Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Mike Butler battens down for a Lamborghini storm


As the successor to the Gallardo, the 449kW V10 Lamborghini Huracan is a major changing of the guard for the car maker and on 22-23 November, Mike Butler will be one of only five journalists from the region to test drive it on the F1 Sepang racetrack in Kuala Lumpur.

The Huracan is the vehicle Lamborghini has chosen to re-enter motorsport with the creation of the new Super Trofeo series and the weekend will also host the first international final, complete with all the sparkle and glamour one would expect from an apex brand like Lamborghini.
Gentlemen, start your CPUs.
This is a seriously appealing dream vehicle for all market segments. It's the hero vehicle of the market leading Xbox game, Forza Horizon 2, which has the dominant DNA strand of Lamborghini's raging bull throughout. Thanks to Mike's lifestyle and motoring experience, he is able to offer a variety of story angles from a technical and performance motoring perspective to aspirational lifestyle pieces that give readers a front row ticket to the lifestyles of the rich and famous. All with supporting photography and available for delivery from December 2014.



Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Travel Lines Bulletin: Exploring Istanbul, Saving Snow Leopards, Coonawarra Reds, Iron Curtain Dash

Australia's top travel writers and photographers strut their stuff. All stories are available for immediate commissioning. Email now for a prompt reply.

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Istanbul Culture and Tourism)
Istanbul: metropolis on the Bosphorus

Istanbul is one of the most exciting cities on the planet. What was once a focal point of Asia Minor is now one of the world's great hubs, fueled by the world's busiest airport. Why the popularity? It's the place where East meets West for architecture, art, food and culture wrapped in an unrivalled sense of history. Every direction in this metropolis on the Bosphorus has the allure of mystery and discovery. John Maddocks trawls the major sites and back streets to discover what makes this bustling mega-city tick. [query]


Snow leopard (uncia uncia) with prey
Vanishing Tracks: Saving the Snow Leopard

Dr Rodney Jackson has the somewhat dubious honour of being the only person alive to have been bitten by a wild Snow Leopard. Jackson has devoted most of his life to working with these beautiful and enigmatic animals and fighting to save them from extinction through the Snow Leopard Conservancy, a not-for-profit organisation that runs community-based tours, conservation and social projects in the Himalayan region. Dr Jackson will be visiting Sydney in November as a guest of the Australian Himalayan Foundation, and Kris Madden has managed to secure an exclusive pre-visit interview with him. [query]


Winemakers under the gum trees (Coonawarra)
Coonawarra: Australia's other red centre

When Australian wine lovers talk about the red centre, they don't mean the dusty, remote desert region at the centre of the island continent. The are talking about Coonawarra, a tiny region midway between Adelaide and Melbourne that is blessed with perfect conditions for making long-lived wines. Coonawarra is a place of pilgrimage for serious wine lovers from around the world – drawn by the magnificent cabernets and shirazes produced locally as a result of the region’s unique “terra rossa” soils - red-brown topsoil sitting on a white limestone base. Winsor Dobbin has a head for red. [query]


Bentley Continental GT at Berlin's historic Tempelhof airfield (Tom Salt)
Iron Curtain Dash: Berlin to Copenhagen via Hamburg

Only 25 years ago, this journey would have been impossible. A convoy of high-powered British-made, German-engineered Bentley saloons breaching the Communist divide between East and West Germany. From the leafy and urbane Berlin suburb of Tiergarten, across the frontier via Hamburg, to the carefree Baltic port of Copenhagen, the entourage visited sites and establishments revived since the historic dissolution of the Soviet-backed GDR in October 1990. Car buff and history nut, Roderick Eime, steers one of the 200mph capable, V12 coupes in this fanciful dash to freedom. [query]


Monday, September 1, 2014

Travel Lines: Tauck, Bentley, Hooghly River, South Africa, Detroit

baja-card6x4
Sea of Cortes
Baja California

Listed by UNESCO and praised by conservationists and oceanographers, Mexico's Sea of Cortes is right up there as an eco-travel hotspot. Sea mammals, birds and biodiversity reign supreme.

[query] [click image to see library]
Tauck ms Savor
Tauck ms Savor
Tauck of the Town

This stalwart US travel brand have been around for nearly 90 years. Now they have big plans to expand their river cruise portfolio with new ships and itineraries. Just what does Tauck have to offer?

[query] [click image to see library]
Bentley Mulsanne
Bentley Mulsanne
You have arrived

Nothing makes an entrance quite like a Bentley. And with 377kW from a 6.75l twin-turbo V8, that arrival can be quite brisk. But just what do you get for $800k in the sublime Mulsanne super saloon?

[query] [click image to see library]
Hooghly-promo6x4
Hooghly River Cruising
Hooghly

India’s other holy river is a veritable highway through history. Carving a swathe through rich plains in West Bengal, it traces the British Raj and Hinduism through grand manors and ornate temples.

[query] [click image to see library]
Neighbourgoods Market Johannesburg
The 'born-free' Generation
South Africa

It's been nearly 20 years since apartheid was dismantled, so just what are the so-called 'born free generation' doing in the new South Africa. Explore the revived Rainbow Nation and discover why and how.

[query] [click image to see library]
Detroit-promo
Detroit
The comeback city

Once the 'arsenal of America', this 20th Century industrial powerhouse is transforming itself into a modern centre of art and innovation. Can heavy  metal Detroit reinvent itself for the 21st Century?

[query] [click image to see itinerary]