by Fredrick Dagg

Like last year the weather all around was crap and like last year this saw off many possible participants and like last year while it was windy, it was both hot and sheltered behind the belt of trees along the side of the park area we congregate in, so you missed out again.

There was only about 23 cars in total, these being made up of a great variety of makes , models and ages ranging from a 1937 Morris 12 through to the latest Nissan G35 Skyline. There were Sunbeam Alpine's, Tiger, Rapier and Rapier Fastback's, Vauxhall HA SL90 Viva and LIP Velox, Austin Healey 3000 Mk3, Wolseley 6/90, Marcos, Triumph TR2, TR4A, TR7 and TR7 V8, Dodge Ram 2500, Aston Martin AMV8, Ford Falcon, Holden LS Monaro, Mercedes Benz and our P76/6.

As an aside, I have just been reading a bit about the Jensen Motor Company and the various products built by them besides their own cars and trucks. They did specialist body work on all manner of other vehicles, even Volvo's but relevant to above is the fact that they produced the Austin Healey bodies including some 1390 Mk3'slike the one at Lake Ferry and all those shiny examples mentioned in Bryan Lawrence's Centre Island Run report.

However, in amongst that group the Leyland Club can lay claim to four participants being myself and Abby in the P76, Lance Wagstaff as co driver of the Monaro, the Cottles in the AMV8 and Robin Coleman, our latest member in his Falcon. Robin assures me his P76 is all up and go after its shakedown trip across the North Island; he just bought the Ford on the day. Probably because the weather was crap up his way too!

This is a low key picnic event that may act as the first run of the summer for many cars but not our P76. Abby and I picnicked on our rug behind the trees, played in the playground nearby, threw stones into the lake, admired the cars and in particular, I got reacquainted with many old friends from several different car clubs. Some of these people I've known for over twenty three years and we still enjoy our classic cars.

1 hope to have a photo or two in this issue of Penzed and really hope next year the weather is better and so is the general response, maybe getting back into the 100's as it has been in some past years. One year long ago there were 29 makes of car in attendance.

Thank you again to the Sunbeam Car Club of NZ for this enjoyable stress free outing.

(Click on picture to see full size image)