Australia: Race to the coast

Queensland's popular Gold Coast beaches will be the backdrop for October's A1GP races. Photo / Supplied

The view is really quite magnificent. In the distance is the blue haze of the Tasman Sea, to the right a cluster of skyscrapers crowding Queensland's Gold Coast.

Directly below my dangling feet are the brown-green treetops of eucalyptus which, only a few minutes previously, were shade from the hot - even in winter - sun.

Suddenly the vista is gone as Dreamworld's Giant Drop plunges to the ground in a toe-curling, stomach-lurching, heart-stopping, fist-clenching, eyes-screwed-shut 120m plummet of screaming terror.

The fall lasts about five seconds.

The screaming lasts twice that.

The Giant Drop is one of six "thrill rides" at Dreamworld, is one of the most popular adrenalin destinations in this vibrant, young, coastal city.

Stretched along 70km of pristine coastline, the glitzy Gold Coast has a reputation for glamour and excitement, although it is best known for its 42km of beaches, including Surfers Paradise.

To understand the scale of the Gold Coast, take a helicopter ride. From a few hundred metres up you can see the blocks of shopping centres and ever-growing march of grid-pattern housing.

The Gold Coast is a relatively new city and it seems every second person you meet here is a Kiwi, drawn by the 300 days of sunshine a year.

Even more of them will come in October for the region's inaugural hosting of the A1GP.

The 4.47km track is presently under construction on the streets of Surfers Paradise for the October 22 to 25 race.

The event build-up started in July with a mass parachute jump over Main Beach, each parachutist representing one of the 24 nations, including New Zealand, in the race.

The Ferrari-powered A1GP cars will mingle with the throaty roar of V8 Supercars, which race round 11 of their 14-round calendar on the same weekend, creating the new Super GP event. More than 300,000 spectators are expected, a good number of them Kiwi petrolheads.

Queensland is home to several V8 teams, including that of James Courtney, who came second in the 13th race of the championship and whose Jim Beam Racing team is ranked third.

The affable young driver is based at the Dick Johnson Racing complex in Stapylton, which is essentially a museum to racing greats, including legendary Australian Peter Brock, as popular in New Zealand as in his home country, who died in 2006.

Brock's 1978 A9X Torana is also on display here. Members of the public can look around the workshop - apart from secret development areas - and, if you're lucky, speak to Courtney. He was there when we visited, recovering from the Townsville round and overseeing the rebuild of his Jim Beam supercar.

The cars undergo extensive testing between races, with mechanics and engineers examining what worked well and what could be improved.

Technology has largely relegated the traditional Holden-Ford V8 rivalry to history.

Only the chassis is factory-ready from the marque. Each engine part, the interiors, even most of the panels are modified, developed and built - according to the race management's strict rules - in the team's workshop.

Although you can't take these cars for a spin there's ample opportunity to get behind the wheel of other high-powered machines. Just up the road from the Dick Johnson Racing complex is the Off Road Rush track where you can release your inner Brock behind the wheel of an off-road buggy.

These curious four-legged spider-like buggies are impossible to roll, the instructors say, before disappearing in a cloud of dust for a demo lap - apparently trying to make liars of themselves.

Then, clad in overalls, hairnet and a helmet, you fold yourself into the spartan driver's seat, instructor at your side. You try to listen to his barked commands over the roar of the engine and the rattle-scatter of dust and stones, all the while focusing on the potholes and hairpin bends ahead.

It takes a lap or two for this city driver to stop checking for traffic, but by about lap five the terror is mostly under control and I'm powering out of corners, even getting airborne like the pros.

If you want something easier, the the Numinbah Valley offers ATV Quad Bike Safaris. Stone-coloured cattle amble out of the way as our convoy of quad bikes traverses the foothills of a farm in the heart of the valley.

When you stop for a cup of tea and a biccie at the top, take a minute to admire the view of rolling green hills and sheer limestone outcrops.

The valley also boasts Australia's largest glow-worm colonies.

Later, back on the Gold Coast it's time to relax - and it's hard to think of a better place. The number of restaurant patrons spilling out on to footpaths is either a sign the recession hasn't hit here or that the food is absolutely magnificent. My experience suggests the latter.

Try 1two3 Mediterranean restaurant in Broadbeach, where all dishes come in either taster, entree or mains size.

My entree-size fettuccini was huge. Still, after the days' thrills, I'm sure fear has used up more than enough calories to justify it.