October 3rd Run to St. Andrews

Departure time: 10:00 rain or shine.
Departure place: Tim Horton's Hanwell Road


Important update:
We have chosen Georgianna’s Tea Room (English style tea room) for our dining experience. The address is 140 Water Street. Apparently they accept the regular types of payment; cash, debit and credit card. The fare is tea room style with added dishes like salads, soup and sandwiches, quiches, pot-pies, etc. It sounds great! And by the way, the owner of the establishment is searching for a British taxi if you or anyone you know of is aware of one for sale.

Route: Depart Tim's and drive via route 640, then Route 3 to Harvey. 15 minute break and regroup. Follow Route 3 to Lawrence Stn, then Route 127 to St. Andrews. Proceed to Tourist Bureau for 15 minute break. Then it's off to the restaurant (to be named later) for lunch at 12:30. After lunch, proceed to Kiwanis Park to take photographs, etc. Members are free to explore/shop or whatever after photo session.

Since we require numbers for the restaurant reservation, please indicate your intention to attend by leaving a comment in the facility provided at the bottom of this article.

Pat and Bob S



Tools Explained


This was passed on from Earl S:


HAMMER: Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer now days is used as a kind of divining rod to locate expensive boat parts not far from the object we are trying to "adjust". Available in a variety of sizes, which is typically chosen based on the amount of time you have already wasted attempting to "solve a problem". Available with a head made of steel, plastic, brass or hard rubber. As a side note, only the steel head has a practical use, no logical use for the other materials has ever been discovered. Some models equipped with the fly away head option. AKA "Ford Wrench", "BFH", "Wound Inflicting Hammer"

RAZOR KNIFE: Used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard cartons delivered to your front door; works particularly well on boxes containing boat covers and bimini tops.

ELECTRIC HAND DRILL: Used for spinning steel pop rivets in their hole until you die of old age. Some larger models are capable of turning the users wrist in amazing directions never before imagined just as the bit starts to break through the material you’re drilling.



Oktoberfest Run Oct. 25th

When: Depart Ramada Inn at 2:00 and dinner at 4:00 PM, Sunday October 25th, 2009 (rain or shine)

Where: http://www.Pioneer-Lodge.com Cumberland Bay
What: FABAC Oktoberfest run and German dinner
Menu: 3 course dinner for $25 per person plus tax.

A choice of the following:
Starter:
A: Soup (with breads)
OR
B: Salad

Entrees:
A. Huhunerbrust – Chicken Breast (In a creamy sauce of mushrooms with spatzle or rice. )
OR
B. Schnitzel - Breaded Pork – vegetables fried or mash potatoes.

Dessert:
A: Praline parfait with a puree of raspberries
OR
B: Cheese Cake

Tea or coffee included.

RSVP by October 21st:
Do you want to attend? Yes ( ) or No ( )
Which main course do you want? A ( ) or B( )
Which dessert do you want? A ( ) or B( )

Please respond to Jim B topside@nb.sympatico.ca

Phil sends this bit of humour

Five Germans in an Audi Quattro arrive at the Italian border.
The Italian Customs agent stops them and tells them: "It'sa illegala to putta 5 people in a Quattro."
"Vot do you mean it'z illegal?" asks the German driver.
"Quattro meansa four" replies the Italian official.
"Qvattro is just ze name of ze automobile", the Germans retort unbelievingly.
"Look at ze papers: zis car is designt to kerry 5 persons."
"You can'ta pulla thata one on me!", replies the Italian customs agent.
"Quattro meansa four. You hava fivea people ina your car and you are thereforea breaking the law."
The German driver replies angrily, "You idiot! Call your zupervisor over, I vant to speak to somevone viz more intelligence!"
"Sorry", responds the Italian official, "he can'ta come. He'sa busy with 2 guys in a Fiat Uno.

Travellin' Phil O with great experiences at Targa Newfoundland

Hi Dave:
Just back from sixteen days on The Rock, nine of them touring most of Newfoundland by bike and seven of them traveling with Targa Newfoundland as part of the Stage Operations Crew. I worked the Flying Finish, running the Rally Timing Clock. Got to see the Targa Cars often coming past at full chat!  The Grand Touring cars often approched the finish very slowly, sometimes stopping so as not to break out.  Fantastic experience!

Lots of minis racing, both old and new, a Sunbeam Tiger and a 1953 Healy 100 (photo attached).  Some links if you are interested.

http://www.targanewfoundland.com/
(The Healey)
(A Nissan GTR driven by Steve Millen)
Wikipedia entry on Steve Millen

Daily Gleaner article on Bridget the Midget

In case you missed it, check here for a limited time.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPod Touch

(If all goes well, I may be able to keep our FABAC website going while Carolyn and I are in Greece over the next three weeks. That will depend on how accessible the Internet is there. I will be checking my email from time to time as well, so don't hesitate to send me items to be posted. I'm not sure whether or not I will be able to post photographs that you send me, but we'll see.)

The fabulous British Invasion at Stowe, VT

Intrepid Fabacians, Curry and Sherry Alders (A-H 3000), Terry and Karen Johnston (Triumph TR3A), Bob and Donna Grant (A-H 3000) and John and Shirley Ann Bowles (MGB) drove to Stowe, Vermont last week through fog, cold and then sunshine to attend the 10th annual "British Invasion" event.

And what a stunning show it was with over 650 participants, including 20 concours d'elegance entries and scores of representative makes and models. MG, Triumph, Jaguar, Lotus, TVR, Rolls Royce, Bentley, Aston Martin, Austin-Healey, Lea Francis, Rover, Land Rover, Morgan, Humber, they were all there in one form or another.

Best of Show in the concours was a 1932 J2 MG was so perfect that the judges could hardly fault it. A popular People's Choice entry was an ex-British Army "Desert Rats" Land Rover complete with mounted machine guns, and an E-type Jaguar painted in red, white and blue.

Dinner at the famous Michael's On The Hill restaurant just outside Stowe was another highlight of the trip. The group of eight was joined by Robbie Hogg who had made the trip (not in his MGB!) in a day instead of two.

Warm, sunny weather throughout the show as well as the drive back to Fredericton meant top down motoring all the way. All agreed this was a show not be missed and FABAC should encourage a serious number of members to attend next year's 20th anniversary event.

Best,
John

A question for knowledgeable MGB owners

From David Blagrave:
Redoing front end of the MG. One side kingpin and stub axle bushings still really good but other side needs the old bushings pressed out and the new bushings, which I have, pressed in. They then need reaming to fit. Moss has a special tool but pricey. Anyone done this, or had it done and where? Thanks.
P.S. In Saint John area but willing to travel!

Notes on the FABAC Meeting September 16th

On Wednesday, September 16th, about 30 FABAC members met at East Side Mario's in the Corbett Centre for our regular monthly meeting. As usual, there was much good cheer and animated conversation as people caught up with the latest on each other's lives.

David N once again initiated a "What's in the bag?" contest with the winner being bestowed with a liquid refreshment compliments of John Bo.

Prez Gary welcomed all present and called the meeting to order. First on the agenda, Gary (on behalf of he and Barb) thanked all those who turned out for the Nackawic picnic and dessert run on Sunday past. It was a great success as is attested to by the wonderful photographs elsewhere on the site.

Roy and Bridget Update

A number of our FABAC members joined Roy at the Comfort Inn after our regular Wednesday night club meeting to hear fascinating stories of floods in Australia, mortar fire in Pakistan and earthquakes in South America. Roy spent Thursday talking with Heather from the Gleaner and Alison and Shawn from the CBC. Our Jim B. and yours truly were on hand to escort and provide interesting options especially in the video taping by Ed of the CBC. Maybe you caught it on the TV broadcast Thursday evening. Gary, who was instrumental in setting up that part of the media coverage, may be able to obtain a digital copy of the final product for those of us who haven't seen it.
Roy and his MG Midget spent the waning hours of the day at the Thursday night Show and Shine at the Home Depot parking lot--a beautiful day for all our activities.

I encourage all FABACians to go to Roy's website and make a donation to UNICEF. All proceeds go to UNICEF as the travel costs are all looked after from other sources.

This set of photos is a behind the scene record of Roy and Bridget facing the media.

FABAC Meeting Wednesday September 16th at East Side Mario's (6:00 p.m.)

I received this email from Trish Adams in Ottawa. I think we should discuss this at our Wednesday meeting:



Hello, David, and all British Car Enthusiasts in la belle New Brunswick:
I'm a member of the MG club here in Ottawa, and would like to pass on information about a guy we met with earlier this week. His name is Roy Locock, and he is driving his MG Midget (who's name is ..... yes, you've guessed it - Bridget!) around the world to raise money and awareness for UNICEF. He doesn't have any sponsors or support crew, but he does have a whacky sense of humour and a a wealth of interesting tales to tell. I'm not sure exactly where he is now, but yesterday he was in Montreal and planning to head for Quebec today. His expected route takes him up around the Gaspe Penninsular, then through New Brunswick to Nova Scotia, arriving in Halifax some time on September 20. This is the end of the road for their world tour, and Bridget will be shipped back to Liverpool shortly thereafter for the short drive back to Oxford, where it all started over a year ago.

Update on Roy and Bridget-the-Midget's World Tour

If you read my earlier post, you know that Roy Locock is nearing the completion of a round-the-world trip in his MG Midget. I have encouraged him to amend his itinerary to include Fredericton, which, by the looks of things now, he feels he will be able to do. Although he won't be able to be here for our Wednesday meeting, he is aiming for some time on Thursday. Since he is raising money for UNICEF through this adventure, I was thinking that we could do all or some of the following:
  • Meet Roy and find out what kind of person would purposely choose to travel further than 200 miles from home in an MG Midget.
  • Hear a tale or two from Roy--I'm sure he has a few.
  • Give him a good Maritime welcome. (and a few spare parts if he needs them) ;-)
  • Organize some media attention for his cause.
  • Do a little internal club fund raising for UNICEF.
  • Eat!
  • Other suggestions? Please leave comments with your thoughts.
Gary, anything CBC might be able to do to either cover Roy's adventure or his cause, or a combo including a bit about FABAC?

Does anyone have a good connection with the Gleaner or Telegraph Journal that might want to do something on this story? Johanna?

The Picnic Photos Keep Rollin' In

I was going to write a thousand words, and then I realized that a picture is worth just that.
So, in a few words, may I say a tremendous thanks to Barb and Gary for organizing what could well be the event of the year. The weather cooperated despite shaky forecasts; the route was excellent and took us onto some seldom-travelled roads; the picnic was outstanding; the desserts were beyond any FABACian's wildest dreams; and an outstanding number of members were able to take in all of this.
Thanks to Jill for the excellent companionship. Carolyn takes over again now. Someone has to look after the seniors in our club. Which reminds me, did anyone find a dark brown glasses case with glasses inside? I skillfully managed to lose them.
Now, here are photos galore for your viewing pleasure. Please use the comments section to add to anything I have said.

Photos by yours truly are here.
Photos by Stephen W. are here.
Photos by Margot are here.
Photos by Ellie are here.
Send me your photos and they can go here.

Picnic/Dessert Tour Sunday Sept. 13th

Barb and I have planned a Picnic/Dessert Tour for this Sunday Sept 13, so we can get out and do the things we all enjoy--touring, socializing and most of all eating.

The overall idea is to tour the country roads of Hanwell, Harvey and York Mills getting the first glimpses of turning leaves while winding our way to Nackawic. We'll stop there for for our picnic lunch somewhere near the "World's Largest Axe" and close to the beautiful Saint John River. I'm pretty sure there's a small park there with picnic tables. If not a blanket on the grass will do just fine. Might be a good idea to bring your lawn chairs.

Once we've had a leisurely lunch we will drive back to our place for a pot luck dessert.
The details:
  • Depart Smythe St. Super Store at 10am. If needed we'll stop at Subway on Prospect for those who have not packed a picnic lunch. I checked and Subway is open at that time.
  • We'll drive out Hanwell Rd and onto Harvey for our first pit stop. From there we'll pick up the back route from York Mills and tour Magaguadavic via Route 635. We'll pick the old TCH at Prince William and drive to Nackawic.
  • After lunch we'll depart and drive back to our place via the old river route 105, cross the Mactaquac dam and head to Mazerolle Settlement for dessert.
Please let us know if you plan to attend. Just put your name(s) in a comment.
Tks,
Gary

Yikes!

I just noticed on Mike's original photo that the axe is very close to chopping that Mini. Here's a little Photoshopping to show just how strong they made those little Minis. :-)

Doe--a deer--a female deer!!! A report on the "Evandale and Beyond" run

Well, actually two deer tried to ruin a perfect day by deciding to run, one behind the other, across the road in the dark between me and a car ahead of me on the west end of the Ring Road just a little before 9:00 p.m. Dark! The first deer timed it perfectly--the second obviously wanted to be the hood ornament on Carolyn's TR6. The screech of all four Vredestein tires caused her to glance my way in bewilderment. I can claim, without any stretch, that it is not possible to come any closer to hitting a deer than we did tonight. I'll check tomorrow to see if there are any hairs near the front right fender.

Other than that, the day was perfect. Posting our intentions by e-mail to travel and eat brought out nine club cars. The most remarkable participant was Alex who lives in Nackawic, who was enjoying a leisurely Sunday morning in his pajamas when he thought he would check his e-mail. He went from pajamas at noon, to Fredericton by 1:00 p.m., which leads me to suggest: Alex, those posted speed limits are kilometres/hour, not miles/hour!!

Thanks to Jim B. for his admirable leadership. We drove some mighty nice roads with spectacular vistas that only NB could claim. The Evandale Resort was too full to accommodate us, so we travelled on to the "Up to Par" restaurant in Midland.
Oh yes, and we ate well indeed.
Photos by yours truly here.
Photos like this one by Margot here.


Some times things just happen.

Carolyn and I were sitting and chatting with Ellie and Jim at their beautiful home when one of them remarked that a couple of familiar cars just drove by. Jim said that the Saint Johners were going to come up some day. Sure enough, Sue & Barry and Kim & Terry arrived to make our visit a mini FABAC get-together. What a pleasant surprise! We talked cars and food and generally enjoyed the weather and the day.

And Ellie snapped some photos.

Wondering what to do this Sunday?

Jim B. and I have a plan. Let's go for a drive down the beautiful St. John River and take in the buffet at the Inn at Evandale. Great price: around $14-15 covers everything.
We'll leave from the new Tim Hortons up on the Hanwell at 1:00 p.m.
We'll meander to Gagetown; maybe have a cup of tea.
Then continue along the river road working up an appetite. Eat fairly early and return to Fredericton.
Why not join us? Can't waste these beautiful days. :-)

Automotive scam

Joe passes on this interesting tidbit:
Just thought I would pass this along about Zmax, that Carol Shelby promotes strongly. Apparently the three Zmax (engine, transmission and fuel) are all just mineral oil with colour added.

Beat the Heat Coastal Run

"Veni; Vidi; ..." - We came; we saw; we ate! :-)

Taking advantage of the glorious weather, Pat and Joe H, Stephen W, Carolyn and David N travelled to St. Andrews to take in the famous cuisine at the Rossmount Inn. We arrived in time early in the afternoon to have a leisurely stroll down Water Street; tea, blueberry scones, toasted English muffins with strawberry preserves around 3:30; another leisurely stroll and then off to the Inn. Carolyn had determined earlier that there was a mountain trail with a view at the top. Arriving at the Inn around 5:00 gave us plenty of time to tramp up the mountain, take some photos, catch our breath and be back down for our reservation at 6:00.
Pat and David chatted with the chef who was out in the garden picking some fresh herbs and things. He recommended the halibut and the lobster so... we had halibut and lobster! Since he also recommended the crème brûlée, Pat had that, Joe had a peach/blueberry dessert, C and D had an almond meringue/ice cream/chocolate dessert and we relished it all in traditional FABAC fashion.
A brisk drive home under the light of a full moon and a dazzling Jupiter, and we all admitted that we had done the right thing with our day.

Warning: viewing these photos may induce feelings of hunger, regret or envy.
What?! No pictures of British cars?!!!

Rossmount Inn Restaurant

Update: It looks like we have a couple of cars joining us. We'll meet at 1:00 p.m. at the parking lot at the south end of the Mactaquac Dam. It's going to be hot in Freddie and cool in St. Andrews. Yippee!
Carolyn and I have long wanted to have a meal at the highly recommended restaurant at Rossmount Inn in St. Andrews. We have made reservations for ourselves for Thursday evening 6:00 p.m. We were told that there are still spaces available and presently a large table if anyone would like to join us for a bit of a feast. I understand that the restaurant is a kind of a ***** (five star) $$ a bit pricey place with fabulous menu of in-season local food.
We plan to leave Keswick Ridge area around 2:30 or 3:00 so that we can take in a little trail on their property and loaf a bit as well.
If you are interested in joining us for the drive, or for both the drive and meal, make your reservations with them at 529-3351 and let them know you will be with the Nielsens. E-mail me to let me know, and we'll settle on a meeting time and place.
Cheers,
David