Yes, it bothers me-I have complained about it, I have written about it. And
nothing. Or, I get the classic response "But I drive my car!"-not 10k miles
a year or more! More like 500- 100 miles a year and the reast of the time
it's locked up, pampered and polished.
I judge at the Huntington Beach Conours for the last 3 years and last year
decided to enter my car in the "street driven" catagory-in which I came in
4th-and you know why? The Engine compartment wasn't CLEAN enough! I
said-hey, it's a DAILY driver! Not a WEEKEND, let's go to the show driver-a
DAILY driver-STREET driven!
My British car club friends are rather upset with me as I'm not planning on
doing the whole round of none-sense this year. I'm tired of the show and
shine-I want to DRIVE my car. And because my car is a DAILY driver and my
ONLY car, I'm tired of being penalized because of it, in favour of people
who have many more cars than I, and a lot more money to spend. My car is
really a good looking car-ranks in gold at Triumphest and the like, but I've
made my feelings known to organizers and to the clubs-so I'm now "voting
with my feet"-I'm not doing the rounds of shows and such-at $20-$25 a
show-plus gas (not to mention energy)-I'd rather put that gas in the car and
have a good DRIVE!
Laura G.
>
>DShoop7572@aol.com wrote:
> >
> > Went to a British car show in Wadsworth, Oh. this weekend. Lots of
> > killer cars on display. Again I parked my TR4a out in the lot with the
> > riffraff. Paid walk in admission which seemed to be on the honor system.
>I
> > think people that run these things should consider letting all marquee
>cars
> > park by model in the show area. They can separate " show " and
>"display"
> > easily. Maybe have the " display " types pay 1/2 entry fee of the show
>cars.
> > I don't see ever being able to get my car up to the level that the
>show
> > winners achieve, it's beyond my financial status, but I think it would
>do the
> > LBC hobby good and promote camaraderie to include those of us who are
>out
> > there in the driver category.
> > I would love to hear from as many people as possible on this
>thought.
> > Maybe there's something I'm missing.
>
>I have had, on numerous occasions, arguments, personally and by email,
>with VTR officials regarding this very point--I've felt, for the longest
>time, that the VTR and other regional clubs have depended upon the
>trailer queens for membership and support.
>
>I've always felt that the greatest pleasure in the cars was in driving
>them, and that's at great odds with those who only wish to show. I felt
>strongly enough about this matter to work on creating, with the help of
>John Macartney, a "daily driver" award, named after John's father, who
>was, over fifty years, either for Standard, or Standard-Triumph, a
>service manager, a works manager, production and/or a quality assurance
>manager.
>
>John's dad really liked the cars, liked driving them, and wanted others
>to take the same enjoyment in them. A trophy in his honor for people who
>drove both Standards and Triumphs, rather than just showed them, was
>long overdue, I thought.
>
>We worked to include recognition of the ordinary drivers, the people who
>_drove_ the cars, rather than just hid them away from show to show, to
>no avail. The awards ceremony for the 2001 VTR was to include the
>inaugural "Charles Macartney Daily Driver Award," and yet, it didn't
>happen. The trailer queens won.
>
>If the way in which shows of all sorts are run bother you, contact your
>local club, and the VTR. My general feeling is that the people who most
>appreciate the cars are the ones who drive them, and those are the
>people who are most likely to feel excluded from shows.
>
>Those who really get the most bang for the buck are those who drive
>Triumphs, rather those who hide their cars away in a bag from show to
>show, and yet, events are too often structured for the latter, rather
>than the former.
>
>All that said, it's quite okay for the trailer queens to have their
>venue, to have their place to exhibit their cars. But, they should not
>make the rules nor run the shows.
>
>John's dad, bless him, thought that the car's should be enjoyed by being
>driven. That was the ultimate reason for their manufacture.
>
>My GT6 Mk III is a real horror to the guys who only wish to show their
>cars. Dent in the nose, rust peeking through on the top, crappy chrome
>on the rear trim. But, the mechanicals are pretty good--I didn't give a
>second thought to driving 500 miles each way to Breckenridge, last
>summer. Just hammered it out and went. Didn't need a tow truck or a
>trailer.... Just did it. Drove. And didn't care that the trailer queens
>looked down their noses. I drove. They didn't.
>
>I think there are many more people, mostly younger and less well-heeled
>than older folks, who drive the cars because they love them, than those
>who just show, and I'd really like to see the regional clubs and the VTR
>respect the daily drivers to a greater degree than those who just
>trailer their cars from show to show. I don't know, exactly, how to make
>that change happen, but I very much want it to happen, before those of
>us old farts die and our cars end up in the local crusher because our
>heirs don't know what they've inherited, and the daily drivers wonder
>what happened to that Triumph solidarity.
>
>Cheers, all.
>
>--
>Michael D. Porter
>Roswell, NM (yes, _that_ Roswell)
>[mailto:mporter@zianet.com]
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