10TH Annual British
Field Day
It's
that time of year again for all British car and motorcycle enthusiasts
to dust off their cars and bikes, time them up, get them running
again and out of the garage. All British cars and bikes in any
condition, restored or under repair are welcome. This is not a
car show strictly for flawless and gorgeous vehicles. So, if you're
thinking "my car isn't in good enough shape", think
again. As long as you can gel it there under its own power or
by any other means, we'd love to have it included in the show.
The more the merrier!
For the brave of heart, we will have the gymkhana race course
set up again this year on 3rd South between 3rd and 4th West.
During the event, there will be music, laughter, car and bike
shoptalk, drawings for raffle prizes as well as an auction for
the quilt that displays the T-shirt designs from the 1st through
9th British Field Day events. This is a one of a kind quilt made
to help raise additional funds for the Center for Family Development.
Trust me, you don't want to miss the opportunity to bid on this
one.
Proceeds from this event will be donated to The Center for Family
Development. Since 1981, the Center for Family Development has
helped more than 13,000 people significantly improve their ability
to understand and effectively cope with abusive relationships.
Every year more than 900 families or 3,000 individuals in Utah
seek guidance from the Center. Seventy-five percent of the Center's
clients are family members directly affected by abuse. Through
education and treatment, families and individuals can learn to
avoid the repetitive cycles of abuse and put their lives back
together.
So, please, help support us in this very worthwhile cause and
get your cars and bikes out and come join the fun:
Saturday, June 9th
Pioneer Park
399 South 300 West, SLC
9:00 AM-3:00 PM
Don't miss out on the fun, fun and more fun!
Sand In Your Shoes
That's what you
may have gotten if you went along for the May Antelope Island
run. Or maybe a nice tan.
The weather was just gorgeous as we took off for the island. Joe
Chou led the group from the first meet-up Point at South Towne
Mall to the second meet-up point behind the capital. There was
some sort of bike event going on at the capital which caused a
lot of confusion, since the entrance to the parking lot was blocked
off by cones. It was fun seeing who would chance it by going through
the cones and who played it safe by going around to the other
entrance.
At the sound of Floyd Inman's TD horn, we headed out Victory Road
to get onto I-15 and head up toward the third and final meet-up
point. After turning off the freeway a bit too soon, we toured
up Main Street in Layton to Antelope Drive. A quick left turn
onto Antelope Drive, followed by a right turn put us into the
parking lot just west of the Burger King for the final meet-up
point. There, several folks from the northern areas met us for
the rest of the run.
After a few minutes, we headed for the island. The drive was leisurely
all the way to the toll booth to pay our $7 (it's gone up $1 since
last year) per car to get across the causeway. After paying, we
waited for a few moments to get gathered up for the drive across
the lake. Once on the island, we enjoyed the short but winding
road to the beach. We were disappointed to find all the shelters
were already taken, but a quick check at the next cluster of buildings
along the beach revealed the pavilion was completely empty and
ready for us.
During lunch, we enjoyed the good-natured discussion of how our
cars were (or weren't) running, and so forth. After we finished
lunch, we planned to raffle off three ice cream cake gift certificates
provided by Joe Chou, but no raffle tickets. After several minutes
of confusion, plus a couple of false starts, we tore up scraps
of paper and made tickets from them. Joe's daughter, Ruby, drew
out the
winners, and three lucky BMCU'ers took home a treat and the club
netted $50 for the bank account.
Several folks then walked along the beach or looked at the cars
in the parking lot. With a blast from Floyd's car horn, we started
up and headed around to the other side of the island.
The last stop on the island was the old Garff ranch house. It
was the 'headquarters" for the ranching operation that lasted
from the 1800's until about 1980. The historic buildings are preserved
for visitors to walk through, including a spring house, root cellar,
bunk house, a huge barn, corrals, and lots of old equipment. From
there, the threat of rain caused the group to split up and head
for home. A
few of us followed Steve Nelson to his house to look at his latest
project, an MG TF that he had stripped down to the frame and tub.
Hopefully, we'll see that car at the next Antelope Island run
or BFD.
We had a good turnout, with over 20 cars, including: Dan and Sharon
Forster; Gary, Sandy, and Daisv Lindstrom; David and Ann Mclean;
John Progress; Steve Nelson and Kylin, Kenzie; Dan and Sandy Davis;
John Bauernhuber and Toni Leyba; Mitch and Diane Johnson; Mike
and Becky Chambers; Mike and Susan Cady; Sheree and Marv Marcus;
Norm and Carole Miller; Floyd Inman; Bill and Julie Van Moorhem;
Bill Robinson, Joe Chou and daughter Ruby; Bill Walton; Nathan
Massie and Jon and Susan Hermance.
Left Over Parts
Don't forget the British Field Day this month, on June 9th. If
you can get there early to help set up and so forth, the effort
would be greatly appreciated. This is the tenth year of this event.
Lots of work has gone into the organizing and putting on of this
event and we can all certainly thank the BFD committee for their
work.
MG lives! After picking up some of the bits from the Rover Group-BMW
unraveling, MG Rover has a working development strategy for its
new lower- medium car. The final details will be hammered Out
soon, but so far here's the expected outcome.
The British car maker has identified four options for the new
model, slated for introduction in 2003-2004. It will replace both
the Rover 25 hatchback and the 45 sedan. The options are:
1. Develop a brand new platform in cooperation with another car
maker.
2. Develop a brand new platform with the help of a supplier.
3. Shorten the Rover 75 platform using MG Rover resources.
4. Shorten the Rover 75 platform with the help of a supplier.
MG Rover officials have said they could use a supplier such as
Magna International or Mayflower as a partner in the development
of the new car. MG Rover CEO Kevin Howe said his preferred options
would be to shorten the Rover 75 platform and use it as the base
for the new car. "I'll be enticed by that route," said
Howe. But MG Rover will only choose that option if the costs are
right, said Howe. Shortening the Rover 75 platform would have
the advantage of giving MG Rover more control over its new model.
It would not have to depend on another car maker's design.
Rob Oldaker, director of product development, said the company's
main concern behind the idea of a shortened Rover 75 platform
is the cost of materials. How and Oldaker were interviewed in
the English midlands at the launch of MG Rover's new MG car lineup.
The company introduced three new models at Longbridge, coded named
X10, X20 and X30. They are based respectively on the Rover 75,45,
and 25. MG Rover will begin building the new MG's in the summer,
and they will be launched in the autumn. There will be three basic
variants of each car, known internally as Entry, Core, and Ultimate.
The ultimate version of the X10 will feature a 375 hp V-8 engine.
For this model, the Rover 75 platform will be radically reengineered
for rear-wheel drive.
The new MG's will use technology derived from MG Rover's motor
sport program. The MG brand will stand for affordable performance,
while the Rover brand will stand for luxury. Oldaker said the
MG range will be "raw and focused driver's cars." Roughly
25 percent of the 200,000 units to be build annually at Longbridge
will be MG's. The rest will be Rovers.
MG Rover also unveiled the MGF Trophy, a high-end version if its
two-seat open-top sports car. For the Trophy, the power output
of the MGF's 1.8 liter VVC engine has been boosted from 143hp
to 160hp. The new car has a claimed top speed of 225 kph.
Also in the news is a new MG entry into the LeMans 2001 24-hour
race. The car is a LMP 675 class called MG-Lola, an open cockpit
design with a two-liter engine developed by AER. Lola is the car's
designer, with design sketches resembling the Lola B2K/40 SR2
sports car. Lola Cars Ltd. is one member of the consortium that
took control of MG Rover from BMW last year.
And Bentley, the decidedly up-scale car maker, now under the Volkswagen
umbrella, also unveiled a race car for LeMans. Competing in the
LM-GTP class, this car is named the EXP Speed 8 prototype racer.
It will be powered by an Audi YB, similar to the engine that won
last year's LeMans. Bentley says it will finish the car in BRG
for the race.
Ed note: Many thanks to the Arizona MG club and the South Alabama
British Car
Club newsletters for the above information I gleaned from them.
How many of you have turned to eBay for tools and car parts? I've
been looking at a few items - it's certainly fun to look, since
the variety of items always just astounds me. I even managed to
buy a few things: a carpet kit for my B (imagine buying a carpet
kit for a car that so desperately needs bodywork), some vintage
car ads, and a brand new drill. My results? The carpet kit is
definitely on the "cheap" side, (probably akin to the
'economy' sets from the mail-order suppliers), the ads were neat
originals from vintage magazines, and the drill was brand new
in the box for a bit over half the cost of Home Depot. So far,
all the sellers have been honest, courteous, and good to send
e-mails informing me of the status of payment receipts and shipping.
Has anyone had a problem with car parts or accessories bought
over eBay?
I hope to see you all at the BFD!
Autojumble
For Sale: Three Morris Minors:
1959 Woody
1969 Woody (parts car)
1960 Saloon
These are all projects and includes numerous extra parts including a rebuilt 1275 motor and a ribcase transmission. Would prefer to sell together but will entertain offers for all or part. Contact Bill at 486-5049 days or 364-1816 evenings or at gbrovers@aol.com.
Wanted: Anyone interested in parting with an MGA roadster or Austin Healy, please contact Wim Dons at 1-505-891- 6183 in NewMexico
Exchequer Report
No report this month.
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