Hey Erich, Hey Gang,
In a message dated 1/8/98 10:08:10 PM, Erich wrote:
<<The Book of Norman is THE place to start>>
I just received my copy yesterday and have only had a chance to go through it
quickly. The price of $58 is pretty steep but, nonetheless, it appears to be
worth the money although it is kind of an odd hodgepodge of anecdotes and hard
info. The hard info includes a listing of ALL the Tigers built with engine
numbers and so forth... very valuable. Also a lot of info on the "small"
differences that distinguish the various model years and info on concours
standards. The anecdotal sections look interesting and will provide
background on the marque. All-in-all, looks like a good read and a valuable
reference work... I am glad someone put it together and I hope Norman is
getting the Lion's--ooops! Tiger's--share of the $58.
<<Join STOA; the newsletter and membership are other good resources.>>
I am going to join STOA (Bay Area), CAT (LA Area), and the Colorado Tiger
Club. I am joining STOA (which can be done at
<A HREF="http://www.engravers.com/tiger/home.html";>
http://www.engravers.com/tiger/home.html</A> )
to demonstrate support for the TAC program and in the hopes the program will
be expanded. I will join CAT because they have a spare parts program which
also needs support. (Anybody know, is Bonnie Mueller still the membership
chair at C.A.T.?) I will join the Colorado bunch (as soon as I find their
misplaced address) because they are closest and I sometimes (rarely) get up to
Colorado. I doubt that I will ever be able to attend a get together of either
of the other two clubs... but who knows?
What is sadly missing is a national organization.
<<The impression I am getting is that the TAC criteria are being kept
"secret" in an effort to foil "Tiger counterfeits">>
Regardless of the reason for the secrecy, the TAC program BELONGS to STOA who
invested the time and money to develop and implement it. Once upon a time I,
too, thought the reasoning behind the secrecy was specious at best, but now...
I ain't so sure. The fact that any discussion of the program immediately
raises huge clouds of dust and smoke makes me wonder. But, regardless, it is
a STOA program to administer as they see fit.
TAC certification is essentially a California, not a national, program because
there is no national Tiger organization. More's the pity.
By-the-bye, the site hot linked above includes both a listing of TAC'd cars
and an E-mail link to ask questions about the TAC program. Personally, I'd
like to see a cogent explanation of the program along with a history at this
site, too. There are some articles in back issues of the STOA newsletter that
would provide a foundation.
Good hunting!
--Colin Cobb, X Marking His Territory Outside Las Cruces, NM, USA
B9471815
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