Post by Freddy on Dec 12, 2012 21:53:20 GMT 11
One of my Families Legends is of the time one of my Aunts caught a Cab from Mildura to Melbourne. Cost my Uncle a Fortune, and has been one of "those" type of family stories for the best part of 50 years.
As a kid, growing up, it was a story that really caught my imagination. Fancy catching a cab, 500 odd K, to Melbourne ? The thought of such, I really considered a hoot. Nothing, I figured, could really beat that stunt from me dear old "Aunty Mavis"
Nothing !!!
So consider my surprise, when leaving work (and tuning out to my fellow frenzied victims of Melbourne's Train network), I saw this on the old smart phone.
Ya gotta love the drunken schitzo-nut cases of the World (G-d Bless em), they really do make this shit-polluted, insignificant rock, a somewhat liveable abode.
www.ntnews.com.au/article/2012/12/12/315832_ntnews.html
A TOWNSVILLE taxi driver accepted the fare of a lifetime after taking a half-naked passenger 1500km home to Tennant Creek.
The young passenger in his 20s - who wore nothing more than a pair of silken boxer shorts and thongs for most of the 17-hour trip - hailed a cab outside Tom's Tavern on Nathan St on Thursday about midday.
Veteran taxi driver Mike Caldwell, 68, who has been driving taxis in Townsville for 30 years, was more than happy to oblige after his passenger paid the $4900 fare as a cash advance for the long drive to the Territory.
What's the biggest/longest fare you've heard of? Tell us
READ the yarn over at the Townsville Bulletin
Mr Caldwell said there was nothing suspicious about his half-naked passenger carrying the large amount of cash in a small bag.
Your Say
"A single Semi-Trailer with 24.5 Tonne of freight would be lucky to get $4900 and would have to have a 12 hour rest break after the first 12 hours, and would be highly lucky to get a back load out of Tennant Creek back to Townsville."
The Realist
The money was understood to have been withdrawn from the man's personal account at the NAB in Aitkenvale.
"He said I want to go to the BP in Wulguru to buy a phone, and then I want you to take me to Tennant Creek," Mr Caldwell said.
"I said, 'OK. It will have to be whatever the fare is, and you have to pay in cash before we leave'. He said, 'That's all right. I've got six grand in my bag here'."
The pair made two two-hour long stops in Mount Isa and Barkly Homestead, before arriving in Tennant Creek about 9.30am the following morning.
The man was dropped off at the Westpac bank in Paterson Street.
It is understood the man, who is a well-known local, then withdrew more cash to take another taxi adventure.
It is not known where he went, nor what he was doing in Townsville. Mr Caldwell described his passenger as a talkative bloke.
"He did all the talking," he said.
"He told me he was once in a bad accident on a motorbike. Occasionally we would stop periodically for him to have a smoke."
After taking a pit stop for breakfast at the Three Ways Roadhouse in Tennant Creek, the pair encountered a pair of police officers.
The police recognised Mr Caldwell's passenger instantly.
They told him that a friend had feared the man had gone missing, and was relieved to hear that he'd returned home.
"I have no idea what he was doing in Townsville, but everyone seems happy he's back home in Tennant Creek," Mr Caldwell said.
Mr Caldwell - who will receive 50 per cent of the fare - described the trip as a unique experience, being able to drive across the Outback and be paid for it.
As a kid, growing up, it was a story that really caught my imagination. Fancy catching a cab, 500 odd K, to Melbourne ? The thought of such, I really considered a hoot. Nothing, I figured, could really beat that stunt from me dear old "Aunty Mavis"
Nothing !!!
So consider my surprise, when leaving work (and tuning out to my fellow frenzied victims of Melbourne's Train network), I saw this on the old smart phone.
Ya gotta love the drunken schitzo-nut cases of the World (G-d Bless em), they really do make this shit-polluted, insignificant rock, a somewhat liveable abode.
www.ntnews.com.au/article/2012/12/12/315832_ntnews.html
A TOWNSVILLE taxi driver accepted the fare of a lifetime after taking a half-naked passenger 1500km home to Tennant Creek.
The young passenger in his 20s - who wore nothing more than a pair of silken boxer shorts and thongs for most of the 17-hour trip - hailed a cab outside Tom's Tavern on Nathan St on Thursday about midday.
Veteran taxi driver Mike Caldwell, 68, who has been driving taxis in Townsville for 30 years, was more than happy to oblige after his passenger paid the $4900 fare as a cash advance for the long drive to the Territory.
What's the biggest/longest fare you've heard of? Tell us
READ the yarn over at the Townsville Bulletin
Mr Caldwell said there was nothing suspicious about his half-naked passenger carrying the large amount of cash in a small bag.
Your Say
"A single Semi-Trailer with 24.5 Tonne of freight would be lucky to get $4900 and would have to have a 12 hour rest break after the first 12 hours, and would be highly lucky to get a back load out of Tennant Creek back to Townsville."
The Realist
The money was understood to have been withdrawn from the man's personal account at the NAB in Aitkenvale.
"He said I want to go to the BP in Wulguru to buy a phone, and then I want you to take me to Tennant Creek," Mr Caldwell said.
"I said, 'OK. It will have to be whatever the fare is, and you have to pay in cash before we leave'. He said, 'That's all right. I've got six grand in my bag here'."
The pair made two two-hour long stops in Mount Isa and Barkly Homestead, before arriving in Tennant Creek about 9.30am the following morning.
The man was dropped off at the Westpac bank in Paterson Street.
It is understood the man, who is a well-known local, then withdrew more cash to take another taxi adventure.
It is not known where he went, nor what he was doing in Townsville. Mr Caldwell described his passenger as a talkative bloke.
"He did all the talking," he said.
"He told me he was once in a bad accident on a motorbike. Occasionally we would stop periodically for him to have a smoke."
After taking a pit stop for breakfast at the Three Ways Roadhouse in Tennant Creek, the pair encountered a pair of police officers.
The police recognised Mr Caldwell's passenger instantly.
They told him that a friend had feared the man had gone missing, and was relieved to hear that he'd returned home.
"I have no idea what he was doing in Townsville, but everyone seems happy he's back home in Tennant Creek," Mr Caldwell said.
Mr Caldwell - who will receive 50 per cent of the fare - described the trip as a unique experience, being able to drive across the Outback and be paid for it.
