Woody and the phantom menace

James Wood gets a ride with photographer Andrew Christie up the coast... they’re so strung out on highway coffee they highbeam a passing vehicle near Ballina. The enraged driver gives chase and hounds them along the highway and down some backstreets to Woody’s house. A confrontation seems certain. Christie orders Woody to call up some mates with baseball bats, but Woody’s not ready for gang warfare at one in the morning. They keep driving and are half way to Byron and running out of fuel when they finally shake the phantom menace. “I couldn’t fight my way out of wet paper bag,” admits Woody, who was so rattled by the experience he slept with a wooden club under his bed that night. Woodstock hopes to make a full competitive comeback this year. And with the help of his major sponsor, Lost, plus the extra coin Woody earns working for Ballina Scaffolding Services (a liberalminded company who also pay him photo incentives. “They pay me a carton of beer for every photo I get published. I’m up six cartons already.”) he’s sure to climb the competitve scales in ‘09. At the very least, you’d have to imagine Ballina Scaffolding Services might have to up the slabs to kegs if Woody keeps performing and becomes the Waves Black Knight for ’08/’09.