The Experts was held on 10 July. Jeff Beaumont tells the story:
VRC Round 4 – 1976 LCCA Clark Chrysler Experts
The Experts is a tradition in itself and this year Director Mike Mitchell had set an Experts for the Experts! And just 19 crews finished and massive points losses were the result.
It was Garry Spence with navigator Noel Kelly who finally triumphed at the finish at Graytown.
Bruce Wilson had Peter Haas navigating and their speed combined with strong map-work earned them a fine second placing.
Bob Watson has been a regular Experts winner over the years and in this event he drove Bill Johnson’s Cortina, with the owner sitting in the navigator’s set. They put up a good performance, finally finishing on the podium in 3rd place.
The entire first Division was held on closed Pukapunyal Army roads in daylight, attracting a huge number of spectators who enjoyed the close range viewing. The last run took competitors out of the Army Range to a service break at Costerfield.
The leading group were losing just a few seconds, but Garry Harrowfield’s R12 Gordini retired with camshaft problems, while Wayne Muldoon / Tony Walsham damaged their tailshaft.
Crews arrived in the dark at Graytown for the half way break. This abandoned town in the centre of the bush had been transformed into an active night time service centre with floodlights, marquees, fires, food, fuel and portable toilets, all organized by Seymour Legacy.
At this point the leaders were Waterhouse/Patterson, from Bird/ Smith, Spence/Kelly, Dixon/Richards, Wilson / Haas and Portman / Runnalls.
Shortly after the break, Waterhouse lost his electrics and retired, the Bob Bird crunched a tree. John Dixon then had his Clutch fail.
A section around Whroo cemetery caused problems for most navigators, with many missing a passage.
The navigation continued to be very challenging, the most significant problem being insufficient late running time. This caused many crews to cut and run to the finish at Graytown and several crews were actually excluded from results.
