Eight seconds, p.28
Eight Seconds, page 28
My first step was to contact the Women’s Museum of Australia and ask for any information they could offer, and if they agreed, would it be okay for me to use her inspirational achievement to write a story. A reply came the next day, citing that the curator was away for three weeks and all contact would have to be made through the curator. This kindly person could send me an old newspaper clipping and a short write-up they held on file for Dianne.
The newspaper clipping was of Dianne and a young girl during the clerk of the course days at the Cairns Annual Amateurs. I immediately recognised the young girl because I went to school with her sister, Maree.
After sending a text to Maree, I received an immediate response. ‘I think you’re looking for Dianne Luppi from Lake Eacham. Give me ten minutes, and I’ll find her phone number.’ I couldn’t believe my luck. This famous woman lived in my backyard. Barely a ten-minute drive and five of those minutes required opening and closing a gate.
With nerves roiling in my stomach, I made the phone call, and Dianne’s immediate response was that she’d been told for many years that she should have her life story recorded. I explained that this wouldn’t be a biography but a story inspired by her life. And what a life she’s lived so far.
It still stuns me that I’d never heard of Dianne or her achievement. Over thirty years later, Dianne and her husband, Peter, continue to live in their perfect patch of paradise, surrounded by family and friends and horses, of course. Her achievement is recorded in the Women’s Museum of Australia, and by the time she rode her last bull in Rockhampton on the day after her 34th birthday, she was still the only female competitor and also the oldest competitor. She landed hard on that final ride and could barely catch her breath. She never let on that it hurt because she knew the usual response would be that women shouldn’t be allowed to ride bulls. A couple of weeks later, when she went for a medical check-up, she learnt the fall had caused a big hematoma to form on the main artery to the heart. If it’d burst, it would have killed her. Once again, she’d escaped serious injury.
In Far North Queensland, one of the roads connecting the picturesque Atherton Tablelands with the coast is the Gillies Highway. For any kid in the back seat of a car driving down the Gillies—it’s a living hell! Nineteen kilometres of continuous curves and trying to hold in the contents of your stomach is a running battle for the entire way.
Back in the late sixties, or early seventies, a local charter bus driver decided to dress up a tree with a bikini. Another attraction to show his bus full of tourists who had just spent a glorious day on the Tablelands. The sight of the bikini tree will forever live in my memory as the highlight of what was otherwise a torturous drive down the Gillies. It was three kilometres from the end of the range and the sight of the bikini tree meant the ordeal was nearly over. Each trip you would wait expectantly to see what colour bikini it was wearing.
Fast forward about twenty-five years, my boyfriend (now husband) and I decided one day to stop on the way up and paint the bikini tree. I vividly remember painting it a bright red with blue polka dots. It was a thrill, and we did it without being caught. Not that it was a crime to do so.
For almost a year, it was a highlight of the drive to see ‘our bikini tree’ with our choice of swimwear. Until one day, we drove past, and it had been painted yellow. I remember being disappointed that our fifteen minutes of fame was over. I recall blaming the road crews. It looked yellow enough that it might have been the paint they used to mark the bitumen roads.
Fast forward another twenty-five years, and I find myself visiting Dianne in the early weeks of writing this inspirational story, and she’s showing me lots of photos in her fabulous home (yes, completely filled with horse trinkets). Towards the end of the visit, she handed me a photo and said, “You have to do this at least once in your life.”
It was a photo of Dianne and her daughter and friend painting the bikini tree. The breasts had been partially painted, but the unpainted portion clearly showed remnants of a bright red paint job with blue polka dots. Dianne’s reasoning for using the yellow paint was in honour of the song, ‘Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini’.
I couldn’t believe it. I’d never considered taking a photo of our paint job all those years ago, and now I had one, still showing our efforts. And I’d found the thread that connected both myself and Dianne. Just tenable, but there.
Sadly, the bikini tree succumbed to fire in 2009. Forty fabulous years after its inception, it finally fell to a charred death—a sad day for all Gillies Range drivers.
This story was a joy to write, and I hope it inspires many women to follow their dreams and passions and never give up.
If you’d like to look at a photo gallery for Dianne, please go to this link:
https://francesdallalba.wixsite.com/francesdallalba/eightsecondsgallery
ALSO BY FRANCES DALL’ALBA
If you haven’t read my books in the Australian at Heart series, learn more here.
Little Blue Box, Australian at Heart Book 1 is Ella’s story. Sometimes life can get messy, but you still come up smiling. Irresistible, romantic and engaging. A story that will keep you captivated right until the very end.
* * *
There’s one thing missing in Ella Harvey’s life—her biological father. All she has is a few clues in a little box and a mother not willing to share anything. Add in her impatience and stubbornness and Ella decides to go about finding him herself.
Then there’s Zane. He’s used to barrelling his way through life without too much stress. He has a great family, a new career path and a beloved Ducati motorcycle.
* * *
When tasked with searching for Ella’s father, Zane discovers a secret that threatens to unravel their lives.
* * *
The attraction between Zane and Ella is flaring up quickly, but all will go up in flames if Zane doesn’t tell Ella what he knows.
* * *
Ella finds out the hard way that searching for the truth doesn’t always go to plan. She’ll bundle up Zane’s heart, wrap it up tight and hand it back to him. Problem solved and no one gets hurt.
* * *
But Zane won’t give Ella up. To keep the gorgeous Ella by his side, he had to find her father. To keep the woman he’s now fallen in love with, he’ll have to save her mother.
Will the unexpected twist that comes their way be enough for the head-strong Ella and Ducati-loving Zane to find their way back onto the same path?
Link to Buy this book
https://francesdallalba.wixsite.com/francesdallalba/littlebluebox
The second book in the series, The Stone In The Road, is Patrick’s story. You meet him briefly in Little Blue Box. Read how he turns his life around and finds his true self with the help of an Aussie girl.
It’s been eighteen months since Kelly Sheppard disappeared into the Australian outback. The guilt and regret she carries still won’t leave her.
Newly arrived from Boston, Patrick Van Der Meeliko is working hard to get himself back on track—and succeeding. He can thank the Australian outback for healing him in ways his affluent and empty life in Boston could not. Kelly is his new drug of choice, and he can’t resist throwing irksome comments her way to try and get her attention. If only it would work.
With men her last priority right now, Kelly does her best to ignore Patrick despite needing to work together. Kelly doesn’t know what’s worse—his lame jokes or his driving skills.
After Kelly discovers she’s inherited her grandfather’s property, she heads north. Patrick lands on her doorstep right when she could use the extra help. Amidst the hard work of untangling vines from the derelict castle, an astonishing history emerges and an unexpected chemistry ignites between them.
Until Kelly’s parents turn up unannounced, and suddenly there’s no room for Patrick in her life. Despite all the pain she’s endured, pushing Patrick away hurts the most.
Patrick gets it, and doesn’t stand in her way. He must travel his own road littered with uncertainty and doubt to find his rightful place. Once again, it’s the Australian outback that heals him.
Could a chance find of a precious stone draw them back together?
Link to Buy this Book
https://francesdallalba.wixsite.com/francesdallalba/thestoneintheroad
The Silk Scarf is book 3 in the series. This is Melita’s story. A silken scarf entwines itself around two hearts. Sometimes it unravels... An emotional and passionate story of romance set in tropical far north Queensland. You can smell the sugar cane and humidity all at once.
Melita Van Der Meeliko’s swimwear is starting to make waves in the industry. Hoping to ride the success, she’s determined to open her own boutique/teahouse. A chance find of a derelict building might be the solution—and she wants Luke Harvey to do the renovations. Shaking off her feelings for him is another challenge altogether.
Down-to-earth tradesman Luke Harvey has dreams of his own, determined to be a leader in sustainable green buildings. When Melita offers him the chance to showcase his skills, he’s got to make a choice. Turn down the career-making project or risk torturing his heart. His recurring nightmare is one thing, but that wasn’t the only reason he ended what they once had.
Deciding to risk it all, Luke takes on the project. Too bad the building has a history, and not a very pleasant one. And Luke doesn’t like it when Melita gets caught in the crosshairs.
With Melita’s life at risk, Luke recognises the gaping abyss between her ultra-wealthy existence and his barely-there meagre living. Denying it was the reason he pulled back three years earlier won’t work anymore. Luke will need to quell his nightmares and let go of the money issue, because Melita wants everything she’s worked so hard for and the man she loves.
Will the silk scarf that’s entwined itself around their lives stop unravelling, and bring them back together?
Link to Buy this Book
https://francesdallalba.wixsite.com/francesdallalba/thesilkscarf
Book 4 in The Australian At Heart Series, is COMING SOON.
It will be Flynn's story.
THANKS FOR READING.
Thank you for reading Eight Seconds. I hope you enjoyed it. This style of book veers slightly from what you’re used to from me, but I really wanted to write a book inspired by someone incredible. I was fortunate enough to find her in Dianne Lucas Luppi. I hope you agree with me.
While there is a lot of fiction in this story, the very threads that made this story real and breathed life into it, came about from sharing cups of tea, emails, phone calls and memoirs Dianne had already recorded. I could have filled another three books with the things Dianne has experienced over her life.
It’s not every day you get to meet a person in real-life, who has achieved such greatness, that others deem it important they become part of the Women’s Museum of Australia. Dianne is one such person. A tough lady, who never gives up and now faces challenges of another kind as she negotiates a path to stabilising her health.
And finally, I want to thank Dianne for being so patient. This journey started a few years ago, but with everything worthwhile achieving, it takes time to come to fruition.
Together with Dianne, we created a gallery of photos which you can find at this link.
https://francesdallalba.wixsite.com/francesdallalba/eightsecondsgallery
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
As a contemporary romance author, Frances Dall’Alba loves nothing more than losing herself in a good romance. She’s all about helping you forget the housework, or the bus to work you’re going to miss, if you don’t put the book down now!
She’s devoted to giving her readers an emotional, yet satisfying ride, with a love story that’ll melt your heart and keep the pages turning right until the end.
When she isn’t writing, Frances is climbing mountains, searching for waterfalls and swimming across lakes. She loves to exercise, would prefer it if someone else cooked dinner every night, and never notices dust on the furniture.
She lives with her husband in tropical Far North Queensland, and uses her great baking skills to tempt her three daughters to visit home as often as they can.
* * *
Say hello to Frances
Visit her website http://francesdallalba.wixsite.com/francesdallalba and subscribe to her newsletter. It will keep you up-to-date with:
• New releases
• Pre-order links
• New cover reveals and excerpts
• Exclusive member rewards
• And lots more!
* * *
Follow Frances on Facebook, Instagram, Bookbub and Goodreads. To do so, click on this link: https://linktr.ee/francesdallalba
Still have a question?
Ask me at https://francesdallalba.wixsite.com/francesdallalba/contact
* * *
Leave a Review
Did you enjoy this book? The best favour you can do for an author is to leave a review. If you’d like to leave a review, go to your place of on-line purchase of the book, or search for the book on Goodreads and leave a review. Thank you.
Frances Dall'Alba, Eight Seconds
