AURORA - RMIT 101 SOLAR CAR BATTLES FIRE, RAIN AND CYCLONE - COMPLETING 5000km OF THE AROUND AUSTRALIA CHALLENGE

Renner Springs on the Stuart Highway in the Northern Territory was the overnight stop for the Aurora - RMIT 101 Solar Car on day 10 of its Around Australia Challenge.

Following an anticlockwise course via the populated east coast of Australia from Melbourne to Townsville and then to the Stuart Highway the solar car and its 9 person support team have contended with all forms of weather except clear sunshine. It has accomplished 4993km of its planned 12883km journey to circumnavigate Australia.

On day 2 the car passed through southern Sydney and the Pacific Highway north of Sydney, skirting many of the bushfire outbreaks affecting New South Wales.

Torrential rain on the north coast of NSW caused a number of electrical problems for the team as they reached Murwillumbah. The most serious break down was of two of the Solar Car's Trackers which were fixed the next day by AERL, the Tracker developer and manufacturer in Proston Queensland.

Holiday traffic, traffic jams and high temperatures north of Brisbane saw the solar car cockpit temperatures exceed 50C. Lead driver Tony Vriens, sporting an ever increasing suntan, resorted to driving with the hatch up.

Support from both local residents and holiday makers has grown as excellent media coverage followed Aurora. This has brought people onto the roadside showing their interest.

MacKay gave the Aurora - RMIT 101 Solar Car a great welcome. Home of the well known World Solar Challenge medical officer Bill Boyd, and a new solar car team" Ornithorhynchus ", MacKay hosted the team to a fabulous pub meal at McGuires Hotel.

The presence of tropical cyclone Bernie in the Gulf of Carpertaria ensured that solid cloud would slow the solar car progress as it headed west through Hughenden, Julia Creek, Cloncurry and Mount Isa. Fellow travellers appeared to be well aware of the Aurora bid to circumnavigate Australia. Many crowded the car at scheduled driver change stops and gave the convoy of Ford support cars priority right of way on many occasions.

Tony Vriens has shared the driving with Rafael Carmona, a post graduate student at RMIT and a member of the Mexico's only solar car racing team " TONATIUH " the name of the Aztec Sun God. Rafael said "its day 10 and we are finally seeing clear skies again. We are aiming to join the Stuart Highway at 3 Ways Junction, north of Tennant Creek and reach Renner Springs before nightfall".

With 4993 km already covered the Aurora - RMIT 101 Solar Car Team has travelled further than its own distance record, that being the 4000km journey from Perth to Sydney in 1994. There is growing confidence of breaking the World Record Distance for a solar car journey of 7043.5 km set in 2000 by the Queens University Team from Canada.

The weather map shows clearing conditions as the Solar Car travels to Katherine, Kununurra and on to Broome, at which point the Aurora - RMIT 101 Solar Car will have achieved a new world record.

Weather permitting the Aurora - RMIT 101 Solar Car will reach Broome by Day 13 or Tuesday January 8th 2002. Planned stops in the next 3 days included Dunmarra, Mataranka, Katherine, Victoria River, Timber Creek, Halls Creek, Kununurra, Turkey Creek, Fitzroy Crossing and Willare Bridge Roadhouse.

For further information please contact Dave Fewchuk on 03 8608 2889 or 0411 250 464.