Andy wrote:
>Just a short note to express the appreciation of the Minnesota Triumphs
>contingent for the great convention in Rockford. If The Hammer, Spuds, Big
>Momma or any of the other ISOA folks are on this list, please pass this
>message on to your e-mail impaired club members. You folks really did a
>great job.
Couldn't agree more, I've been to lots of meets but none so meticulously
planned and executed. We went to Rockford on Thursday, only an hour from
home. Found Sheri at the registration desk, got an absolutely packed info
packet, the start of a delightful and well-organized weekend. Headed up to
the autocross at Rockford Speedway, everyone got two runs before the skies
burst. Wish there'd been time for a few more, I was just getting the hang
of the great course set up by Bob Kamholtz. Team FAT was well represented
and mjb's Hoosier-shod Spit was awesome, a possibly-streetable car within a
second of a full-race TR4! My TR6 was in the same neighborhood with the
R1's but I ate a cone. Still got a first in my class (of one PL car). What
a gully-washer at the picnic, the lights at the park shelter flickered many
times and finally went off for good. Someone pointed out they _couldn't_ be
Lucas lights because they came back on a couple times before dying
completely. ;-) I bailed about 3 inches of water out of the bucket seat
with a pop can after the tarp blew off the car. Dashed back to the hotel
when the storm broke up, along with 100+ other cars.
Got up at oh-dark-thirty Friday for a 6AM breakfast tour. That was a fun
romp until my alternator died, the first electrical problem I've had with
the car in 3 years. No big problem, a rare long-obsolete Delco 2-connector
unit was in stock at TRF and they offered to have it there the next
morning. I couldn't believe it, but there it was at their stand Saturday
morning. Not only no shipping charge but 10% off to boot! Not the first
time TRF has bailed me out, but another reason why I always go there first.
Oh well, people tell me the Friday rallye we missed was great sport even if
half again as long as expected. Tried to make the proposed SOL rendezvous
at 4PM, got back from visiting local friends at 4:20 and couldn't find
anyone. Darn.
Saturday bright-and-early the group photo went smoothly, the photog said
even that was better organized than usual, with cars arranged ever so
neatly. Even had traffic control on the way out and volunteers standing on
the street corners to show you where to turn! Back to Clock Tower for the
concours - filled two parking lots with maybe 250 cars. Hot and humid
enough that some cars were probably overheating just sitting there. Enough
gorgeous cars to make me jealous - several high-point cars were daily
drivers, I don't know how they do it. Got to meet some of the SOL'ers I
missed Friday. Beer and brats served in the parking lot, at reasonable
prices yet, which is high luxury to a Wisconsinite. Just bolting in the new
alternator (a 15-minute job) there must have been at least a half-dozen
people who offered help! Great people.
In an effort to advance the frontiers of science, I had a .WAV recording of
Jeremy DuBois' Spitfire clattering at startup that I transcribed to
cassette for convenience. The mission: plumb the collective experience on
the level of urgency associated with such a sound. Unfortunately I even
managed to screw this up by forgetting the bloody cassette player. Sorry,
Jeremy, I feel a bit of an idiot. I'll try again at our local meeting on
Thursday, where at least I know who the ace wrenches are.
This was my first VTR National so I couldn't say if they're all this well
organized and this much fun, but I sure was impressed. Have to agree with
Andy you missed a great event if you weren't there.
--
Gary Schneider, Nicolet Instrument Technologies
phone: 608-276-6172, Fax: 608-273-5061, Internet: gschneid@nicmad.nicolet.com
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