Good morning everyone and welcome to the first day of December. Fittingly in Burlington we had our first snowfall at the weekend so sadly it’s time to put the Triumph away for the winter.
I can’t complain though as November has been spectacular and we were able to get out for a lovely club run on 6th November with 20 cars including 11 TR6s, 2 TR4As, 1 Stag, 1 TR8, 1 TR250 not to mention a TVR, a Sunbeam Tiger, a Corvair Corsa and a Porsche 911 (Glen had already put his LBCs away for the winter). The weather was sunny if a little chilly first thing, which is why my navigator insisted that I install the hard top prior to the drive.
This late fall drive started in N.E. Burlington meandering along familiar route which took in some of my favourite local roads including Bell School Line, Side Road 4 and Cedar Springs Road before curling round to Appleby Line to traverse the Rattlesnake Point Hill Climb. The road surface on the hill climb was getting really pot-holed but the good news is the crews were out soon after our drive to do some much needed resurfacing … all ready for the spring! We then looped around Campbellville before ending up at The Trail Eatery for a coffee, a snack and a chat.
We had a very successful virtual Toronto Triumph Club AGM on 16th November when we reviewed our 2021 activities, discussed items underway for the coming year and approved Board and co-ordinator positions for 2022. I am delighted to report that over 45 club members were in attendance. In summary, despite the impacts of COVID, our finances are healthy, our membership continues to grow steadily and is now at 337 members, communication via Ragtop, social media and messaging is top notch, our new Website and Membership database are exemplary and we have a dedicated team of board members and co-ordinators in place for 2022. As detailed in my last e-blast there are a couple of positions still available and it’s not too late to apply for them. If you are interested call me any time and we can talk.
At the AGM one of our new members asked about winterizing his Triumph; here’s a link which will take you to an article on our website https://torontotriumph.com/all-triumphs-winterize-your-triumph/ . A very good reminder and something I will be doing in the next couple of days before drafting a list of things to do on the TR before spring”.
I got a note from Clive the other day concerning the British Car Council’s Long Distance Award. Similar to last year you are eligible for an award if you have driven you classic car(s) more than 1,000 miles in 2021. In non-COVID years it’s 3,000 miles. The process is very straight forward. You can either complete the application form on line at http://www.britishcarcouncil.ca/index.php/new-long-distance-form/ or download and mail a paper copy to BCCI. Here’s the link to the PDF;
http://www.britishcarcouncil.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/BCCI_LDA_Form.pdf
One of the requirements is that a club executive must confirm your mileage, so please send a note to your chosen executive when you complete the application.
Talking of long distance, Terence has just attracted another Spitfire owner to our club who is a pal of Owen DeReus of Spitfire Squadron fame out in Norfolk County. His name is Ed Capelin and he has travelled over 9,000 miles this year in his 1969 Spitfire. No that’s not a typo! I look forward to hearing more about this young man and his car in the upcoming months. I suspect that Terence is all over Ed for a Ragtop article.
The F1 season has been totally engrossing this year and next weekend is the penultimate Grand Prix coming from Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. I’m hoping that the World Championship will go down to the wire and be decided in Abu Dhabi … but who will be crowned champion? Lewis Hamilton or Max Verstappen … we shall see.
The winter weather has already arrived, so drive carefully on your winter tires as we head into the Christmas season.
Cheers; Dave
Dave Sims, President, Toronto Triumph Club.