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Safmini show reports 2010
Brooklands Mini Day, March 28th
The spring warm up show that the club has attended for a few years now. Due to being a little late
in booking a stand we found ourselves around the back of the museum on the grass.
After initially missing Stan at the MacDonalds meeting place, we caught him on the M25 and set up a
little stand with Marc and K in 'Nigel', James and Lucy in 'George', David in 'Billy' and Stan
in his lovely Sportspack.
It was a mostly dry day but chilly which meant that the test hill
was up for usage and we watched a good number of minis blast or splutter their way up.
It's a good day to catch up with mini friends from other clubs after the long winter with no shows,
do some shopping for the last few bits needed to finish the winter projects off and check out the museum
including the Formula 1 race car simulation.
There is still a section of the original banked race circuit that the officials don't like you to climb on,
but we all do! It's really steep, as is the test hill if you climb it. Scary to think that cars used to fly
around the track.
After a good run home it was back to the Ickleton Lion for a beverage and chat over the day.
Mini Miglia and Seven Racing - Round 1 , Rockingham April 10th
A day at the races to watch local racers Niven and Nathan Burge start their seasons. Rockingham
is a fairly local track and a pleasant day out, not too busy and you are free to walk around the pit
areas and watch the racing from most places. As well as the minis racing, there was single seater formula 1
style racers, some saloon racers and also the BMW mini racers all starting their season.
There was a food van keeping us going with hot food and drinks.
Nathan achieved a final 5th place from 8th in the 7's while Niven gained an excellent 4th despite a tap from
behind but he also got the fastest lap time!
Bury Mini Club - Bury to Aldeburgh Charity Run, April 18th
A very popular run with many clubs, run by the Bury mini club in aid of charity. You have to book your own
place on this one but the forms are available on the internet. We had an amazing 8 cars on the run this year
and the weather stayed fine for us. Although a little chilly by the sea in April, we all enjoyed some fresh
long queued up for fish and chips. The raffle always has a lot of prizes and raised £400 alone. We had one winner
on the team; Ken bagged himself a nice piece of mini memorabilia, better than the sponge Karena won some years ago.
All runners get a grille plaque and memento, there are easy to follow run instructions and for the braver
and more alert passengers, there is a quiz to fill in on the way round. This year there was a noisy American
presence but it's nice to know they have an interest in preserving our little cars too with huge amounts of
enthusiasm as well.
BMC put a lot of time and effort into this run and its always very well organised and attended. One for next
year again.
Norfolk Mini Owner Club's Fakenham Mini Show, May 30th
This show is a brilliant little local show that seems to be plagued with the bad weather. This year we took a good selection of minis up with Dave, Lucy and James, Alan, Stan, Ken and Karena and Marc. There is always a nice selection of trade stands, some mainstream and others local with lots of garage clearance stuff. The show is held for charity with a raffle, show and shine competition,show games to get the children involved, and the tug-o-war between the mini clubs.
Knebworth Mini and VW show, May 31st
Deciding to take advantage of the bank holiday and a new show to try out, James and Lucy, Marc and Karena and Ken, met up with Pete and Cathy at Knebworth House in Hertfordshire. We took along a friend called Ed in his old VW safari window bus, finished in matt black and lowered so it looked very mean running along with us. There is the potential for a really good show here, the grounds are massive and there is the house and grounds to look over as well as Fort Knebworth play area for the children. A few trade stands but not bad for a new show, the turnout was pretty impressive and a showing arena had been set up for the proud owners to display and fight for trophies in.
Clubman Estate Register, Thong Run 5th-6th June
The Thong run has in the past been held a little further away than Meldreth, but this year the organisers
brought it to the Eternit social club, it seemed silly not to check it out for the first time to see what it
was all about.
Due to some dodgy brakes on the cabriolet, Marc and Karena decided to take 'Errol' the Bini Clubman down to join
the fun. Thongs attached we rolled into a subdued campsite behind the social club, only subdued due to the
previous nights fun and games including thong slinging, raffle, fancy dress and auction. The social club had
provided BBQ, cheap drinks and disco and campers were able to use the on site showers and toilets. There was
still the opportunity to take part in the guess how many balloons in a mini competition, but the main event for
Sunday was a very pleasant and stress free road run through some local villages and country roads.
The trophies for the winners were made out of Lego, sounds naff but actually really clever, each year they
try to make the trophies more unusual. Winners included best glow mini, tattiest mini as well as the usual
best of show and spirit of show. The top flung thong went 33 feet!! Nice looking purple van belonging to a
girl named Mel took Marcs fancy while Karena just loves the Mystery Machine owned by Bazza.
If this one is at Meldreth again, expect a Safmini contingent for the weekend next year.
Beaulieu Cooper day, 13th June
Having been given an invitation to attend this show on the London and Surrey club stand, Marc and Karena chauffeured Dave in 'Errol',for the journey down to Beaulieu for their Cooper day. Fantastic weather and a brilliant venue, after paying the entrance fee you have entry to the grounds, the show, the museum and the house and gardens. So much to do in one day it's pretty impossible to do the lot. Still, once positioned on the stand we all wandered off to find the trade stands doing a roaring trade. The Minis were segregated to the point that the new Minis were at one end of the field and the old ones in the more prominent place. The Coopers were all congregated in one huge section with the club stands around the outside. While some don't agree with the segregation of the new and old, there didn't appear to be any nastiness. We had a good laugh at the Top Gear section of the museum with some of their more unusual vehicles including the hand made Limos and the double stacked Brits verses Germans racers. Although a distance to travel, if you've never done Beaulieu, the Cooper day is a good day to choose to go. Many thanks to the LSMOCs Bazza for inviting us and the members for making us welcome and fed with cookies and cake.
Kimbolton Country Fair and Classic Car Show, 18th July
This day out is a favourite with Safminiers because it's not all about minis. There are classic cars of almost every make plus all the trappings of a country fair with stands to buy home made goods and numerous charities to support with tombolas and games. Another good turnout for the club with James and Lucy, Chris, Lou and little William, Dave, Karena and Marc, Ken, Stan and Andrew, plus Andrew's friend in his Triumph TR7. Space is getting tight at this show as more and more car clubs come although the site is huge. There is plenty to do all day; there is an arena that holds many different displays from goose herding to Majorette dancers. A smaller arena has jazz and Irish dancing, Punch and Judy shows. There is a beer tent, a tea tent, plenty of fresh food stands including fresh pasties, curry and hog roast. In the house there is a huge display of crafts for sale as well as the stands outside. Chris had brought his mini 'Muttley' with for sale signs on, family car needed as William grows up. And he too was successful in getting a buyer. Meanwhile, second hand books, cheese and some gifts were purchased by other show goers. There are other mini clubs at this day but we are all kept spread across the grounds.
Mini in the Park (Pod), 15th August
MITP now held at Santa Pod has learnt its lesson to put the main part of the show on the concrete although the
camp site is still on the grass which again this year had got very muddy. However, a nice little group of us
went along for a relaxed day without the stand to put up and man.
Plenty of stands to check out as befits a major mini show but also the added delights of stunt shows using a
Legend race car and TVR, plus a mini that ended up with a dent in the roof, broken hand brake cable and the
exhaust hanging off. Well, they weren't built for jay turns, front and reverse donuts and the abuse that the
stunt man gave it. Pretty amazing and amusing to watch however and very popular with the crowd. Plus the big
wheeled monster Podzilla that runs over scrap cars like they are made of paper!
Santa Pod is of course famous for the drag strip and brave mini owners were allowed to chuck their cars up the
straight and see what top speed and time they could achieve, we did see at least one new MINI that had some
rather expensive engine damaged done to it, so beware!! However the jet car is to be experienced for the noise,
smoke and belly rumble as it roars past at stupid speeds.
Not a long way to travel for this and although gets some bad press for the high charges, is well attended each
year.
Saffron Walden Car Show, Aug 22nd
For a few years now, a local man has held a car show on Saffron Walden common in aid of charity. This year the choice was the Help for Heros charity. The weather has been unkind in the past for this show but for once we were all caught out. The day started out looking quite glum but came out quite warm. We took a small group of cars but had our numbers swelled by some other mini owners who asked to come on our stand. Some more welcome than others but it takes all sorts. The mixture of cars was pretty impressive from some traditional vintage cars to more modern high performance cars. Also included were a number of American motors, need some decent garage space to house one of them as well as a hefty pocket to pay for the fuel! It may be carnival time next year in Saffron Walden and the car show may coincide with it. Be great to have a large and fun club stand to let all the mini owners know that Safmini is alive and kicking despite some rumours.
North Devon Mini Club's Legendary North Devon Grand Tour, Aug 28th-30th
Now well in to its mid teens in years, this event is Safminis annual migration to Devon for a charity weekend of fun, fancy dress and fish and chips. We took three cars this year, James and Lucy, Dave and Mrs Dave and Karena and Marc. This was the event that Marc and K's cabriolet was waiting for and it wasn't without drama!
Stanford Hall, September 12th
Stanford Hall, surely the best way to wrap up the show season? Based just off the end of the A14, it's a close, easily found show and just gets bigger and better each year. Stand space can sometimes be a premium though as so many clubs want to take part. We take a good selection of minis each year and enjoy wandering around the numerous trade stands, there are bargains to be had if you try as its season end, with new stuff, second hand stuff and of course all the tee shirts, stickers and mini toot you can dream of. If you fancy your chances with the fanatical car cleaners there is a classed show and shine, but be warned, it is obsessive with some. Some clubs dress up their club stands with the chance to win some cash for the best ones. For us it's usually a nice chilled out day, the sun normally shines and we just mosey around the show and sit by the river enjoying the company. We caught up with member Imogen who moved to Warwickshire in the summer too. If you manage one show, manage this one.
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