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FALL 2016
The Aston Taft Dynamic
Artist Jeremy Dickinson
From Colorado To California
Issue No. 40
$12.50 US / $12.50 CDN
ASTON MARTIN OWNERS CLUBNorth America Quarterly Journal
FALL 2016
The Aston Taft Dynamic
Artist Jeremy Dickinson
From Colorado To California
Issue No. 40
$12.50 US / $12.50 CDN
ASTON MARTIN OWNERS CLUBNorth America Quarterly Journal
1
FROM THE EDITOR
THE NEXT PAGEHalsey Bascom
T H E V A N T A G E PO I N TT H E V A N T A G E PO I N T
THE VANTAGE POINT aspires to reflect the values and
spirit of Aston Martin: Innovation, Quality, Performance.
We are committed to both inform and entertain our membership,
but moreover to provide context for connection and exploration, and fanning the flames of our
common passion.
www.amoc.org
AMOC-NA East Chair & Publisher Bob Welch
Editor-in-Chief Halsey Bascom
Managing Editor—West Guy Simpson
Editor—West Coast Kohei Saito
Art Director / Designer Bruce Crocker / Heather LaPierre
Advertising Director Richard Kollins
Copy Editors Richard Kollins, John David, Robert Obie
Mark Ransome, Jane Ransome
Photographers Robert Dennis — West
CJ Gutch — East Melinda Kollins — USA Tim Cottingham — UK
Aston Martin Owners Club North America Quarterly Journal
Fall 2016
The Vantage Point (formerly the AMOC Quarterly) is the official publication of the Aston Martin Owners Club—North America, and published by the AMOC-NA Section East. Statements appearing in The Vantage Point are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the position of the Aston Martin Owners Club or its officers. We reserve the right to edit all materials as necessary and may refuse content that is not Aston Martin Owners Club related, or otherwise not deemed relevant, at the discretion of the Editor. The Vantage Point is published quarterly for members of the Aston Martin Owners Club, a non-profit corporation.
What’s past really is prologue. When I left off editing the Quarterly back in the 80s I was heart-broken, having sold my beloved daily-driver DB4C to a friend of Nick’s, and about to launch myself at the wilds of the Texas Hill Country (Oh, all right, Town and Country had run a story about Kerrville, so I knew it couldn’t be too primitive. But, really, men wearing polyester jumpsuits?).
Over the next years I had learned that Tom Fuller had named the DB4 “Hal-sey” which took some of the sting out of the wound. It was like being a ghost in the Club.
Then at the beginning of 2015, on what I thought was a whim, I decided to join AMOC again. What happened next flowed into the most remarkable series of experiences. Nick asked me to return as Editor (Redactrix?). How could I resist? Editing the Quarterly in my late twenties, early thirties was the ultimate backstage pass! I had Peter Sprague and others feeding me great quotes. But the most wonderful perk of the job ap-peared at the annual Pennsylvania Fall Concours and Picnic at Bob Harrison’s Happy Creek Farm in St. David’s. Every year Charles Addams (yes, that Charles Addams. Every quarter I would send his copy to the New Yorker office in mid-
town Manhattan) would bring a Bugatti or something non-Aston, his wife and an assortment of rather strange-looking mongrels. The Harrison’s powder room was lined with framed Addams cartoons. Well, Chas. had been a hero of mine since I discovered him when I was nine. This particular Fall, at the Saturday evening banquet at the Van Schaick’s country club, the most wonderful thing happened. Add-ams had me summoned to his side at the bar. My hero summoned me!
I felt it incumbent to attend Lime Rock this year, to reacquaint myself with old friends, catch up on what the face of the Club looks like. (Last time I’d participated, my son, John, was born ten days after Lime Rock 1979 after a two day ride home to Virginia Beach in Halsey. He was ten weeks early. Saved a bundle on mater-nity clothes!). This time I got to see the magnificently restored Halsey and accept the award for Tom Fuller when she won Best in Class.
It don’t get no better ‘n that, folks. Trust me.
Now, to business. In this issue we are looking back. To old friends, old cars, hallowed events. And we are looking forward. To the next generation (hence our Coverboy), the next cars (brief-lived DB10, of which, apparently one will be sold – the question of the hour is to whom and what brought that about?) and the next adventures AMOC fac-es. We’ll have a new set of tech articles (boy, do I feel like a dinosaur. I used to do minor repairs on Halsey. Now I have to take – on faith – what these guys are submitting is real, that they’re not pulling my limb).
Submissions to the Editor: [email protected]
Deadlines are 30 days after the start of each calendar quarter, for the next quarter issue.
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FROM THE EDITOR
FAREWELL EDITORIALNick Candee 24 October 2015
“So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish” could be my valediction, but that phrase was already used in 1984 as the title of a droll sci-fi novel by Douglas Adams, better known for “Hitchhiker’s Guide to The Galaxy” and “Restaurant at the End of The Universe.” Dry British humor of the Monty Python and Rowan Atkinson flavor is usual in the proceedings of the AMOC. And such humour / humor is helpful on track days I might add. So after my third / 3rd stint as editor of our club magazine, I do want to say thanks for the challenge! Forget the fish.
How wonderful that Halsey Bascom has returned to the [virtual] editor’s desk for our journal! In her stint in the 1980s she made our pages rather more erudite, penning such witty captions as the one for a photo of folks in the timing tower at Lime Rock with stop watches: “these are the souls who time men’s tries” – a riff on
Thomas Paine. The AMOC-NA East journal has been a uniting medium since the 1960s, and just over a quarter century ago WEST and EAST Canada & US combined efforts for a joint publication. Since Halsey now resides in Texas, she is the second editor who hails from WEST. I am optimistic that Halsey will further brighten these pages. Keep those cards and letters coming – and photos! Just send them now to [email protected]
Cheers,
Nick Candee
01 From The Editor
02 Fairwell Editorial
04 Back East
05 Out West
06 The Markel Collection
08 The Aston Taft Dynamic
12 Artist Jeremy Dickinson
14 Irma Elder Tribute
15 The Front Peak To Peak Highway
16 How About A Road Trip?
23 David Van Schaick
26 Colorado Grand
28 Astons In Austin
30 Mark III Auction in Tennessee
31 Salon Prive
32 Lime Rock 2015
40 Lime Rock 2016
42 Tech Talk
44 In Memoriam
47 Caption Contest
48 Club Directory
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Having assumed the role of Chair in January, I am pleased to report that the AMOC-NA East con-tinues to go from strength to strength. For those of you do not know me, I have been a member of the AMOC for over 15 years. Having participated in many wonderful events put on by others, I even-tually served as New England Area Representative. Throughout the years, I have been continually im-pressed by the warm camaraderie and fellowship of Club members, and have been welcomed to join in Club activities from Boston to Hong Kong. Many of my happiest memories and closest friendships are entirely due to my participation in the Club, and I encourage all of you to take advantage of the won-derful people and enjoyable activities of the AMOC.
Those of you who were fortunate enough to be present for our 46th Lime Rock Annual Meeting Lime Rock enjoyed a spectacular road tour (with record participation) followed by a fabulous lunch at the beautiful home of Tom Gibb and Robert Lund-gren on Thursday. Friday’s spectacular weather saw a superb Concours (many thanks to Chief Judge Don Rose and his colleagues), and Saturday brought a very well attended track day, when members new and old had the opportunity to drive their cars as they are meant to be driven. Many thanks to Susan Laskey, our wonderful Events and Membership Di-rector Kathy Gaffney, and to the many others who contributed to making the weekend such a suc-cess. Under the stewardship of my predecessor, Tom Smith, the number of Club activities at both the lo-cal and national level has reached new heights. I am grateful for his steady leadership, and only hope that I can serve the Club as ably as he did.
From pub nights to road rallies to very special one-off events, our hard-working Area Representatives have filled the calendar with great opportunities for us to enjoy our cars in the company of like-minded enthusiasts. Shortly after I became Chair, I was priv-ileged to attend the AMOC Annual Awards Lun-cheon at the Barn in Drayton St. Leonard, where our own Len Levin was recognized by the world-wide Club as the Area Representative of the year. I
AMOC-NA / EAST
BACK EASTwas honored to accept the award on his behalf, and was later absolutely delighted to be able to present it to him among friends and family at Lime Rock. I do hope that each of you will take the opportunity to take advantage of these many events, and perhaps to suggest or organize one yourself.
I am particularly grateful for the hard work of Halsey Bascomb, Richard Kollins, Bruce Crocker, and the many others who have contributed to the publica-tion of this issue of The Vantage Point (TVP 40). After a hiatus, we are looking forward to publishing TVP on a biannual basis. Many members have told me how important TVP is to them, but I also recognize that we need to provide members with news of up-coming events and information on topics of interest in a timely manner. Marc Fierman, our webmaster, has done a terrific job of developing the AMOC-NA website (www.amocna.org), and I anticipate that the website will serve as an ever more important focus for keeping our members engaged and informed. I encourage all of you to visit it regularly, and to con-tribute news, events, and items of interest.
Finally, I am very grateful to all of you for providing me with the opportunity to serve you, and the Club, as Chair. While we all share a tremendous enthusi-asm for the Aston Martin marque, it is the friend-ship and fellowship of Club members which sustains the Club, and which makes it such a rewarding and fulfilling part of our lives. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and concerns, hope to build upon our great tradition to make our Club even more engag-ing and enjoyable.
Happy Motoring,Bob WelchChair, AMOC-NA East
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AMOC-NA / WEST
OUT WESTThe end of the year, when many of our cars are safely tucked away in their garages for the winter, seems like a good time to review certain Section West ac-tivities in 2015.
The traditional North-South meet is when Northern and Southern California areas alternate in organiz-ing a weekend “somewhere in the middle” usually in March or April. This year it was the Southerner’s turn and they chose the excellent Fess Parker Resort in Santa Barbara as our base. The event included a visit to an auto wood restorer, the ever popular lunch at a winery and an Aston Martin invasion of the local Cars-n-Coffee on Sunday morning. During the weekend two new items were added to Section West lore. Firstly that all future organizers will be reminded to check the calendars of the local cycling club – the drive to the winery on Saturday would have been much less stressful without the wobbly pack of cyclists around every blind corner. Secondly I can no longer attend any AMOC event without be-ing asked if I have my wallet – the account of us ar-riving at a gas station in the DB5 without ANY form of payment was apparently enjoyed by many.
August saw the return of Section West to the Casa Munras Hotel for Monterey car week. To the best of anyone’s recollection, this was the 41st year that the AMOC has stayed here and having just signed the contract, we will be back in 2016. Monterey fea-tured the normal overload of superlative cars and visits to regular AMOC haunts. The Thursday night welcome party remains one of my favorite events on Section West calendar, as people from all over the AMOC world gather in the parking lot to make new friends and compare recent exploits with old ones.
While the North-South and Monterey events are still well attended, there is always the danger of getting stuck in an unimaginative rut. I welcome feedback and suggestions on how to improve regular events and ideas for new ones. One such opportunity came our way recently in Northern California when we were invited to have a club stand at the San Fran-
cisco Auto Show. This was a first for most of us and very much an experiment as we didn’t really know what to expect. A full article is being prepared for a future issue of The Vantage Point, but in summa-ry we displayed nine cars (1957 to 2007) and the group of AMOC members who staffed the stand for ten days in November enjoyed interacting with the public, some of whom lingered for prolonged discussions and told us that ours was the best stand at the show!
Our objective with this experiment was not to pro-mote the Aston Martin brand – although clearly we were. Nor was this an AMOC membership drive – although I do think we will have recruited a few new members. I believe our major achievement was education. Certainly a lot of people went away from the stand knowing more about Aston Martin than it just being the car 007 drives. Personally I think this kind of “outreach” is a worthy activity for the club and will help to ensure its future by maintaining or developing new enthusiasm for the marque. Clearly this is not the objective of most AMOC events, but if, as in this case, it can be done at minimal cost and enjoyed by those members who participate, I think it is worthwhile repeating. We are already planning our return in 2016.
Happy Motoring, Guy SimpsonChair, AMOC-NA West
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The Markel collection is housed in a series of 6 or 7 or 8 garages, located in a picturesque and historic village in Skippack, PA, located in the Montgomery County, a western suburb of Philadelphia. I‘m not sure how many garages, even how many garages we visited, as after a while it became a blur. But a wonderful blur, as garage after garage revealed a magnificent collection of automobiles, automobilia plus countless decorative collectibles. First, the term garages really isn’t appropriate. It’s a poor description of the buildings that house this collection, but that’s what they are called. A couple might be described as the nicest garages you have ever seen. After all, if the car rests on a Persian carpet, that’s not bad, and don’t worry about the rug. While the cars are in running condition, they don’t drip oil or water on the carpets. But then it gets better, as there are other garages,
purpose designed buildings of an eclectic architecture that does not fit into a cat-egory that I can name or define. Several are about 3 years old, but you could think that they are part of the original buildings that comprise the commercial center of Skippack Village. When the wide wooden doors swing open, the first thing that you see is a beautiful red 1929 Cord L-29. It’s one of a group of pre-war American vehicles, Auburn, Cord, Packard, Chrys-ler and numerous motorcycles. You can
THE MARKEL COLLECTION
After all, if the car rests on a Persian
carpet, thats not bad.
plop down onto any of several over-stuffed leather sofas and be surrounded by a collection of premium American vehicles, in a setting that reminded me of what I would expect the interior of a Swiss Chalet would look like. Several of the garages contained kitchen facilities. I don’t remember seeing any bedrooms, but if there were, you could live there very comfortably. So, keeping this in mind, a group of 25 AMOC members and friends met on the morning of May 9, 2015, for an invited tour of this collection. As usual, these events begin with some tire kicking, greeting of old friends and making some new acquaintances. We assembled in front of the Octane Garage, which contains cars used in racing, mostly Italian, and mostly 40 years old, and older. Our guide was Mike Casale, a man who wears many hats, one of which is of the curator of the collection. Mike was our host and guide for the full 5 hours of our event. Well, I do have to modify that a bit, because an-other person affiliated with the collection, Dave Markel was also with us for the full tour, so I guess you could say that he was really our host, but he acted like an inter-ested spectator, socializing with us, and leaving the actual hosting to Mike. We next caravanned to the English Garages area (there are two) housing a collection of MGs, Austin Healeys, Jaguars, Bentleys, Rolls Royce and two Aston Martins.
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In 1962, our dad, Russell P. Taft, (“Parker” to his friends) celebrat-ed his 10th anniversary of graduating from Hastings Law School by purchasing a car for himself and his wife Betty. This was coupled with the fact that his “Pushbutton” Chrysler was on its last legs. We, his sons, were five years old, and our sister was two at the time. Such a car must say “Success” without being ostentatious. MG: too cheap. MB Gullwing: a possibility, but too difficult to get in and out of gracefully. Jag: also a possibility, but too common. Rolls or Bentley: remember ostentatious? Dad’s brother, Frank Taft was a car guy, and offered advice on the matter, irrespective of need. While doing legal work for a local towing and storage yard they found a ‘57 Aston Martin DB2/4 MKII (this car even had room for kids!) Parker, not having ever heard of an Aston Martin before, was informed by Frank, that “this is a very desirable car,” and is used by James Bond in a novel that he was reading called “Goldfinger” by a guy named Ian Fleming. This was good enough for Parker! Alas, the car was not for sale, as it had been stolen and recovered, and was awaiting disposition by the insurance company. Not to be tied down by red tape, Parker and Frank got a battery and fuel, fired it up, and brought it home anyway! Betty politely insisted that as the Chrysler was on its last gasp, perhaps he should set his sights on a car that didn’t need so much work: a tree had fallen on the hood (American for bonnet), it needed a windshield (American for windscreen), and although it ran, it needed work on the interior, motor and transmission (American for gearbox). So they brought it back to the tow company, and there it sat.
The brothers did legal work for British Motors in Vallejo, and the owner, Larry Albedi, told Parker that he found another Aston, a
black ‘59 DB2/4 Mk III similar to the first, but a “Convertible” (American for “Drop Head Coupe”). It was offered for $3,200 but Parker had only $2,500, so with the help of the Mechanics Bank (who said that they would honor the check if written for the pur-chase price) Parker went to San Francisco, and bought it (at this time, a house cost around $5,000). The car had the current license plate that reads “AUD 007” at the time of purchase. Parker brought the car to the bank, as the bank manager wanted to see it. When the bank manager saw the car, he said “Damn, what a beautiful car! For God’s sake, Parker, don’t forget to make the payments!!”
A couple of months later, Frank received a call from “Bob” with that tow service mentioned earlier. “Still interested in that Aston Martin?”, as it was soon to be auctioned. Parker looked at it for a parts-car but the cars were too different. The Mk II was an un-usual configuration. Aston had made most of its hard-tops with a swept back calling it a “Saloon”. This had a convertible body with a non-removable hard top, a Fixed Head Coupé was the official designation.
The call came, and the car was to be auctioned. By this time Frank was a little short on cash, so he didn’t bother going to the auction. Neither did anybody else! It was a rainy, stormy day, and Frank got another call, and the conversation went something like this: Bob: “You want that car?” Frank: “Yeah, but I don’t have a lot of cash.” “You can have it by bidding $50, and paying the $200 stor-age fee. I’ll spot you the $50.” “Hold on.” Frank ran down to the bar below their office, and asked “How much you got in the till?” “About $200.” “Great, can I borrow it?” “Sure.” he runs back up-stairs where Bob is holding, “I got the $200, I’ll be right there!”
By Bob and Russ Taft (a.k.a. “The Twins”)
Following are histories of the families’ Aston Martins, as told to Bob and Russ Taft, by their parents, Parker and Betty Taft, and by their Un-cle Frank Taft, each of whom had significantly different versions of the facts. We eventually decided that it was best to interview them separately to preserve family harmony.
THE ASTON TAFT DYNAMIC
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After several months of work and a windshield from a Studebaker, the car was a driver. Frank originally painted it monotone bur-gundy, and then discovered it was supposed to be a 2 tone, and re-painted it the in original colors.
The brothers enjoyed driving them daily and showing them on occasion. They enjoyed parking their Astons in front of their law offices in Vallejo. Years passed, and Frank entered his Aston in a car show in 1976, and Russ (co-author) stopped by on his way home from school every day for a couple of months helping Frank get ready for the show. Knowing full well that he wouldn’t win anything at the car show, Frank said “If we win a trophy, I’ll let you take it to the Senior Prom.” But the unthinkable happened: the car won 3rd! He had to make good on the promise, realizing to his horror, that the prom was not in Vallejo, but San Francisco!! Well, Parker couldn’t let Russ take an Aston, and leave Bob without one, when one was available, now could he? So Bob and Russ drove the two Astons to their Senior Prom in a rare lack of judgment by their dad and uncle! (Instead of the girls’ dads waiting up all night, the boys’ dad and uncle waited up).
Bob, Russ and their grandmother gave the Aston a new vinyl top to replace the leaky original canvas top in 1978, and replaced much of the leather that had been weathered. 1n 1980 Parker’s mechanic had dire news: the head gasket blew, and the cylinder liners were toast. The block had to be machined, and when this was done the machinist had inadvertently put a .008” taper from front to back. This meant that the cylinder liners could not be installed. The me-chanic had also said he had no idea how to fix it. The block went to machine shop after machine shop to find someone to remove
the taper, and no one would touch it with a ten foot pole (about 3 meters). And there it sat, for 34+ years. Meanwhile the Mk II enjoyed the limelight, was in several shows, was pampered, repainted, had its motor rebuilt and was driven to Monterey in 2013 for Car Week.
In 2012, our sister Leslie put a note on the Mk III, “Doesn’t any-body love me?” And she began cleaning the years of dust and grime off of the car, on her own. Thus began the rebirth of the Mk III. At the 2012 Car Week, Russ and Frank discussed what was needed to get the car going again. We talked to Mike Green (son of Richard “Dickie” Green from West Coast British in Livermore) about the taper, and he said, that if you are not going to race it, it shouldn’t matter much. Plans were made to prepare the car, and it was brought to a local auto body shop, where it sat.
Parker attended the 2013 Monterey Car Week at the insistence of his brother and sons. At the Aston Martin gathering, Mike Green sat at Parker and Frank’s table and that mentioned that Frank’s Mk II was the very car that brought him home from the hospital after his birth. He also detailed more history of the Mk II. We knew that the car’s original owner is listed by AM as “David Brown, Inc.” as AM’s North American company car in Oct. of ‘57. (Subsequently documented as Newport Pagnell.) But Mike explained that when John Wyer discovered that Dickie Green was representing Aston, but driving a Jag XK140 Coupe, he told Dickie to sell it, and sent the Aston to be Dickie’s company car in early ‘58.
Later in 2013 Frank entered the MkII in the Danville D’elegance
FRANK SAID “If we win a trophy, I’ll let you
take it to the Senior Prom”.
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Concours, a benefit for Parkinson’s research, and the poster fea-tured Dickie Green. Having been Dickie’s car, Frank thought it appropriate to enter his Mk II in the car show, but requested that it not be judged. A few hours into the show, Frank was told to move his car. “Why?”, he asked. “You won something”, was the answer. “Damn it, I told them I didn’t want it judged!”, was Frank’s reply. “Just move the car!”, he was told. He was fuming while we fol-lowed the directions of the docent, who led us to the judging stand. There was Mike Green, who related the story of how this was his dad’s car, and how he came home from the hospital in it. He then presented Frank with the “Dickie Green Memorial Award for Best Aston Martin in show” trophy! Frank was OK with that.
Mike Green, a skilled British car mechanic said that he could fix Parker’s motor! So the family set out to find all of the parts strewn in numerous places: Parker’s basement and garage, at Autosport in Vallejo, at Burch Engineering in Napa, at Parker and Frank’s shared Garage in Benicia and off of Frank’s Mk II. (There are a lot of common parts).
The Goal: to have the car running by Car Week 2014! This was truly a family project. Box after box of Mk III parts were brought to West Coast British (sorry, Mike) and many parts were lost or in such bad condition that new ones had to be made. The paint was a problem too. It had sat, largely untouched, in the body shop for a year. There were dings and small dents as well as cracking in the original paint. Bob’s friend Troy Ornelas looked at the car and asked if he could paint it. He has painted Ferraris and Jags, but Aston was his “Holy Grail.” Everyone got into the act stripping chrome and insignias from the car, delivering the interior compo-nents to the upholsterer, M&J Upholstering in Vallejo, and sending the badly cracked steering wheel to Oregon to be repaired.
Parts were scarce, but through Steel Wings in the east, Kevin Kay
Restorations up in Redding, British Car Specialists in Stockton, re- purposing some Jag, Rover, and other English car parts, and Russ and Frank machining parts at the shop in Benicia, they were getting close. Too close. With only days to go, Parker, Frank, and even Mike started to lower their expectations. “This car ain’t going nowhere!!” was overheard several times! “Maybe we can just trailer it down, and park it.” When it became clear that there was no time to put the car togeth-er before Monterey, Mike let the family help assemble the car in his shop, while he and his son Peter were working on the motor. It seemed like every time we got something done, something would go wrong. Wrong part, bad part, Fed Ex missing a Saturday delivery, UPS dropping the head and breaking the new cam, hidden corro-sion, you name it. Friday before Monterey, the car had no chrome, lights, driveshaft, rear motor mount, radiator, distributor, plugs, or wires, oil filter, or interior, and the new clutch didn’t work.
Russ kept pushing: “We can’t give up! We gotta get it going!” After a couple of marathon days, the car started for the first time since 1980 on Tuesday, 12 August, 2014. The next day some fine tuning, and several flushings of the gas tank, and the car got mufflers and exhaust at Lipsey’s in Vallejo, who stayed late to get the job done. Then on to the Benicia Garage where electrics was tweaked and the massive hood (bonnet) was installed at 4:00am Thursday August 14th. At 8:00am, it was brought to M&J Upholstery for the interior, and was finished just in time for departure to Monterey THAT DAY at noon.
Parker is now the happiest guy in the country!! He plans to par-ticipate in many future AMOC events, and other shows. Although pictured on a trailer, the car is by NO MEANS a trailer queen. The car is, has always been and will continue to be “a driver.” Look for it on the roads near you!
Left to right: Brothers Parker Taft (88) and Frank Taft (80) with their Astons, 1959 Mk III AM300/3/1752 DHC, and 1957 Mk II AM/300/3/1274 FHC, respectively; at Casa Munras, Monterey Car Week 2014. Michael Green is in the background.
“This car ain’t going nowhere!!” was overheard several times!
1962 Aston Martin DB4GT ZagatoSold for $14,300,000 at New York 2015
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02_Corp17_AstonMartinOwnersClub-VantagePoint.indd 1 2016-08-18 4:22 PM
Using various modes of transportation in the form of miniature toys, British artist Jeremy Dickinson creates a unique form of modern art that has links to childhood and the nature of play.
Jeremy uses models from his personal 6000+ collection of toy cars, trucks, buses and trains from which he builds stacks and hangs vehicles on wires and creates patterns based on colors, shapes and angles. The resulting work from Jeremy’s fer-tile imagination are beautifully executed paintings of his engineered sculptures and collages. The toys are depicted to show every blemish, scratch and chip just as they are and often how they were found. Jeremy has accumulated his collection start-ing in his young days and going into the
THE JOY OF PLAY AND ASTON MARTIN
JEREMY DICKINSON
12
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present. He now hunts through toy fairs and flea markets for Matchbox and Dinky finds. His original toys are identified by a painted green J on the underside.
In 2013 Jeremy created a series of paint-ings using Aston toys. The images on these on these pages are the result. As with some of Jeremy’s other works, the Aston paint-ings depict fanciful balancing act towers where cars and trucks are stacked one on top of the other. It is an Aston aficionados treat to identify each model in the model car towers.
The original works, the paintings, have all been taken but Jeremy does offer beauti-fully rendered prints. These were produced in a series of 100 each to celebrate the
2013 Aston Martin centennial. Copies of the print run are available. Jeremy Dickinson has had solo exhibitions at Horsens Kunstmuseum in Denmark and has been included in notable group exhi-bitions at venues such as Togo Memorial Sompo Japan Museum of Art in Tokyo, the Contemporary Art Museum in Sao Paulo, and Musée National Collection Schlumpf in Mulhouse, France.
If you are interested in purchasing one of Jeremy’s Aston Martin prints, please visit his website at www.jeremydickinson.com. Even better, if you have a toy car collection that is near and dear to you, Jeremy can create a one of a kind piece for you. See details on private commissions on his website.
It is an Aston aficionados treat to identify each model in the
model car towers.
THE JOY OF PLAY AND ASTON MARTIN
Irma Elder was born in Xicotencatl, Mexico in 1930. Her family migrated to the United States in 1946 and “she was ‘not able to speak a word of English’” as she wrote in her biography. Growing up in Miami, while on vacation, she met James Elder, who she mar-ried and moved to Michigan in 1963.
James and Irma vowed to work, save and invest into a dealership of their own. Their dream came true and together they opened Troy Ford in April 1967, with Mr. Elder running the business, and Mrs. Elder raising their three children. Sadly, James Elder passed away in November 1983, leaving the reigns of their dream into the lone hands of Irma Elder. Digging in her heels in this male dominated industry, she became the first woman to own and maintain a Ford dealership in the Detroit region.
Today, the Troy (MI) based Elder Automotive Group boasts dealer-ships across Florida and Michigan which include names like Aston Martin, Fisker, Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Mitsubishi, Saab and Spyker. Irma Elder passed away on September 30, 2014. The story of success does not end with automobile dealerships.
Irma’s numerous board activities included the Chicago Branch of the Federal Reserve, Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce, Economic Club of Detroit, Lear Corporation, Northwood Uni-versity and Oakland family Services.
On September 29, 2015, the “Women of Tomorrow” chaired by Edsel and Cynthia Ford hosted an Honorary Memorial at Aston Martin of Troy. The fundraiser’s intentions are to raise funds for mentoring and scholarships for women facing severe social hard-ships, which Irma Elder was actively involved with.
Bill Ford – Ford Motor Co. Executive Chairman:
‘Irma was one of our most respected and pioneering Ford dealers, as well as a great friend. She was relentless in her pursuit of success in business, philanthropy and community engagement. Her warmth and passion will be missed by all who knew her, including her team at Ford.’
Mary Barra – General Motors - Chief Executive Officer:
‘Irma Elder built one of the most successful woman-owned businesses in the country and she was a role model of ser-vice to her community, her state and the country. She will be missed and our condolences go out to her family.’
Laurie Cunnington – Partner Cunnington & Cunnington:
‘Irma was an amazing woman and a dear friend. She was a visionary in the business of automotive dealerships, carving out a unique field for future woman entrepreneurs. Irma didn’t focus on what was, but what could be and she maintained that focus throughout her life. Her generosity was legendary and she is a wonderful example to business leaders everywhere of the Great American Spirit.’
R. Kollins
IRMA ELDER TRIBUTE
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Another signature sunny Colorado day greeted the enthusiasts who gathered in Golden for the shortened drive: it was originally meant to go through Estes Park with lunch at the historic Stanley Hotel, but thunderstorms forecast for the afternoon and some participants’ schedules contrib-uted to the decision to go no further than Nederland along the Peak to Peak.
Of note was the participation of Dick and Judy Fritz with their DB2/4, as well as that of Jim and Barb Clark, who are touring CO this summer, but who didn’t have their DB7 with them. They volun-teered to be the back door of the convoy in their Dodge truck (the white pickup in the photo below). From Golden the group drove to Black-hawk along the stunning Highway 6, which follows a river gorge. We stopped
in Blackhawk to check on Dick’s DB2/4, which had been overheating and fouling plugs on the way into Golden. Fortunately, the DB2/4 was doing relatively well other than the occasional temperature warning light coming on. From Blackhawk, the group drove northward along the scenic Peak to Peak highway. In Nederland, the participants were invited to take a ride on the Carousel of Happi-ness. It’s quite possible that the partici-pants’ grins on the carousel rivaled those when they picked up their Aston from the dealership:. From Nederland, the group drove to Boulder, and then onto Louisville for lunch at the Lucky Pie pizzeria. After the ride, Dick decided to adjust the twin SU carburetors of his DB2/4, which only served to confirm the adage of, “have vintage British car, need toolkit!”
THE FRONT RANGE PEAK TO PEAK HIGHWAY
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1. Nicole Charron, Donna Wells, Barb Clark, Nancy Smith, Judy Fritz, Ro Katz
2. Keith Smith, Jim Clark, Andy Katx, Marc Campolieto, Matt Reveille, Mark Wells
3. Dick works on the DB2/4
4. A bevy of beautiful behinds
5. What a fun ride!
6. A spectrum of Vantages
7. Donna Wells, with AM purse, and Barb Clark.
8. The DB2/4
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A grand tour from Colorado to California for the 2015 Monterey Car Week
“I want to go the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance,” I said.“The what?”, Nicole replied.“I want to go the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. In Pebble Beach, California.”“I like Pebble Beach.”“I want to go to the Rolex Motorsports Reunion.” I was getting excited. “And to the AMOC meetup in Monterey.”“The what what? I thought we were going to the Pebble Beach concours thing.” “We are.”“But you just said we were going to Monterey to that other thing.”“We are.”She just stares.“Oh, it’s a series of annual events that take place in the general area of Monterey over the course of several days.” Well, at least that’s what I thought I’d said. Turns out I was so busy thinking about driving the Vantage out there that whatever I did say came out rather garbled leading her to be more confused than ever. “We’re driving out there”, I finally blurted out. “That’s over 3,000 miles!”, she said. “To look at cars.”“Actually, it’s only 2,524 miles”, I corrected. “Return!”“We’ll get a flatbed trailer and pull the Aston with my Jeep.”“We could also drive the Aston.”“We could also pull it with the Jeep.”, She lobbed back.“It’s a GT – you know, Grand Tourer. It’s designed for long distances. I drive the Vantage almost daily, and it already has 40K+ miles on it. It’s not as if it’s ever going to be sold as a low mileage garage queen.”I started to think that maybe this one wasn’t worth debating. She’d already agreed to go to California with me to the AMOC-NA West Section’s annual pilgrimage to Monterey’s car week, AND the Rolex Motorsports Reunion, AND the Pebble Beach Con-cours d’Elegance. Maybe I should quit while I’m ahead I thought.“The Aston is rather small. Can we fit everything in there?”, she asked. A glimmer of hope…“We usually travel lightly. We just need to be a bit thriftier with our packing,” I said. She looked at me doubtfully.“Two days in that cramped space – we might kill each other.” The glimmer fades, but still flickers. Or is Nicole having a pre-monition?“Look, this is like so many of our other adventures. If we don’t try it, we’ll never know what it’s like to travel long distances in the Aston. And it’s not cramped, it’s cozy,” I said with a loving look.“You’ll get a speeding ticket – no, make that speeding tickets.”“I have a radar detector.”“Hey, this’ll be fun,” I continued. “Yes, your diesel Grand Cher-okee Summit is roomier, has tons of torque and great fuel mile-
age, and has a state of the art infotainment system ( just thought I’d plug that in there), but the Vantage will simply be a more exciting drive. I might even die of boredom if we take the Jeep,” I said, accompanied by a downtrodden, miserable look. “You have great life insurance,” she responded dryly. Then she gives me one of those “you’re going to owe me” looks, followed a few seconds later by one of her radiant smiles. Woooohooooo!!
I prided myself on how well I’d sold the idea of driving the Aston to California. I was on cloud nine, at least until Nicole told me that the reason why she’d relented was because our daughter had just announced that she needed the Jeep during our absence In the end, I didn’t care. We’re going on a road trip in the Aston!
My 2006 Vantage
38 Years Earlier
Going to a Monterey car week must surely be on most car enthu-siasts’ bucket list. But in my case it had to do with an event that occurred 38 years earlier. In 1977 I was working in Santa Rosa, California, and I’d heard of the then Monterey Historic Auto Rac-es and the associated AMOC meetup through the AMOC UK newsletter. I asked for time off, packed my bags, fastened my prized AMOC lapel pin, and drove to Monterey. I was nineteen years old and the youngest of the group of AMOC members at the meet-up. When the convoy of Astons lined up to drive to the events, I proudly brought up the rear in a borrowed Ford Pinto station wagon with a smile on my face that was as wide as the car. I’d had a fascination for British cars, specifically Astons, for most of my life and here I was, part of this privileged group. That weekend became etched in my memory – all of the owners were welcoming, and I vividly remember a couple of fun-loving brothers in their mid to late twenties who had a DB5 and warmly invited me to tag along with them. I had a fabulous time.
So now that I had an Aston of my own, I simply had to go back
“How about a road trip?”Luc Trudel & Nicole Charron, Louisville CO
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and participate with the “real thing”. And my amazing wife of 27 years wanted to come along – I’d really hit the jackpot!
1977 Memorabilia
Wednesday and Thursday – The Drive to California
We decided to take a circular route, which would bring us up to Interstate 80 through Wyoming from our hometown of Louis-ville, Colorado on the way out to California, and then through Death Valley, Las Vegas and along Interstate 70 on the way back. The trip would also provide for a stop-over in Salt Lake City, Utah, where Gary Lindstrom resides, one of the Mountain Area’s members.
We arranged to have dinner with Gary and a couple of his friends on Wednesday evening. Gary met us at the hotel and invited us to ride to the restaurant in his beautiful DB Mk III. I climbed into the back seat while Nicole sat in the far more comfortable front seat. I was cramped. I was very cramped. “Luc,” Gary yelled over the noise of the engine, “let me know if the back seat holds. I just installed it 30 minutes ago.” Turning to look at Nicole he added, “I think I did it right.” “Where’s the seat belt?” I asked, but my question was drowned out as Gary stepped on the gas.
Gary and his DB Mk III
Nicole asked if she could roll down her window. “Of course,” answered Gary. “I’m just not sure if it’ll go back up again.” We found a safe parking spot, pulled the windows back up again, and attempted to lock the car. “Still workin’ on that,” Gary ex-plained. “She’s a complicated creature.”
We had a terrific dinner – great food, wine and conversation. And I clearly won favors with Gary’s friend when I knew exactly
what he was talking about as he described his Bricklin SV-1, one of the many cars in his collection. After dinner, Nicole and I opted to walk back to the hotel to enjoy the night air. We walked Gary back to his Mk III where we watched him turn on the lights with the aid of a pair of pliers he keeps in a much-used tool kit in the boot. “The button came off earlier today,” he lamented. “Gotta fix that.” We bid Gary farewell and watched him drive off, closely followed by his friends who knew Gary’s car too well to allow him to venture off into the night without an escort.
We left Salt Lake City very early the next morning, and much to my surprise (honest!), came across the Bonneville Salt Flats an hour and a half later. Coincidentally, this happened to be the annual Speed Week, but it had been cancelled due to heavy rains, leaving only a relatively small part of the Flats suitable for racing. So with dawn just starting to show its faint colors along the east-ern horizon at the back of the Vantage, and virtually no one on the highway, I decided to see if I could beat Nicole’s 170+ MPH in another sports car. So I put the pedal to the metal, and shortly thereafter was doing 150 MPH with 6K RPM on the tachometer. The Vantage showed no signs whatsoever of the speed, and only the louder road and wind noise made it clear that we were going fast; what a fabulous car, I thought, as we sped along towards the mountains looming on the western horizon. The Vantage was however clearly battling the increasing drag as it notched up a MPH every second or two, which gave me time to consider that if anything untoward were to happen, we were essentially in the middle of nowhere with vast expanses of salt on both sides of the highway and no cell service. So I let up on the pedal and dropped back to a safer and more sensible 80 MPH. Nicole’s record re-mains untouched.
The Salt Flats at Dawn
Unfortunately, Nicole was right about speeding tickets. Or ticket that is. Thankfully though, it wasn’t on the Salt Flats that I got caught – it was on a more mundane section of the highway in Nevada, when the radar detector was unplugged so that Nicole’s smartphone could charge. I wasn’t paying attention to my speed, and at the bottom of a downward slope of a mountainous section of highway, a state patrol car sat waiting. I looked down at the speedometer – darn it, 88 MPH in a 75 MPH section. Then I saw him pull out from the median and turn on his lights. The officer walked up on the passenger side of the Aston, where Nicole was sitting, and looked across at me: “Do you know how fast you were going?”, he asked. “Well, when I looked down I was doing 88 MPH.” “Actually, 89 MPH.” he said in a business-like tone, before taking my papers and walking back to his car.
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After a few minutes, he came back with the ticket. “We don’t see many Austin Martins around here,” he said. (Thankfully he didn’t notice me cringe when he said “Austin.”) “I’ve cited you for 5 MPH over the speed limit,” he continued, “that will help avoid an insur-ance increase and license demerit points.” He paused briefly, looked straight at me and added, “I know that this car can go very fast, but please be careful and abide by the speed limit.” Then he smiled and wished us a good day. I breathed a sigh of relief and figure that I’m either really lucky or something else is in play. D’oh!! Thank good-ness for a gorgeous red-haired and blue-eyed woman in the pas-senger seat! Nicole says it was the cleavage. It’s always the cleavage.
A few hours later we stopped briefly for lunch in Lake Tahoe, which is certainly one of the most beautiful locations on the planet. The sun was out in full force, the sky was a crisp blue, the lake was a deep navy that contrasts with the evergreens, and there was a gentle breeze coming off the lake on which wafted the scent of pine trees. Wow is the only word I can think of.
The road down from Tahoe to Sacramento is very curvy, and this provided a welcome relief from the relative monotony of the In-terstate that we’d experienced over the past day and a half. There was also a fast Mustang that chose to tag along with the Aston, but interestingly it never attempted to pass us – maybe he simply fig-ured that I’d get the ticket if I was in the lead. This time the radar detector was on…
The rest of the trip, from Sacramento to the coast, was uneventful other than the change of landscape: from the lush green of the Si-erra Nevada to the parched, golden blanket that covered seemingly all of California’s hills and valleys.
We finally reached Monterey and the Casa Munras at around 8:00pm, where we met up with Guy Simpson and a few other AMOCers who were still around from the 5:30 pm reception. Back at our hotel – the Victorian Inn – we met two other couples with Astons; a few quick exchanges about the cars and where we’d each traveled from, and we were then off to dinner at a restaurant on Cannery Row.
Friday – Carmel By The Sea and the AMOC Dinner
Friday was mainly a day to kick back and relax after the two-day drive. We went to Carmel and had lunch with Stephen Leonard, one of the Denver Aston Martin dealership’s salesmen, and his part-ner Lanette. After lunch we walked around Carmel and enjoyed browsing through the innumerable eclectic shops, and then headed back to Monterey where we visited an art museum. What? Yes, it was car week, but Nicole and I had already seen – and heard –
plenty of exotics in just the few hours we’d been in town, that we thought some art would be a nice change. It turns out that art museums are wonderfully quiet and the usual crowds are absent during car week.
Evening came and along with it the AMOC dinner. On the shuttle bus to the restaurant, Nicole overheard someone with a French accent and, in short order, we were getting acquainted with two AMOC-NA East members – fellow French Canadians Charles and Nathalie – who’d flown to California from Connecticut for the weekend. The dinner was great. What a pleasure it was to be with so many people with the common bond of being Aston Martin Lagonda enthusiasts. It was like I remembered 38 years earlier, but this time only so much better because it was being shared with the love of my life and a car I’d once only dreamt of owning.
There were no Ford Pintos in sight :-)
Saturday – Laguna Seca
Early the next morning we were off to the racetrack for the historic races. What a sensory overload: sun, heat, fumes, LOUD exhausts, and so many interesting cars. And 19 Astons in the corral, more than I’d ever seen in one place, with special mention of Guy Simpson’s beautiful DB5.
The catered lunch at the track was another opportunity to socialize with more owners/enthusiasts. I particularly enjoyed meeting the father and son who appeared in a beautiful Petrolicious video about their AM V8 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAwk9IwMkPk&list=PLtoI3QrvJpTwb9obu06y5tEMN9fiW7XdK&index=1).
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I attended the Saturday evening “BBQ” at the Casa Munras and met yet more interesting owners. If there’s one thing that made this trip worthwhile other than the journey itself, it’s certainly the own-ers we met. I cannot describe well enough how remarkably nice the owners are. Of course, I need to mention that all of this would not be possible without the thoughtful planning and hard work that the volunteers put into the event – with a special thanks to Guy Simpson, the Section West chairman, for the great organization and gracious hosting.
Sunday – Pebble Beach
ºOn Sunday we joined the hordes – yes hordes – of people going to Pebble Beach for the Concours d’Elegance. It’s quite the event, and I wondered more than once if it wasn’t really a Ferrari Owners Club of America event trying to pass itself off as a concours. Thank-fully there was a handful of Astons.
1929 AM LM3
1950 AM DB2
There were several other truly remarkable cars, some of which I’d not heard of or seen before. As we left the concours, Nicole suitably remarked that she wasn’t sure if she was supposed to be looking at the cars on display or the various people who were also very clearly on display. I guess a more apt name for the event might be the Pebble Beach Car and Peacock Concours d’Elegance.
That evening we caught up with Charles and Nathalie for an out-standing dinner at the Inn at Spanish Bay, which was certainly one of the highlights of the weekend.
The Return Home
If the drive to California was filled with anticipation for the car week, the drive home was just as anticipated but in a different way: there are places that figure very large in one’s imagination, and the drive home was going to take us through some of them.
We took Interstate 5 south, and soon found ourselves driving through miles upon miles of almond tree plantations: I’d seen a documentary about them a few years ago, but their sheer expanse is truly mind-boggling.
North of Bakersfield we headed east towards Death Valley. (I’ll admit to having had second thoughts about driving through it with the Aston, but I’d remembered articles about the pre-production testing that’d been done on the Vantage in the searing heat of the middle-east.) Death Valley is figuratively and literally like no other place on earth: the winding roads, the barren landscape, the op-pressive but thankfully dry heat, the lone gas station doubling as a modern-day oasis for a score or so of thirsty foreign tourists, the sand dunes plunked in the middle of a valley below sea level, the signs warning drivers to turn off their car’s A/C so as to avoid overheat-ing, and the caricature-like Furnace Creek resort that must’ve been built by an eccentric hotelier. What an amazing national park…
Looking eastward across the highway that crosses Death V
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At the East entrance to Death Valley, after having crossed it @ 120°F (the Vantage’s temp indicator never budged!)
A few hours later, we drove into Las Vegas where we were staying overnight at The Bellagio. Neither Nicole nor I had ever been to Vegas, and admittedly, it wasn’t a place of interest. The hotel was beautiful and the fountain display spectacular, but there was no sense of having missed anything as we left at 5 am the next morn-ing for the last day’s drive home.
This final leg of our trip provided yet more other-worldly land-scapes, in particular the eastern portion of Utah along Interstate 70 which features breathtaking rock formations. We then crossed the border into Colorado, and the next hours passed quickly as we trav-eled along the last few hundred and familiar miles of our journey.
As we arrived home we reflected on the trip: the vastness and rough beauty of the American West, the numerous outgoing, friendly, enthusiastic AMOCers we’d met (Aston owners have such diverse life stories!), the privilege of “reliving” the Monterey car week 38 years later in my dream car and with my best friend, being the AMOCers who drove the longest distance to get to the event, and so much more.
To cap it all off, the Aston performed flawlessly, whether it was @ 150 MPH on I-80 across the Bonneville Salt Flats or @ 120°F through Death Valley at mid-afternoon. It was also remarkably comfortable over the ~1,300 miles of each direction, including our 11 days’ worth of luggage and backpacks which fit snugly in the boot and behind the seats. Nicole does however point out that the passenger seat is NOT made for naps, even short ones, and re-grets not having found the lumbar adjustment button until about 600 miles into the trip ;-)
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David L. Van Schaick
AMOC Member 5363Since 1972: History with Club
David Van Schaick, “DLVS,” died August 2016. He had missed the 47th annual Lime Rock meeting in June, which was most unusual, as he was quite a fixture of that event not just with his cars and his e’er colorful sport coats, but with his volunteering to conduct parts of the event.
DLVS is survived by his wife since 2005, Wylene Commander, his sons David II and Amy, just moved to North Port, FL; and Pieter, and Suzannah, of Pittsfield, MA, and five grandchildren. His first wife, Margaret “Peggy” Trout Van Schaick, predeceased him in 2004.
In 2014 DLVS received a “Special Award of Recognition” based on several criteria:
O 35 years + membership O served as a board member in club leadership O regular participant at Lime Rock O recipient of the Elisha Walker trophy
David led concours at many events, including Mon-terey 1989, for which he offered volunteer judges the coveted Robert Talbott custom ties in “power red.” A vigorous vintage racer, David took home the Pre War trophy more often than anyone else. Other awards ranged from the Ziebart award for the most improved Aston (the once-tired blue V8 Volante?) to the Oskar Ruegg trophy for outstanding service by an overseas member, presented by our parent club in England at a lovely January lunch at club HQ, a 15th century tith-ing barn. DLVS served as Vice Chair for AMOC-NA East USA & Canada.
Whit Ball, Exton, PA recruited DLVS to the As-ton club, and Rex Woodgate found DLVS the DB6 Shooting Brake which became a well-loved fixture at Aston and VSCCA events.
The Van Schaick family went on many club trips including the 1985 visit to Le Mans and Silverstone, and many 1000 mile tours. They helped launch our special events at Mid-Ohio in 1982 and Nelson Ledges, Ohio, track in 1983. The two boys were part of the club family; my wife Linda recalls playing Uno with Pieter on the bus to The Sarthe. We all convened near Lake Lagonda in Ohio in 1988 when DLVS II married the beautiful Amy at the Witten-berg University chapel.
DLVS had two spaces at Hershey for close in parking, and buying/selling automobilia. The family was active with the 1938 Alvis 4.3 SC VdP, the 1929 Bent-ley 4 ½ Litre, the Bugatti 35C monoposto, and the omnipresent 1935 AM Ulster 2 Litre. DLVS was so impressed that Rahal AM sent a new Aston to Lime Rock, he acquired the DB7 Vantage V12 Coupe to confound the dealers who said club members did not buy new Astons.
Wylene at her first “Lime Rock” 2005 helped orga-nize our first Silent Auction, a great success.
DLVS was a fast and a safe race car driver; I was pleased he co-drive my DB4GT in the first ever SVRA Enduro at Watkins Glen in September 1988 for 2nd in class, as I recall.
As Chair Bob Welch observed, DLVS was a cornerstone of the club. David, we hardly knew ye. By Nick Candee, Member 5371Photo credits for this and the following page:Ed Hyman, (c) AutoPhotos 2016, ed hyman
DAVID VAN SCHAICK
Lime Rock, CT
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include Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, Porsche, Bugatti, Alfa Romeo, Bentley, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Maserati, Allard, and such exotic names as Amilcar, Cisitalia, Squire, Delahaye, and Talbot-Lago.
There are 4 mechanic volunteers with trucks, tools and trailers on tow to help any participant who may re-quire assistance as well as 8 “motors” (Colorado Motorcycle State Troop-ers) who watch over us the entire tour, as well as very well organized lunch stops filled with volunteers.
Mercedes Benz is a main sponsor and runs at least one car in the grand every year from their classic
center as well as donating several new cars for participants to use if their own car should break down or become unusable to complete the tour.
This was my second time par-ticipating in the “Grand,” as they call it, and it was again a truly incredible experience. The people, whether participants, volunteers, state troopers or onlookers were all truly friendly and the camaraderie is second to none. This year we travelled from Vail to Paonia then onto Grand Junction, Day 2 from Grand Junction to Moab (Utah) to Telluride, Day 3 from Telluride to Lake City to Crested Butte and
For the past 25 years a group of vintage automobile enthusiasts and aficionados have collected in Vail, Colorado and participated in what has become known as the Colo-rado Grand, (www.co1000.com). The Colorado Grand® is an annual charity tour for 1960 and earlier sports and race cars of distinction. The event was founded in 1989 by Englewood automotive enthusiast Bob Sutherland. Every September at the peak of the fall color season, approximately 125 vintage cars are driven in this relaxed, non-com-petitive event, covering 1,000 miles through the Rockies in five days. Culminating in a concours D’Non Elegance on Saturday (in which the cars are displayed along the cob-blestone shopping promenade as they finished the tour, any type of cleaning during the tour is strongly discouraged, besides windshields and lamps for safety).
2013 was the 25th anniversary year for this remarkable event which has continued to provide serious support for Colorado Charities. To date, the event has contributed more than $3.6 million dollars.
The tour attracts entrants from around the world and always includes several 1920’s and 1930’s cars. Common entrants makes
Dateline: Colorado Every September for the previous 25 years
COLORADO GRAND: ANTOINE CRETTOL & TOM PAPADOUPOLOS
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to six carburetors you must tune to altitude or your car will be severely down on power. Our 4 days of driving was uneventful from a reliability point, the only issue we had was where we bottomed out across a cattle grate crossing and developed a small fuel leak that we repaired in the garage of one of the hotels.
There, a lot of automobile tours all over the USA, as well as through-out the world, and having partic-ipated in quite a few, the “Grand” is definitely on the top of the list of something a vintage car person should participate in. We are already planning for next years “Grand!”
Day 4 from Crested Butte to Sali-da to Vail. This year we chose our transport to be a 1958 AC Ace, we were fortunate, being an open car, that it only rained for 30 minutes one day and 45 minutes another day. The remainder of the week was sunny and cool, especially noteworthy considering the weeks leading up to the tour much of Colorado was devastated by severe flooding!! When setting a car up for the “Grand” one very import-ant item that needs to be consid-ered is that this tour takes place at high altitude. Now, with modern fuel injected cars this may mean absolutely nothing, but when run-ning cars with one, two, three, up
1) DB4GT on the Saturday Concours D’non-elegance in Vail!
2) Our AC Ace at a lunch stop
3) DB3S Coupe and a Carrera Panamericanna participant Lincoln getting started for the day
4) Passing a DB4GT at speed!
5) Line of cars at one of the hotel overnight stops
6) Ferrari Tour De France and a DB4GT at a lunch stop
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By Bob Halford
Friday, September 25, 2015 once again saw the annual gathering of the Red River Chapter of the Aston Martin Owners Club heading to Austin, Texas, to share what has happened since the last gathering. It began on the sixth-floor rooftop lounge of the Sonesta Hotel in Bee Cave. Members enjoyed various menu items and refreshments. We began to anticipate the weekend as the night weather was great. As a new member I can only report on what my wife and I witnessed because we had no old stories to tell. It did not take long though to realize this is a family bunch. Realizing we were new, everyone took the time to greet us and welcome us to the event. At one point I asked a member about the Saturday cruise. He asked if we understand what a Chinese Fire drill was all about.
Saturday morning we all met at the Sundance Grill on Lake Tra-vis. Sonny Morgan, General Manager of Aston Martin of Austin, arranged for a great buffet at this beautiful location. The view was great, looking directly onto a marina full of sail boats and oth-ers. About fifteen Aston Martins, a Roll Royce and two Bentleys parked at the Marina waiting for the cruise to follow. Did I forget to say the weather was beautiful? Well it was just that.
At 9:30 sharp, or kind of sharp, our leader, Brian Greenstone, headed out in his beautiful Aston Martin Vanquish convertible. We were about halfway back in the pack in our DB9. After 20 minutes I remembered what the gentlemen said about a Chi-nese Fire drill. Our experience in the last ten years has been in Corvette Clubs (sorry) and those cruises. In just the first twenty minutes of this cruise I realized this was no Chinese Fire drill. In front of me was an Aston Martin Vantage driven by David Ev-ans. I found out later it was a six speed manual shift. Why is this
important? We have driven many, many cruises in Texas with various Corvette Clubs. I was super impressed as to how little David touched his brakes driving with smoothness and safety. The Texas Hill Country back roads we drove on were just that, hilly. As I looked up the line very few other drivers were on their brakes as we drove through some very beautiful Texas hill country. This takes anticipation and experience. We were glad we were with this group.
The first leg of the drive was about 94 miles long and included the Willow City Loop, an unusual back road through some excep-tional geological surprises and suspension-challenging hiccoughs and switchbacks. We finally arrived in Johnson City for a rest stop. We boarded back up and headed for lunch at a beautiful Italian restaurant, the Trattoria Lisina, located near Driftwood. It was a scene right out of a Tuscan print hanging on our wall at home. The lunch was perfect, the atmosphere and growing friendships, the same. This was technically the end of the cruise we’d come for, but it is a three-day event, so it’s a part of something larger. This fraction was 150 miles of sheer fun and a challenge at the same time. Because of the leadership and the driving ability of every AMOC member participating, we are definitely making plans to do it again in 2016.
Saturday dinner was at Plate By Dzintra close to the Sonesta Hotel in Bee Cave. This restaurant is operated by a trained Chef, a lady just named Dzintra who spent twenty years learning her craft in Paris. It showed in the food we received. We were fortunate to sit with Alastair Donald and his son Andrew. What a super night of conversation.
A GATHERING OF ASTONS IN AUSTIN
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The evening was capped by a James Bond theme contest. Several men wore their tuxes and really looked the part. Brian looked like Blofeld from “You Only Live Twice.” The winner of the evening was June Hogg who came dressed in a kitty outfit and was Pussy Galore. Susan Stamper presented Brian an award for his present and past leadership of the group. Well deserved, from what we could tell this weekend.
On Sunday we all headed for the Texas All British Car Days in Round Rock. There were many cars from all British marques, starting with 1930s models, on up to the twenty-first century. All the Aston Martins were parked as a group. All there were modern designs except one 1969 DB5. Lee Bailey had her secret weapon which turned out to be a beautiful set of Aston Martin fitted white leather luggage, matching her upholstery. Her beau-tiful DBS was detailed to the max.
Winners in the show representing Aston Martin were 1st Place, Robert Whyte in his Vantage GT, 2nd Place was Lee Bailey in her white DBS, and 3rd place went to Brian Greenstone in his Vanquish Volante.
This drew the weekend to a close and one by one the Astons departed for home.
I will say it again, if you want to have a great time, own an As-ton Martin and can make plans for September in 2016, come to Austin, Texas, for the drive of your life! Go on a diet a few days before you leave home and get ready for some phenomenal food as well. Who knows what the team will plan in 2016. I hope they do the go karts again but whatever, I know it will be worth the drive from West Texas.
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the car I found a file with lots of service records from many different shops and states where the owner was stationed (including Hawaii). I also spotted a couple of the AMOC Newsheets (predecessor to The Vantage Point) and even a copy of Nick Candee’s book “Aston Martin in America,” which was kind of neat.
The auction site was packed, primarily with nearby folks in search of a good deal on some parts, I guess. But I quickly spotted a familiar face or two, who in spite of the very remote location had obviously flown to Nashville, rented cars and come to bid on the Aston. There was a guy there from Romania (?!?!) who told me he was bidding for a guy in Europe. He said in Europe it would take $100,000 to restore the car....I guess the guy uses slaves for labor! My best guess given my experience was that one was looking at a minimum of $250,000 to
return the car to its original glory and that might be “light.”
A subsequent conversation with the car owner’s widow (who still lived on the farm) revealed that about 4 years ago the owner ran an ad on Craigslist in nearby Clarksville offering the car for $20,000. He got one offer of $13,000 which he turned down (he unfortunately passed away shortly thereafter). Fast forward to 2015. There were 6 real bidders on the car, including yours truly, from places like Houston, NYC, and Europe. The car hammered to a broker/dealer from NYC at $148,000 including buyers premium! This at an auction held by a local auctioneer in a field in rural Tennessee with absolutely no marketing other than an article in the Clarksville and Nashville newspaper (which obviously were read on-line world wide!)....an amazing outcome for sure. Moral of the story, if you’ve something to sell that’s “hot” in today’s world then people will come to wherever it is to buy it. Given the results I’m not sure the owner’s family would have done any better with the auction if they’d shipped it to Monterey or Scottsdale. Keep searching everybody, they’re still out there!
MARK III AUCTION TENNESSEEBy Tom Smith
The Internet is amazing really.....an article popped up on my news feed one morning from a Tennessee newspaper; interest-ingly enough a small auction house in Clarksville, Tennessee (about an hour and a half from Nashville) was going to sell a “James Bond Aston DB Mk III” in a place called Cumberland Furnace. I’ve lived in Tennessee all my life and in Nashville for 35 years but I’ll confess I’d never heard of the place. A quick search on Google maps showed it to be about an hour from my house, so on a beautiful April Saturday morning I gassed up the V8 Volante and headed for the country.
When I arrived I discovered a literal field full of car parts-engines, trucks, miscellaneous body panels, tools, you name it! Seems an Air Force colonel had retired to Cumberland Furnace but during his military career had picked up a DB Mk III saloon. A chat with his brother in law revealed that the car had at one time had its engine replaced with a Ford V6, but now the car had its original engine under the bonnet (well, not literally, the bonnet was laying on the ground in front of the car). Once upon a time “barn finds” meant cars in need of a full restoration, today the term means something else entirely. Despite its disassembled condition the car appeared complete (assuming the boxes of parts weren’t missing too many!). When I arrived in my Aston I was allowed to park near the barn in which the car sat (as opposed to the nearby field which hadn’t been mowed in awhile). Inside
Once upon a time “barn finds” meant
cars in need of a full restoration.
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26 August, 2015, Gaydon: Aston Martin is promising a headline-grabbing line-up of elite sports cars, concepts and a James Bond-exclusive creation as it prepares to take a starring role at next month’s 10th anniversary Salon Privé Luxury Supercar Show & Concours d’Elégance.
Leading the luxury British sport car maker’s extensive presence at the anniversary event – to be held this year for the first time in the magnificent surroundings of Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire – will be the Aston Martin Vulcan, a track-only supercar limited to just 24 examples worldwide and the brand’s most intense and exhila-rating creation to date.
The 800-plus bhp, all-carbon fibre, Aston Martin Vulcan is pow-ered by the most potent iteration yet of the company’s naturally-aspirated, 7.0-litre V12 petrol engine and is predicted to be capable of sprinting from rest to 60 mph in less than three seconds, and achieving a top speed of more than 200mph. DB10 – built for Bond
Even more exclusive, in terms of its production numbers at least, is the DB10 sports car which will feature in the forthcoming Bond movie, Spectre.
The car on show at Salon Privé has been developed specifically for the film and just ten examples have been built. The design team worked closely with the film’s director, Sam Mendes, to cre-ate the ultimate car for the world’s most famous spy.Celebrating the brand’s half century association with Bond, which started with the iconic DB5, the DB10 also gives a glimpse to the future design direction for the next generation of Aston Martins.DBX Concept defies convention
Competing with its exclusive siblings for the “star of the show” crown at Blenheim Palace in September will be the Aston Martin DBX Concept.
Unveiled at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show and rarely exhibited in the UK, the DBX Concept was conceived to defy conventional thinking about the luxury GT segment. Widening the appeal of the iconic British luxury brand, the DBX reaches out to a more diverse global audience than ever before.
Imagined by Chief Creative Officer, Marek Reichman and his team at the brand’s global headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire, the DBX Concept showcases not only cutting edge engineering but also a major evolution of Aston Martin’s world-renowned and highly-regarded design language.
Clearly signalling an extension to the brand’s existing model lines in the future, the all-wheel drive DBX Concept seamlessly com-bines traditional Aston Martin beauty with elegant new engineer-ing that gracefully aligns form and function.
Capable of accommodating four adults in comfort, the DBX Concept also majors on day-to-day practicality. It boasts generous luggage capacity by virtue of the fact that its rear trunk and for-ward load bay – the latter with the appearance of a conventional ‘engine bay’ – can both accept passengers’ belongings.Sumptuous sports cars
Alongside Aston Martin’s rare and exclusive small series cars and concepts at Blenheim Palace will be a generous selection of the brand’s mainstream models, including the Vanquish ultimate GT, extreme V12 Vantage S and the recently-unveiled DB9 GT. Also making an appearance will be an example of Aston Mar-tin’s most extreme Vantage to date, the sold-out Vantage GT12, and the unique Great Britain Aston Martin Rapide S – created to support the Great Britain campaign which shows the world the very best Britain has to offer, in order to generate jobs and growth for the UK.
ASTON MARTIN LEADS THE WAY AT SALON PRIVÉ
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by Richard Kollins
After one of the coldest and longest winters, it is that time of year again. As the curtain closes on Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring,” according to modern science, effective June 21, 2015, 12:38 PM EDT, the summer solstice officially takes effect. This only means one thing to me; Aston Martins are prepared and packed for the AMOC Lime Rock (CT) event held on June 25-27, 2015 at the Interlaken Inn.
The sunshine on the lush green hills of the Berkshires makes for one grand event – enjoying life with your Aston Martin colleagues. Welcome to the Aston Martin Owners Club – North America celebrat-ing the club’s 80th anniversary.
The event as a whole is quite picturesque, starting with your arrival. For Melinda and me, approaching the Taconic Park-
way is our official “Rite of Summer.” You instantly recognize the early arrivals and immediately reflect on last year’s visit. It is this incomparable camaraderie that draws you back year after year all inter-woven with the most gracious automobile – Aston Martin.
Wednesday evening, after the welcoming hors d’oeuvres and margaritas we settle into dinner plans at the event-hosting In-terlaken Resort. With a mix of old friends and new alike, a long laid-back dinner sets the stage for Thursday’s big “Rally.”
Thursday morning the continental break-fast with an omelet station opens, and lined up outside are those hand-washing their pride. The drying microfiber towels wave in the wind like countryman flags at a jousting tournament. As the time is
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AMOC EAST
The sunshine on the lush green hills of the Berkshires makes for one grand event…
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passing, there is a certain anxiety in the air being diffused by the club members’ good nature. There was an apparent technical malfunction of the Rally’s directions, which were inadvertently misplaced by the resort. With only an hour delay, we are off and the sound of 6, 8 and 12 cylinder music echoes off the hills and trees.
The rally is about 120 miles long, and each year the road map changes. Regard-less, the winding tarmac through the green hills offers blind bluffs and curves, narrow bridges and historic sites. The small towns are a silent reminder of what life may have been like some 100 years ago. The true spirit of Aston Martin
LIME ROCK CLASSIC 2015
enjoying life with your Aston Martin colleagues.
Across the street from the Interlaken Inn, is a large grassy area with a lake as the perfect backdrop. It is here, on Friday morning, a legion of Aston Martin cars are aligned ac-cording to class for its very own Concours show. Nearly every model was represented, though I do not recall seeing a DB 5. As Melinda was spending time with the ladies, I was on the shaded hilltop selling com-memorative AMOC cooler bags and qui-etly contemplating the scene. The thought occurred to me that this year’s theme is the new and younger upcoming members.
Don Brodie brought his family, Brewster Miner traditionally brings his son Ricky and daughter Lizzie, and Eddie Manelis brought in his two brothers, sister in law, two nephews and girlfriend-in-law for the event. Speaking of which, the highlight of the day was Eddie sporting a new shaved head look, contrasting his former long curly locks, and bringing his new red Aston Mar-tin Zagato. The Friday night welcoming dinner was at a new location, ‘The White Hart’ in Salisbury, CT. The opening cock-tail hour gave you time to savor this over two century old architecture, and savor the mild Indian, Middle Eastern and Moroccan culinary aromas. The dinner was superb to
Grand Touring motoring fills the air, sporting (legal) speeds with full regard to safety and respect to the communities.
Again this year, a buffet lunch was served at the historic Stissing House. There is nothing like beef, salmon, pasta and salad accompanied with fine wine after a hard day behind the wheel. The stories of taking wrong turns, getting lost and following one another seem to repeat year after year. But each year, they are always different.
After lunch Melinda and I venture back to the Vanderbilt Mansion which we passed on the rally for a tour of the grounds. Perched on the high ground above the Hudson, the view seems it belongs in a Dutch landscape painting. The mansion exudes a bygone grandiose era which may not be repeated anytime soon. But the beauty remains for us to enjoy.
Approaching dinnertime, we agree to join old friends and meet new ones – 20 of them to be exact. Tonight’s choice – Med-iterranean. Over our lamb, calamari and wine, we become acquainted, and talk art, music, business, modern medicine and best of all – Aston Martins.
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The dinner was superb to say the least, and the breaking bread with friends just makes for a perfect day.
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say the least, and the breaking bread with friends just makes for a perfect day.
Saturday is track day at the famous Lime Rock Park raceway. Here you can wander the mile and a half road circuit freely, as there is no assigned seating. In the paddock, there are mostly Aston Martins, but also Porsches, Ferraris and others. Offered are different classes ranging from speed limited precision to flat out race cars. Imagine, see-ing a 1935 Ulster, DB2/4, DB4 GT, AMV8, DB7, DB9, Zagato, and throw in Marc Fierman’s Viper for good measure, going around this scenic, elevation changing cir-cuit at full tilt. Now it is time to head back and refresh for the nights award banquet.
The Awards Banquet was at the Interlak-en Inn as previous years. The cocktail hour starts at 6:00 PM, giving you the chance to mingle and view the silent auction items. The silent auction gifts are donated by AMOC members, items includes Aston Martin artwork, books, jackets and mem-orabilia. The revenue of course goes to the
It is here a legion of Aston Martin cars are aligned
according to class for its very own Concours show. Nearly every
model was represented…
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club. I have often wondered how many people actually buy something, and then donate back the following year? Again dining with friends and sharing sto-ries only gets better with wine. Not paying attention, I did not note the Concours win-ners, nor did I note the Club Awards. I did in fact procure the track winners.
A special word of thanks goes out to Lizzie Miner who always helps with the awards.
Sunday morning always arrives too soon. A near silent continental breakfast, with final handshakes and hugs until next year. The mighty Aston Martins depart slowly and quietly, well, at least until the oil warms up. Susan Laskey – you have done it again!
TRACK WINNERS 2015
Pre War 1st David Van Schaick 1935 Ulster
Feltham 1st Don Brodie 1957 DB 2/4
V8 1st Brewster Miner 2nd Ricky Miner 1977 V8
DB7 1st Kathy Gaffney 2002 Volante
2005-2009 1st Tony Autiello 2nd Phillppe Simard 2006 & 2007 Vantage
2009 1st Cur Eddie Manelis 2nd Dan Murphy 3rd Robert Smailey 2013 Zagato, 2013 Vantage S, 2012 Vantage V12
Race Car1st Jim Freeman 2nd Andy Greenberg 3rd Stephen Archer 1959 DB4 GT, 1963 DB4 GT, 1959 DB4 GT
Precision1st Stephen Epstein 2nd Ricky Miner 3rd Tom Fatur
Non-Aston1st Marc Fierman 2nd Bill Hollingsworth 3rd Roland Westerdahl Viper, Devin SS, Porsche
The mighty Aston Martins depart slowly and quietly, well, at least until the oil warms up.
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by Stephen Archer
As we enjoy our club events in the UK, Europe and other parts of the world, it is easy to forget the truly global nature of the AMOC. The US is home to the second largest membership group worldwide and yet despite its huge geography it manages to hold numerous events and provide for a variety of interests for the membership. This is no better illustrated than at the premier event for the AMOC in the US: Lime Rock. This great event has now been running in New England for an astonish-ing 46 years.
The North East section Chairman, Tom Smith was casting around for a guest speaker for 2015. Knowing that my work often takes me to the US they enquired if I would happen to be “passing Lime Rock.” As it happens I was not, but given that it’s such a great event and one that I last visited with my wife 38 years ago, it seemed only right that we should make the journey. Ruth and I were very pleased that we did.
The three days were mostly blessed with the best weather that leafy New England can offer, the Thursday tour being graced with gin clear skies. About 20 Astons headed towards New York state and it was particularly lovely to see the various eras of Aston Martin represented by David Van Schaick’s Ulster, Don Brodie’s stunning DB MKIII convertible and numerous DB4s, 5s and 6s plus a smattering of V8s and models right up to 2015. The marque was so well represented and the cars being enjoyed on perfect, mostly deserted roads. Oh for those roads in England! A very enjoyable lunch at Stissing House gave us a chance to meet old acquaintances and
make new ones. The friendliness of all the people was wonderful. A reminder of at least one reason why the AMOC is such a fine club.
Friday’s Concours at the Interlaken Inn was under an even hotter sun so the cars on the meadow glinted and shone making for a very fine sight. The entertainment was pro-vided by Miles Popodopoulos driving (very well) a miniature petrol engined DB5 con-vertible. He took my suggestions on parking etiquette in good humour too. Many of the cars on the tour were entered in the Con-cours, but many new cars appeared, with Jim Freeman showing no fewer than four. Don Rose co-opted me as a judge, which filled me with some apprehension knowing the exacting standards of judging in the UK and elsewhere at US Concours. I need not have worried. The methodology was very relaxed and getting on one’s knees discour-
aged. In the end, the right cars won so the message to other judges…throw away the lab coats and stand back to admire the cars! I was very taken with Andy Williams’ series 4 DB4 that is used for all occasions but is both very original and in very fine order.
With all the activity of Thursday and Friday it felt that the track day was the icing on the cake rather than the centrepiece of the weekend. The track is even more exciting than I recall with its mixture of turns and gradients, an epic mini Nurburgring. The event was arranged for fast, medium and high-speed tastes. The high speed being catered for by a 3-lap sprint and the more sedate by the precision driving event. It seemed that all tastes were catered for with at one end of the spectrum Jim Freeman’s rapid DB4GT 17TVX and at the other end Don Brodie’s Concours winning MK III. Mid afternoon it started raining but by that time most of the track time had been enjoyed. Jim had been kind enough to al-low me to sample 17 TVX but he also took along the Lola Aston and AMR1.
The weekend was topped off by the final dinner at the Interlaken Inn with a charity auction and prize giving. But the big-gest prize has to go to the organizers and the NA USA membership for their spirit and hospitality. Throughout the event we had been very kindly hosted by Andy and Carol Greenberg who were just the perfect hosts. Andy was kind enough to let me take the wheel both on road and track of his superb DB4GT, the last one built.
This is such a fun event for all cars and all people. I am sure that it will be less than 38 years before we return!
LIME ROCK 2015
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I repeat, for Melinda and I, approaching the Taconic Parkway is our of-ficial “Rite of Summer.” This only means one thing to us; Aston Martins at the AMOC Lime Rock (CT) event held on June 23-25, 2016 at the Interlaken Inn. Melinda, to her nature, redefines the term “picturesque” even before our arrival. On the Taconic Parkway she lets out a shriek, “turn around.” Appar-ently, there is a Thomas Cole museum, of one of her favorite artists from the infamous Hudson River region. After a 10 hour drive, another day dear. So much for my Saturday track day, I suppose.
Upon arriving Wednesday afternoon, savoring the thought of a nap – but nooooo. Greeted by the club’s warm members, and the welcoming hor d’ oeuvres and wine, we settle into dinner plans at the “The White Hart” in Salisbury, CT. Our mix of friends enjoy a long laid back dinner in anticipa-tion for Thursday’s big “Rally.”
The rally is about 120 miles long, and each year a new road map and lunch destination. The spirit of Aston Martin Grand Touring echoes from the hills, and fills the air, yet without disturbing the peaceful rural setting.
This year, a buffet lunch was hosted at a beautiful historic house by AMOC Secretary Tom Gibb and Robert Lindgren. There is nothing like beef, salmon,
By Richard KollinsPhotos by Melinda Kollins
AMOC LIME ROCK 2016
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pasta and salad accompanied with fine wine after a hard day’s drive. The tall tales of taking wrong turns, getting lost and following one another seem to be taller each year.
On Friday morning across the street from the Interlaken Inn, is a large grassy area with a lake as the perfect backdrop. It is here a legion of Aston Martin cars are aligned by class for its very own Concours show. Nearly ev-ery model was represented. Melinda was spending time with the ladies and forever taking pictures.
The Friday night welcoming dinner, like last year, was at “The White Hart” in Salisbury, CT. The opening cocktail hour gave you time to relive this era of over two-century old architecture, toned with mild Indian, Middle East-ern and Moroccan culinary aromas. The dinner was superb to say the least, and simply breaking bread with friends just makes for a perfect day.
Saturday is track day at the infamous and beautiful Lime Rock Park raceway. As you wander the mile and a half road circuit freely, the musical echoes of Aston Martins, Ferrari’s, Porsches and others reverberate off the hillsides. Offered are different classes ranging from speed limited precision to flat out race cars. However, I did promise Melinda a drive to the Thomas Cole Mu-seum. A very relaxed scenic drive without a regard of time we arrive at the very place Thomas Cole painted. One history lesson, and four prints later we make one last stop at the Frederic Church castle. Church, a student of Cole, built this monumental castle of Persian architecture. Now it is time to head back and refresh for the night’s award banquet.
The Awards Banquet was at the Interlaken Inn as previous years. The cock-tail hour starts at 6:00 PM, giving you the chance to mingle and view the si-lent auction items which benefits the club. The dinner stories get better and better as the luscious wine flows. The awards are presented, dinner comes to a close, and we retire to our humble abode.
A special word of thanks goes out to Lizzie Miner who every year, gra-ciously helps with the awards.
Sunday morning is too prompt. A quiet continental breakfast, with final handshakes and hugs until next year. The mighty Aston Martins gracefully depart. Susan Laskey – you have outdone yourself again!
The tall tales of taking wrong turns, getting lost and following one another
seem to be taller each year.
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acknowledge how much better it actually is!
Air-Box: The Federal air-box itself is also sealed with a great many al-len head screws to prevent tinkering and adjustment from non-qualified individuals. The removal of the Fed-eral air-box cover for routine main-tenance is time consuming to say the least. In comparison, the UK/European air-box is cleaner looking and easily removed by simple clips to access the carburetors for service, maintenance and tuning.
Retrofitting: Many V8 owners con-vert from Federal air-box to UK/European air-box/throttle linkages because of the above mentioned restrictions. There are many parts involved in converting a V8 from USA type air-box/throttle linkage to UK/European air-box/throttle linkages as well as labor procedures needing to be done when perform-ing this conversion.
Starting with the removal of the Federal type air-box is self explan-atory, start unscrewing, unbolting until you are left with the air-box base, carburetors and linkage re-moved completely. I have found the air-box top makes for excellent wall decoration/art once removed as it will never again be used on your V8! Throttle linkage/cabling removal are different dependent on whether your V8 is an automatic variant or has the optional ZF man-ual gearbox.
Once all is disassembled and all necessary parts are compiled for the conversion, the install of the UK/European parts are far more straightforward than its federal counterpart. Some parts are no longer made and will need to be
Aston Martins have always been performance oriented automobiles from the very first days of Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford, their hill climb wins and what would eventually become Aston Martin, The Company.
Fast forward some 60 plus years and automobiles have become a major part in everyone’s daily lives for utilitarian, sport and hobby. Reg-ulations developed. One of these stringent regulations that hampered performance through restricted air flow was the Federal specification carburetor air-box on our beloved V8 Aston’s during the late 1970’s and 1980’s.
Due to regulations in the late 1970’s Aston Martin redeveloped the V8 air-box, it was now quite differ-ent in its appearance to the UK/European version. Not only was it an aesthetic change, performance was affected as well and not for the better!
The Federal air-box was quite a bit different, differences as follows…
Airflow: Although the air filter housings, air filters and ducting are same for all carbureted V8’s both Federal and European, the Federal air-box at the front section has two air flaps to aid in the initial warm up for these Federal spec. emission controlled V8’s. The inner diameter of these ducts are smaller than the
air hoses feeding air to the carbu-retors, thus, the airflow becomes turbulent. Although engineered for certain regulations, the net result is a lack of horsepower and throttle response in comparison to its European counterpart. Its UK/European counterpart has the same inner diameter to the air-box ducting entering the front of the air-box and without the restrictive air flaps, less restrictive by far! The air-box chamber is also wider and higher, thus the air to the carbure-tors is more direct and cleaner due to the lack of restriction.
Linkages: The American air-box is cable operated, whereas the Eu-ropean throttle linkage is ball and socket. The Federal air-box linkage involves the throttle cable being connected to levers with rods through the side of the air-box which are connected to yet more levers within the air-box. Although effective to meet new regulations, it once again lacked in its design, feel and response. Also, one of the most common problems with this design is a tendency for the throttle cable to break due to the many angles and arc of the throt-tle cable through these multiple levers. In comparison, the UK/European ball and socket linkages are well thought out and make for a wonderful, direct, fluid transfer of acceleration through the throt-tle pedal and to the floor. One must feel the difference to truly
Astons V8’s USA Late 1979-1986.5
EUROPEAN AIRBOX CONVERSIONProper UK/European Power from your Federal Spec. V8, Part 1
by: Antoine Crettol,z Autosport Designs, Inc.
TECH TALK
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sourced on the used market and some fabricated, but nothing too hard to duplicate. Remember, your V8 is a hand built motorcar and the original process has not changed.
During installation the studs on the intake manifolds must be removed and replace with shorter studs to accommodate the space that the Federal specification air-box took up originally. The carburetors must be fitted without their tops to prepare for tuning. Install, syn-chronize and setup initial throttle linkage (you may have to readjust once all is installed). Install the UK/European air-box base plate, UK/European carburetor tops and UK/European air-box top. You are now ready for tuning, synching and final adjustments of fuel mixture, igni-tion timing and throttle linkage setup. During assembly always make sure you have full throttle and all is lubed and free from binding with the new linkage. Carburetor fine tuning and possible replacement of carburetor jetting must be done with the air-box top off. This may occur several times during your fine tuning, checking mixture, airflow and taking spark plugs readings. Of course, you will need the necessary and specific tools needs for this tuning process (air flow measuring meter, gas analyzer, etc).
Once completed, you will have a V8 Aston that is now in the con-figuration and how it was origi-nally intended to leave the factory at Newport Pagnell. You will also fully appreciate the throttle feel and power upgrade. This is one con-version where the time, effort and money will be well spent and can be felt immediately in the royal seat of your pants.
PATRICK SHEEHANMy Dad was born in England January 29th, 1942 died March 9th 2016 in Burlington, Ontario. He immigrated to Canada in 1965 and drove a truck for different companies over the years. He even-tually bought his own truck and was doing long distance trucking from Toronto to Florida, and bringing produce homebound. Later, he was hauling tanker trailers across Canada. He was married to my Mom in 1969 and remained married until his death. They had three kids including me. I have an older sister and a younger brother. In 1973 my Dad decided to get off the road and stop driving trucks for a living. He sold his truck and was going to start driving a Greyhound bus for a living. When he went to the Kenworth dealer to pay off his truck, the owner of the dealer-ship convinced my dad to sell trucks for a living and not bother starting with Greyhound. Starting on Monday morning, it was the beginning of the rest of his career selling transport trucks. He worked for a few other truck dealers until 1989 when he and my Mom decided to start a used truck dealer for themselves in the fall of 1989. Then in late 1990, they secured a Volvo truck franchise, which they built into a very respected and successful dealership. In August/September of 1999, my parents retired and sold the busi-ness to my sister and myself. My parents had a place in Florida and Ireland and would mix 6 months of the year between the two, and the other 6 months here in Burlington. Dad as you know was a bit quiet, had a great sense of humor and loved cars.
Sincerely,
Dennis Sheehan
IN MEMORIAM
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ALBERT N. SCHNEIDER The life of Al Schneider was celebrated on 23 October, a brilliant autumn day in Northeast Ohio. Al was a devoted dad to Albert Jr,. Dorothy “Dott,” Jennifer “Helen,” and Robert “Roy.” His beloved spouse – Maryanne P Schneider.
Al was a wonderful friend. Please hoist a glass in Al’s memory.Albert Schneider, age 78, beloved husband of 55 years to Mary-anne (nee Dreslinski), outstanding and loving father to Albert Leonard, Robert James, Dorothy Adeline (Christopher), and Jen-nifer Helen (Marc Lansley) died in October.A patient and sympathetic listener, Al was a natural father figure, mentor and organizational leader. He was also a popular person among his clients, colleagues and peers.
A relentlessly positive person, Al would say, “Every day is a good day, it just depends how good.” He made time for others, and was always ready with a joyful anecdote or kind words for those who sought his counsel. He loved classical music and enjoyed many splendid evenings with Cleveland Orchestra at both Sever-ance Hall and Blossom Music Center. He loved bike riding the towpath, walking in the Metroparks, and well deserved vacations traveling through Germany.
Al was 32nd degree Freemason, an active member and a Past Worshipful Master of Theodore Breck Lodge #714, Past Patron of the Eastern Star, a Shriner, member of the Scottish Rite, and the Royal Arch Masons Corwinn-Webb Chapter #205. Al outlived most of his lifelong friends from his childhood days in the West 55th and Clark Avenue neighborhood of Cleveland. He was stationed with the US Army in Wildflecken, Germany in the early 1960s.
Albert Schneider was self-made, and worked from quite humble beginnings as a mechanic at a radiator shop to ultimately becom-ing a commercial HVAC engineer. He was a card carrying mem-ber of Pipefitters Local 120, and taught classes to other members and trainees.
IN MEMORIAM
Al and Maryanne were stalwart participants in the early AMOC Lime Rock events. He was Member 5301, indicating he joined in the early 1970s. Al always pitched in at AMOC events, and worked “pit out” at Lime Rock for ages, often with Al Jr. (Dr. Bob Epstein is his spiritual successor). At our Mid-Ohio track event in 1982 Maryanne was event registrar and Al was field marshal, or-ganizing the grid. The Schneiders helped launch British Car Day of Cleveland, still going strong after 28 years. Al’s Astons included a DB2 Coupe LML/50/151; a DB2 DHC LML/50/276; a Mark III coupe; and another Feltham Aston with Jaguar engine.
He was a dedicated church council member and served on the Board of Trustees, and as Council President of Trinity United Church of Christ on West 25th Street – a building, he would nostalgically note, was built as a result of the congregation, which included his mother, buying bricks for a nickel apiece. He later found fellowship at Independence United Methodist Church with Reverend Christopher Statz, who led the funeral service on Friday, October 23 at 9 a.m., before a procession to Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery in Ritman, OH.
Despite Al saying, “It is better to be seen than viewed,” the family did receive friends at Nosek-McCreery Funeral Home, Brecks-ville, on Thursday, October 22nd from 4 p.m. - 8 p.m. with a Masonic Service at 7 p.m.
Albert courageously battled pancreatic cancer for three years be-fore passing away peacefully at home. Financial gifts will be used by the family to defray funeral expenses.
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DIRECTORY
AMOC EAST BOARDChairBOB WELCH105 Upland Road Cambridge, MA 02140 (617) 721-4904 [email protected]
SecretaryTOM GIBBBox 82 Sharon, CT 06069 (646) 387-9405 [email protected]
TreasurerBREWSTER MINER73 Beekman Road Summit, NJ 07901 (908) 522-1054 [email protected]
Membership & Events Director KATHY GAFFNEY322 West 57th St., Apt 33U New York, NY 10019 (631) 553-4662 [email protected]
Track Coordinator JIM FREEMAN444 Madison Ave., 12th Floor New York, NY 10022 (212) 830-6177 [email protected]
AMOC EAST AREA REPRESENTATIVESEastern CanadaPAUL DEL GRANDE863 Queenston Road Niagara-On-The-Lake, ON L0S 1J0 [email protected]
Florida RUSSELL GLACE1006 N Federal Highway Lake Worth, FL 33460 (561) 762-2908 [email protected]
Michigan DR. NORB KAMINSKI 16211 E. 11 Mile Road Roseville, MI 48066 (313) 719-2484 [email protected]
Mid-AtlanticJON METCALFEAston Martin Washington DC, 8550 Leesburg Pike Vienna, VA 22182 (70) 464-8807 [email protected]
Midwest HENRY MATSON717 W Willow St., Unit 2E Chicago, IL 60614 (773) 580-3289 [email protected]
New EnglandDR. BOB WELCH105 Upland Road Cambridge, MA 02140 (617) 721-4904 [email protected]
New Jersey WIL WONG LANCE STERMAN 292 Locktown Road Fleming, NJ 08822 (908) 996-7189 [email protected] [email protected]
New York/ConnecticutANDY WILLIAMS165 Gun Club Road Stamford, CT 06903 (203) 321-7088 [email protected]
PennsylvaniaLEONARD LEVIN & JOHN STINSMEN239 Winged Foot Drive Blue Bell, PA 19422 (610) 272-3812 [email protected], [email protected]
AMOC WEST BOARDChairGUY SIMSPON22402 Citation Court Los Gatos, CA. 95033 (408) 353-8682 [email protected]
Vice ChairLARRY FROMM 233 Avenida Princesa San Clemente, CA 92672 (949) 492-5933 [email protected]
Secretary JANE RANSOME101 N. Delphia Avenue Brea, CA 92821 (714) 529-4439 [email protected]
TreasurerGARY D. MOORE 2222 Foothill Boulevard Suite E-605 La Canada, CA 91011 (818) 244-8646 [email protected]
Membership ChairROBERT DENNIS 356 N. Catalina St. Burbank, CA 91505 (818) 842-9892 [email protected]
Competitions Director MICHAEL GREEN7128 Hansen Drive Dublin, CA 94568 (925) 606-8301 [email protected]
AMOC WEST AREA REPRESENTATIVES NorthwestROBIN BOLZ24917 NE 20th Place Sammamish, WA 98074 (425) 836-9194 [email protected]
Mountain LUC TRUDEL657 West Pine Street Louisville, CO 80027 (720) 890-8774 [email protected]
Northern California RITCH JULIAN 6723 Corte Tercera Martinez, CA 94553 (925) 373-1296 [email protected]
Southern CaliforniaJOHN MUTLOW2658 Glendower Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90027 (323) 663-6107 [email protected]
San Diego VICTOR LANZ3250 Venado Street Carlsbad, CA 92009 (760) 943-9708 [email protected]
Red RiverBRIAN GREENSTONE 12405 John Simpson Court Austin, TX 78732 (512) 773-3010 [email protected]
Arizona WILLIAM LEAR10260 E White Feather Lane #1013 Scottsdale, AZ 85262 (480) 513-6170 [email protected]
www.amoc.org Password access to Members Area available by contacting Webmaster with your membership number: [email protected]
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JOIN THE AMOC!US and Canada. For information on 2015 membership please contact:
SECTION EASTKATHY GAFFNEYMembership & Events Director (631) 553-4662
TOM GIBBSecretary (646) 387-9405
SECTION WESTROBERT DENNIS Membership Chair (818) 842-9892
JANE RANSOMESecretary ((714) 529-4439
AMNE BACK COVER
PREVIOUSLY RUN WI13 AD IN PLACE
