Unbelievable! I spent the better part of yesterday getting sunburned
while cruising in my MGB from Dayton to Hocking Hills State Park and
back. What a blast! The local chapter of the MG Car Club had its
annual spring tour yesterday, led by John Wolfe in his MGA. All told
we had 7 MGB's, 2 MGA's, and one Dodge Daytona along for the ride.
No Midgets, unfortunately, as soler "MAD" couldn't make this trip.
The weather was great as we left the Kmart parking at 9:30 and headed
out on roads unknown (at least to everyone but John and his wife.)
Soon we were cruising along mostly straight, empty 2 lane state
highways. We were moving along at a relaxed pace, probably around 50
mph for about the first 45 minutes. It was a sight to behold, as we
crested each hill I would check the rearview mirror to watch MGs come
into sight one after another. Really cool!
Everything was going smoothly when the lead MGA pulled off to the
side. He had been radioed that the other A had died. It was diagnosed
as a bad fuel pump. A couple wacks later, and they had it back on the
road. The fix was short lived, however, and soon we pulled off again.
The A's owner made the decision to take it home (about 40 miles) vs.
trying make the rest of the trip. A wave of guilt came over me as I
remembered joking to my girlfriend that even though I have the most
beater car in the club, one of the nice one's would be the first to
breakdown. My preminition proved to be correct, the MGA that had
broken down was easily the best looking car on the tour.
We continued on, now down to eight MGs and one 'Merican car. Soon the
terrain began to change and so did John's driving style (John raced
several cars including the A he was now driving for about 15 years.)
My decision to get in line behind John was proving to be serendipitous
indeed. Now that the road had become hilly and twisty, John had
picked up the pace and was taking a racers line through the turns. I
did my best to keep up, following his line through the turns and did a
fair job of it. We left the rest of the pack several times and had to
slow down to wait. But what a blast!
After a couple more stops (something blew out of the passenger
compartment and a bathroom break or two.) We made it to Hocking Hills
with no more automotive mishaps. After some lunch and some hicking,
everyone was ready to go. The return trip was more of a "let's take
the direct route and beat the rain." We almost did. The group
fragmented as we got closer to home and everyone went their own way,
so I don't know for certain that everyone made it back, but I think
they probably did.
All told the tour was about 230 miles round trip, the trip out took 3
1/2 hrs, the trip back took 2 1/2 hrs.. My car had no major problems,
though it did die at a couple stop lights and got a little bit warm
(the gauge showed about halfway between N and H.) The steering seemed
fine after having installed new tie-rod ends and doing an alignment
using two pins and a tape measure. Even though we came in 2nd to last
in the Tour Trivia Contest, we had a great time. If you've never gone
on an extended tour with a bunch of other British Cars, I strongly
recommend it. It was a blast!
Bob
Robert Jones bobj@meaddata.com Mead Data Central Dayton, Ohio
"Driving an MG in competition is more than just starting out in a
worn-out old car, it's a symbol of rebellion against authority and convention,
the automotive equivalent of a little guy with a sling and an attitude
squaring off against the toughest opponent his enemies can offer."
-Scott Fisher
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