TACH EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE
THE AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX

Thoughts on Melbourne

By Andrew Frankl
TACH European Bureau Chief

As for the venue of this years Australian Grand Prix, well, that is something very special. The authorities in Melbourne have succeeded in persuading Bernie Ecclestone to move the Australian Grand Prix from Adelaide to their city so it will be equally new for everyone, drivers, spectators and organizers alike. Melbourne is used to the big occasions, they hosted the l956 Summer Olympics, and they also host every January the first of the four Grand Slam titles in tennis-the Australian Open.

The race will be in the city itself just as it was in Adelaide and all the hotels have been booked solid for months. There are Colonial Tramcar Restaurants in which to tour the streets - there are the famous penguins on Phillip Island - there are museums, art centers and of course the sea. A great place.

One word of warning-you may find that your friendly taxi driver is fluent in Vietnamese, Serbo-Croat or Greek but that his English is somewhat hazy or should I say non- existent. Practice your sign language and you will be fine.

There are non-stop flights from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Sydney. From there it is a shuttle to Melbourne.

If you do go make sure to spend some time in Sydney as well. Scene of the Summer Olympics in year 2000 it is a beautiful place which should not be missed. The Manley Ferry is a wonderful way to do some inexpensive sight-seeing.

If time permits there are some amazing places Down Under but it really depends on your taste. The language is the same, the attitude -at least in my opinion-not dissimilar to California and the sun shines most of the time. The race itself is on March 10th but there will be several days of practice before-hand. As this is a new place one would expect to hear the engines from Thursday onwards.