Gettin' Ready For Spring!

Taken off the MGB:
Weber DGV 32/36 carb and Peco exhaust


Put on the MGB (gotta clean that engine bay some day!):
Stock SU carbs and stock exhaust manifold


Stainless exhaust


Limey's headlamp and horn relays

Winter goodies...

...the B's getting a visit from Santa in the form of the replacement of the existing Weber 32/36 DGV carburetor by the twin SU HIF4's that were originally on the car. Also replacement of the exhaust header and old performance exhaust by a stock exhaust manifold and stainless from the manifold back.

"Free hardtop" update: The B's got its winter hat on! I fabricated the hold-downs by bending up some quarter-inch threaded rod. Coupled with some nylon washers and wingnuts it makes for a secure top that's installable/removable without tools. Works better than I thought and less complicated than my original plan of welding up some brackets.

Pics coming soon. Will probably be putting the Weber on eBay.

KRMGC Fall Foliage Drive and Winery Tour

October 26, 2008
Click on photos for larger image

The Miers' organized another great club event again this fall. Their "Fall Foliage Drive and Winery Tour" brought together eleven British cars (and their owners or course) for a sunny drive through the beautiful Pennsylvania countryside. The destination for the drive this year was the Galen Glen Vineyard and Winery in Andreas, PA.

Bill picked some great roads, and we had a nice wine tasting and a relaxing shared picnic (and some wine) on Galen Glen's beautiful grounds. The winery is situated atop a hill with a panoramic view of their vineyards and the surrounding hillsides. The winery owners, Galen and Sarah, did the tasting and were very hospitable. Galen was nice enought to take the panoramic shot below of all the cars lined up in front of the tasting room. All in all, an awesome day and awesome company! Thanks, Bill and Gini!

The photos really don't do justice to the scenery at Galen Glen, but here are some snapshots from the event...click to enlarge:

Stroudsburg -- Autos In Autumn

October 11, 2008 -- Stroudsburg, PA

Click on photos for larger image

Stroudsburg, PA hosted a car show that included a special area for British cars. While other cars were lined up on Main Street, the British cars had the lovely courthouse square as their own turf. The Keystone Region MG Club was there with their tent, which provided some shade as well as advertising for the club.

It was a gorgeous day, mid 70's temperature and pretty much cloudless skies. The drive up at 9:00AM was very brisk, but invigorating. The drive home was a bit warmer. One of the highlights of the day: Having a pint at Siamsa Irish Pub (which is right off of courthouse square) with some other LBC nuts.

Right Place/Right Time Item: During the show, a gentleman from Brodheadsville offered me a free HARDTOP for my B. Seems he needed to make some room in the garage and wanted the top to go to a good home, rather than the dump. Good call...and I'm very thankful to have it! It's in very good shape, just needs some rubber. Now we just need a ski rack and some snow tires for the B! While I was picking up the top later that evening, he also threw in a half tonneau and a full tonneau. Wow. I've already given the half tonneau away to a club member who needs one, and am going to repair the zipper on the full tonneau so that I can use it.

Here are some photos from the event -- and one of the free hardtop!

Autumn Leaf 2008

It was a good mellow day at Autumn Leaf 2008. Thanks to the British Car Club of the Lehigh Valley for a very good show!

Show Me The Haggis...OK...it isn't all about MG-ing!

View the: WFMZ Channel 69 News Video

"The days of jigs, jousting and jolly good fun have begun in Bethlehem. The 21st annual Celtic Classic is underway this weekend. The three-day festival features traditional Scottish and Irish food and music. 69News cameras were rolling as hungry contestants tried their luck at the coveted Haggis- eating crown."

Who is that guy at the very end of the video throwing his hands up in the air in victory after winning the coveted Haggis-eating Crown? He's a member of Team "Show Me The Haggis" from Nazareth, PA. Hmmmmmm....If Stalone could put the gloves back on as an old man, why can't an amatuer competative eater do the same? A gentleman from Brooklyn, NY won the event the previous three years. We can rest easy now...The crown's back home in The Lehigh Valley.

MG Club Picnic and "Fun Run" 2008

Click on photos for larger size

Marybeth and I were delighted to host our third annual Keystone Region MG Club Picnic and "Fun Run" on September 20, 2008. We had great weather and a very nice turnout for the event! The event consists of an hour-long "fun run" through the countryside of Northampton County and then a cookout...ummmmm...and impromptu wine tasting!

Here are some photos from the event. All photos are courtesy of my neighbor (and fellow British car owner) Fred Baum -- Thanks, Fred! By the way, that's his Sunbeam Tiger that everyone's drooling over in one of the photos below. It is drool-worthy even if it isn't an MG :).

The Fun-Runners Readying To Depart for The Run
We had about nine cars that participated in the fun run portion of the festivities. Most were MG's but we were also graced with the presence of Fred's Sunbean, Steve's TR7, and Leon's MINI to round out the group.


On The Road
Winding, tree-lined country roads were the order of the day (as was the case the past two years). The route I chose was good, but a few too many "interesting" intersections...lesson-learned for next year.


"Did I mention that we have 0% APR financing available?"
When the fun-runners made it back to the house, we found that several more British cars had arrived and were arrayed nicely on the front lawn. Once the fun-runners joined the group, the front lawn looked like a cross between a British Car Show and a used car lot...granted, a British used car lot.


Grillin' and Chillin'
While the fun-run was, well, fun -- the best part of the day for me was getting to meet some new people, to share our home, and to spend time relaxing and having fun with some like-minded British Car Nuts.

Some folks got to try playing Quoits for the first time, which was quite entertaining -- for the players and spectators alike.



Thanks to everyone who participated, it was a great time and we hope to do it again next year! Thank you for bringing side dishes and desserts to share and a special thanks to Ed Haas who helped out on the grill while I was playing host and fetching drinks for people.

North American MGB Register's MG 2008

June 25 - 29, 2008

We had a great time (mostly...see last photo) at the NAMGBR MG 2008 convention in Valley Forge. Didn't take a whole lot of photos because we were too busy having fun or working. One of the highlights was a screening of Sherman's Way, which was a very good film regardless of the MGB content! It was good to meet Craig Saavedra, the film's Director/Producer. He even did a Q&A session after the screening.

Click on photos to view larger size


Dew-covered MG's in the Sheraton Parking lot in Valley Forge on Saturday morning. Got up VERY early to get to the car show for setup...so these photo ops.


The Keystone Region MG Club and NAMGBR tents at the car show.


Traffic control at the field entrance...it's a hard job, but someone's gotta do it!


Panoramic photo from the rear of the show field.


First time I've ever seen anyone taking a photo of my dash...turns out he's putting one together and wanted a reference.


Lounging in the heat before the skys opened up.


Yep..I unknowingly locked the doors to Chas' Subaru with the keys inside. 30-second job for the AAA man, but I felt pretty bad about it. Sorry, Chas!

Britfest 2008

In prototypically British style, Saturday, May 3rd dawned cold and foggy for the participants in The MG Car Club, Central Jersey Centre's "Britfest" event in Succasunna, NJ.

Some of the hearty members of the Keystone Region MG club met up for a club caravan to the event led by Ed Haas. Ed wins the "top down" award for braving the pea-soup conditions without his MGB's hood up. Good on 'ya, Ed!

The weather obviously kept some away from the event, but it was a good drive and a good event nonetheless. Some highlights were a couple of MG T-Series Midget racers and three Magnettes in one place! In addition to the perfectly British weather, a double-decker Bristol bus added a nice touch of England to top it all off!

Click on Images for Larger View

Point...Counterpoint!

Spring Brits on The Delaware 2008

Kintnersville, PA
Sunday, April 20, 2008

The TVR Club of North America held a very laid-back and enjoyable show today in Kintnersville, PA. The weather was so-so, but it did not rain! Some snapshots from the show...(click image to enlarge):

Gone...all gone!

Lost all the previous contents of the blog somehow when I changed blogger accounts. Oh, well...more adventures to come! I re-posted the JTCR II article, though!

The Brits Meet The Swedes - Jim Thorpe Classic Run II

Jim Thorpe, PA September 15th, 2007

Better Early Than Never!
I am a regular participant in a British car-related forum on the Internet called, oddly enough, “The British Car Forum”. Back in January, I spotted a posting on the forum's Local Events section suggesting a September get-together of classic cars to meet, rally, and end up in Jim Thorpe, PA. The rally was not organized or sponsored by any particular club, but by someone who just likes to get together with others and DRIVE!

I sent in my registration immediately. Marybeth and I turned out to be the first people to officially register for the event. Eight months ahead may be a little too early for many to commit to an event, but consider the situation: It was the dead of winter, I was longing for warmer weather to get our newly-acquired MGB out for some serious twisty-road driving, and the organizer stated the following in the forum posting:

“Confirmed so far:
Jerseygirl - Triumph Spitfire
Ian F - Volvo 1800ES
Sharon - Triumph TR3...
I don't really expect too many people (except a few of my crazy friends) to commit this early but I wanted to get it on the calendar.”

Crazy friends?!?!?! Sign me up!

Gathering
Bill and Gini Miers decided to participate in the event with Marybeth and I, so we met just west of Allentown to drive over to the start of the rally together. The day of the event arrived cold and damp, but the organizer – Robyn Resch – had communicated the day before that she was delaying the start of the event for an hour to allow the weather to clear. That also gave me an extra hour to shake off the cobwebs of sleep – that really helps on a Saturday morning!

The ride over to Hamburg with Bill and Gini leading was very nice. I had not previously traveled “old” Route 22 and did not realize what a nice road it is for a couple of MGB's. Though a little slower than I-78, there were lots of rolling hills and not a tractor-trailer in sight. Bill's supercharged MGB was certainly fun to try to keep up with, especially up the hills.

We were the first to arrive at the initial gathering point at the Hamburg Cracker Barrel, but were soon joined by Robyn Resch (the organizer) in her recently-on-the-road Triumph Spitfire, a TR3, and six classic Volvo 1800's – Five coupes and an ES Wagon. I've always liked the looks of the Volvo 1800 and this was a good opportunity to see so many different vintages together. After some chit-chat, introductions and a quick drivers' meeting, we four “Brits” and six “Swedes” were off.

Let's do Lunch
The first leg of the rally took us over some very nice curvy back roads north of Hamburg and Hawk Mountain. The drive was kept interesting by some storm-related debris in the road and the occasional patch of loose gravel. Nothing like a little gravel on a 90-degree curve to keep a driver on his/her toes! During the drive I was thinking that the selection of route for the first leg was good, but the second leg turned out to be even better. More on that later.

At the end of the first leg of the drive, we arrived at our lunch spot. Robyn had arranged lunch for the registered participants at her parents' farm. What a great spot! Her parents, along with aunt and uncle, helped Robyn lay out a sumptuous lunch (burgers, hot dogs, grilled chicken, etc.) and were wonderful hosts. The location, named Mill Pond Manor by the family, is a bucolic example of an old-fashioned PA farm, complete with barn and outhouse. We did not actually use the outhouse, if you are wondering – our hosts allowed us to use the facilities in the lovely A-Frame home that Bob Resch built on his property.

In a very “what are the odds of THAT?” moment, I learned during lunch conversation that two of the Volvo drivers actually grew up in Bayonne, NJ which is where I spent some of my formative childhood years. In between talk of engines and automotive history, we swapped some childhood Bayonne stories. What are the odds?

Twists, Turns and Polite Drivers
After lunch, we all saddled up and headed out for the final leg of the rally. Destination: Jim Thorpe. The roads on the second leg were even better than the first. Many more twists and turns, lots of hills, and something I have not ever experienced on a caravan – at three different 4-way stop intersections along the route, the drivers in the opposing directions actually stopped and allowed all ten of our rally cars to pass together, often waving enthusiastically at us!

The first time this phenomenon happened I thought, “That's pretty cool.” The second time I thought, “There are a lot of really polite people along this route!” The third time, I was convinced that Robyn had somehow arranged for people to let us pass, though she denied this when I confronted her later.

Near the end of this leg of the rally, we stopped at a scenic overlook above the town of Jim Thorpe before descending into the picturesque town.

What's the Swedish Phrase for “I'll Have a Pint”
Once in Jim Thorpe, most of the rally participants walked into town to have a wander 'round and some went to The Molly McGuires' pub to have a pint of their favorite beverage and some conversation. It was a nice ending to a very enjoyable day. Robyn is planning to organize another “Classic Run” next year. I would highly recommend the event for anyone who likes good back roads, good food, good fun and meeting new people!

British Marque Car Club News Triathlon VII

Pocono Manor (and surrounding areas), PA

August 10 - 12, 2007

Event website: British Marque Car Club News Triathlon

We had a great time participating in Triathlon VII. The events included a timed hill climb up Camelback Mountain, a road rally and a non-traditionally-judged car show. Didn't take a lot of photos...we were too busy having fun.

Click on images for larger view