Greetings Fellow Morgan Lover,
Forgive this intrusion on your list. If you don't want to read about a new
and fun event that is not exclusively for Morgans, please hit your delete key
now. Flames, if any, should be addressed to Colin Cobb (<A
HREF="cobmeister@zianet.com">cobmeister@zianet.com</A>) as he assured me that
you folks would like to hear about this. Those of you who edit newsletters, I
would be deeply grateful if you are able to use this material, edited as you
see fit, in your newsletters over the next couple of months. Please e-mail me
if you do run something so I can be sure you get an after-event story.
Earlier this year Albuquerque's British Auto Owners' Association (BAOA)
Board decided to hold the annual BAOA Rendezvous in Santa Fe and I'm pleased
and grateful that they chose to host the event at my hotel, Fort Marcy Hotel
Suites. We'll take very good care of all who visit, and I'm writing now to
let you know of certain developments surrounding the event which you may find
interesting as you plan to take part in this year's festivities.
I'm an British Car owner and President of the Santa Fe, NM Vintage Car Club
and Denise McCluggage, well-known race driver and author, is on our
Board of Directors. One afternoon during a Board meeting over lunch
Denise and I playfully argued about the "high end" car event she had
been trying to get off the ground in Santa Fe for the past few years and
which she had been promoting as The Roadrunner 1000. I argued that the
last thing the world needed was another car event with a "1000" in the
name, and that what was needed were events which did not have $3000
entry fees and which did not require cars with a name ending in "i".
What the world did need was an event with a lot of enthusiastic car nuts
with any pre-1975 car they love and want to share, and entrants with a
competitive nature who want to win cash and serious prizes. Denise
reluctantly agreed, and we decided to see if we could build a new
Roadrunner 1000 event in Santa Fe.
Denise left Santa Fe to do what she does so well... test drive new cars
and write about them for major magazines. While she was driving the new
S class Jaguar, Denise brazenly asked Mark Miller, head of publicity for
Jaguar North America, if Jaguar might want to sponsor the event. He asked how
much it would cost and Denise called me. In the end, we agreed that Jaguar
would sponsor the first three years of the new Roadrunner 1000...
Since then we've been working feverishly to ensure that this event becomes the
premier automotive event in the Southwest while remaining affordable,
open, and fun. One of the prime objectives of this event is to bring
together automotive enthusiasts from all segments of our hobby.
Sports cars, hot rods, custom cars, Italian cars, British cars, French
cars... As long as they are pre-1975, all are welcome! And the cars need
not be show cars, garage Godivas, or trailer queens. Cars that are less
than perfect but which are street driven on a regular basis are most
welcome. In addition to awards for the many concours classes we'll be
especially recognizing the driven cars with awards for the farthest
driven, the highest mileage, the oldest car, and more.
Jaguar is bringing all of its new cars and ten press people. We have
been able to get a major regional car event established in a very short
time thanks to Denise McCluggage. And, with Jaguar, we have a prominent
sponsor in place, not to mention additional sponsors such as Haggerty
Classic Car Insurance and Meguier's who have already signed up.
Remember the cash and prizes I mentioned? We'll be giving away an
expense paid trip for two to Las Vegas, Nevada to the winner of
Saturday's Luigi Vercotti Rallye, door prizes worth $1000 will be
dispensed during the banquet Saturday night, and each winner of the five
main concours categories on Sunday morning will win an expense paid trip
for two to Durango, Colorado. We're also giving away a week in England
(with a Jaguar to drive!) to a lucky attendee of the Concours on Sunday,
September 19. That last prize is aimed at getting Santa Feans out of bed
on a Sunday morning to see all the cars, old and new. Incidentally, the city
of Santa Fe has agreed to close the downtown Plaza to through traffic so the
Concours can be staged there.
The Luigi Vercotti Rallye will take rallyists through the streets of
Santa Fe and on the high road to Taos, about 69 miles away. It will be a
question-and-answer event that drivers and navigators won't soon forget. A
first-class box lunch will be served along the way. Although it is not a
speed event, it will nonetheless be a serious rally with a serious prize, so
please come prepared.
Luigi Vercotti, incidentally, is a Monty Python character, a cheap
London hood who looks Italian but is English, and this is why I tagged my
Jensen GT with the license plate VERCOTI. We will ask questions about
Luigi and offer you the chance to prepare for the questions by viewing a
continuous loop tape with Vercotti sketches from the television series
which was broadcast in the late 60's and early 70's.
Other things you might want to be aware of:
1. We have donated much of Jaguar's contribution to the New Mexico State
Police Association, and there might be a place or two during the rally
where you can stretch the legs of your Morgan. (Shhhhhhhh!)
2. Keith Martin, owner and publisher of Sports Car Market and the "color
man" for the Barrett-Jackson Auction on Speedvision, is 99% committed to
come to oversee the concours judging. Our honorary judges are expected
to include Ken Gross, curator of the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los
Angeles, world-class skier Billy Kidd, and Mikeel Haggerty, owner of
Haggerty Classic Car Insurance.
The calendar of events:
Friday, September 17, 4 PM-10 PM, check-in at Fort Marcy Hotel Suites.
Friday, September 17, 6 PM, Welcome gathering at Fort Marcy Hotel Suites
with host Denise McCluggage... Tall tales, appetizers, and draft beer.
Saturday, September 18, 9 am, First car to Taos on the Luigi Vercotti
Rallye.
Saturday, September 18, 6 PM, Banquet with speaker Denise McCluggage at Fort
Marcy Hotel Suites... Fine food, good talk, and abundant door prizes.
Sunday, September 19, 9 am-noon, Concours on the Santa Fe Plaza.
The package of 1999 Roadrunner 1000/Luigi Vercotti Rallye events are
priced at $75 per person. This includes an event T-shirt, the Welcome
Gathering with beer and appetizers, the Luigi Vercotti Rallye with
deluxe box lunch and the opportunity to win big prizes, the Banquet with
door prizes, and the concours on Sunday with many, many awards and
prizes.
Blocks of rooms and suites at Fort Marcy have been set aside for you. When
you call in to make your room reservations, please mention the Roadrunner
1000. We’ve also set aside rooms at other properties we manage... Lovely,
quaint B&Bs, and Santa Fe's finest motel, too. Room availability is limited,
so I urge you to call soon.
The special Roadrunner 1000 rates are: Two person rate at Rio Vista
Suites (closest accommodations to Canyon Road, <A
HREF="http://www.riovistasuites.com";>www.riovistasuites.com</A>):
$99 per night. Two person rate for a lovely B&B room at The Territorial
Inn (<A HREF="http://www.territorialinn.com";>www.territorialinn.com</A>) or
Seret’s 1001 Nights (<A HREF="http://www.1001nts.com";>www.1001nts.com</A>):
$136 per night. Two person rate for The Santa Fe Motel and Inn
(<A HREF="http://www.santafemotelinn.com";>www.santafemotelinn.com</A>): $69
per night. Four person rate for a 1250
sq. ft Fort Marcy two bedroom suite (<A
HREF="http://www.fortmarcy.com";>www.fortmarcy.com</A>): $136 per night.
Six person rate for 1600 sq. ft Fort Marcy three bedroom suite, $249
(only a few of these are available).
Of course, for your convenience both your room and the event registration can
be charged to your major credit card.
That's what we have in store for 1999... an event all are sure to enjoy.
We confidently expect that over the next couple of years this event will
grow so large we will need to limit the number of participants and the
enthusiasts who participate in the inaugural 1999 Roadrunner 1000 will
be the first ones offered the chance to register next year!
We'll have a Roadrunner 1000/Luigi Vercotti Rallye website up and
running soon and I'll post the site address to you when it is available.
Meanwhile, you can obtain a registration form via e-mail from the Old
Cobmeister at <A
HREF="mailto:cobmeister@zianet.com";>cobmeister@zianet.com</A> or feel free to
call me for information about any facet of the event from activities to hotel
rooms. I'll be more than happy to help. We plan on
local press coverage and a big Santa Fe welcome to you, so please call soon.
Thanks, and see you in the fall.
--John Smallwood
800-561-0898 office -505-982-0049 home
e-mail: <A HREF="JohnSmallwood@santafeh">JohnSmallwood@santafeh</A>
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