DVCMG

   September 28-30

Were you their? NO! Then you missed a good day in the mountains. The best place to start is always the beginning.  As some of you know, I have been talking about this Tour for around 25 years but I didn’t have time to set it up until I retired. First, I copped 58 pages from Map Quest and from them put together a map of the Ultimate Covered Bridge Tour. The first time out it took me 5 ½ house to finish and that was on top of a 90 minute ride to the start. Five runs later and many changes I had the finished route in hand. All I needed now was some victims or were they brave souls? On the appointed day 16 cars showed up including a TR-3 and a strange looking Porsche. Big fenders and a wale tail! That’s another long story but for now, Peter is a lifelong friend and may someday be one of us.

As starting time was approaching I was getting nervous and no one was in sight. How could they all be lost? Maybe Tom Rippert was leading them and he always knows where he’s going. My phone started to ring and people started to show up and all was well in the world.  Instructions were given and at 10:15 AM the first car was off.  I had one last minute change in the route that was necessary as the Bloomsburg Fair had changed one road to ONE WAY and it was the wrong way for the route. But, this gave everyone a photo opt on the Rippert Bridge or was it the Ruppert Bridge? From here it was all up hill to my place. The tour takes me 3 hours to run but after 3 ½ hours and no cars had arrived and I was getting a little concern. Do you think Dick Suffredini came up with an idea to photograph all of our cars on one bridge and they were now floating down the river with the remains of a covered bridge! Well, after 4 hours the first car showed up and I started to feel a lot better. It wasn’t all that long before everyone was in and they were heading for the garage.

In the spring I asked Jamiee & Sandy to pick from the cater’s menu things that everyone would enjoy. It didn’t take long before the complements to start coming in. Chicken Marsala, Vegetable Lasagna, Ziti with Italian Sausage, Fresh Fruit and Tossed Salad. Don’t forget the hot rolls and we almost did! What did you expect! Road Kill Venison and Possum in a Pot? Bear stew! The Bear didn’t like that idea. If anyone left hungry it was their fault!

When the meal was finished I gathered everyone to the garage as there was still some unfinished business. I didn’t have time at the start as we were a little later getting the cars off so I held back some business till the end. As some of you know I used to hunt and I have several firearms. I told Tom that I would have them all locked up and no one could get to them. Tom said that I should keep the “Little One” in my pocket just in case the Bear does show up. Here is how my plan unfolded. As everyone paid close attention I told them that Tom was typical of the city kids who just want to come up here and shoot everything in the woods. Us mountain folks have a better plan and with that I held up a Bear shaped jar of honey. “This is the Emergency Bear Honey” I said and if the Bear should come out whoever was closest to the Honey Bear should grab it and run up to Tom and give him a big squirt! While Tom was off entertaining the Bear the rest of us could keep the party going. Jamiee said not to worry about Tom as when he gets into trouble around the house he can run like hell and she could never catch him.

The next order of business was 3 questions that were in the Tour directions. Wait a minute, where are the questions? I left them out and there was only a line for the answer. The answers were all numbers involving the Tour. I told everyone that this part on the event was like Speed Dating! You only had 5 seconds to answer each of the first two questions and 10 seconds for the third. On the Tour how many bridges were you directed to cross? And the winners were Pat & Patty Cawthorne and Jan & Mark Scherbekow.   Each had the correct answer of 11. The winners received magnets with a picture of the Forksville Covered Bridge. Now thing got a little harder. At instruction #21 you were told to turn Left onto Drag Strip Road and to Burn Rubber. Instruction #22 told you to turn Left onto Quaker Meeting House Road. Did you get some religion? Think you can still make it to the finish? Let’s see who got some religion. How many Churches did you pass on the tour?  Bill & Evelyn Webb were the winners and the correct answer was 18. The prize for second was a jigsaw puzzle picturing a vintage, late 1920’s, MG Coupe crossing a covered Bridge here in Pennsylvania. Here is where we separate the Tourist from True Covered Bridge Aficionado. If you add up all of the letters in the names of the bridges, excluding the word Bridge, how many letters are there in the names of all of the bridges? You should have heard the moans & grown coming from our group. After the 10 second countdown I asked who had the right answer and numbers were flying all over the place. After a few moments I gave out the answer, it was 181 and Jeff & Robin Roes were awarded a quilt which shows the 6 Covered Bridges which were once in Sullivan county. There are 3 left today.

On the Tour I had in place 3 Chicken Runs if the weather was bad. This would keep you off the dirt and on the black top until you got to my place. I was hoping that at least one car would take a Chicken Run as I had found a Dracula Halloween Chicken for whoever took a Chicken Run. If no one had I would ask if anyone wished that they had and if I still didn’t have a winner it would go to the last car in as they should have taken all 3 Chicken Runs. Well, Bill & Evelyn Webb didn’t let me down and they took the Chicken Run Award home.

After that many of the folks started to headed back home and by dark there were only 6 of us left and no one was up to the Howling at the Moon contest. So the Howling Wolf T-Shirts will show up at the Holiday Banquet and if you win you have to Howl for the shirt!

One last note. There were some who could not make the Tour and there may be others who would like to do it again. Crazy, I know, but I will make to Tour Route available to you and I hope that you can find your way back up here. You may be the luck one who gets to pet the Bear.

Your favorite Mountain Man & Bear Tamer
Earl Wanklin

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   August 25, 2012

Our Reading Phillies adventure started in Rippert’s driveway on the Saturday afternoon of August 25th.  It was overcast and there was the possibility of rain but, in true DVC fashion, we lucked out and the rain never came.  Pat and Patty lead the caravan in their MGA, with Adam and Eva in their MGB, Warren and Nancy in their MGB and Ripperts in their MGTD bringing up the rear.  The route was just great travelling on very rural, beautiful winding roads.  We arrived in Reading in time to grab a bite to eat before the game.  We met up with Lew, in his Subaru, at a diner/sports bar/nightclub right across the street from the ball park.  Wasn’t bad, we were the only people in there at 5:00, kinda strange.  The food wasn’t very good, but the beer was just fine.  After our meal we crossed the street to the ball park.  It was no problem crossing the busy 4-lane highway, as Patty just steps right into the street and puts her hand up!  Amazingly, all the cars came to a screeching halt before flattening us on the highway.  Patty said she learned how to cross a street from her brother (I’m wondering just how close Patty and her brother are ).  We met up with Dick and Sandy, their daughter Karen, and grandchildren Aiden and Andrew inside the ball park.  The game was good, the Phillies won.  Adam and Eva weren’t exactly sure  what was going on – but they thought the game was exciting – kinda like watching paint dry.  At one point Adam asked how much longer the game would go on – we had just started the 3rd inning………  They were troopers, made it through the entire game, and now they understand a little more about baseball.  There was a fantastic fireworks show after the game.  Some of the best fireworks I’ve ever seen.

After the fireworks, Patty suggested we go back across the street (OMG), have a beer and by then the parking lot would be empty and we could head home.  We thought that was a great idea, so once again Patty safely lead us on a “death march” across the 4-lane highway with nothing more than her hand.  Here’s a kicker – we were denied entry to the diner, which has now become a nightclub, because we didn’t meet their “dress code.”  Our first clue should have been the sign “NO WEAPONS”.  The bouncer, or whatever he was, said no hats.  So we took off our hats, no problem.  Then he said no shorts…. Seriously??? – Tom and Warren had on shorts.  They couldn’t very well take them off (well Tom could’ve – but I know Warren is much more respectable).  So, back across the 4-lane highway on another “death march” lead by Patty and her hand, oh yeah, I’m pretty much checking my pants by now….  Lew and Adam and Eva decided to call it a night and head home.  Dick and Sandy had already gone home with their family in Karen’s mini-van.  Not to be discouraged from finding that last beer, Pat and Patty, Warren and Nancy and Tom and Jaimee headed back into the stadium where there was a blues concert going on – and a bar – serving Yuengling.  Thank goodness we survived all those “death marches” across the street because the music and the beer was really good!  One beer and we all headed for home.

It was a great night – baseball, fireworks, vegetables racing through Reading, a beaver, a duck, a turtle, death marches, a gang bar.  No wonder I have trouble sleeping…….

Thank you Pat and Patty for organizing our outing to the Reading Phillies and coming up with that great route.  Did I mention that Dick was in a “mini-van”???????

See you next time  – in Sullivan County.

Jaimee

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   August 4, 2012

On August 4th the Delaware Valley Classic MG Chapter held its 8th Annual Pennypacker Mills British Car Show in conjunction with the Pennypacker Mills county park event, “In the Good Old Summertime”. The Pit Crew, consisting of volunteer club members, arrived early in the morning to transform an open field into a place open to all cars and motorcycles of British descent. Ninety-four examples graced the field for the largest number to attend in the history of the event.

Thank you to all the entrants and the Pit Crew for making the 2012 show the best one yet.  We will try again next year.

All pictures taken by Dick Suffredini.

(A local MG owner and attendee, Erik Brzoska, wrote an article about attending car shows and mentions our show – with pictures.  You can check it out here.)

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   August 4, 2012

Class I- Austin Healey 100-4, 100-6, 3000 & Jensen Healey
First- David Paul,  Flemington NJ,  1960 3000 BT-7

Class II- Austin Healey Sprite
First- Dean Hedin, Hatboro PA, 1959 Sprite

Class III- Triumph TR2, TR3, TR3A, TR4 &TR4 IRS
First- Jean Gagnon, Pittstown NJ, 1961 TR3A

Class IV- Triumph TR250, TR6, TR7, TR8
First- Jeff & Megan Campinski, Media PA, 1976 TR6
Second- Cliff Besett, Staten Island NY, 1974 TR6

Class V- Triumph Spitfire, GT6 & Stag
No Entries

Class VI- Jaguar Pre-war Roadsters, XK120, XK 140 & XK150
No Entries

Class VII- Jaguar XKE Roadsters, Coupes & XJS
First- M Ferguson, Pennsburg PA, 1964 E-Type

Class VIII- Jaguar Sedans, Rolls Royce & Bentleys (Vintage & Modern)
First- Tom Boorse, North Wales PA, 1935 Rolls Royce 20/25

Class IX- Mini  Classic & Modern
First- Chuck Miller, Bensalem PA 1979 Mini

Class X- MG Pre 1956 Roadster, Sedan, Magnette & Variant
First- German & Lisa Garcia, White Plains NY, 1954 TF
Second- Gordon Todd, Lansdale PA 1954 TF
Third- Hank Rippert,  Soddy Daisy TN, 1951 TD

Class XI- MGA Roadster, Coupe, Twin Cam, Magnette & Variant
First- Donald Scholl, West Chester PA, 1959 Twin Cam
Second-Jim Schutte, Harleysville PA, 1958 Magnette ZB

Class XII- Chrome Bumper MGB, MGC & MGBV8 Tourer, GT & Modified
First- Gloria Ciarrocca, Lancaster PA, 1970 B
Second- Peter Richardson, Manahawkin NJ, 1967 B GT
Third- Bill Webb, Sellersville PA, 1967 B

Class XIII- Rubber Bumper MGB, MGC & MGBV8, Tourer, GT & Modified
First- Mark Johnson, Gilbertsville PA, 1976 B
Second- Carolyn Baranowski, 1975 B
Third- Scott Haller, Reading PA, 1980 B

Class XIV- MG Midget Chrome & Rubber Bumper & Modified
First- Harry Babski, Camp Hill PA, 1971 Midget
Second- Ryan & Annie Kubanoff, Yardley PA, 1974 Midget

Class V- Morgan & Daimler
No Entries

Class XVI-Miscellaneous British Roadsters & Racers
First- Lori Noyes, Brownstown PA, Sunbeam Tiger
Second- James Montague, Royersford PA, 1955 Nash Metropolitan

Class XVII- Miscellaneous British Coupes, Sedans, Saloons & Utility Vehicles
First- Howard Esterly, Wyomissing PA, 1974 TVR 2500M

Class XVIII- British Bikes
First- Stephen Kemmerer, Perkiomenville PA, 1974 Norton Commando

Best Attending Club- Philadelphia MG

Diamond in the Rough- George VanHorn, Collegeville PA, 1936 MG PB

Ladies’ Choice- James Montague, Royersford PA, 1955 Nash Metropolitan

Best in Show- Tom Boorse, North Wales PA, 1935 Rolls Royce 20/25

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   August 4, 2012

I believe this just may have been the hottest Pennypacker Mills car show and P3 party ever!  Just after 3:00 people started arriving at the party looking just a bit wilted and very thirsty.  After a quick cool-down in the air conditioning, people settled into the porch or the garage to relax and have a cold drink after the oppressive heat of the show field.   The garage is always a favorite hang out place – could it be the keg??  We soon had our own little car show going in the driveway.  Hope you all got to meet David and Karen Paul, who we had met at the Pittsburgh Grand Prix two weeks prior.  They own several British cars, brought their Austin Healey to the car show, and are hopefully the newest members of the DVC.

As usual, the food was delicious and the beer good and cold.  Thank you everyone for your contribution to dinner and your help in making this another successful P3 party.  A special thank you to Logan Phillips for helping Jaimee pick up the keg and ice.

Attendees were:
Hank Rippert (TD), Earl Wanklin (Porsche), Dick & Sandy Suffredini (TD), Pat & Patty Cawthorne (MGA), Wade Albright & Jill McKeown (MGA), Jeff Rose (MGB), Adam & Eva Ilnicki, Jim & Janet Taylor (MGA), Dave & Gloria Schwab (MGA), Bobbi & Lyn Hughes, Paul & Evonna Phillips (GT), Lew Phillips, Bill & Evelyn Webb (MGB), Louise Story (TD), Bill & Linda Boorse (MGB), Warren & Nancy Doerner (MGB), David & Karen Paul (Austin Healey), Garth Gill, Donna Bristol & Walt King, Dave Sarley (TC), Lee & Liz Niner (MGB), Keith Fishlinger, our neighbors – Cliff & MJ Webb and Ralph & Lilli Walters.

See you at the next DVC event!
Jaimee & Tom

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