side curtain news - classic car clubs - hemmings …clubs.hemmings.com/gatewayhealey/gha scn...
TRANSCRIPT
Proud chapter of the
Austin-Healey Club of
America since 1979.
Gateway Healey Association St. Louis, MO
SEPTEMBER 2017 VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
Side Curtain News
Rumblings
Inside this issue:
Rumbling
1&2
Minutes 3
Cars and Coffee 4
Memories Car
Cruise
5
Sprites in the News 6
!968 Golden Guide
To Sports Cars
7-9
Events 10
From the Boot 11
Greetings:
Well, as the weather cools, prime driving time
has arrived. This provides less opportunity for
overheating or of setting your feet on fire with
engine heat transfer. The Triumph, the Cor-
vette, and I have enjoyed some recent drives.
Most notably, I finally made it to the Memories
Car Cruise in Fenton this Month. This was
quite an event, with a vast and varied menagerie of vehicles. It was so
crowded that the Vette and I got caught in a scary traffic jam. We
couldn’t find a parking space and turned around. As we tried to leave
one end of the lot, a ’56 Nomad blocked us in. Then as we entered
the aisle, a line of cars headed by a ’71 Mach 1 and another line of cars
headed by a ‘50s Henry J were headed toward us. Combined with
thousands of pedestrians and parked classics everywhere, it got a bit
frightening! We found a space next to a mongrel ‘68 Corvette which
had a beautiful paint job. Some really nice cars attended. This in-
cluded Corvairs, Gremlins, Camaros, Firebirds, TR6s, and Corvettes, to
name a few. The most unusual was a Gogomobile, which was a mid-
60s minicar from Germany. A British Kougar roadster was unusual as
well. Powered by a 1961 Jaguar sedan drivetrain, it was one of the
neatest kit cars I’ve seen. A vintage Trailways bus was a fan favorite
and two fire trucks rounded out the selection. The Westport Cars and
Coffee attracted many familiar British car enthusiasts. I got to chat
with Chris K. and John L. from our club. Lou S. and I met Ernie, the
owner of a glacier blue Healey. Triumph Club members invited us to
their August 27 Poker Run.
VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
PAGE 2 VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
Our monthly meeting began with a recap of the dramatic full eclipse that could be observed in
the southwestern suburbs. The full eclipse was fantastic, and so much beyond the partial
eclipse. I certainly hope you got to see it, as 2024 seems like a long time away, plus the closest
it will come is Carbondale, Illinois. Dave M. trailered his sharp TR3 to the VTR Nationals in
Princeton, NJ, and rushed back for the eclipse. We reviewed the overwhelming number of car
events in the coming month, especially including the All British Show on September 23. We
viewed pictures of Dan’s beautiful Healey that is freshly restored. Steve, a visitor told us of his
trials and tribulations regarding his disassembled Bugeye Sprite. We gasped at the MGA elec-
trical horrors that Keith is sorting. Chris K. promised to show us his recently finished, award
winning, TR3. All-in-all, a fine meeting.
As you may recall, I wrote an article for the July newsletter about Paul Newman, his Rolex
Daytona watch, and his racing career. For those interested, the Road and Track
{www.roadandtrack.com} website has an article on this same topic. On the site, search for
“Rolex Daytona” and you will find “The Most Famous Daytonas Ever Made.”
At the meeting, I covered eighteen upcoming activities. To those who have operative Healeys—how about representing the club at the All British Show? To all our members and friends--hope you take some of these opportunities to enjoy the hobby. Richard
Richard’s TR6 Richard’s Corvette
Don’t forget to donate to help the victims
of Hurricane Harvey.
Redcross.org
Social Events Coordinator
Marilyn Salini
(314) 991-9363
INTERIM Newsletter Editor
Jim Reiter
(636) 532-7151
GHA Webmaster
Jim Reiter
(636) 532-71151
Keith Bester Dan Forguson Tom Sontag Bandit Chris Kresser
Phil Ellerbrock Bob McElwee Steve Saulich (guest) Dave Massey
Lou Salini Richard Etz Tom Hartmann
Treasure—Good—not much changed
Old Business—over 100 Healeys at Waco Conclave.
Good turnout at Cousin Hugo’s RUMP Lunch Tom Evans stepping down due
To hip and knee replacements. Need someone to step up!
Guest Steve Saulich attended. Has 60 Bugeye and 68 MGB
ABCS Sept 23 Creve Coeur Park
GHA Christmas Dec 9 at Keith Bester
Dan Forguson will bring his newly restored 1954 100 to Sept meeting.
PAGE 3 VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
President
Richard Etz
(314) 640-3190
Vice President
Ron Varley
(314) 324-3021
National Delegate
Tom Hartman
314 486 4320
Gateway’s Officers
Don't forget to go to the club website!
http://clubs.hemmings.com/gatewayhealey/
Members and Guests at meeting
Meeting Minutes (Courtesy of Jim Reiter)
Membership Chairman &
Treasurer
Dan Forguson
(618) 558-3060
Secretary
Tom Hartman
314 486 4320
VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9 PAGE 4
Westport Cars and Coffee
Ernie and Lou Ernie’s Healey
Alpha Dodge Coronet
Jaguar Row of British Cars
E Jag I am a Jag
VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
PAGE 5
Memories Car Cruise
Gogomobile Morris Minor Rod
Firetrucks
Racing TR6 Trailways Bus
Caitlyn Jenner wearing a ‘MAGA’
hat driving her favorite LBC..
US Bank
VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9 PAGE 6
Sprites in the News
VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
PAGE 7 VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
Recommended Reading – The Golden Guide to Sports Cars
Words and photographs by Peter Doherty.
I have a little paperback book on my bookshelf that somehow has survived nearly 50 years of life changes and
house moves. The publication date inside says 1966 (1968 printing), so I must have gotten it when I was just eight or
nine years old. My parents knew I was a car-crazy kid and probably picked it up as a Christmas stocking
stuffer. The Golden Guide to Sports Cars was one in a series of books from Western Publishing, aimed primarily at
younger readers. Western produced almost 80 pocket-size Golden Guides, with titles ranging from Acadia National
Park to Zoology.
Like most of the automotive (and aviation) books I received back then, the text didn’t mean much to me at the time. It
was only years later, when I finally had a sports car of my own, that I realized just how well written this “kids” book
really is. The back cover says it all: “A complete guide to all aspects of sports cars.” Not only are there dozens of
tasteful watercolor illustrations depicting the gamut of mid-Sixties sports cars, there are sections on their history,
ownership, and operation.
PAGE 8 VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
The book’s introduction was provided by John Bishop, head of the Sports Car Club of America at the time. He wrote
that the sports car scene in the U.S. had gone from “a handful of cranks puttering with classic cars” to a sports car
“movement.” This, Bishop claimed, had resulted in a revolution of domestic automobile design and marketing: “Four-
on-the-floor, disc brakes, bucket seats, and optional performance packages were simply not available before the
revolution.”
The list of makes inside the Guide’s 160 pages includes the usual names one might expect; lots of small British
roadsters, expensive Italian GTs, and precise German machines. America is represented by the Cobra, Corvette,
Shelby G.T. 350 and the Avanti II. However, it is the lesser-known models that catch my eye when I leaf through the
book today. Quick, name a sports car from Israel or Switzerland. Give up? How about the Sabra Sport and the
Enzmann 506 Super 1300 (no doors!). Another rare ride depicted (and one that I actually saw) is France’s Matra-
Bonnet Djet, the world’s first mid-engine production car, which debuted in 1962.That times have changed is indi-
cated by the 26 pages needed to list all the British marques, versus the one and a half pages allocated to Japan’s
offerings (Hino Contessa 900 Sprint Coupe and Honda Sport S600). Where have Alvis, Elva, Fairthorpe, Gilbern,
Marcos, Olympic, Reliant and Sunbeam all gone? Sigh.
PAGE 9 VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
The Golden Guide to Sports Cars really surprises with the detail in the sections on buying, maintaining and driving
sports machines. Want to get a new Triumph TR4A ($2,899 POE New York)? Then you might want to consider the
optional Michelin X tires for an extra $35. Two grand too much to swing for a new Healey Sprite? If so, the book
warns one must be “willing to make countless trips” following “enticing classified ads in newspapers” to find the right
used one. Newspapers – OMG!
Within the book’s tear-resistant covers, there are sections showing alternate engine layouts, definitions of automo-
tive terms such as “horsepower,” “torque,” and “compression ratio,” and explanations of how suspensions and
brakes work. My father taught me how to double-clutch downshift, but I never knew what was happening in the gear-
box until I reread this book.
As to driving, the authors caution “instructions from a book do not constitute adequate training for handling a sports
car.” They weigh in anyway, with tips Dan Gurneys had choices starting with on-road TSD rallies, through parking lot
gymkhanas on how to cope with locked wheels (remember pumping the brakes?), skids, crosswinds and something
called “bumpmanship.” TheGuide concludes with what must have been the natural progression for many sports car
nuts in the sixties: competition. Wanna-be, all the way to wheel-to-wheel racing. When I was a kid, it seemed sports
cars were everywhere – we even had a couple of race cars getting worked on right in my neighborhood. The Golden
Guide to Sports Cars is a great time capsule from that bygone era, a pocket-size reminder of the golden age of
sports cars in America.
Gateway Healey meets on the fourth Tuesday of each month in Keith Bester's
garage. Located at 115 N Sappington Rd, Kirkwood, MO. 63122. Phone
314.821.2372
PAGE 10
VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
Events
2017.
Sept
Sept 16 8-10:30 am Westport Cars and Coffee
Sept 23 9:00am-3:00pm ABCS Creve Coeur Lake Park. All details in following link:
https://allbritishcarshow.com/
Sep 26 7 PM GHA Monthly Meeting at Keith Bester’s Garage, 115 N Sappington
Road, Kirkwood, MO 63122. (314) 821-2372
October
Oct 16 8-10:30 am Westport Cars and Coffee
Oct 24 7 PM GHA Monthly Meeting at Keith Bester’s Garage, 115 N Sappington
Road, Kirkwood, MO 63122. (314) 821-2372
November
Nov 28 7 PM GHA Monthly Meeting at Keith Bester’s Garage, 115 N Sappington
Road, Kirkwood, MO 63122. (314) 821-2372
December
Dec 9 7 PM GHA Christmas Party. Keith Bester’s, 115 N Sappington Road, Kirk-
wood, MO Bring a dish to share
No Regular GHA Monthly meeting in Dec.
Bell’s Rule: The average time between throwing something away and
needing it is two weeks. This time can be reduced to one week by
retaining the thing for a long time
Couple pictures from 2017 Eclipse
Carona Diamond Ring
Taken in Lake St Louis by son Mike and Heather
PAGE 11 VOLUME 38, ISSUE 9
From the Boot
Join the Gateway Healey Association
For information contact Dan Forguson 618.558.3060 or at [email protected]
Added to GHA Website - Maintenance, Lucas Test Cards that were included with
new British Cars purchased in the 60’s and early 70’s.
http://clubs.hemmings.com/gatewayhealey/
Gateway Healey lost another member with the passing of Terry
Trowbridge on August 10, 2017. He will be missed.
Note: I plan to retire from doing the GHA SCN. December issue will be
my last hurrah. Please call if you are interested and I will get you set-up.
Jim