No prep time on Thursday as I didn’t get home from work until 9pm, but with my wife as substitute nav (my original nav dislocated his shoulder the week before) we set off Friday to the Vic Winch. Our first time out in a Rangie, and the first event for both of us.
The three night stages were good, I took it really easy not wanting to bounce off trees or break anything, just tried to learn the car. We survived the night but on a transport stage back to camp a tree punched the driver’s side windscreen so I was looking through a spider web for the rest of the event.
Saturday, five stages, drove the first but not enough noise and too low gear selection, I was driving it like my 4.2TD Gu, not like a Rangie. (Still hesitant about those infamous CV’s). Second stage SS6, still hesitant but getting better, but had to winch at the start
, and also a compulsory winch halfway through the stage. At least my wife had now run a winch cable under pressure.
3rd stage SS7, had me worried, saw an 89 Rangie break CV’s in a trench that swallowed 35’s, now I was worried…
. Saw another Rangie (big Kermit and little Kermit) winch over the hole, so it could be done, then saw a 45 series jump the hole with full noise on his 383 chev... I certainly was not going to attempt it that way. While I was waiting two rangies drove it, so off we went and gave it a go. I took it easy, took the time gently rocking / bouncing the car, avoiding tension on the CV’s…with success, drove the whole and to the end of the stage. 
4th Stage (Stage 8), 35 min DNF time, saw three cars dnf, then two cars drive, one with 3 min 47sec and one with 3 min 07sec’s ….I walked the stage to see what was going on, the hard part was 100m climb up a creek with two rock steps one 70cm out of the water , the second 50cm… I could hear those cvs already braking.
Second low and around 4000rpm, and we managed to drive the whole creek, wooo hooo,
only to snap the power steering belt on the climb out of the creek and had to winch . Damn winch rope birds nested, but my wife finally got it out after a few minutes. The whole crowed was laughing with us and we were having a ball. Mike Smith gave her some help in setting up around a 4mt diameter tree (with a 3m tree trunk protector) and we finally got out of the creek and off to the finish.
Last stage for the day was a pig, two creek crossings and a tight u-turn without power steering it was not fun, but we completed the stage.
After a lot of stuffing around and trying 35 different belts we conceded Sunday morning and had to pull out, the last three stages would have been really hard without power steering, so I ended up running the stop watch/ car control at the Start / finish gate for ss11.
Final impressions from a new Rangie owner… oooh I love it, hit the rev limiter on the Holden 5.0lt in third in two stages, I’m hooked. Just need more time behind the wheel and to get my wife to practice more… (Unfortunately she wants to start driving she had so much fun!
)
What can I say.. love the Rangie.. had a ball.
Damage report for the whole event? Passenger side mirror, one power steering belt and a windscreen, can not complain too much at least I could drive it home!
Jason
