History
My first car was an FJ Holden, same colour scheme as the model in the photo. Unfortunately, I have no photos of the car itself. It was purchased for $150 from a garage in Turramurra, Sydney, at the start of 1969. I drove it to my first job in Nevertire where I worked as a jackaroo.
As a first car, I couldn't have chosen a better one. Over the twelve months I spent as a jackaroo, it took me to Sydney and back three times without missing a beat and I had a couple of adventures with it. The first was heading back to the station after a night at there movies in Warren. There were road works on the Bourke road and I hadn't realised it had rained and when I hit the dirt of the roadworks, the car started to slide, did a 180 and then slowly slid backwards into the ditch. I was just a passenger and once I'd settled down, I managed to get going again, only to have the mudguards fill with clay at the entry to the station, leaving me to walk the rest of the way home.
My second event was whilst travelling through the Blue Mountains on the way to Sydney and I dozed off at the wheel. I woke up heading for a concrete distance marker and was able to avoid wiping out on it. It was a good lesson on the need to take a regular break. It was also a bit of a worry because it was the Bathurst weekend and if it had happened a few miles later on, I might have had a very different outcome.
The car ran on standard, skinny crossply tyres which could be entertaining at times. I learned how to handle a car on slippery surfaces by throwing it around on the clay pan in front of the shearing shed.
My next job involved a move to Perth, so the old girl had to go. About a week before I had to sell her, she overheated and cracked the block.
I learned a great deal from this car and have since owned over 20 cars and am still, obsessed with them.
Modifications
None. Completely stock standard.
