John Lye wrote:
>In a separate post to Bill, I expressed my unhappiness over
the
>dilution of this list from a technical,
Triumph-racer-related list
>to one that has gone way off course, in my opinion. I get
plenty
>of Triumph e-mail from other sources, but this list was
unique and
>special to me. However, if it keeps going in the direction
in which
>it appears to be headed, I may have to leave the list as
well.
Not too sure exactly what you mean, John - but in the event
my own contributions are helping to take the list off the
course you had foreseen before I was invited to join, I
won't be in the least offended if you propose and are
seconded to have me thrown out. While I am entirely unaware
of the original concept for FOT - and long may it continue -
may I just make one observation which is to be taken as
entirely constructive and in no way critical of you or other
FOT listers. The lists existence is totally global. As I see
things (and I feel I'm not alone?) the racing pedigree of
Triumph in more privately oriented owner hands is probably
more US biased than in any other country throughout the
world. This is because the United States was Standard
Triumph's largest export market by far. What its citizens
chose to do with the cars once they were purchased was
entirely up to them and clearly, competition in its many
varied forms was high on a list of priorities. The same does
not go for STI's other export markets (of which there were
many) and where the cars provided just as much pleasure and
enjoyment appropriate to the territories in which they were
used. To that extent, US competition regulations,
classifications and other such may well have as much meaning
and dare I say it, interest to FOTers outside the US as
ancient Hebrew has to a street mugger.
As Mark Bradakis said in another post today - change is
constant. I suppose that whether we like it or not at an
individual level, the FOT list can go one of two ways. It
can decide to return to its roots as essentially US
competition oriented (and I would applaud it if it went that
way) OR it can expand into other automotive/non-automotive
realms. As I see it, there would still be a strong Triumph
bias but it should possibly avoid the topics more commonly
found on the restoration scene in other same name lists. I
think all of us to a greater or lesser extent derive some
abstract form of elitism by being members of this special
Triumph fraternity - and what's wrong with elitism?
Jonmac
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