Strap yourself in and rally around Coffs
As I'm strapped into the front passenger seat of a 1968 rally car, my heart pumps furiously.
I wish I had relieved myself earlier.
A five-point seat belt clip between my legs fastens me to a special racing seat and the engine is revving loudly just as someone else closes the door.
My prescription sunglasses are squeezed into a helmet and there's nothing to hold onto in the stripped bare interior of this 1968 Datsun 1600 with roll bars.
I instead brace my legs against the metal flooring and grab my thighs as veteran rally car driver Wayne Hoy accelerates to 130 km/h down a dirt road in the Bucca State Forest, near Coffs Harbour.
His modified Datsun with a 1980s, two-litre, twin-cam Nissan engine leaps into the air over a bump, slides around a corner and glides near the edge of an embankment.
As we turn around in a cloud of dust, my nerves turn to excitement and I want more adrenaline.
My addiction has started.
Wayne's addiction to rally car racing started in 1977 when he began racing a different Datsun 1600 at age 17.
His wife Kristine joined him two years later and they have been Datsun enthusiasts ever since, along with their three adult children.
Wayne, a banana grower, once tried rallying in an early 1990s all-wheel drive, turbo-charged Mitsubishi Lancer Evo I.
But it wasn't the same as a much older, rear-wheel-drive Datsun.
"It's more fun to drive a car that's sliding around the rear," he says.
The Hoys are yet to decide which of their five rally Datsuns they'll bring to the Australian Rally Championship, running from September 11 to 14 on the Coffs Coast region in northern NSW.
It's in a picturesque banana growing area, between Sydney and Brisbane, which is known for its beaches and sub-tropical rainforest national parks.
The event is being held concurrently with the Australian Off Road Championship, with buggy-style four-wheel drives, and the Australian leg of the World Rally Championship (WRC).
The NSW mid-north coast will host round 10 of the WRC, which has this year already been to Sweden, Mexico, Portugal, Argentina and Finland.
Hyundai, Volkswagen, Citroen and Ford's M-Sport team are bringing all-wheel-drive, six-speed, turbo racers Down Under for the international event now in its 23rd year.
Chris Atkinson, the only Australian competitor in the four-cylinder series, is racing with Hyundai in the WRC for the first time, having previously driven for Subaru and Citroen.
"I'm looking forward to competing there, having missed out the last few years," the 34-year-old Hyundai i20 race driver with a decade's rallying experience said in a pre-recorded interview.
"The action's always incredible in Australia and the competition's going to be tough."
That's before the dangers of blown tyres, crashes or the thrills of a dirt track are factored in.
OTHER THINGS TO DO WHILE YOU'RE IN COFFS HARBOUR
- Take a surfing lesson with world longboard champion Harley Ingleby, who runs the Solitary Islands Surf School for all skill levels at Woolgoolga or Emerald beaches.
- Enjoy a scenic flight with Precision Helicopters. Day trips are offered early in the year to South Solitary Island, the most isolated lighthouse on the NSW coast. It was built in 1880 and was operated by lighthouse families until 1975.
- Learn rock climbing and abseiling with Vertical Mania Rock Climbing.
- Spot migrating humpback whales on a Jetty Dive Whale Watching Tour.
- Try spotting Russell Crowe in Nana Glen at Idle In Cafe, which is supplying lunch and supplies to the rally car teams.
The writer travelled as a guest of Destination NSW and stayed as a guest at the Break Free Aanuka Beach Resort, Coffs Harbour.