Tag Archives: vancouver

2017 Sea to Sky Thanksgiving Run

 

This morning Vancouver classic car enthusiasts woke up to blue skies and sunshine, and thus a huge crowd of classic cars met up in North Vancouver for the annual Sea to Sky Thanksgiving Run. After a short parking-lot show and shine, while we waited for everyone to arrive, there was a quick driver’s meeting and we were off!

The group enjoys a drive North on the famous Sea to Sky highway, where twists and turns swap between hugging cliff edges on one side, and ocean views on the other. Along the way you may find yourself driving with a group of pre-war cars, early volkswagens, European sports cars, Italians, American Hot-Rods or an example from pretty much any enthusiast area of interest.

Our destination was the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish, where the group enjoys coffee, morning pastries and a chance to really check out each other’s vehicles. As per our tradition, donations for the Squamish food bank were collected. This year we raised just over $450 in cash donations, and enough food to take up the parking space of an entire Volkswagen in the garage!

We’ll post more photos as we have them, but here’s a selection from Dave and Warwick

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2017 Collector Car Appreciation Day

In 2014, British Columbia joined with other governments in North America to proclaim July as “Collector Car Appreciation Month”.  Here at the CCA offices, we felt it appropriate to commemorate the occasion with an annual  gathering of Classic Car enthusiasts. For 2017, RX Autoworks in North Vancouver once again opened their doors and closed off the street to host our gathering of collector cars. The turnout was fantastic, and certainly eclectic. Comments were equally split between the excitement of cars driven to the event, and the restorations being done inside RX Autoworks.

CCA was very lucky to have Andrew Holliday attending the event, shooting photographs so we could share the fantastic sights with everyone. Andrew’s gallery is below:

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2017 Hagerty Spring Thaw – Day Three

Having finally made it home to a couch, I can barely keep my eyes open. I know the feeling is shared amongst many of my fellow driving friends, as we all sit at home unwinding from the weekend’s adventures. Whether it’s finding a spot in the garage for a newly received award, an assessment of just how long the road grime will take to clean, or a laundry list of ‘tweaks and upgrades’ the car might need before the next event…the final day never feels “over”.

The morning in Kelowna was held in sunshine, and after a quick “shady section” where driving expectations were reinforced, the driver’s meeting commenced in earnest. Amazingly, today’s roads would be clear and we could all enjoy the route-book as originally intended. The route would take guests out of Kelowna, through to Penticton before darting west along Apex Mountain Road. From there it was onto Princeton, via the event favourite of Old-Hedley Road. It doesn’t matter how many times we travel along Old Hedley Road, it seems everyone comes off raving about it’s curves and cadence.

New for 2017, instead of going all the way through Manning Park and down to Hope, we opted to gather the group and finish at the Manning Park Resort. Considering the rest of the weekend, and our history with Manning Park, this was a pretty risky decision! In the previous eight years of CCA events, we have never passed through manning park without rain and snow. To park and finish in Manning Park must have seemed simply diabolical…but here were were, in gorgeous sunshine enjoying the early afternoon.

Our finish party seemed a little like a successful ascent of Mount Everest had occurred. Our travellers were certainly exhausted, but the joy and excitement of what had been accomplished over the weekend was palatable. We had endured flooding, crazy route changes, and uncertainty.  We had driven 1,476 kilometres, arriving windburned and sunburned, but along the way made new friendships that will last a lifetime.

The finish of any Hagerty Spring Thaw includes the presentation of three coveted awards. First up, is the MacGyver award. This is usually given to the entrant(s) who perform the best or most amazing fix during the weekend. Perhaps it’s using mosquito netting to create a fuel filter, or modifying the windscreen washers to fuel the carburettors. This year, an entrant suggested our own Dave Hord receive the award for “MacGyvering all the route changes”. We decided that was an exceptional choice, especially since Dave hadn’t had anytime to actually assemble the award for 2017!

Our next award is the “Hard Luck” award. Jordan Rodier was certainly in the running, having arrived in an SUV when the fuel system on his Fiat couldn’t be diagnosed. Our own Dave Hord was up for this one as well, having abandoned the Rally Beetle in Abbotsford on Day one with fuelling issues. But it was Chris Beck and Sue Schneider who will be taking the award home with them to Switzerland. They had, you see, flown in to enjoy the event with friends from Calgary. Early this morning they offered to switch their borrowed Pantera with another set of friends, so they could enjoy the V8’s rumble for a stretch. What they also enjoyed, however, was the rumble of a wheel bearing which was quickly destroyed, leaving the Pantera stranded in Kermeos. Rather then finishing the event in the Pantera, it was a ride with Sweep through to the finish.

Our final award, and perhaps the most important, is the Hagerty Spirit of the Thaw award. This one is reserved for the entrant or entrants who best exemplify the Spirt of Classic Car Adventurism that Dave and Warwick set out to establish nine years ago. This year’s winner has been trying to get into the Hagerty Spring Thaw for three years. Even their 2017 entry was listed on the wait list for many, many weeks. But it wasn’t just their entry, they had roped three of their friends to enter the event as well. Amazingly, all three found spots on the ‘Thaw, and they were quickly making friends. Despite being a first-year entrant, Greg Long was the one holding spots at his table for new found friends. They heard about special car rotting away in a field, and instead of going off to find it themselves…they convinced other entrants to join them on the hunt. His cars, while certainly precious, were offered to new friends to try, simply because he wanted them to experience why he enjoyed them so much. Greg’s enthusiasm was contagious, his love of classic motoring obvious, and we couldn’t think of a guy more deserving of the Hagerty Spirit of the Thaw.

And so with that, we head to bed for some much needed sleep. Tomorrow’s route for us consists of relaxing and unwinding…and will not be be re-routed!

Special thanks, once again, to Andrew Snucins for providing us with amazing imagery from our weekend’s adventure.

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2017 Hagerty Spring Thaw – Day One

Gathering in Squamish this morning, the air was filled with anticipation, the joy of seeing old friends again and the excitement for the start of the 2017 Hagerty Spring Thaw. Usually the organizers are greeting our guests, enjoying a coffee and checking out the wonderful cars that appear in the parking lot. This year, however, I’ve been told I was looking slightly more stressed…typing away on my laptop.

You may think the weather, slightly raining in Squamish was to blame, but no. I was on the phone and laptop checking weather reports, avalanche reports and road closure reports. Our main road for the day, Duffy Lake Road, was closed the night before by an Avalanche. By 7:30am it was open, and avalanche dangers were lowered from high to moderate. Perhaps the event could travel as planned? At 7:45am, however, the text messages started coming in. “Mud slide closes highway 99”, “Have you heard…Duffy’s closed.” Where I would normally spend the morning greeting and catching up with guests, instead I was typing out new instructions to replace almost the entire day in the route book.

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2017 Hagerty Spring Thaw – Registrations are Open!

The entry form for the 2017 Hagerty Spring Thaw is now posted, and entries officially open at 10am PST. You can find the entry forms by going to the Hagerty Spring Thaw information page. We’re looking forward to watching the entry list grow, and seeing all our classic car friends once again.

2017 Hagerty Spring Thaw – Registration Info!

Wahoo! The 2017 Hagerty Spring Thaw supp-regs document has been uploaded! Inside you’ll find all the information you need for the 2017 Hagerty Spring Thaw, which will be held from May 5th to 7th 2017. Head to the event information page to download the 2017 documents.

As per previous years, applications are accepted via mail, courier and in-person at the CCA Squamish office. A number of spots have been reserved for guests using mail or courier to submit their application.

The Hagerty Spring Thaw sells out every year, so we definitely encourage applying early. So far, in eight years, we’ve almost managed to get every guest on the waiting list an open space…so don’t be scared to enter if you see things filling up. It’s never surprising to hear a restoration isn’t going as quickly as planned, and a space subsequently becomes available.

Holiday Get-Together!

Shortly after Thanksgiving, it was starting to get a little dreary here in BC. The rain seemed relentless, and the classic car motoring season gone for the year. Our recent cold-snap, and subsequent sunny weather, has us dreaming again of hanging out with our classic cars and friends. The weather at this time of year can be a little unpredictable, and up here in Squamish they’ve already salted the roads, so we were delighted when Robert and Jaclyn called us up to see if we’d be interested in joining them for a casual indoor hangout at their restoration shop. If the weather is good, feel free to bring your classic! If you choose to leave yours at home, however, you’ll find plenty of classics to check out inside. We hear project Valdy, the Porsche 912, is looking quite different from our last group visit!

Together we’ll be providing some light snacks, as well as a selection of drinks for you to enjoy while you peruse the projects and catch up with your Classic Car friends.

A Special Project
Much like our Thanksgiving Run, we’d really like to take the opportunity to help out others in our Communities. If you’d like to join us in helping out, we’re collecting donations for two programs during our Sunday get-together. RWM & Co. and Classic Car adventures are arranging to sponsor two families in need this year. We’ll be putting together a hamper for each which includes all the items needed for a holiday dinner, as well as toys purchased for the children of the families. If you’d like to be involved, you can do so with either a financial donation (we’ll take care of the shopping) or send us an email and we’ll share with you some toy options the kids are asking Santa for.

If you’d prefer a simpler donation option, we’ll also be collecting non-perishable food items which will be donated to the Ladner Food Bank. Our Thanksgiving Run donated over $450 in food to the Squamish Food bank, and we look forward to helping out families in South Delta.

Meeting Time and Directions:

Sunday December 7th2pm to 5pm
RWM & Co.
Unit #1 – 7440 Ottawa Street
Delta, BC
V4K 0B4

For directions, you can use our Google Maps pin to get you to the Boundary Bay Airport area (and Ottawa Street). Once there, the new building at 7440 Ottawa Street is quite easy to find.