Exhaust Notes
Newsletter of the St Louis Triumph Owners Association
- Www.SLTOA.org
- Vol 15, Issue 12, December 2013
See page 6
Thanksgiving is a special season for all Americans. It gives us a time to count our blessings and to consider all the things we have to be thankful for. No matter what our economic, religious, or ethnic background, the one thing that will come to the
(Continued on page 7)
In Memoriam
Kjell Qvale
1919-2013
View From Behind the Steering Wheel
See pg 7
By Creig Houghtaling
1
Calendar
across from Gravois Bluffs in Fenton at 6 PM. Info at www.stlmgclub.com/events-calendar.
6 Dec 2013—Annual SLTOA Christmas
Party, Missouri Athletic Club-West, 1777 Des Peres Rd, StL. See pg. 3.
11 Jan 2014—MGCStL Holiday Party, at Sqwire’s in La-
fayette Square, 1415 S 18th St, St Louis. Cash bar at 5:30 PM, dinner at 6:30 PM, cost $15 per person (club subsidized), reservations must be made by Monday 6
21 Jan 2014 – SLTOA monthly meeting
9 Feb 2014 – SLTOA Polar Bear Run. Annual all-
weather kick-off driving event for the season, 16 February will serve as the backup date in the event of really bad weather. Event route in planning, end point at El Casa Grande del Moore (ie, Stephen y
Maria Moore’s), 5215 Mirasol Manor Way, Eureka
63025. Pot-luck meal with monthly business meet-
ing, more details in next month’s Exhaust Notes.
- January.
- Details
- including
- menu
- at
www.stlouismgclub.com/events-calendar/.
11 Jan 2014—Jaguar Association of Greater St Louis
Annual Dinner and Awards Gala, at the Deer Creek
Club, 9861 Deer Creek Hill, St Louis. Hors d’oeuvres and
cocktails at 6:30 PM, dinner at 7:30 PM, followed by awards presentation at 9 PM. Please RSVP by 31 December to Jeri Herold, 129 Ridgecrest Ct, Chesterfield, MO 63017.
27-30 Apr 2014 – South Central VTR Regional, The
Elms Spa & Hotel, Excelsior Springs, hosted by the Kansas City Triumph Club. See pg. 3.
May 2014 – 30th Anniversary, St Louis Triumph
9 Feb 2014—34th Annual St Louis Area Automotive
Swap Meet, 6 AM to 1:30 PM, $4 admission. At Belle-
Claire Fairgrounds, 200 S Belt East, Belleville.
Owners Association
8-17 Feb 2014 – Chicago Auto Show, at McCormick
20-23 Jul 2014 – 18th Annual British V8 Meeting,
Colorado Springs, host hotel Hilton Garden Inn, 1810 Briargate Parkway, Colorado Springs (719) 589-6866. Planned events include morning mountain drive to Bailey with lunch, a drive to the summit
of Pikes Peak (14,115’), local tours and dinners.
Monitor www.britishv8.org/British-V8-Meetings.htm.
Place, hard by Soldier Field (“’Da Bears!”), Lake
Shore Drive at 23rd St. www.chicagoautoshow.com.
Web page:
25-27 Apr 2014 – 2014 Speedfest at the Classic Mo-
torsports Mitty, Road Atlanta, Braselton, GA. Races sanctioned by Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR); Brian Redmond will serve as Grand Marshal.
11-15 Jun 2014 – TRA 2014, Deer
Creek State Park, Mount Sterling, OH, hosted by the Miami Valley Triumphs. Located between Columbus and Cincinnati, lots of good roads, a modern lodge with 110 rooms and plenty of
- W eb
- pages
- www. them itt y. com /
- and
www.hsrrace.com/2013_Mitty.html.
Apr 2014—Cars & Coffee returns, details to follow. 28-31 May 2014 – 3rd Annual British Car Week Na-
tional meet, Little Rock & Hot Springs National Park, AR. Monitor www.bcwnm.org/.
- amenities.
- Website up and running at
www.miamivalleytriumphs.org/tra2014.
7-9 Mar 2014 – Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance,
12-14 Sept 2014 – British Small Bore/Kastner Cup
Race, Eagles Canyon Raceway, Decatur, TX (northwest of Fort Worth). Sponsored by Corinthian at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, FL, celebrating 50
- y e a r s
- o f
- M c L a r e n .
- M o n i t o r
- V i n t a g e
- A u t o
- R a c i n g
- ( C V A R ) ,
16-18 May 2014 – 11th Annual Carlisle Import & Kit
Car Nationals, Carlisle, PA. At the Carlisle Fairgrounds, showcasing over 1200 classic and highperformance vehicles. Info including registration at www.carlisleevents.com/carlisle-events/carlisle- import-kit-nationals/default.aspx. www.corinthianvintagerace.com.
22-25 Apr 2015 – South Central VTR Regional, Bas-
trop, TX, hosted by Hill Country Triumph Club of Austin.
7 Dec 2014—Gateway Healey Associa- tion Annual Christmas Party, 7:30 PM at
Keith Bester’s home, 115 N Sappington, Kirk-
wood (314)821-2372. Please bring a dish to share.
Full listing at www.sltoa.org/events/2013/events13.htm
St Louis Triumph Owners Association
18 Dec 2014—MG Club of St Louis Holiday Lights Tour. Join the MG Club for
a tour of holiday lights in and around Kirkwood,
followed by a stop at Uncle Bill’s on Manches-
ter for a meal or desert. Come in any car you like, dress for the weather. Meet at Starbucks
Member, St Louis Sports Car Council
Www.stlscc.org
2
SLTOA’s
2013 Christmas Party
Friday, December 6 at the MAC-West County,
Cash bar at 6:30 PM, dinner at 7:30 PM
Tossed Caesar salad
Shaved Top Sirloin with au jus Seared Chicken Marsala
Mashed potatoes
Penne pasta with creams sauce and peas
Sauteed Haricot verts
CHEESECAKE!
Cost per attendee: $17.00 (club subsidized)
Contacts: Ann Stark (314)993-5314 [email protected]
Kathy Kresser (636)394-3012 [email protected]
South Central VTR Regional
Polar Bear’s Coming…
27-30 April 2014
The Elms Hotel & Spa Excelsior Springs, MO
Events include welcome reception, funkhana, gimmick rallye, autocross, model/craft show, dinner
run and participants’ choice concours.
Registration now open:
http://kansascitytriumphs.com/Registration%20-% 202014%20VTR%20South%20Central%20Regional.htm
Those registering by 31 December 2013 will be entered
in a 6 January 2014 drawing for one night’s stay at the
host hotel, The Elms Hotel & Spa, six winners total. VTR hotel rate $104+tax, register ASAP as rooms are going fast. (800)843-3567
Sunday 9 Feb 2014– Details in the January issue of
Exhaust Notes (and no, there are no casino stops…)
3
Meeting Notes—19 Nov 2013
In an evening
As a follow-up to 10 November’s Vet’s Drive fundraiser, the
appropriate for the onset of the holiday season, the members of SLTOA observed a rather organizer noted 10 cars (four Triumphs, two MGs, two BMWs and one Morgan) with $266 in donations for The Fisher House Foundation. Stephen Paur immediately made a motion for the club to provide matching funds, which passed unanimously. The secretary advised that everyone who participated would
get a printout/receipt listing their donation with Fisher House’s 501c3 number “within a couple of weeks.”
- festive
- (hilarious,
- riot-
- occasionally
ous) monthly meeting at the home of
Stephen Moore then initiated a discussion on gaining 501c3
status for SLTOA (“We’re already a charitable organization. We have to be; we drive Triumphs”) which would a) be useful
in future fundraising events and b) save us tax dollars during purchases of supplies for events, such as the ABCCS. A spirited debate followed, including questions over the cost of gain-
ing 501c3 status and the question of whether it’s worth spending “…$500 to save a few bucks in taxes?” The conversation
continued, as will the annual Veterans Run, which will serve as an annual club event, open to all local sports and special interest clubs.
- Ann
- and
- Tom
Stark.
And, as always when food and libation were involved, getting people to put down their plates, suspend passes through the kitchen and end a large number of conversations proved problematic but Prez Creig did manage to get the business part of the evening started promptly at 7:30 PM. He then conducted a pre-emptive strike, calling for immediate adjournment; the crowd, caught off -guard, failed to respond to his resolution so the meeting proceeded.
Creig asked for an update on the event schedule for the next
two months. The response: “Party! Party! Party!” (followed by someone announcing, “Happy, happy, happy”)(no, that individ-
ual did not have a beard or camo). Member (and new MG Club of St Louis chairman) Lee Fox reminded everyone of the
Saturday 23 November MGCStL “Sporting Clays” at the Blackhawk Valley Hunt Club, stating “It’s a blast” (collective groans) and adding it was kind of like “golf with shotguns” (collective
cheers). He did say that seeing as it was deer season, every-
one should wear orange, just in case…(from the floor: “…and DON’T wear your antlers!”). The MG gang will follow up on 18
December Holiday Lights drive, see the event calendar for details. Finally, Lee updated everyone on the MG holiday party, scheduled for Saturday 11 January.
Treasurer gave the initial, brief
report on the club’s finances we’ve got money”)
and followed with somewhat detail, ie, $4525.86 in the bank in advance of Christmas party expenditures.
He noted last year’s
party cost the club about $800 in subsidies for the meals.
Joe
(“Yes,
more
Concerning the SLTOA’s annual Polar Bear Run scheduled
for Sunday 9 February, the members agreed to a 16 February really really bad weather alternate date, although someone pointed out the Triumphista had plenty of experience in going
out into snow and ice…and rain…and heat…and plague, pesti-
lence, famine, etc. Creig put up an optional post-event party at Game Haven in Overland (www.gamehavenstl.com; “…a local business with the goal of providing a safe place for kids and adults of all ages); Ann Stark responded by offering up her and
Tom’s house (“we have planes!”), followed by Stephen and Maria Moore (“Yeah, but we have trains!”). The Prez took a quick vote and the Moore’s home south of Eureka won out.
Mark Morgan agreed to start working up the route for the Polar Bear.
- Someone
- com-
mented that with this kind of budget, an open bar should be part of the eve-
“When Treasurer Joe speaks, everyone listens…”
ning; someone else responded with, “No, more cheesecake!”
and The Great Cheesecake Controversy was on, once again.
After Creig restored order to the proceedings, Ann announced a total of 35 signups for the party, with two weeks to
go until the event. The secretary stated he’d run another email
blast via the St Louis Sports Car Council, for both the 6 December SLTOA Christmas party and the 7 December Gateway Healey Association party. Stephen Moore announced his son John would serve as official event photographer for the evening. Also, the club agreed to once again run the infamous
“Rob Your Neighbor” gift exchange, with the standard $20 limit on presents (from the floor: “Flammable or inflammable presents?”); at that point, Joe Guenther mentioned he still had the ’60 Rambler shocks from last week but someone could get
lucky the night of the party. Finally concerning the annual fes-
tivities, President Emeritus/Director of Can’t-We-All-Just-Get-
Along Craig Madsen agreed to emcee the event, to loud cheers from the assembled multitude.
Finally/finally, a head’s up reminder on the annual Forest
Park Concours, hosted by the Horseless Carriage Club of Missouri. The event will take place Easter Sunday, 20 April at Forest Park and yes, once again the Triumph-MG Club Participation Trophy will be up for grabs. Time to start thinking about signing up and getting those TRs (and two duty Morgans) ready.
Having exhausted every possible opportunity for further trenchant conversation, Prez Creig rang down the curtain at
8:02…and then introduced new member Phil Dudley, who’s
looking at purchasing a TR6.
4
Bay Area Gathering: VTR/Triumphest 2013, pt 2
Photo: Stephen Moore
By Dave Massey
(remember, there is a gearshift lever in there), starting the car in-gear, clutch-out, leaving the door ajar (resulting in a time penalty), and much speculation about how to cheat the system. Things like wiring the starter to the door courtesy light switch so the engine will crank up when the door is opened, or remote starters. We even speculated on a remote start with the car in gear so it can take off not having to wait for driver to eventually able over and get in. Some of these plans were not exactly serious. Or workable.
In our last episode we traveled from St. Louis to San Rafael, California crossing Wyoming and the Salt Flats in Utah, arriving on Wednesday, Oct 2. Although there were many Triumph enthusiasts gathering on Wednesday the actual convention events actually started on Thursday.
Three driving events were held at Sonoma Raceway (formerly known as Sears Point Raceway). The Funkhana, as usual, paid homage to the local area and better
At the same time, in another parking area, was the a u t o c r o s s . The autocross featured the usual slaloms,
- known landmarks.
- Partici-
pants had to drive Lombard Street (navigate around cones), extinguish the San Francisco fire, cross the Golden Gate Bridge into wine country and carry a tray with
Seen at the Funkhana. All photos by Dave and Linda Massey.
- boxes
- and
loops. Many thousands of miles of rubber were scrubbed off in the course of the day. As we were late arriving and we were committed to attending the judging school that afternoon and since I needed to wash the car before the school since I volunteered my car as a demonstration car in the school, I was not able to participate in the autocross. From my vantage point on the hill I was able to see that the course was tight, easily navigated but yet challenging. wine filled glasses (plastic wine goblets filled with water), reach through the bars in Alcatraz and retrieve a beanbag, and throw it into the gaping mouth of a crab, and raise and lower nautical navigation flags.
At the same time, in another parking area, there was a LeMans-start contest. Contestants had to start 30 feet from the car, keys in hand, and when signaled to start, run (or in my case, waddle) to the car, hop in, start the car
Other events available Thursday were the self guided walking tour, TSD Rallye, and the self guided Marin Coast driving tour. There were technical sessions as well. David Knock talked about the wisdom he has gained over the years of working on British cars, and there was a tech session on TR7, TR8 fuel injection hosted by Jim Tencate and Michael Hart. and 100 ft to stop the clock. Many different techdrive
Friday morning we drove out to the Marin Yacht Club, the sight of the VTR Concours. We took the scenic (long) route which took us through China Camp State Park (this was a STATE park and therefore it was still open) and along the San Francisco bay shore. niques were tried including hopping into the car
The popularity of the new Modified Concours classes contin-
ues to surge and both categories were divided into two classes, one just for TR6's. The Stock classes were also well
(Continued on page 9)
- over
- the
closed door, sometimes ending badly
Dave demonstrates his LeMans start technique...
5
1st Annual SLTOA Veterans Day Run—10 November
The lineup at the stop in Chester, IL. Photo by Dave “Mountain Man” Massey
By Kathy Kresser
Our rally master Mark Morgan did a great job organizing this charitable drive. Mark had this say about the day:
This was a great drive
and a nice way to support the Fisher House which helps veterans. Our band of LBCs collected $266.00 – way to go.
We went into this event with two major variables: SLTOA had never tried a charity fund-raising driving event before and, as it took place in November, we didn't know what kind of weather we faced. Fortunately, we came up winners on both counts. Ten cars and 20 people participated on the rather lengthy excursion to Perryville and back and the weather proved absolutely perfect. By Prairie du Rocher, the tops were down on all of the cars and everyone enjoyed what could've passed for an early fall day.
Our route along the Bluff Road outside of
Columbia, Illinois, and connecting with the Great River Road offered us nice views of the red, orange, gold, and rust-colored foliage. We drove past the caves along the white bluffs where cold air is exhaled and is quite noticeable on a summer drive, but not in November. We had the roads to ourselves where we spotted water fowl, sheep and cows. A deer sprinting at some 35 mph darted right in front of us! Luckily, we expected this action. We meandered off the Bluff Road to find a pastoral and quiet drive especially on Baum Road. I love the patchwork of harvested corn and soybean fields, providing a reminder of the extensive farming in this area.
The best news -- On this first attempt we raised
$266.00 for The Fisher House Foundation. Let’s hope for a bigger turn out next year to raise funds for this important organization.
A recap of the role of the Fisher House Foundation is copied
from the Foundation’s web page:
Fisher House Foundation is best known for the network of comfort homes built on the grounds of major military and VA medical centers nationwide and in Europe. Fisher Houses are beautiful homes, donated to the military and Department of Veterans Affairs. These homes enable family members to be close to a loved one at the most stressful time - during the hospitalization for a combat injury, illness or disease. Fisher House Foundation ensures that there is no fee to stay in a Fisher House. Since 1990, the foundation has saved military, veterans and their families an estimated $200 million in out-of-pocket costs for lodging
and transportation.’”
Near the end of the drive we passed the Menard Correctional Facility. This is an imposing structure and an architectural gem. An article by Jeffrey Koerber and Walter Brieschke on the
dig.lib.niu.edu webpage states that the building features “the
