small version of the photo can be found in Paper's original post:
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sho...8#post12396408
Peter Kurten said the photo was sourced from Newspix.com, though I can't find it.
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sho...7#post12402387Hi and thanks to all that replied to my previous posts on Julie Cutler, (I think).
Firstly, thanks for posting the above thumbnails of JC's crushed car. I have not seen these before. They could be a close up snip from the picture I have seen, which show a wider view with the ocean in the background. If anyone has this picture could they please post it? It shows the flat ocean and large band of sand on the day the car was recovered. I am still looking myself, as well.
However these thumbnails in the above post show the extent of the damage with the roof crushed almost down to the window sills. Where are mythbusters when you need them? We have recently had three cars retrieved from the Swan river or marina after being driven into the water and although there was one fatality, with a woman found inside, there was no car damage on any.
If the car was driven onto the sand down the ramp infront of the old Cottesloe SLSC boatshed (now where Indiana is) and if it could reach the water without getting bogged, I don't believe this extent of damage would occur.
Others have talked abut tides and currents and being bashed against the groyne, but although there are occasional high tides, and some have been pictured on this site, there wasn't on this day. I remember it clearly, and being struck with disbelief and as the wide angle photo will hopefully show.
The first thing we were taught in basic coastal navigation theory is that Perth is one of the few, if not only places in the world that has only one high and one low tide a day. This means very little tidal movement. There are a couple of days a year where there are 2 high and 2 low tides and if this matches with the moon phases and a rough swell you can get water up to the boat ramp at Cott.
We had a very high tide recently at Sculptures by the sea on Cott beach, and the sculptures had to be moved. It happens maybe once or twice a year. I am still trying to find the larger photo of the JC's car on the beach after being retrieved that I saw posted on web slueths which shows normal sand width and calm ocean.
Secondly, the police have always suggested they thought the car was driven off the groyne. They acknowledged there was no body inside. I think they suggested this as it may have explained the damage occurring if the car flipped and landed on the rocks off the groyne then jumped up and landed in the water on its roof. Like I said, where is mythbusters when you need them?
The gryone has been reconstructed since 1988, and has bigger blocks of rock now that would definitely prevent any car from entering the water from there. Until the reconstruction, I don't believe there was any access to the groyne, other than driving on the sand, which I don’t think was possible for 2WD. Some posters have said our sand is hard, I disagree, ask some of the SLSC beach sprinters, we have some of the softest white sand in Australia.
Then, if your managed to get the car onto the groyne, how would you get a driverless car to accelerate and leap the rocks, which were still high, land on the roof and still enter the ocean and not be seen or heard? It seems that the car was noticed, still with its lights on an estimated 2 hours after entering the water.
Were there floodlights, I still think so but probably turned off at a certain time? I think the main point is what would cause that extensive damage to JC's car?
IMO I give it 0% driving into the ocean, 5% driverless off the groyne.
There has to be another way and looking at this with fresh eyes and trying to keep an open mind. I'm suggesting the car was taken to Cott by some sort of water vessel.
Was a crusher involved to get the car to fit? Was it dropped from a height on rock or concrete?
Do the vessels involved in laying the undersea cables in 1987 and 1988 play a part? Was BRE involved in this project? It seems he was familiar with boats, did he have access to any?
Were they kept in Freo or Garden Island?
Or did they come from Rockingham where it quieter or was that a vessel large enough in the above videos said to be a vessel by Stirling bridge??