The Octagon 

NEWSLETTER OF THE CLASSIC   CLUB

Vol. 47                       No.5                    Issue 560                                    May, 2010 

MAINTAINING THE BREED FOR OVER FORTY YEARS

  PRESIDENT: Jim McSweeney, 3516 Seaford Ln., Casselberry, FL 32707.  Phone 407

 695 2981  E-mail jimspeedmaster@aol.com.

EDITOR:   Al Cook, 8554 Amber Oak Dr. Orlando, FL 32817.  Phone 407 6678 6814- E–mail arcpa@mpinet.net.

WEBSITE:  www.classicmgclub.com  WEBMASTER:  Paul Plasschaert, E-mail: webmaster@classicmgclub.com. 

MEETING:  As usual, it is the third Thursday, May 20^th at 7:00 PM in the Maitland Senior Center, 145 S Maitland Ave. in (can it be?) Maitland.    Directions: from Horatio and Orlando Ave. (AKA 17-92), Go West on Horatio to Maitland Ave. Then left (South) on Maitland Ave. to Packwood. Go right (West) on Packwood about ½ a block to the parking lot. Pull into the 1st driveway on the left.  We will discuss the GOF, the planned trip for May as well as our plans for summer events.

APRIL EVENTS FOLLOW UP :  Our club had a good expedition to Jekyll Island for the 44^th annual Gathering of the Faithfull on April 9 - 11,  2010. We were treated to wonderful hospitality by our friends at MG Classics of Jacksonville who ordered up wonderful weather, good food and friendship.  Oh, yes, there were about 90 of the prettiest MGs you have ever seen. Next year’s GOF will be sponsored by the Sun Coast Classic MG Club and will be held April 8 – 10, 2010 at Weeki Wachee, the City of Mermaids (and MGs)..  We will pass on additional information as we receive it, but mark your calendars now!

Our Bonus Event for April was a new one for the Club.  We drove to the heart of Historic Downtown Eustis to board the Citrus Sun Lunch Train for a nostalgic train ride to Mount Dora and back to the point of origin. We enjoyed a lovely lunch, good conversation and lots of stories about train rides we have experienced in the past.  All returned home with a smile on their faces.  As an unplanned bonus (I guess we could say a Bonus to the Bonus Event), when we returned to the Eustis station, we found that one of the classic car clubs in the area was setting up for a display of hot-rods, collector and classic automobiles right

downtown!  We literally walked into (and through) a car show on our way from the station to the parking lot.     If Pete Rogers had planned this, he is a genius.  If it was unplanned, he is lucky!  Either way, things worked out perfectly for lovers of old cars.

MAY (?) DRIVING EVENT: A consensus choice for May’s event was a drive over to Volusia County to visit good friend Jeannie Henderson who, together with her departed husband, Dave were regulars at our meetings for many years before she sold her beloved TD and moved to New Smyrna Beach to be closer to Family.  Because of a multitude of scheduling conflicts (school graduations and Memorial Day, to name a few), this May Driving Event will take place on Saturday June 5, 2010.  Think of this as “MG Time” on a monthly basis! The Plan is, for those of us who will be leaving from the Orlando area, to meet at the Publix in Maitland (near the intersection of US 17-92 and Horatio) and to leave promptly at 9:30 A.M.  We won’t tell you when to meet, because some will buy coffee at the nearby Starbucks, and some will dash into Publix for some real or imaginary need, but get there early enough that you can take care of business and still leave by 9:30.  We will be traveling on an undisclosed route, known only to our Tourmeister, John Camichos, but we will end up at Jeannie’s house at 1913 Turnbull Lakes Dr. New Smyrna Beach, FL 32168-5497

If you get lost, or are running behind, you can call her at 386-409-9645.  At Jeannie’s, we will link up with our friends on the East Coast and then proceed directly to a local eating and drinking establishment (which hasn’t yet been determined.)  When we decide the location of our luncheon, we will let you know, so if there are any who can’t make any of the other interim check-points, you can still meet us for lunch.  We have no further destination(s) in mind, but we will be over near the Beach and….

SUMMER EVENTS: Please come to the May 20th meeting armed with your best ideas for Summer-Time events that will help us keep our cars happy, but not burn us up in the Florida sunshine.  Favorite events from the recent past include lunch and Darts at Winter Park’s Fiddler’s Green Irish Pub, swamp viewing and alligator eatin’ at the Black Hammock Restaurant,  and a Pool Party/Barbeque at one of our club member’s concrete backyard pond.  Tours of car displays/museums have also provided us lots of enjoyment, in times past.  Bring your best ideas!  If you don’t like the events we come up with, let us hear your Better Ideas!