The run was a wee bit dampish, but great fun, none the less! As Ken Purdy's English vintage racers exlaimed, after driving an open Bugatti in the rain for miles, "Splendid Motoring Weather!" The reward was Solvang, where it wasn't wet, and there was plenty to eat, drink, and buy!
We met in a parking lot that should have been mostly deserted...except for all the MINIs. Oh yeah, I forgot the armed law enforcement that was investigating a burglary on site! Nothing like grabbing a breakfast at the drive-thru, and watching cops pile out of their squad cars, with shotguns ready! Almost like a TV show.... but wait, the CSI MINI was already there! HMMMMM.
It started out REAL rainy, and it gave everybody a good chance to see how a SoCal MINI handles in the rain. The route chosen would have had a kinda scenic, bucolic charm - if it hadn't been pouring, we would have had a fine ride thru the farm country. We had to dodge a few muddy near-floods and gully-washers, but fortunately we had no u-boat kapitens.
Everybody made it thru without becoming a gold-fish bowl, but good thing some of us had washed their MINIs the day before!
The Eurotuner MINI 'S' was there, ( an awsome ride! ) and it was fun to see the tuning mags are taking a big interest in MINIs here in the States now.
On the way we stopped at Moss Motors, where registered SCMM members got a ten percent discount! Moss is really impressive, had a HUGE warehouse, and did they need it. While the most frightening consumer vision ever might be a crowd of fat ladies at a girdle sale, the sight of 50 some-odd MINI buyers descending on the Moss guys was like a pack of amphetemine piranha fish! Sorry MINI-folk, but after the run, I doubt if there are any glove box organizers left on the planet, and maybe on back-order for years.
Everybody seemed to leave with something to put on their MINI ....RIGHT NOW! The Moss parking lot looked the parc-ferme' at the Monte - lottsa folks scrambling to add to and then button up their MINIs so they can line up for the next stage!
The ride to Solvang was over the hills, in dense fog, so the drive was measured and careful. Sorta. Solvang was dry, on occaison sunny, and having their Taste Of Solvang, so if you were so inclined, you could register with the folks there and wander around eating samples at just about every store and restaurant in town. We always have Danish pancakes and sausage at Paula's Pancake House, the BEST breakfast, even at 1:30 in the afternoon!! YUMMM. We even took some frozen sausage home to have later.
Solvang is very much a state of mind, and if you can handle the Skandihoovian atmosphere of the place, ( everything has a Viking-sounding ring to it ), it's really fun! Just wander past the main streets, and you see a very pretty little town, with a sure-fire fun factor.
We were first in the run to both Moss and Solvang, ( how did that happen? - I hate waitin' around to motor! ), and we were about the last to leave at the end of the day. The ride home to San Diego was long, wet, and we were VERY glad to make it home. We had a LOT of fun, driving in the rain ain't so bad once inna while, and we were with folks we like, and cars we love! Brooksie turned over 19,000 miles on the clock early in the run, ran like a champ, and never let us down. Whatta car! Next run will at least as much fun!
BCNU,
Rob in Dago