Category Archives: Events

June 13th, 2010 – Rag Run

If you’re anything like us, you’ve got a stack of magazines sitting on the shelf awaiting recycling or re-reading. Here at the Classic Car Adventure’s offices, we think it time to give those Automotive magazines new life, and meet other car enthusiasts in the process! Surely other enthusiasts have magazines we wish we had bought, and ours have more reading life left in them. So we thought, “why don’t we try and get our Classic Car friends together and have a magazine swap?!” If you’ve been to any of our events before, you know we think classic cars are best enjoyed while moving…so of course we’ll be hosting a drive as well!

Similar to our Thanksgiving Run, our new “Rag Run” is a free-to-enter event with a short (approximately 45min-1hr) drive along some fantastic twisty roads. While there is no entry fee, we are asking each car to bring at least one-non perishable food item for the Food Bank. We definitely hope you’ll want to be involved in our magazine swap, to do so you simply need to bring three classic car magazines that you wish to swap out for three new (to you) ones. We’re not worried about whether the magazine you bring is one-marque specific, multi-branded, a particular style or even what year the magazine is from. If it’s got reading life left in it, it’s perfect!

Our drive through the valley will have simple to follow directions, in the typical Classic Car Adventures style. We’re heading out onto twisty roads which will take you back to those years before 6-lane highways from point A to point B. We’ve always felt the fun is in getting there, even if we’re doing a loop back to lunch! Speaking of Lunch, the Mission Springs Brewery has brought back their Sunday brunch due to popular demand…and we plan to try as much of the menu as possible! If you haven’t yet been to the Mission Springs Restaurant, you’re in for a treat. Whether it’s the antique gas pumps, the ’46 pickup hanging from the ceiling, or the spark plugs built into your table…there is something to interest every car nut.

When: Sunday June 13th, 2010. Driver’s meeting at 10:00am, Lunch (optional) following our drive.
Where: Meeting at the Mission Springs Restaurant parking lot. 7160 Oliver Street, at Lougheed Highway, Mission BC
What to Bring: At least one non-perishable food item for the food bank. Three classic-car related magazines (of any type).

This event is open to any make, and any model. While our events are certainly geared towards cars made in 1979 and earlier, the most important part is that you’re a classic car enthusiast!

Vancouver ABFM Video

With over 630 classic cars on display, the 2010 edition of the Vancouver All British Field Meet was one of the best yet. Held in the beautiful VanDusen Botanical Gardens, this year’s show featured the Jaguar E-Type and British-built Fords. The first in the Classic Car Adventures video series, we check out a few of the highlights, including an AC Ace, 1934 Aston Martin Ulster, and a Jaguar E-Type.

Vancouver All British Meet this weekend

Jaguar E-types at the 2009 Vancouver ABFM (Photo: Warwick Patterson)

One of the big local early-season events for classic car fans, and British classics in particular, is the Vancouver All British Field Meet. Held in the lush Van Dusen Gardens, this is a great gathering, offering up a wide selection of drool-worthy machinery. The 2010 edition will be celebrating British-built Fords, plus the Jaguar E-type which celebrates its 50th birthday this year.

This annual celebration of the British motorcar and motorbike is the largest of its kind in Western Canada, with more than 5,000 attendees and 600 cars and motorbikes displayed at the beautiful VanDusen Garden on Saturday May 22, 2010. The garden setting, brass band music, piper, concessions, swap meet, artists gallery and vendor booths all complement the wonderful display of cars and bikes.

2009 Vancouver ABFM (Photo: Warwick Patterson)

New this year, Hagerty Collector Car Insurance, the world’s leading provider of collector vehicle insurance will be on site to present a series of seminars called “Cars That Matter “ – focusing on the past 25 years of British classic car values – on the Great Lawn at VanDusen Gardens. This series is no cost to show attendants and will run at scheduled intervals throughout the day.

The Cars That Matter sessions will be conducted by Dave Kinney, arguably one of North Americas most knowledgeable collector car experts. Kinney is a member of the American Society of Appraisers and has over thirty-five years experience in various aspects of the special interest, antique, classic and production vehicle areas of the market.

In addition to the Hagerty’s Cars That Matter series Hagerty will be encouraging Vancouver’s youth to get involved at the show through their Operation Ignite! Connecting Kids with Cars initative by hosting their signature Youth Judging Program. A joint initiative with the ABFM to help ensure the future of the collector vehicle hobby, young people under the age of 18 will have the opportunity to learn about the basics of judging a cross section of classics on the field including those cars entered in the Young Timers class for owners under the age of 25.

The youth program will be conducted by Tabetha Salsbury, Hagerty’s Youth Program coordinator who has a degree in Automotive Restoration from McPherson College, McPherson Kansa. Parents and Grandparents of young people seventeen and under should contact show organisers to reserve a place for their young enthusiasts in this interesting free program.

“In addition to our recent announcement of offering Collector Car Insurance to Canadian markets we are eager to share our other resources with car enthusiasts in Canada”, says McKeel Hagerty, CEO of Hagerty Insurance.

“Dave Kinney’s expertise with collector car values and our Youth Judging program provides reasons the entire family can take away valuable insights from the show.”

Hagerty’s Operation Ignite! “Connecting Kids with Cars” is a suite of programs designed to grow the interest of the hobby among young people through interactive events including Youth Judging, Young Designers Contest, Scale Model-building Contest, Kid friendly Car Show Kit, Motorsport Paddock Tours and a youth -oriented website. Through these programs, young people will gain hands-on experience that will increase the education of and enthusiasm for collector automobiles, boats and tractors.

See you on Saturday!

Volvo so good it couldn’t be true, but it was

Not only was he our trusty sweep driver for the 2010 Spring Thaw, Nigel Matthews is also a regular contributor to Vancouver daily newspaper, The Province. This article appeared online and on Page C21 in the Friday, May 7th edition.

Click for Larger Version

The three-day 2010 Spring Thaw Adventure tour along the scenic route from Hope to Squamish, via Osoyoos, Sun Peaks and the Duffy Lake road, attracted around 65 classic cars from all over B.C., Alberta, Oregon, Washington and one from as far afield as Lake Worth, Florida.

Last weekend’s run, staged by classicaradventures.com,featured some wonderful automotive gems — Aston-Martin, Alfa Romeo, BMW, Datsun, Fiat, Intermeccanica, Jensen-Healey, Lancia, Lotus, MG, Mini, Mercedes, Opel, Pontiac, Porsche, Rover, Saab, Triumph, Volvo and Volkswagen.

One of the Volvos caught my eye, it belongs to John Chattin-McNichols, of Seattle, he spotted the 1967 Volvo 144S on Craigs List for an asking price of $500. He asked all the usual questions of the seller, using his knowledge of the particular model’s, shall we say, peculiarities. Queries relating to such matters as rust and that vinyl dashboard top, which has a tendency to crack? The owner responded in the negative to each question and stated: “It’s in mint condition”.

Chattin-McNichols was now becoming a little agitated, thinking he was getting the usual exaggerated sales talk. Knowing that most Volvo rear seats of that age are often in poor condition he asked the final question. “Hang on, I will look,” said the seller. A few moments later the out of breath owner, returned to the phone: “Perfect . . . I don’t think they have even been sat on”.

The only downside was a fuel tank full of pinholes; a simple fix.

Photo: Tony Latham

The 144 series was the first of the boxy body style Volvos to us the tridigit nomenclature that designated a series 1-four-cylinder-four-door, the “S” model was fitted with the more powerful B18B engine used in the 1800S sports car.

Small numbers of this model made their way to North America. This example was a factory delivery car, meaning that the original owner took delivery of it at the factory in Sweden, drove it around Europe and then had it delivered to the USA. It still had the decal indicating this on the side glass

The 144S had spent the last 18 years in storage, its original female owner had given it to her son and he had little interest in using it, so he did not.

Photo: Tony Latham

A 1966 Volvo 1800S owned by Irvin Gordon of East Patchogue, New York, USA holds the Guinness world record for the highest mileage in a Volvo, using the same engine as Chattin-McNichols 144S. Gordon has driven it for more than 40 years. It has covered 2.7 million miles and the owner is now targeting the three million mile mark.

Nigel Matthews is the sales and marketing executive for Hagerty Canada– hagerty.canmatthews@hagerty.com

Event: Annie & Steve Norman Classic Car Rally

Annie and Steve Norman were participants on the first Spring Thaw Adventure in 2009 in their Hudson Commodore. We received this email with info about their charity rally and thought we’d pass it along. This looks like a fun event with a competitive navigational TSD rally element.

Announcing the 18^th Annual Annie & Steve Norman Classic Car Rally.

This year it is being held from the Semiahmoo Resort just outside Blaine Wa.

The dates are: June 17 – June 20, 2010

This is a Time-Speed-Distance (TSD) event. It is primarily open to Classic (Pre 1977) cars however, there is class for Contemporary (1977 & up) sporting cars. It helps raise money for the Nonprofit College Planning Network which assists students achieve academic goals. This will be the 18th annual running of the rally and to date, the rally has raised over $180,000.

This is a wonderful annual event. Each year it is held at a relaxing venue in the Northwest. If you are a first timer to this event you will find everyone friendly and will look forward to attending again. During the day, this event annually offers scenic roads with safe but challenging competition for teams. During the evening everyone relaxes and socializes. Some may wish to talk cars, some may wish to check out the spa.

http://www.collegeplan.org/rally

For those who want to attend this event but don’t yet have a team (1 driver, 1 navigator); the rallymaster may be able to pair you up with others that contact him with the same request.

Please feel free to contact Doug Breithaupt (Rallymaster) if you are considering attending this year or even for future years.

Website: http://www.collegeplan.org/rally
Email: doug@collegeplan.org
Phone: (206) 323-0624

For those who wish to bring along family members, extra arrangements may be made to through the rallymaster to include them in the event.

The Spring Thaw Effect

By Warwick Patterson

Over the past few days I’ve been trying to write a concise wrap-up article about this year’s Spring Thaw Adventure, but it has been difficult for several reasons. First, as an organizer, the days of planning, preparing, and participating merge together into one blur and my experience becomes very different from a participant’s. That said, there are moments over the three days that stand out in my mind and make me realize why I love classic cars and why its important for people to get out and drive them.

When Dave and I decided to boost the numbers up to 60 cars from the 42 we had in 2009, we didn’t think much of it. It made for slightly more work in the hotel and restaurant department, but otherwise nothing really changed. We knew we were onto something special when the 2010 event sold out in the span of a week, but it was humbling to step up onto the bench in Hope, BC to address over 120 participants. This had become something much more than just going for a drive in the country with crazy friends!

“

Driver's Meeting, Hope, BC. Photo: Lee Pederson

The general public and governments dismiss ‘old’ cars as things that pollute our streets and should be scrapped to help stimulate a false economy. And yet, here was a group of people ready to strap in and drive the snot out of their ‘clunkers’ for the pure art and enjoyment of driving. I couldn’t keep the smile off my face as car after beautiful car rolled past to the start line and took off on their adventure. A big thanks to the town of Hope for the red carpet roll-out, especially Inge at the Visitor Centre, Victor of the Chamber of Commerce, and the Mayor, Laurie French.

Hope Mayor, Laurie French, and Chamber President, Victor Smith, wave off the competitors at the start.

Sometimes our event plans are tested in advance and we know they will work. Other ideas look good on paper and we have to leave it in the hands of Mother Nature and the local hosts to make it a success. Such was the case with our Friday lunch stop at See Ya Later Ranch winery. On the pre-runs it seemed to be a nice venue, the manager owned a Sunbeam Alpine, and they were keen to host our group. “Make it so!” we said, and a couple weeks later, sixty cars rolled into the vineyard. The sun came out, a bag lunch was provided, and it couldn’t have been more perfect! From my perspective, hurdle number one had been surpassed but there was still two days to go. During the event, I live in perpetual fear of finding out I’ve confused my rights and lefts when composing the routebook!

Cars parked for lunch at See Ya Later Ranch winery. Photo Warwick Patterson.

Sandwiches and Scenery at See Ya Later Ranch

One of the highlights of the weekend for me was at the first photo location on Saturday, at a small one-lane bridge leading to Black Sage Road in the heart of wine country. The first car to appear was the 1953 Aston Martin DB2 followed closely by the ex-Carrera Panamericana Alfa Giulia TI. After crossing the bridge they both accelerated in unison up the hill and across the ridge, sending their refined roar across the valley. I felt a twinge of pride, knowing that Dave and I helped bring these two cars together on that road to be enjoyed as they were meant to be – at full song on a twisty ribbon of tarmac.

This is one limit the 1953 Aston Martin DB2 won't be breaking.

One of the more common stories Dave and I heard over the weekend, is how the Spring Thaw created a hard deadline for a project. An engine rebuild or restoration that perhaps would drag on all summer, suddently gets an injection of urgency. There were many cars in pieces just months and weeks – and, indeed, days – before the event. Our Spirit of the Thaw award went to Duncan and Kirk Cowen in their V6-swapped MGA. Duncan was still trying to get the motor to fit in January and at 12:05am the day of the Spring Thaw the car roared to life for the first time and they hit the road. Better yet, they ran with the top down through sun, rain, hail, and snow the whole weekend. I’m not even sure the car had a top! These are the sorts of insane people the ‘Thaw was intended for.

Duncan and Kirk Cowen won the Spirit of the Thaw award. Photo Warwick Patterson.

For the second year in a row, the entourage spent Saturday night at Sun Peaks Resort north of Kamloops. With ski season over, most of the restaurants and shops are closed, so finding somewhere to feed 130 people can be a challenge. The Delta Hotel said they could fit that many people, so we arranged for a meal there. It was only when I walked in the doors that I realized we were going to be in the ballroom! This was not right…first a winery stop and now a ballroom dinner? There goes our grassroots low-budget credibility!

Dinner at Sun Peaks Resort on Saturday. A slightly grander affair than expected!

'Parc Expose' in Sun Peaks, BC

To cap off the weekend of adventure, the cars headed over the Duffy Lake Road from Lillooet into Pemberton and finished in Squamish, BC. The Duffy is an amazing stretch of road, often used in car commercials, and takes you from dry, arid desert terrain over the mountains and back into the coastal rainforest. This time, Mother Nature gave us warning that perhaps our time was coming to an end, and she started throwing a few snow flakes into the mix at the top of the pass.

Minis take on the Duffy Lake Road

One of those moments that made me smile and remember why we do this event came on our run through the pass in the little Mini. It was like we were transported back in time and suddenly had been dropped into a European mountain range. As I vigorously stirred the 4-pot to stay in the power band and pitched the little Mini into the corners to keep up, ahead of us romped a Renault Gordini, an Alfa Sprint Veloce, and a gorgeous Alfa Giulia SS. As Dave Birchall said, “Who needs Mille Miglia!”

Like we've been transported back to Europe 1966. Gordini, Sprint Veloce, Giulia SS on the Duffy Lake Rd.

And so it was with cooked brakes and tired bodies we arrived in downtown Squamish for the finish. Even through the bitter wind and rain, everyone seemed to have a weary smile on their face. In a cruel twist of fate, the other half of the organizing duo arrived in the back of the Sweep truck. Dave’s motor had made an awful knock-knock-knock sound while leaving Sun Peaks in the morning and the the oil pressure light came on. At the final awards, Dave found himself accepting the The Hard Luck trophy that he had just built days before! Another really fun trip with like-minded crazy car nuts was in the books. New friends, new cars to lust after, and best of all, we don’t have to start thinking about the next one for at least a couple more weeks!

Thanks to all our supporters and sponsors – Hagerty Collector Car Insurance, AVR Import Specialties, Dave Koszegi Realty, BringaTrailer.com, Classic Motorsports, Permatex, Lordco Auto Parts, Northwest Auto Salon, and the West Coast Rally Association for helping us put on the event. Most of all, a huge thank you to all the participants who came out with their fantastic cars. The people are what make this event so fun.

Spring Thaw 2010 – Day 3 Photos

Another Spring Thaw is in the books, wrapping up with a romp over the Duffy Lake road to Squamish. A few snow flakes couldn’t dampen the spirits of the drivers, as the scenery and winding road stretched out ahead. Andrew Snucins braved the cold high-altitude temperatures for several hours to catch some more great photos. We’ll have a full event recap up soon – we need to stop vibrating from a weekend in the car and catch some sleep!

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