Sixty together and slicker than ever
ALLORA resident, Doug Partington was a 14-year-old school boy with less than four pounds to his name when he bought the car that would go down in history.
Doug was still in school and had to borrow ten pounds from his mother to afford the thing, but six decades later Doug still hasn't parted with his beloved Model T Ford.
The rattling red vehicle is the oldest Australian made racing car known to exist.
With an engine so loud you can barely hear your breath, the car turned heads when it chugged around the grounds at the Allora Heritage Weekend today.
It may be making him deaf, but Doug still has a special bond with the Wikner Ford Special, named after the two brothers who built and raced the vehicle in the Blue Mountains in 1922.
Doug will celebrate his 74th birthday next week, marking sixty years behind the wheel of the old red Ford.
"That's gotta be worth something don't you think,” he said.
Doug said he and the Wikner would be celebrating the anniversary with a trip to the USA, where the Wickner was going to puff up its bonnet at Model T Ford museums in Detroit and Richmond, Indiana.
But despite being world famous, the Wikner still calls Allora home.
Much to the joy of motor enthusiasts, it was one of the treasures on display at the Allora Heritage Weekend.
