Cromwell's oldest rev-head? 81-year-old former bus driver celebrating Lamboghini win
By reporter Sam Smith:
This might just be Cromwell’s oldest rev-head.
Ivan Fahey, a former volunteer bus driver at Highland Motorsport Park, will now be cruising round town in a 2014 Lamborghini Huracans following the win of a lifetime at the weekend.
The 81-year-old was at the park for the 10th anniversary celebrations where the car was being given away to mark the occassion.
The Lamborghini, which is priced at between $250,000 and $445,000, was used for hot laps at Highlands sister circuit Hampton Downs and can accelerate from 0 to 100km in as little as 2.9 seconds.
The two-seater luxury car was bought directly from Lamborghini by Highlands owner Tony Quinn and fitted with a roll cage for use in the road rally race Targa NZ.
Fahey says he is over the moon with his win and has a smile on his face that is permanent.
“I am not a winner of raffles, so this sort of thing doesn't happen to me, but this time it did,” he said.
Fahey is no stranger to motorsport, having been an avid watcher for over 60 years and a volunteer at the park where he claimed his victory.
“I drove their little bus ... I used to deliver spectators around the circuit to different vantage points and do town pickups and drop-offs,” Fahey says.
“I did that for about four, maybe five years. I have always been a supporter of Highlands because I see it as being a great facility for our town of Cromwell.”
Fahey owns two cars; a BMW 5 Series and a Suzuki Grand Vitara, but has no plans as yet to make his new acquisition his drive of choice.
“It will get used from time to time. I took it out yesterday. It was exciting. It was fantastic. It was very easy to drive. This car is unreal. The engineering means it is built to go fast.”
Fahey says his phone has been running hot since the win, with friends and family enjoying his win as well.
“They are pretty excited for the old man. A remarkable number of people have phoned me and sent me texts and messages.”
As for his new new-found fame? Fahey says he doesn’t think it is warranted: “I am just a country guy who's not used to all this attention”.
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps below!
Suellen’s sweet Christmas tradition
The festive season is always a great excuse to indulge your sweet tooth, and this time of year poses the perfect opportunity to bring a real showstopper to the Christmas table.
For Suellen’s family, that showstopper is Croquembouche, an impressive tower of cream puffs bound together with spun sugar that is popular at weddings in France and Italy.
What began as a birthday treat at a local French café has become a cherished Christmas tradition for Suellen and her 17-year-old twin granddaughters, Ellie and Sadie. Every year, the trio gather in Suellen’s apartment at William Sanders Village to cook this festive dessert - a holiday highlight they all treasure.
Click read more for the recipe.
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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61.7% Summer
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36.6% Winter
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1.7% Other - I'll share below
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