Darwin to Alice Springs

In 1950, Jack Murray, famous outback car racing driver, drove from Darwin, Northern Territory, south to Alice Springs in 16 hours. 954 miles. The road of course was unsealed. That’s an average speed of 60 mph (95 kph.)
In 1951, Les Taylor and a guy called Rendle, drove the journey in 10 hours 32 minutes. They covered the 954 mile (1526 km) journey driving at 120 mph! Yes, 120 MILES AN HOUR! They averaged about 90 mph. Roos, brumbies and cattle were the biggest problem. And they did the trip in a Jaguar XK120! The other problem was that they were fined when they arrived. I believe they were fined for dangerous driving, driving without a Northern Territory licence, the car not being registered in NT and of course speeding.
In 1955 Stirling Moss, with a big back up team, beat that record in averaging 98 mph.
I found this information when we visited the Transport Hall of Fame in Alice this year. Fay and I drove this route in May this year, although we went from Alice to Darwin - always tougher uphill! It is now a sealed bitumen road all the way.
Please do not pass this on to people under the age of 50.