Audi 2006 Annual Report Download - page 57

55AUDI 2006 ANNUAL REPORT
Sept 21: Rabbit Flat,
Northern Territory
The cattle drovers who first used the
Tanami Track knew that the best route
across a desert is a straight one;
we drive over 450 km today without
turning a corner. The landscape is
by turns alien (millions of termite
mounds stretching to the horizon)
and apocalyptic (scorched earth and
trees blackened by bushfire), and the
emptiness is interrupted only by the
occasional monster road train. Our
campsite is at Rabbit Flat, home to
the most remote roadhouse – and the
most expensive petrol – in Australia.
Faced with a choice of paying $2.25
per litre or driving 500 km to the
next servo, we bite the bullet and
fill up all fifteen cars. Bruce,
the owner, is probably still laughing
now.
Filling up straight from the
barrel on the Tanami
Track, Western Australia.
Journey’s end, and a
perfect sunset on Cable
Beach, Broome.
Sept 23: Broome,
Western Australia
The end of our voyage in sight, we set
the Audi Q7s to cruise control and
let the
cars eat up the final 700 km to
Broome.
We roll into town ahead of
schedule,
and on the endless sands of
Cable Beach
the champagne corks pop
for one last time. Three weeks ago we
set out from Sydney with 7,000 km of
Australia’s toughest terrain to tackle;
ahead of us now lies only the Indian
Ocean and the setting sun. A continent
has been crossed, and the mutual sense
of achievement among us is palpable.
The real heroes however are the Audi Q7
models. Between them, the fifteen Audi
vehicles have travelled a total of
105,000 km across the outback, mostly
in conditions far tougher than they
will ever see in normal use. And yet
we suffered not a single breakdown or
mechanical fault; in fact, aside
from the occasional tyre change, our
technical crew hardly dirtied their
hands. So while we feel a glow of
satisfaction in crossing Australia
from coast to coast, it has to be said
that in an Audi Q7, anyone could have
done it.
Sam Tinson is a British
photo journalist. He moved
to Australia in 2004 in
order to photograph the outback.
He now lives in Sydney and writes for
the Australian travel and motoring
press. He also publishes articles
regularly in GQ magazine.