Tag Archives: drive

2019 Hagerty Silver Summit – Supp Regs Posted!

Back in the 50’s and 60’s, as you and your works team prepared to enter an upcoming rally, you would wait in anticipation for the Supplementary Regulations Document. That all-important document that told you the specific details about a particular event. Those of you anticipating the 2019 Hagerty Silver Summit entry opening will be excited to know the Supp-Regs document has just been posted!

Inside you’ll find all the details necessary for registration, which you can do starting mid-day on February 12th when we post the entry form. We thought we’d give you a day to read the important Supp-Regs document before releasing the entry forms!

Here are a few images from the 2018 Hagerty Silver Summit, to get you excited for this year…

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2018 Hagerty Maple Mille – Day Two

“Well,” I said sarcastically to Larry as the temperature continued to drop, “at least the view is nice!” The two of us were standing in a dark parking lot, making small talk as we both pretended we weren’t shivering. The rest of the group was at our night two hotel, enjoying the banquet dinner. Needless to say, Saturday was not ending the way either of us had planned!

We awoke in the morning in Collingwood Ontario, and dined as a group for breakfast in the Gustav Restaurant. Outside was chilly, bordering on ‘cold’, and so we hosted the drivers meeting in the spacious hotel lobby. With the usual important items for the day covered, an Ontario specific item was mentioned…where on the route guests would find the best Butter Tarts. Our American friends looked confused, but we assured them things would make sense before lunch.

Leaving Collingwood, we followed the lake side past historic shipbuilding yards, and into the tourist town of Wasaga Beach. With summer over, we turned east and headed across the last of the farm fields we would see for the 2018 event. Rolling farmland soon turned to granite, signalling our approach to the Muskoka, and the twisty roads within.

We started with Upper Big Chute road, before taking Muskoka Road 38 into the town of Bala. Upper Big Chute is famous for its marine railway, but known to those who love twisty roads as a wonderful warmup in the Muskokas. Highway 38 into Bala has probably been featured in every motorcycle book, magazine, or ‘Don’t-miss’ ride list for the province. It twist, turns and delivers on every corner. Moments after ending in the Town of Bala, you could find the entire event parked outside of Don’s Bakery.

First opened in 1947, Don’s bakery has been using the same recipe for their butter tarts for seventy-one years. Butter Tarts, if you’re not familiar, are a small pastry tart that is known as a quintessential Canadian treat. Resembling a little pie, the butter tart has a filling of butter, sugar, syrup and egg. Baked until the crust is flakey, and the filling semi solid. The best butter tarts, according to your organizer, contain raisins and no nuts. But you’ll find pecan varieties, plain (no raisins), and many others. “The best butter tart” is a hotly contested Canadian designation, one which would cause civil wars and territory disputes…if us Canadians were inclined to such things. It seems no two people can agree to which bakery the best are made. Ontario, though, is certainly the home of the best examples…While you’ll find butter tarts elsewhere, much like Poutine outside of Quebec, they pale to those found in the home province. A silly, but tasty, tradition on the Hagerty Maple Mille is for the route book to highlight at least one spot during the weekend where “the best” tarts can be found. This year, it was Don’s Bakery, and many a butter tart were purchased!

With our morning cravings subdued for a short bit, we launched into more Muskoka twisties in search of lunch. We headed North, through Port Carling and then into the Town of Rosseau, where it seems most of the group decided to stop in at the Crossroads Restaurant. They were quite busy for a September Saturday afternoon, but we soon discovered that most of the area was without power and folks hadn’t been able to cook a dinner the previous night!

Following Rosseau, the route took us North towards the city of Sudbury. Typically travellers who head to Sudbury are subject to hours on highway 69. While full of wonderful views of rock formations, and phenomenal canoe tripping rivers, our route aimed to avoid highway 69 as much as possible. We explored Nobel (home of the Avro Arrow program), Shebeshekong, Shawanaga, Naiscoot, and other towns long ago used for the fur trade. As we passed the French River, it was off to towns like Noelville, Lavinge and Markstay-Warren. As the route turned south, for the final loop of twisties in Greater Sudbury, Larry’s Wildcat started acting up.

At first, he thought the transmission might be low on oil and slipping. But as the decision was made to high-tail it direct to the hotel was made…the transmission decided that no drive at all would be allowed. Neither forward, or reverse, would do anything. Larry was stuck. Fortunately on each of our Hagerty sponsored events, guests are supported by the Hagerty Roadside Assistance program (regardless of who insures their vehicle). While I started the banquet dinner, our Sweep crew of Aaron and Elliot called Hagerty with Larry.

While Larry’s transmission issue occurred with over an hour of route left, the truth is he was less than twenty minutes from the hotel! Rarely do I have an opportunity to rescue sweep and get them a hot dinner when their stuck, so I drove out relieve them and hang out with Larry. Before long, we were walking into the banquet hall to cheers, and concern, about the condition of Larry’s car. Plates had been saved for both of us, cold beer was waiting, and we enjoyed a late dinner with friends as we debated possible solutions for the transmission.

A mechanical, especially one requiring a tow truck, is never desirable. But to spend a sunny day enjoying great roads, arguing the fine art of pastries, and enjoying great meals with friends surpasses any negative roadside experience. A storage spot for the Buick had been arranged, extra seats for the rest of the weekend were available, and we had stories (and scotch!) to share. What could be better than this?

A special thanks to Elliot Alder & Clayton Seams for the photos that accompany today’s story.

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Hagerty Maple Mille – Day One

Tornado warning? I asked, via text message, “That’s what it said, but the radar looks like we’re going to miss everything.” Hmmm, this might not be the usual Hagerty Maple Mille we run!

For the first three years, the Classic Car Adventures Hagerty Maple Mille has enjoyed stunning weather. We’ve had cold mornings, but every day has been top-down motoring. Looking at the Ontario weather reports yesterday, I had concerns that we were going to get wet today. Most of Ontario was under a moderate to severe thunderstorm warning, and while sunny, the wind was certainly picking up before the driver’s meeting!

For the most part, however, I shouldn’t have worried. Our route today began in Guelph, and went west through Maryhill to find some twisties on our way up through Elora. Just as it seemed we were going to pass through a band of dark clouds, the route would turn north instead of west, or east instead of north. We zig-zagged our way north through small country towns, rolling farm hills and past long-forgotten historic places of Ontario. Our group lunched in Mt Forest or Durham, and after visiting Markdale, headed for the afternoon loops.

For Clayton and I, powering along in his 1970 Corvette, we saw little rain. We put the T-Tops back on at lunch, but quickly pulled them off as things got sunny. We pulled over at one stage to put them back on, but decided we may have made an error. No worries, we thought, we’ll take them once we’re done taking photos. As the front half of the cars passed us, I seriously wondered if I was wearing enough sun screen. As we were waiting for the back half of the group, a small shower came through and we opted to move on. It was a little rain, nothing worth even mentioning. The roads were dry just a few kilometres later. I guess, for some of the group, that wasn’t the case. As the storms of Ontario powered up, portions of our group got rained on in absolute deluges, but always short lived.

We visited the twists and turns of my wintering youth. In the early days of my licensed driving career I was instructing skiing or coaching snowboarding at Devil’s Glen Country Club. The many roads that follow river valleys and the escarpment mountains were the “Monte Carlos” of my teenaged years. What could be better than taking our Maple Mille guests on them? The route book took us on little known roads near Horning’s Mills and Honeywood, before twisting up through Dunedin, Creemore and Glen Huron. In amongst the road instructions were stories of Mrs Giffen’s pies, and what would eventually (once I was legal) become my favourite beer in Canada. We went to Stayner, past a family favourite restaurant, and into the backside of Collingwood where I honed my mountain bike skills. The whole time we took every twisty road the area has to offer.

Arriving at the hotel resort for the evening, our traditional “parking lot party” was cut short by the high winds, but some things simply can’t be stopped with weather. The sun had once again come out in full, and cars were being washed. The Corvette was being looked at by five or six intrepid mechanics….an attempt to find the odd drivetrain noise we seem to be developing. A group of guests found a patio sheltered by the wind to host an impromptu get together. Winds, a spattering of rain, possibly a couple of ‘torrential downpours’ (really…are convertible people truly trustworthy about weather reports?)…none of it could hamper the day.

The roads today were wonderful, the towns lovely and scenic, but we’re most excited to simply be out enjoying driving our classics with other like minded people. Over half the group raised their hands this morning when asked who was here for their first Maple Mille, and by dinner you couldn’t tell who was new. Gather great people, some interesting cars, and some great roads…and it’s bound to be a perfect day. The Classic Car Adventures Hagerty Maple Mille is off to a great start.

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Hagerty Fall Classic – Day Three

With our final drivers meeting complete for this year, our group hit the road from Prineville to The Dalles for the end of the Hagerty Fall Classic. Despite being the final day for the event, we certainly hadn’t used up all the great roads…and by the time we got to the finish, many of us had wished a second half of the day was yet to come.

Leaving Prineville, we headed west along the Oneil Highway, a meandering journey through golden fields of cut hay. Just as you begin to think about whether the morning will be all rolling hills and fields, the road twists and the towering rocks of Smith Rock jump out into view. It’s a stark, and almost shocking, contrast to the rolling fields. Similar to driving along the plains of Nebraska, only to turn a corner and see an example of the Rock Mountains towering over a tiny town.

From there it was North to Willowdale, where we left the fields and plains for canyon carving. The road twisted relentlessly up onto a plateau where we went through Antelope, the historic towns of Shaniko and Bakeoven, and then tested the brakes all the way down into Maupin.

For the start of the twisties I was following the group of Minis and an Alfa Romeo, with one of the BMW’s and a Corvette behind me. I realized, too late, when the road started to twist and climb that there was no where for me to pull over. The ’58 Volkswagen was going to have to keep up to the Minis and not disappoint the cars behind me. With my foot firmly planted to the rubber mat, I gripped the steering wheel and dove into each corner. As the theme music to a certain childhood movie staring a white car with the number 53 on it played in my head, an old saying came to mind. “Its better to drive a slow car fast, then drive a fast car slow.” No where was this more true than the climb up onto our first plateau.

While the Minis danced their way up the corners looking like a life sized slot-car set, the BWM and corvette behind me appeared to be enjoying the drive while not riding onto my back bumper. In the ’58 beetle I was merely doing the speed limit up the hill, but I couldn’t have found an single extra mile per hour if you had closed the road and called it a race course.

Leaving Shaniko, along a road we’ve used in a previous event, I looked forward to the reverse of our canyon climb, as you drop all the way down to the Deschute River in Maupin. It’s a series of twists and switchbacks that will test the brakes on any car not driven with foresight and planning. Upon reaching the bottom, there’s a beautiful drive along the river, where the slow speed limits allow you to take in the views and watch the white water rafters next to you in the river. Soon you arrive at a stop sign, and turn left…er, right? Hmm, the route book says right…I don’t remember this road?

Moments later were climbing up a canyon twisty that would be far more at home in the Alps vs the middle of Oregon. Every 100ft there was a sign proclaiming “Abrupt Edge”, when it honestly should have read “no shoulder, that’s a cliff.” With zero guardrails, and a sudden drop for hundreds of feet, I was sure happy to be in the driver’s seat and not the co-drivers spot! We crossed the Deschutes river canyon, made our way up through the grass valley and eventually over to The Dalles, where the Columbia Gorge Discovery Centre hosted our finish lunch.

This being our final meal together, it was time for some awards, recognition, and draw prizes. The Hard Luck award will be headed to Duane and Sylvia, who had to head home early in their Jaguar XK140. A float issue was causing one cylinder to flood, and despite a couple of roadside attempts no repair could be made.

The McGyver award went to Bill and David in the BMW. Initially we thought it would be for the way they managed to repair a clutch slave cylinder with a bolt, and rebleed it on the side of the road…but they decided to add to the effect by arriving at the finish with an exhaust system held onto the car with bailing wire, rope and a whatever else they could find in the car. As it turns out, if you see the exhaust system appears a little rusty on your pre-event inspection…you should probably check to see if it’s surface rust or almost all the way through!

The Hagerty Sprit of the Classic award was (unknowingly) in stiff competition this year. Ross flew in from Colorado, to join Jacob in a car they bought together essentially sight-unseen three days before the event. The Mini crew continued to be the life of the evening party, while entertaining us all on the road with their usual parade antics. Jay and Linda arrived as new entrants, but made friends so quickly they were “regulars” before the Thursday dinner had even started. But in the end, we could only award the honour to one entrant.

They began the weekend as new entrants, but not only quickly made friends…they made it a mission to get to know as many people as possible. Each night they were seen dining with new people, finding out all about what made them join our adventure. On the road, when their center console of their Camaro became a gear-oil volcano through the shifter, they were unfazed. Together with help from other cars, they created axle stands from rocks, diagnosed where the oil fountain was coming from (a torn shift boot) and worked out a system by which the co-driver was now in charge of both directions and oil deflection. When the problem couldn’t be solved on Saturday night, rather than head home directly, they decided that an adventure such as our should be finished! Besides, the whole underside needed to be cleaned anyways…what’s another day of oil? All smiles as they shared stories of their adventure at the finish, Aaron and Zafera were the perfect choice for our Spirit of the Classic award!

RWM & Co. graciously donated two gift certificates worth over $300 each for use at their Delta BC restoration shop. Len Swanson and Aaron Aaron will be making good use of their certificates in the coming winter!

With our event almost complete, it was time to draw for the two Roue Watches which had been asked about all weekend. Bill Eastman, winner of the McGyver award, will be able to time their next repair using his new SSD model Roue watch. Helaine has found the perfect early birthday present for her husband Curt after having her name drawn for the CHR model watch. We think it will look pretty good with his Hyabusa powered Lotus Seven!

All too soon it was time to say good bye until next year. We’ll be back for next year’s Hagerty Fall Classic, and you certainly won’t want to miss out on the fun. Events, much like slow cars driven fast, are much better experienced in person vs. reading about it!

Thanks, once again, to Andrew Holliday Photography for another stunning preview of images from today’s adventure.

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Hagerty Fall Classic – Day 2

Where else, besides a Classic Car Adventures event, can you find yourself driving a Volkswagen Beetle amongst two Alfas, three minis, a Jaguar, a Caterham 7, a Camaro, an RX7, and a Citroen? That’s exactly how my morning started.

Yesterday, despite throughly enjoying the 1958 Beetle I’ve brought, I found myself often wishing I had the power of the Rally Bug (my usual event vehicle of choice). While I can keep up with the group on the flat sections, as soon as the hills appear the ’58 simply can’t keep pace. It was mid morning yesterday when I even waived sweep on to go ahead without me. “A timing adjustment,” I thought, “and moving to mid-grade fuel, should squeeze a couple more horses out of the tired engine I’m using.”

As cars started departing the parking lot after the Driver’s meeting, I quickly tossed my gear in the ’58 and tried to start as close to the first cars as possible. If I start in the front, it will take longer for me to end up all the way in the back! I nosed the car out into the group, and soon we were on the road departing from Goldendale WA.

Our route took us east through Washington farm and wine country, along rolling hills and meandering highways, before heading south into Oregon. As the road meandered, and I followed the group mentioned above, I enjoyed what felt like a touch more power. It’s easy to forget it’s 2018, and instead find yourself looking at the Minis as they dart around corners without (seemingly) any suspension movement. A sharp contrast to the Citroen DS who’s wheels seem to dance independently, while the occupants inside never move due to road conditions. In the absence of traffic, we could be a convoy heading to work in 1968, instead of a rally of enthusiasts out for a fun drive.

At the first gas stop, the Mini’s admitted to me they were holding back to allow me to keep up. I turned my back for a moment, and zip! They were gone from the gas station. I suppose 30 below the speed limit up hill was really cramping their style! No worries, as the Jag, Caterham, Alfas and RX-7 were more than happy to drive with me south to Heppner, where we all found lunch together.

Dining on a Classic Car Adventures event can be an interesting affair. Entrants are typically on their own for lunch, encouraged to support local restaurants along the way. Sometimes, when we all descend upon a small town at once, it can result in some challenges! The poor look on the bartender’s face as we walked into the Tavern in Heppner, and replied “yeah, I think we will” to her question of “are you all going to eat lunch? Roughly twenty of us ordered lunch at once, and as the grill was fired up the exhaust hood in the open kitchen failed.

Secretly, I think our bartender/waitress/chef (she was doing it all herself today) is a classic car owner in another lifetime. She fired up a couple of fans, tossed the multitudes of burgers on the grill and we all made the best of it! When the food arrived, and the smoke dissipated enough that we could see it, we happily discovered it was excellent, and worthy of being “the best place to dine in Heppner”.

Following a hearty lunch, we headed south over mountain passes, through the Umatilla and Ochoco National Forests, carved along canyon walls and eventually popped out at our overnight spot of Prineville OR. Along the way a BMW had to McGyver a repair for a damaged clutch slave cylinder, and a Camaro has started spraying gear oil out of the shifter boot(!), but everyone made it in time for dinner and repairs will be made before morning.

I can’t believe day three is tomorrow, and we only have one day left together…

Thanks, once again, to Andrew Holliday Photography for another stunning preview of images from today’s adventure.

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Hagerty Fall Classic – Day One

Imagine, for a moment, that you just spent the day hanging out with your best friends. Perhaps you haven’t seen them for a few weeks, months, or even a year…but the time that has passed simply doesn’t matter. By the end of day one, that’s exactly what the Hagerty Fall Classic was, hanging out with best friends who haven’t seen each other in a year, or maybe ever before!

Alright, in fairness the Hagerty Fall Classic started last night with the “unofficial, unorganized” Thursday night party. These started a few years ago as a way for the out-of-town guests to connect the night before an event, but have become so popular that the local guests are sure to make their calendars free so they can attend. Last night we jammed a local Italian restaurant beyond capacity and got to know one another over rich pastas and Italian reds.

Despite our dinner the night before, however, after the driver’s meeting this morning I was wondering if we had started to gel as a group. Usually I can barely keep the group together until the end of the meeting, they’re briskly walking to their cars to get a head start before I finish. This morning, though, there was a lull. It turns out everyone was trying to work out which friends they were going to start the event with!

We started out in Troudale Oregon, and headed for a taste of the Columbia Gorge, with it’s wonderful roads that twist and turn around both sides of the canyon. The route was quick to head south, in order to give our entrants fantastic views, and the twists and turns, through Mount Hood National Forest. From there it was north to Hood River, where many of us stopped for lunch before crossing North into Washington.

In Washington we carved north through the pine and oak forests of Trout Lake and Klickitat, before heading east, and into the desert scrub region. At one point you’re high up in the trees, the air thick with the smell of pines and, in just a single corner, the road twists and suddenly its dry prairie grasslands. Between the rugged river canyons, the high alpine meadows, the pine and oak forests, and then the dry deserts it felt as though we had driven through four different planets today.

As the group gathered amongst the cars before dinner, one thing was clear; the roads were fantastic and we couldn’t have had better day. Interestingly, by dinner time you couldn’t tell who was a new entrant and who has been here for a few years or more. By the start of dinner, it was clear we were just one big happy family of collector car enthusiasts, a sentiment that spilled out into the parking lot party that went on until midnight. Bed time came, not because we wanted to sleep, but simply because we wanted to be ready and alert for tomorrow’s adventure!

A selection of photos from day one, provided by Andrew Holliday Photography, are below.

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2018 Rush to Gold Bridge – Day One

“Uh oh,” I said to Mark as he was driving, “this road is getting thinner, not bigger.” As the organizer of an ambitious gravel-road adventure for classic cars, the last thing you want to be is lost. But lost I was…

The Rush to Gold Bridge (R2GB) is our annual event that mixes a love of classic cars with gravel roads, and tends to bring out the most adventurous of our classic car friends. Despite the name, we weren’t actually going to Gold Bridge BC. The event enjoyed an overnight stay in Gold Bridge on the first year, and the name sort of stuck. This year’s event is sponsored by Roue Watch, and I contemplated how many jokes there would be about checking the time, had I given away the two prize watches at the start! I had planned on the group exiting the first gravel section at about noon, more than enough time to get to Merritt for lunch time. As I checked my watch, again, and noticed the time was 1pm and we were certainly lost I feared this year’s event was quickly becoming a possible Rush to No Where!

We started out on Friday morning in Hope BC, from one of our favourite coffee shops, The Blue Moose. After a brief driver’s meeting, ten classic cars headed north on Highway one, bound for a gravel road just a touch past Boston Bar. Knowing that not every classic car owner is as excited for a gravel adventure as we are, the route book also offers a tarmac-only option which allows the group meet-up at various towns throughout the day. So it was with a fair bit of surprise to find that the whole group had turned off to venture up our first gravel option.

Leading the pack was an Austin Mini, with rally lights and roof rack it certainly looked the part. The dry-weather track tires, in soft compound no less, was an interesting choice. Our group included an Alfa Romeo Graduate, a Rover 3500s, a Saab 96 Rally Car, Mercedes 250, an Intermeccanica 356 replica, an MGB, TWO Lotus Elans, a Lancia Beta Montecarlo, and a Lotus Seven that looked strangely like a Land Rover (which had to be substituted due to some engine issues). Should a logging or hunting vehicle happen upon this group, they were sure to be very confused!

We began to climb almost immediately, finding the road to be a little rough in sections, but not too bad. Ten kilometres later, the assessment of just how rough seemed to depend on which car you rode up in. The Saab rally car, and the Rover, found the road to be like freshly laid pavement. The Elans and Intermeccanica had an opposite assessment! We drove past mountain creeks, through a massive washout (thankfully repaired) and regrouped at an unexpected junction. “The route book says we should go straight ahead”, commented a faithful entrant. “True,” replied another, “but the road name we’re supposed to follow is a left?” “Hey Dave,” they asked, “which way are we going?”

Uh, well, according to the map…this junction isn’t supposed to be here. We weren’t “lost”, in the respects that I had no idea where we were. We simply didn’t know which way to go to get where we wanted to be. That’s different, right?

We tried straight ahead, and quickly came upon a rough water crossing that the Elans definitely wouldn’t be able to cross. Tire marks, however, suggested that the Saab and Alfa Graduate (which had gone ahead) did make it across. After back tracking, we tried the left and soon Mark and I were leading along a road which was getting thinner, and less used, with each passing kilometre. My stress level, and fear of leading a group of classic car owners three-hours into a dead-end, were increasing with each passing corner…

Suddenly the road opened up, another junction (which shouldn’t be there) appeared, and the route was obviously correct. A right turn, and twenty-plus glorious switchbacks dropped us over 2,000 feet down to the highway. As we rolled out onto tarmac, the feeling of accomplishment and joy was shared by everyone in the group. We had done what shouldn’t be done, what some would say couldn’t be done (especially in an an Elan!), but we had made it…and all before lunch!

Well, if you’re in the habit of having lunch at 3pm that is. I suppose you could say our gravel pass took a little longer than planned! Pizza at the Spences Bridge Log Cabin Pub was just what the doctor ordered, however, and we ate as though we’d been lost in the forest for weeks.

We returned to the parking lot, discussed the afternoon route, and were about to fire up our cars when we noticed a slight problem with the Intermeccanica. Engine oil, generally speaking, does it’s best job when located inside the engine. In this particular case, however, the oil was making a fast escape to ensure no dust would ever rise from the parking lot. We were going to need some axle stands, and a clean-up crew on parking stall sixteen. With no axle stands to be found, we improvised and dragged over a pair of railway ties. The improvisation was just beginning!

The air-cooled beetle motor only has 2.5 litres of oil from the factory. Many enthusiasts bolt on an additional oil sump to increase the capacity, in this case an extra 3 litre sump on the bottom of the Intermeccania. 3 extra litres of oil, bouncing around for four hours on gravel, can be quite the force pulling down…and the cast aluminum pan simply couldn’t take the abuse. 4 mounting holes had cracked or failed. While I removed the broken pan, Mark and Robert got to work fabricating a new engine sump plate. Roofing flashing, emergency fiberglass, a series of washers, judicious use of engine goo, and about two hours later, the car was fixed with a clean bill of health! Not only would it not leak, but we increased the ground clearance by 3 inches!

While we fabricated and repaired, other cars enjoyed a billiard-table-smooth run on gravel from Coldwater through to Tulameen, followed by a twisty paved mountain drop into the town of Princeton. Our whole group reunited in Princeton, just in time for dinner, and the sharing of heroic stories that comes with each classic car adventure day. Our rally had been chock full of adventure so far, and it was only the end of day one!

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