Just wanted to share a few experiences with my fellow Spridgeteers,
before going back into lurk mode (extremely heavy work schedule, for the
past several months & no end in sight):
First of all, it took me damn near all summer to really get my Midget
running just right, with a half-hour here, an hour there, and, maybe
fifteen minutes every now and then. For sure, a TERRIBLE way to
maintain a Midget. But, God bless it, the Midget never failed me.
Funny how life goes. It seems like just a few years ago, when I didn't
have two nickels to rub together, my recreation/stress relief therapy
consisted of spending all day in a sweltering hot (or freezing cold),
poorly lit garage doing maintenance/repair/restoration on various MGs,
feeling just happier than a hog in slop.
Now, I have plenty of garage space, great lighting, a great
heating system AND air conditioning. But, it took me ALL stinkin'
summer to accomplish what I used to do in one Saturday! And, most of
the time, it was stressful because of the time constraints!
The good news, for me, is that I've recently managed to spend two
DELIGHTFUL days driving my Midget (OK, TRF Summer Party was a lot of
fun, too, except that I spent most of the first day on the phone with
clients....being self-employed means never really being on vacation).
The first day was last Wednesday, when I took advantage of a
very brief window of opportunity to drive to Cincinnati (I live near
Pittsburgh), to pick up a hard top I bought from Kent Miller. In
addition to getting to spend about 11 hours of driving the Midget (on
mostly 2 lane, rural roads), it was great to finally meet Kent and visit
for a short time.
The Midget ran beautifully, in that cool, crisp air and mostly
bright sunshine. Due to not wanting to share the last two hours of the
trip with deer, crossing the rural 2 lane roads, I picked up I-70, for a
"forced march" to Washington, PA (just a few miles from my home). After
a long period of minimal Midget driving, I'd forgotten just how
effortlessly the Midget cruises at 65-70. Sure, it's 4000-4500 rpm,
but, it takes barely any throttle opening and the water temp and oil
pressure look like the needles are painted onto the gauge face. No, I
wouldn't want to do it like that all of the time.....but, it's nice to
experience every now and then.
Today, I put about 6 hours on the Midget, all on winding, rural
back roads, driving to and from my son's college for a short visit.
North of Pittsburgh, and west of I-79, the topography is much less hilly
(though far from flat), with great big farm fields, large, wooded areas.
No large towns along the route. Weather was cool, but partly sunny,
making for some beautiful viewing of the rural scenery, with the maple
trees just starting to turn yellow. No really challenging roads, like
there are in my part of the state, but still plenty of opportunity to
exercise brakes, gearbox and engine. I'm re-charged, now and ready to
go back to work (I guess).
So, get out there and drive those Spridgets, if you're in an
area where winter is a reality. I figure I've got about three or four
weekends or driving left, provided I can schedule my work around them
and I hope to take advantage of them....RAIN or SHINE.
Bud Osbourne.....back to lurking, again
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