Capri - All Ford Day 2017

Our Capri Club planned to make this year's All Ford Day a major event on our calendar. I had not been able to attend last year but have managed to attend many of these displays over the years. However, despite all the great organisation that had been done by club members, the whole event was nearly scuttled by the weather. On Saturday evening there was widespread heavy rain with showers predicted early on Sunday & then clearing. Sunday morning dawned & it looked so miserable that I went back to bed. After several phone calls assuring that the rain had cleared, I headed off to Willowbank, outside of Ipswich for the big day. And, what a big day it was!
After a good 40 min drive with no rain, I was surprised by the number of cars already there & the long queue waiting to get through the entrance gate. My senses were really aroused as I inched slowly towards the gate beside two Falcons with huge lumpy V8s spewing vast petrol fumes out their exhausts. What a way to start the day!
After driving slowly through the many vehicles, my next surprise was to see how many Capris had turned up. In all we had 14, all different with 1600s, 2 litres, V6s, RS3100s, Mk 2s, V8s & an NC racing version. In addition, we had 2 lovely Escorts, a Cortina, a Mustang & 2 Falcons join our club for the day. Here are some photos from the day. (double click to enlarge)


There were a huge number of Fords at this day. My entrant number was 647 & there were more to come. All models & all eras were represented. Here are few examples.



One of the big attractions of the day is the ability of entrants to drag race their cars on the Willowbank dragway. The variety of cars & noise was unbelievable. Here are some pics.



A good day for all.

Capri - 2017 RACQ Motorfest

The Motorfest, held in July each year, is one event I always try to attend & have attended most since 2003. It usually has a large number of classic cars in attendance representing a wide range of makes & eras. This year was no exception with everything from vintage Indian motorcycles to an ex-Army Ferret Scout car. Numbers seem to be down this year but there were still over 400 entries. Some of the big car clubs were absent, as were the All British Ford Club which usually has a good number of Escorts & Cortinas. Maybe the renovations to Eagle Farm Racecourse are a factor but that did not stop a healthy number of spectators looking at the many beautiful cars on display.
I had a steady stream of people wanting to talk about the Capri – I had my white XL there this year. Several people were interested in joining the club as they had recently acquired Capris or were in the process of restoring one. There are always surprises that come up on the day & I experienced several. One was meeting the father of the young man who sold me the car in 2000. I had met him previously but had not had the car with me, so he took a number of photos to show his son what the car looked like 17 years later. Another man wanted to take a number of photos as his father owned the Ford dealership in Maryborough & he remembered a white Capri very similar to mine that they had sold to the wife of local businessman.
Always a good day, even if a bit long, & the weather this year was perfect. Again, a bit of a pity that there was only one Capri. Here are some photos (double click to enlarge).