From Martin Stubbs

Text and photos by Bill Hunter. Videos below are by Darcy Dean and Bill Hunter  

From the Dacre Stubbs Collection© - Martin Stubbs 

  In continuation of a long tradition, the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (Australia) sponsored its annual grand tour of classic cars, motor cycles and other vehicles. The 2007 Fly the Flag tour took the 200 partcipants on a demanding week of motoring into the northern regions of the state in an event whose origins were the great reliability tours of the 1920s.      

Photos and text by Bill Hunter

The Macedon Ranges Grand Tour has been run on the second Saturday in February for the last four years. It attracts some of the most elegant classic cars in Victoria.Participating vehicles start the Tour in the charming old town of Gisborne, an hour or so north of the Melbourne GPO.The starter flags the 120 or so cars off at 9.00 am. Their route takes them through old goldmining ditricts to their destination at Mount Macedon.      

My introduction to Motor Sport was at the 1953 Grand Prix at Albert Park, where there were a couple of Allards competing (little did I know what the future held). I did the usual progression thru Car Club Rallies, Gymkhanas and then to Kart racing and then in later years to some Club racing using a Toyota MR2. Then a complete change of direction to the “old car movement”, with a 1927 “Geelong” Ford followed by a 1946 Pontiac, I then began looking for a challenge, and thought a British Sportscar, such as an MGB or Spitfire may be the way to go.