| Event Report
We made it! The inaugural Michigan British Reliability Run (MIBRR) is now in the books as a huge success from both a fundraising and British car enthusiast point-of-view. Most of you know, I drove my 1968 Triumph 2000 Saloon, which performed flawlessly over the 800-mile run. In regard to the primary purpose, fundraising, I'm happy to report that the 21 registered teams surpassed the event goal and raised over $11,500 to help the Michigan Hemophilia Foundation send kids to their summer camp, Camp Bold Eagle. Kids attending camp learn to self-infuse with 'factor' a blood-clotting protein their blood lacks. The foundation has a no refusal policy, meaning that if a child in financially unable to pay the cost of $2,200 to attend, the foundation picks up the cost for the child. Fundraising events like this one are what makes that possible. The Executive Director and his wife joined us for the kick-off dinner Friday night at Schuler's Restaurant in Marshall to accept our check and personally express their gratitude. Route books and car magnets were distributed and final driver instructions dispensed. Thanks to the generosity of many of you reading this, the money raised was beyond what I had hoped. From a British car enthusiast perspective, things couldn't have been much better considering it was Michigan, early October and the roads were outstanding; a good portion of the route was on new pavement! There were a few scattered showers (mostly just drizzle) and a bit of wind, but overall the skies were sunny to partly cloudy and the roads were dry. Sure, it was a bit chilly, but ideal temperatures for LBCs and with a light jacket and the car's heater ...not a problem. There were only one or two very minor problems in over 16,000 miles of "official" driving (a melted vacuum hose and a broken convertible top snap) so I'd say the "reliability" goal of the MIBRR was also met. Thanks to Messrs. Lucas, Girling, Triumph, MG and others who suffer (mostly) unjust ridicule of their products' performance. On the down side, two squirrels decided to challenge two of the cars and lost. Of the 20 cars making the run, Morgans served as bookends for oldest and newest: a 1959 Morgan +4 and a shiny new 2002 Morgan. (One of the teams, slated to drive a 1958 Triumph TR3 had to back out for personal reasons but still contributed to the fundraising effort.) After leaving the starting point in Marshall and following the assigned route, we drove through the many small towns that dot the coast along Lake Michigan. The Twin Bay British Car Club (based in Traverse City) was kind enough to post four of their members at a county park about an hour from our first day's stopping point with hot apple cider and coffee, donuts and a fire in a pit which most of us huddled around as we exchanged road stories. It was a perfect rest stop as we were getting a bit sore from handling the outstanding curving roads at speeds a bit faster than posted. Some teams split off from the main group to drive at their own pace, but the majority stuck together, communicating with CB radios. Our overnight was at the Fox Haus Motel in Traverse City. I did a live radio interview by telephone with a station back in Detroit Sunday morning before we set out on our second day of driving. Since it was 7:15am, I suspect only a couple of roosters heard it, but it went well. The interviewer asked all the right questions and it was a chance to get some publicity for the run. The second day was easier mentally and physically as we headed further north before finally turning east and then south along Lake Huron. One of the drivers has a sister and brother-in-law with a successful construction business in Alpena located on the route and arranged for lunch in the company's boardroom. The overstuffed (read: comfortable, very comfortable) chairs were tempting many of us to just stay there all day! But we pressed on after a great lunch for the last leg of the Run and the "finish line," Cleary's Pub in Chelsea. There we were greeted by about a dozen clapping and cheering Detroit Triumph Sportscar Club friends who were not able to make the drive but wanted to show their support, listen to our stories and share a few "jars" as they say in England. One of the members of the club was kind enough to pick up my wife Lesley for the ride to Chelsea to welcome us back. Lesley and I are expecting our first child in five weeks, so the doctor suggested she not make the trip lest we wanted to face the possibility of delivering a baby in a cornfield somewhere in rural Michigan! As the crowd dwindled, Lesley and I got into the 2000 and drove home. A huge thank you to the teams making the run and to everyone who contributed money to them. More thanks to our corporate sponsor Little British Car Company who covered all expenses associated with the run including the car magnets. Also, thanks to The Roadster Factory, Victoria British and Hagerty Insurance who all donated door prizes for the kick-off dinner. I'd be remiss if I didn't thank fellow lister John Macartney who was instrumental in assisting me in getting this off the ground. He's organized many of these charity runs and was very willing to share his knowledge and paperwork with me. It was great fun, I had a blast and I'm already thinking about route ideas for next year! Cheers,
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For an entry form, click the 'How to Sign Up' link to the left |
