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(Continued from page 12)
Video conference Indy to Australia
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 Next few days we were in Murphy, NC, then Sweetwater, TN catching frost overnight, the slogging our way through torrential rain into southern KY. On the 20th we pulled a longer run through KY and all the way up to Indianapolis, IN where we had a couple of appointments. Late night the 20th, actually 3 to 5 AM the 21st I was engaged with a web cam conference call with MG Car Club Victori, MGA Register, Nunawading, Victoria, Australia (quite a mouth full). I was the guest speaker for their 8 pm club meeting, commencing 4 am in Indy. Got to shake that off by sleeping most of the day.
In the evening of Thursday, the 21st it was check-in and meet and greet with theBritish Motor Trade Association (with which I am a paid member). I made a point of capturing Kelvin Dodd of Moss Motors for serious mention of too-small dysfunctional brake shoes and ill-fitting door panel stiffener brackets.
Friday was an early start with 60 members of BMTA introducing themselves and their business involvement with vintage British cars. Since I had been visiting shops for the past three years, I asked about those who might remember my stopping to visit their shop and was rather taken when nearly everyone in the room had a hand up. I must be doing something right. I last met with this group two years ago on Charlotte, NC where most did not know me at the time. Following was a seminar on opening a business, buying, selling, growing a business, and possibly transitioning a business to a new owner to keep it going when you retire. All interesting stuff among people with common interests and common problems.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum
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After lunch we hopped a bus for a visit to Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. I was here before in late 1989, but now the place is bigger with another 29-1/2 years of history and lots more race cars on display. Looking at historical race cars, it was interesting to notice some major transitions, like when they changed from roadsters to rear engine cars, introduction of wide low profile slick tires, when they first got wings, the first turbine engine cars, the (failed) attempt to re-introduce naturally aspirated engines, recent introduction of side bump bars to reduce wheel overlap and launch accidents, and ever more streamlining of body shell around those big slick tires. My favorite car was the AJ Foyt racer from 1961 with cigar body, tall narrow tires and that wonderfully loud supercharged Offenhauser engine. I was 12 years old listening to the radio the day AJ set the first 150 MPH qualifying lap at Indy.
AJ Foyt Indy car 1961 (at IMS Museum)
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Our second afternoon stop was a visit to Dallara IndyCar Factory. This place
Modern car at Dallara IndyCar Factory
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now builds most of the new cars that race at Indy these days. I got a few pictures up front, but not allowed pictures aft of the show room. It was interesting to see graphite composite body tubs being a driver's safety cocoon with attachment points for structural engines and break-away suspension parts.
After dinner at a pub in downtown Speedway we were back to the hotel for a few more hours of chat with several of the BMTA folks. Some of it was business, maybe more of it BS and history. Had a long chat with Bruce Woodson from Mercer and Woodson Automotive, Inc in Richmond, VA. Have known him at least since he was a past Chairman of NAMGAR 2011-2015. Had a brief chat with Tom Medeen, the new Chairman of NAMGAR. Another longer chat with Scott Dougherty of Minnesota MG Vintage Racers, the primary hosts for the NAMGAR GT-44 coming up in July in Dubuque, Iowa. Chatted for a bit with Glenn Lenhard of Glenn's MG Service in St Petersburg, Florida who have built up a couple MG cylinder heads for me in past years. One rather obvious theme here is that the larger Brit car service shops are going Gung Ho with a substantial backlog of work as competition has been thinning out over the years.
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March 2019
