August 8, 2016
Graeme Pettigrew, 92 years young, was a very special guest at the 42nd annual “4 Clubs” car rally dinner held in Kingaroy at the weekend.
Members from car clubs on the Fraser Coast, Gympie and Sunshine Coast joined South Burnett Antique Motor Club (SBMAC) members for their annual get-together.
Graeme, who lives now on the coast and is a member of the Sunshine Coast Antique Car Club, was instrumental in forming all four car clubs, and has been part of all 42 combined rallies.
Despite his age, Graeme takes an active interest in club events, although these days he hitches a ride to rallies with his son or son-in-law behind the wheel.
On Saturday night, Graeme was presented with permanent allocation of membership No 1 of the SBMAC in recognition of his services in creating the club in 1974.
He also received a pin, badge and honorary membership of the club.
The first vehicle that Graeme ever owned was an Austin A40, and he has been loyal to the British marque over the years.
His current cars are a 1953 Austin Somerset, which he has owned for 12 years, and a 1951 Austin A40 Devon, which he has had for just 12 months.
Both vehicles were at the “4 Clubs” rally.
Graeme has been restoring cars for half a century but admits there have been so many that he’s lost count.
One of his special memories was restoring a 1915 Model T Ford.
“It took years to collect all the right parts,” he said.
“I made one good engine out of three and found a brand new crankshaft, still in the tape wrapping, at an undertakers up near Mt Isa.
“Once all the parts were there, it took about 12 months to put it all together.”
Graeme has other hobbies, including wood turning which has proven handy with his car restorations, as well as model planes and boats.
He turned new wooden window winders out of spotted gum for the Austin A40 Devon.
The “4 Clubs” rally started on Saturday morning with registrations and a static display of about 100 cars at the South Burnett Timber Industry Museum at Wondai.
Members then spent the morning visiting various attractions around Wondai.
After lunch, the group visited Antique Wheels in Kingaroy for afternoon tea and a demonstration of hand-made wheels by Steve Hood.
Steve make rims for bikes, cars and trucks for the Australian and international restoration market.
On Sunday, the group continued touring through the South Burnett and stopped for lunch at Nanango.
[Photos: John Miller]
