AACA Newsletter - May 2000
[ APRIL 2000 ] [ MAY 2000 ] [ JUNE 2000 ] [ JULY 2000 ]
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ANTIQUE AUTOMOBILE CLUB OF AMERICA NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA REGION Gainesville, Florida Volume 18, Issue 05 |
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Club meets on the 3rd Monday of the month Next Meeting: March 21, 2000 7:00 PM at Semolina's Pasta, Oaks Mall Plaza, 6795 Newberry Road (Next to old Mill Rest.) Come early if you want to eat. Program starts promptly at 7:30 PM | |
President: Larry Galyean (352) 372-8661 Vice-Pres: Mike Whyte (352) 377-0390 Sec/Treas: Stuart Cullen (352) 375-8999 Editor: David L. Johnson (352) 378-7573 |
| Inside this Newsletter | |
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AMELIA ISLAND PIX: |
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The Concours d'Elegance presented at Amelia Island on March 12 lived up to its name. Since the cars are hand selected and displayed by invitation only, the show has the "cream of the crop" for your perusal. (As usual, my invitation got lost in the mail.) While Mercedes-Benz is the lead sponsor of the charitable event, many other well known companies also back this annual affair presented at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and the Golf Club of Amelia Island. You know that a show is something special when it publishes a 92 page full color high gloss program. There were 218 cars registered for this show. Luckily, Carl Fritz attended with his camera. As this month's official photo benefactor, Carl has consented to have a few of his remembrances published. The cover page also features some of his work. | |
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MG FESTIVAL IN MT. DORA: |
| Carl was also busy in Mt. Dora for the MG auto spectacular in mid April. While we were briefed about the show at our last meeting, we just now have received some photos to share with you. Sally and Jim Schmidt also attended this show and were quick to applaud the high quality and rarity of the cars. Excitement ...you would expect it from Carl who lives and breathes MG's, but when Sally talks you had better pay attention. The 1930 MG Midget "Double-Twelve" pictured was the last of 19 of these racers built. The name comes from a 1445 mile race run on May 9, 1930 that was comprised of two days at twelve hours a day. The race was won by the five car MG team with an average speed of 60.23 MPH at the Brooklands Motor Speedway in England. Only four of this model are known to exist today. | |
| APRIL AT SEMOLINA'S: |  |
| Our speaker had to cancel and reschedule, but we still had a good full house with new members as well as Ernst Blair who we have not seen in a while. The meetings continue to be entertaining. Gas tank blues! This was just one of the subjects covered in the April meeting. New member Bob Sholtes was looking for some inspiration and direction on how to put his cars in storage during periods of extended dormancy. The real problem concerns the breakdown of residual gasoline. Those members with a lot of experience where not enthusiastic about using gas stabilizers because they also seemed to create problems. The consensus was that it's better to have someone run the motors periodically and keep the gas fresh. Barring that, drain everything and run the engine dry. It's work, but it will minimize the varnish and goop that happens when the gas is left in the lines. If you have a better solution we'd like to hear from you. | |
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GATOR HOBBY SHOW |
| Gator Hobby celebrated its first anniversary by sponsoring a car show on April 22. Mike Whyte, our VP, put the show together and Dan Horton provided the music. 51 cars, including six from Jacksonville, competed for the top 20 awards. A black 1934 Chevy accompanied by a replica of the same car, but mounted on a go cart chassis , won the Gator Hobby Award. Radio controlled cars were showcased for additional entertainment, but they had to be throttled back because of the dusty conditions on the track. Pizza , hot dogs and soda topped off the night. | |
| COUNCIL PICNIC ON MAY 21 |  |
| Just a reminder to the members of all 14 car clubs in the North Central Florida Car Club Council. The picnic is around the corner! It will be on Saturday, May 21 from 10 AM to 3 PM at the Silver River State Park in Ocala. It's a family event and you can bring your special car, if you wish. This is not a formal show, but you can informally display your auto. There will be a $2.00 charge per car. Bring your own picnic lunch, but no grilling is currently being permitted. | |
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WILLISTON PARADE |
| The City of Williston is looking for old cars to join their annual Independence Day celebration. This year it's on Monday, July 3, and begins with the parade at 5:30 PM. Call Crystal Silverstein at (352) 528-3060, as soon as possible, if you have an interest. | |
| IMPORTANT AUTO DATES |  |
| In my travels on the internet looking for things that you might find interesting, I came across a listing of "important" dates. Some are milestones, some are more frivolous. You make the choice. 1903 Debut of the enclosed car and glass windshield. 1904 Steering wheels replaced tillers. 1908 The first rumble seat was part of a Packard two seater called the "Honeymoon car." 1912 The electric self-starter was perfected by Samuel Kettering. 1916 Cars began to feature vanity cases, clocks, crystal flower vases, and smelling salts. 1917 Car heaters began to appear. 1922 the Wills-St. Clair had a back-up light. 1925 The first rental car was the Hertz "Drivuself." 1926 Shock-proof glass was introduced. 1927 Chrome trim introduced. 1930 The first front-wheel drive cars offered to the public were the Gardner, the Cord and the Auburn. 1937 Batteries were moved to a new position (under the hood). 1937 The first automatic transmission (as we know it today) appeared on an Oldsmobile. 1938 Buick made turn signals available. Note: I did not research the accuracy of these claims. | |
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HIGHWAY US 41 WENT THROUGH GAINESVILLE |
| As long as most of us can remember, Highway US 441 had been the major north-south route through Gainesville until I-75 came along. But that hasn't always been the case. US 41 was the first major highway to link the mid-west with Miami. It began in Florida about 1927 and ran from the Georgia line thru Lake City, and then into Alachua County thru High Springs along NW 9th St. and 1st Ave. Before it was rerouted in 1938, US 41 then proceeded down what is now US 441 toward Gainesville. Originally, US 41 entered Gainesville on Alabama St. (now NW 6th St). It then jogged east on Boundary St. (now NW 8th Ave) to Main Street. The highway then traveled south 8 blocks and turned west on University Avenue to what is now SW 13th St. and US 441. (Remember, in the past, the main roads always went through the center of each town.)After Gainesville, US 41 went south through Reddick and on to Ocala. A couple of more wiggles, then US 41 went west on what is now FL 40 to Juliette, FL (currently Rainbow Springs). The route from there south through Dunnellon to Tampa has been the same since 1928. When US 41 was moved further west in 1938, it headed south directly from High Springs to Newberry and Williston, avoiding Gainesville by many miles. Some sections of the old US41 became US441. Yes, this piece of trivia came off the internet. It's amazing how many sites are dedicated to the history of old roads and highways. There are even sites that detail old road signs and markers. If old parking meters, gas pumps, metal signs, barns with "See Rock City" or anything else nostalgic is your thing, the internet has some sites. So, if you've got nothing to do on a rainy day, maybe this kind of browsing is for you ...on the other hand, maybe you need to get a life.But, for some demented editors, we find this stuff sort of interesting, kind of like old cars. | |
| CRUISE-INS & SHOWS: |
| ACTIVITIES NEAR-BY: |
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May 20: Trenton, FL Suwannee River Early Ford Club Antique Car Show at Ayers Health Center
10-2pm. May 20: Palatka, FL AACA Azalea Region car show at the Palatka Mall (Hwy 100 & 19) from 10am - 3pm. Call (352) 473-3476. May 27: St. Augustine, FL AACA Ancient City Region. 16th annual car show at St. Augustine Events Field (Castillo Dr. & US 1) Call Frank Phillips (904) 471-2235. 2nd Sat each month: Gainesville Street Rods Cruise in of customs & antiques at Butler Plaza, by the Texas Road and Gainesville Ale Houses. The 2nd Sat. of the month from 6-9 PM. Call Sherwin at (352) 473-2268. |
| SPECIAL AACA EVENTS: |
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May 19-20: Winchester, VA Eastern National Spring Meet. Jun 3: Hershey, PA 5th annual AACA Museum Exposition. Jul 14-15: Mountoursville, PA Grand National Meet. Jul 20-22: Charlotte, NC Special Southeastern Division Fall Meet. Aug 4-6: Macungie, PA 37th Das Awkscht Fescht Show Aug 17-19: Waukesha, WI Central Division National Fall Meet. Oct 4-7: Hershey, PA Eastern Div. National Fall Meet (THE SHOW!) Nov 16-18: Cape Canaveral, FL Southeastern Div. National Fall Meet. |
| Other U.S. Events for 2000 |
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May 12-14: Kruse-Auburn (spring) Aug 30-Sep 5: Kruse-Auburn (fall) |
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a Girl Should Hold On To Her Youth But Not When He's Driving |
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| "Stump" answers: |
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Note: Dues Time
Pay your $26 National dues directly,
see form with your Antique Automobile Magazine.
Pay Stuart $26 for your local dues.
See You Monday!
FOR THIS MONTH
1939 LAGONDA
A "Rapide" V-12 with a wood strip
body fastened with copper rivets.
Shown at Amelia Island
Photos by Carl Fritz
ANTIQUE AUTOMOBILE CLUB OF AMERICA NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA REGION
[ APRIL 2000 ] [ MAY 2000 ] [ JUNE 2000 ] [ JULY 2000 ]
c/o David L. Johnson
3752 NW 21st Place
Gainesville, FL 32605
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