2nd Annual Nevada City Adventure on Sunday, September 15th, 2002 

Swap Meet, Car Show,Shopping Tour, Rally/Tour, Picnic Bar-B-Q, RC Racing 

Oh yeah, HyperSprite was there too. I was the one hanging out of the Suburban taking snap shots. I got as many as I could but some turned out blurry. What a day though, huh? I didn't get any sleep the night before due to a new kitty in our household, Pigpen is a ball of fire that will not be denied. Have you ever been licked on the face by a cat, it is like 150 grit sandpaper. Anyway... arriving at Terry's (Tsmith) house around 5:30am was a killer. Time (Igr8shg) was already there and  Guy (sorry I don't know your handle) showed up moments latter. Guy and Tim left in Guy's Sportpack and I rode with Terry and Clayton in the Suburban assault vehicle. We drove out to Tracy and picked up Steve (ESPI), Lance (Monocle) and Andrew (Sidwac). Steve and Andrew took Steve's early racer and Lance drove his daily driven Mini the day after he put his head back on after getting it back from Seven Enterprises.

  Just outside of Sacramento we saw the CHP light Steve up and pull him over. We were not in a position to pull over and ended up driving to the next exit and circling back. By the time we got back to were they should have been they were already gone and the CHP was moving out. Steve called me to tell me the officer had gotten his license plate wrong when he ran it, explaining why his car was not a BMW. 

  We met back up with them at Seven Enterprises in Auburn. Lots of other Minis were already there. This is what I was waiting for, I came to visit my motor. Yes this is the same motor Seven had at MMW, they are making some changes for me before I take delivery, like changing to a 3.1 FD, but I could not wait to see it again. The coffee and doughnuts were welcome in my wrecked state, they were also giving out cool Fortech shirts to anyone that came with a Mini. They also had this neat "make an offer table" with all kinds goodies.

  Leaving Seven the same time as the rest of the Minis, Clayton and I took some photos and video. Even though I did not have my Mini it was still nice to be all around them. They were all very nice looking but also very distinct. 

  Arriving at Mini Mania, there were a few dozen British cars, Minis but also Minors and Sprites. There was a row of new MINIs and a few swap meeters. Lance picked up a pair of Cobra Classics and brackets and before you could say "busted old seat I'm never gonna sit in again" he had installed the new ones and sold the old ones to fellow Miniacs who felt that fixing them was doable.

When it was time to go for the drive we figured we had enough ahead of us and bailed. I decided to ride back with Lance to "test" out his new seats and the three Minis were off like bats out of heck. We drove back roads most of the way home, going through old mining towns, stopping at a dive bar named "Bobs" for a beer, and then running a whole lot more. In Tracy we left Steve and Andrew, for more back roads, Guy took his own way in Fremont and Lance and I finally made it back to Terry's. It was a long day but and I was sad to see it go as I drove home.

I never got around to meeting all the guys we followed in from Seven, hope to do so next time.

Next time I will have my Mini for this day of driving tomfoolery.

Chris