The Steering Column
Left Hand Drive from our President

Last month I congratulated Dan Kerkman and Dino Perez on their awards for the car show, but to my regret, I failed to realize that we had another Club member that also won an award. I want to recognize Ed Polonus who took second place in his division at the NAMGBR 2014 car show in French Lick, Indiana. Congratulations, to Ed and his '75 B on a successful show!!

The club driving season is in full swing with many events still to happen and Jana and I hope that you will be able to participate in one of them. Take a look at the list in the Driveline, or go to the web site and check out the calendar. So far there have been lots of fun events and there are more to enjoy. Remember, our club is about having fun with our cars, and that is the attitude you should have as you participate. We are a fun club, and that is how we view our activities.

One of the cars displayed at the NAMGBR car show was the Indy 500 MG Liquid Suspension Special. I can say that I remember that car in '64 through '68, and all the buzz it caused do to the technology involved in suspension systems. They were viewed at that time as the next big step forward in car racing. I have a couple of old Indy history books and they both talked about this car. As this issue of Driveline goes to press, Jana and I will be on our way back from the NASCAR race, in Indianapolis, the Brickyard 400. As usual, I will be rooting for Tony Stewart. No MG's in this race, but some of you remember that before the Toyota's came on the scene, the previous foreign car to race in a sanctioned NASCAR event was an MGA.

In closing, I recently spoke with Dan Herman and he is back in rehabilitation after suffering a set back. I also spoke with Oscar Gonzales and he sounded very good after having quadruple by-pass surgery. We all wish them a steady and speedy recovery, so that they can get back in their cars and join us on the road. Also, I will not be able to attend our next club meeting as Jana and I will be attending my High School's 50th year reunion. The 50-50 raffle has had two roll overs and should be that night's amount plus the $35 roll over. We are still working on a program for that nights meeting, but it should be lively.

Happy motoring and Safety Fast!

-- George Phariss

	The Steering Column
	Right Hand Drive from our Vice-President

Ahhh retirement. that sought after goal to be a ‘person of leisure’ – your time is your own – ‘footloose and fancy free’. Well, since my retirement three years ago, I haven’t ever been busier than I am now.

I envisioned time for myself and Penny, enjoying the grandkids, and maybe have time to do a little refurbishment to my MGB. We planned to sell our house a few years ago, but as the market didn’t prove favorable, we waited. As I noted before, we sold our house this spring and moved to a smaller abode in Crystal Lake. We were looking for a ranch house on a lakefront property – with at least a 2-car garage. I envisioned working on my car during the day and watching the sunsets from a dock swing in the evening. There were slim pickings for what we wanted – especially since we didn’t want to move too far from where we are now.

The house we found is near the lake (about 300 yards) and near a beautiful beach and park facility. Boating, swimming, picnic area, concerts in the park - are all within a short walk. And…I got a 4-car heated garage! Now my challenge is to reduce the 150 or so moving boxes full of ‘stuff’ out of my garage so I can get the MGs in! I suspect I will be able to accomplish this task before the first snow falls.

To fund my ambitious MG refurbishment, I took on a part-time maintenance position at a senior independent living community. I only work the morning hours and since I am only 8 minutes from the site, the commute is of little concern. But it does shorten my ’leisure time’ to afternoons – after I run the various errands thought up by Penny. Not that I am complaining, it was not part of my original retirement plan. Time seems to slip by and the things I wanted to accomplish seem to take longer than I anticipated. Maybe I am just moving slower than years ago… who’s to know.

I have to admit, I am enjoying this new routine. The work on the car may not be at the pace I was expecting and maybe my other projects (like building my dream workshop and man cave in the garage) will take a little longer than originally planned.

Oh well, at least I got the sunsets on the beach with Penny.

-- ~~ Victor L’Heureux