Star Torque Issue 244 Winter 2016

Wollombi Club drive day
by J Assarapin
photos: J Assarapin
& Mulla Villa
On a lovely Sydney Autumn
day, about twenty members
of the Club assembled
in Thornleigh for the
scenic drive for Lunch in Wollombi.
Mercedes-Benz of various models
were in attendance, Eros In his 1968
280 SL and John Assarapin bringing
the 114 Coupe out for a run after
recent upgrades.
Greg and Annette Vains were in
a 450 SLC and James and Sigrid
brought their W126 560 SEC, now
running Borbet wheels.
This was a new drive to a new
destination called Mulla Villa and
Nick Harris and Ben de Boer joined us
at the destination, making for a good
turnout.
Wollombi is a historic town on the
Great North Road, originally
built as an alternate to the Putty road
in the 1840s up to the Hunter region
and beyond. Since the construction
of the Pacific Highway and then later
the motorway, the road, now named
the Old North Road has become a
more scenic way to get to the Hunter
region. This was our route and a
few of us took a slight detour to take
in the old Pacific Highway instead
of staying on the motor way. The
pace was leisurely as we took in the
warm Autumn sun and peaceful rural
scenery.
Lunch was at historic Mulla Villa,
which is a house originally built
by convicts as a base station for the
road construction. The house has
a number of interesting historical
features including a cellar that shows
where the convicts were chained up
and a room where Aboriginal women
and children could be protected from
harm when necessary. These rooms
can still be toured, and I understand
the group was able to take a tour after
lunch, although I left before this.
The new owners of Mulla Villa are
trying to attract more Car Clubs to
do the scenic drive and then lunch at
the house. They provide a set menu
at a reasonable price, although the
highlight for me was dessert!
To accompany the food we had
entertainment from Michael Parsons
and Bill Scott on the Piano accordion
and drums. The house has a nice
outdoor area where the Club sat
together and their staff went out of
their way to make lunch a casual and
very comfortable affair.
The destination was very close to
the old town which still has original
sandstone buildings. Some club
members were planning to have a
look at the town after lunch as it was
only a five minute drive away.
The actual drive was well worth it.
The weather could not have been
better and there were a great range
of cars from the sixties up to current
models. It was a good day for me to
get out my 250SE cabriolet and see
it pass over the lucky 77,777 for the
3rd time. Drivers did need their wits
about them, as this road is popular
with motorbike enthusiasts who
seem to lack a basic understanding
of physics and think it a good idea to
cut in front of 1.8 ton Mercedes with
1960s brakes.
Nevertheless the twisty roads
made for a great drive and
everyone I spoke to at the lunch
seemed to enjoy it. Mulla Villa may
be on the Club calendar again sooner
rather than later.
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