June was a fantastic month for your Chicagoland MG Club Driving Events. The Land's End Trial opened the relaunched rally series and it was a great success. Seventeen MG and a Mini participated, and despite a huge thunderstorm all teams made it to the finish in good spirit. Rally Masters Jim and Lois Evans recreated the 1930's driving experience as good as you can in 2010: beautiful roads, check points, and a perfect rally package.
Unfortunately I couldn't make it to the Secrets of Jo Daviess County Tour but I've heard the very best stories about this drive too. The roads in NW Illinois and SW Wisconsin offer a unique opportunity that we don't get to experience at all here in the Chicagoland area. Thirteen cars were on the road and Tour Leaders Dan and Nancy Herman can proudly look back on another very successful event.
The results of the June events are accumulated in the standings for the two traveling trophies: the Moss Motors Cup for the driver of the year, and the Victoria British Cup for the navigator of the year. The top standings in each category currently are:

Drivers: Jim Evans 11 points; Barney Gaylord 9 points; Ralph Arata 8 points; Dan Herman 8 points; Victor L'Heureux 7 points; and Tom Holzman 7 points.

Navigators: Susan Arata 8 points; Lois Evans 8 points; Nancy Herman 8 points; Penny L'Heurex 7 points; and Teresa Gaylord 6 points.

You will find the entire list and the breakdown of the standings on our web site. Looking at the detailed standings, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out the secret to a high placing: yes, it is Driving! Participating in your MG is about all you have to do. And there is ample opportunity to do just that in July and August. You can find ads for the One Tank Tour, the Road America Camping Trip, and the Vintage Transportation Extravaganza in this issue along with the pre-announcements for the Lucas Memorial Night Rally and the Orphan Auto Picnic in August.

Two of these events are rallies that I would like to particularly highlight and recommend:

The Vintage Transport Extravaganza is a new rally. However, Paul Urquhart is a veteran rallyist and volunteered to contribute his expertise to the 2010 Driving Events with this very special rally, with unique stops along the way and ending at a private car collection for pizza.

The Lucas Memorial Night Rally is another old-time favorite. The Lucas electrical equipment on our MGs is known as the Prince of Darkness. To challenge its reputation for poor reliability, Dave and Sue Tucker started the Lucas Memorial Night Rally many years ago, and to enrich the 2010 Driving Season, they stepped forward to do another one.

We hope that you will be able to join us for these rallies. I also suggest that you don‘t forget to put a couple of the other driving events on your calendar as well. If July and August are not going to be THE months for 2010 Driving Events for you, you might run the risk of missing out on the season. And please don't let that happen because,

    “The more you drive, the more you smile”
-- Reinout Vogt

One Tank Tour - July 11 "On Black Hawk’s Trail" In the spring of 1832, a band of Sauk Indians led by one Black Hawk terrorized the pioneer settlers of northwestern Illinois for a period of several months. On July 11, we will conduct a one tank tour to follow the route (as much as is feasible) of Federal forces attempting to chase down Black Hawk and his band. We will depart at 9:00 am from the main parking lot West Branch DuPage County Forest Preserve District, south side of Army Trail Road at Gerber Rd in Bartlett. During the day, we will visit several sites and memorials associated with the Black Hawk War incident. This day trip is part of the Club‘s "One Tank Tour" program – we will spend the day driving along some scenic (and historic) country roads to a series of historic locations associated with the Black Hawk War. We will end that same afternoon in Elizabeth IL (near Galena). One tank of gas will get you there, but you may need a refill for the way home. So come out and return with us to those days of yesterday, to a time when a man‘s greatest problem with hair loss couldn‘t be solved with Rogaine, to a time when a man‘s best friend was his Kentucky long rifle, and a time that incubated some of the greatest characters of the 19th century American history to come. Plan on a fun day of driving in remote areas. This is not a rally, and not an overnight trip. We will hopefully learn a little history and a little bit about the state we live in. The Tour runs rain-or-shine and is part of this year's official riving program. Estimated driving distance is about 180 miles, time about five (5) hours. For info, call Tourmaster Jim Evans at (630) 858-8192. Hope you can join us for the tour!