613.htm So they don't do refunds or take returns, yet it's been returned by the customer, and may or may not be faulty (For a kite with a $1 reserve they cant be bothered getting it out of the bag to check...). Very reassuring sales pitch :roll:

Mick, no mention of buggying out at lower light or any races planned on the website (That I found...). Is anything organised for this year for the buggy crowd? Last year there were no races or anything as far as I remember hearing. Not sure at this stage if the Kombi will be heading across (Travel buddy Craig has pulled out officially) but have kept the time free and thinking seriously about it (Just for a free t-shirt). Cheers. LATE NEWS: Scratch all that - just found the fine print in the program saying no pre-festival buggy racing planned.