Home at last!

10/9/18

There was a chance of rain last night, so I put the top up just in case.  When we woke up, it had, in fact, rained lightly, and there was a chance of rain all day. So, the top stayed up for the time being.  The trip was uneventful, but because there was intermittent light rain, we never got to put the top down today.  We stopped in Walhalla, SC for lunch at the Kountry Kupboard - a local meat and 2, or 3, that was very popular with the locals.




After lunch, it was on through Jefferson, Winder and finally home.  Now its time to wash clothes, wash the car, and crawl into our own bed!

We had a great time, enjoyed the towns we stopped at and met a lot of nice people.  We drove about 1200 miles and decided that if we were to do it again, we would add an extra day or two for driving and sightseeing.

Stay tuned for more Midgettravels...

On the way home

10/8/18

This morning, when we left Warrenton, it wasn't raining, but the fog was so heavy that it was like we were driving through a cloud for about the first two hours!  As the sun came out and it warmed up a little, the fog finally lifted and it was a great driving day.  We had an uneventful drive to Appomattox -"Where our nation reunited" -  and we stopped for a good home-cooked lunch downtown at Granny Bees. 

Driving in fog

After lunch, we continued on to Wilkesboro, NC where we will spend the night.  After checking in at the hotel, we drove down the street to Glenn's Drive -In, a Wilkesboro staple for over 50 years!  Old fashioned hamburgers, tater tots, milkshake and chocolate dipped soft ice cream - yum!

Tomorrow we will be in our own bed!

Showtime at Willoughby Farm

10/7/18

We left after breakfast for a 20 minute drive to the show site - Willoughby Farm in Marshall, VA..  Our host is Barbara Scott, who along with her late husband, Bill, owned Summit Point Raceway.  Upon arriving, we were directed to the parking place for our class.  The cars, about 166 total,  were spread out over a couple of acres of pasture in a very picturesque setting.

We cleaned the car and then went to check out the grounds as more cars arrived.  While the main house was not open to the public, the cabin that was added to it later, was open for tours.  It is an old cabin that was dismantled, moved and reassembled.  It is a complete guest house with bedroom, bath, kitchen and den, as well as a loft.  It is beautifully finished and inviting.

We then walked over to the barn, but the horses were all up in their stalls and we were not permitted into the barn.  There was a guard cat on duty to keep us out.

By this time, enough cars were present for us to start walking around to check them out.  During the day, we were serenaded with musical entertainment -

All the walking around worked up an appetite.  For lunch, there was an assortment of sandwiches, hot dogs, brats, soup, and drinks served by the pool. 

Lunch is served!

The club thought of everything, even a buffet for the dogs!

The Midget Class

Some of the interesting entries - a D-type Jag, a Triumph Mayflower and a very nice Triumph Herald Estate.

The award ceremony started about 2:00 PM and afterward everyone began leaving.  For a fall day in northern Virginia, it was hot as hell, but it was a very enjoyable event, and the MG Car Club Washington DC Centre and Mrs. Scott were wonderful hosts.  We had a nice ride back to the hotel and rested before driving to downtown Warrenton for dinner at the Black Bear Café.  Tomorrow we will start the trip home.

   

Hunt Country Classic - Day 2

10/6/18

We left Roxboro this overcast morning with the top up due to very heavy dew and fog.  It wasn't really raining, but almost!  Today's drive will be shorter than yesterday and with the overcast, maybe cooler.  At one of our gas stops, a woman in a very nice '67 Mustang pulled up and asked if we were going to the car show today.  We told her no, ours was tomorrow, but we did pass a sign for a show today close by.  So, she headed on down the road looking for the show.  We were on some very nice two lane roads today, especially Hwy. 522 that was nice and scenic and curvy.  Below is a sample -


Enroute to Warrenton


We got to Warrenton and went downtown for lunch.  We parked and walked around - a very cute downtown with lots of old buildings.  We stopped for lunch at Gateau Bakery Cafe and Tea Room.  It was a little bit of a "girly" place, but was very nice and the food and tea were great.  After exploring downtown, we checked in at the hotel for a much needed rest.   I'll try to clean the car up before going back downtown for dinner tonight.

Street scenes of downtown Warrenton, VA

The outside of the Gateau Bakery and Cafe

One of the halloween decorations downtown

After cleaning a bunch of road grime and tar off the car and a short rest, we walked back downtown for dinner at Claire's at the Depot.  This turned out to be a wonderful place in an old railroad depot.  We had good service and good food that included, but was not limited to, she crab soup, fried green tomatoes with crab cakes and apple crisp.

Fried Green Tomatoes and Crab Cakes

Tomorrow we have a short drive to the show site at a private horse farm.  Details to follow....

Hunt Country Classic British Car Show

10/5/18

We got up early today and headed to the Hunt Country Classic in Marshall, VA.  We've never been to this event but it sounded very nice.  The Hunt Country of VA is a couple of counties in northeastern VA that is known for horses and fox hunting.  In fact, the show is held on the grounds of a private horse farm.  We're looking forward to a nice drive through Virginia, but its about 600 miles so we'll split the trip into two days.

Today is the longest day, so we left while it was still dark.  We took a southerly route up and will take a different route home.  We drove through Athens then stopped in Greenwood, SC where we stopped for breakfast at the West End Café, a nice little local café.

A hardy breakfast at the West End Café

From Greenwood, we continued on through Clinton, Whitmire, Chester, and then stopped for lunch in Asheboro.  Because we planned on a nice dinner in Roxboro, and because of time constraints, we just stopped at a fast food place on the way.  From Asheboro, we continued on northeast finally stopping in Roxboro.  A large portion of the trip was on SC 72 and 200.  These go through an industrial corridor and because of the heavy truck traffic, the roads, in places, are in bad shape.  There are patches on top of patches.  Several times I had to drive in the oncoming lane to avoid the terrible surface.  Luckily, traffic was light.  This portion through South Carolina was not particularly scenic.  As soon as we crossed into North Carolina, the roads were much improved.

We arrived in Roxboro about 4PM, relaxed a while, then we to dinner at Brookland Eats, a local restaurant near the hotel, located in an old building that used to be a general store.  Everything was good, but the pecan encrusted shrimp were outstanding.

  

Tomorrow, we'll head to Warrenton, VA, where we will stay during the show.  The show is outside Marshall, VA which is about 15 miles from Warrenton.  Tomorrow should be a nice drive through Virginia.

Made it home!

6/24/2018

We left the hotel a little earlier today, 8:00 AM, since this will be a longer day.  Some of our group were getting antsy to get back, so they left earlier and took a faster route.  But, we weren't in that much of a hurry and enjoyed the drive.  We made it to Waynesville, NC for lunch at Bogart's.  This is a popular, local cafe and they had a table for our group.  After a good meal, we were on the road home!  One couple was staying in Waynesville with some friends, so we headed out with another couple and had an uneventful drive back.  Near Clayton, GA, the other couple turned off headed to the other side of Atlanta.

After 10 days and about 1500 miles, we were home.  Now, all we have to do is unload the car, wash the clothes and car, go to the grocery store and get the dog.  Looking forward to  my own bed....  

Homeward bound - part two!

6/23/2018

We left Staunton, VA around 9:00 AM.  After stops to empty our tanks and fill the car's, we had a fantastic drive on some great mountain roads into Blacksburg, VA to the Hokie House for lunch.  Blacksburg is home to Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly known as Virginia Tech and the Hokie House is right across the street from the campus.  After lunch, we headed out toward Bristol, VA, our stop for the night.  After an uneventful drive, we ran into some rain just outside of Bristol.  Normally, we would just drive through a light rain, but because we kept having to stop at all the traffic lights, we decided to pull under a Lowe's loading dock and put the top up.  After a quick stop, it was back on the road to Bristol.  Most of the group went to eat near the hotel, but we decided to see what downtown was like and eat there.  Bristol, a town of about 35,000 people, is very interesting as there is a stripe down the middle of main street and one side is in VA and the other is in TN.  Half the people live in Virginia and half in Tennessee.  And, it seems like a very dynamic place.  Main street is very viable, with few empty storefronts.  We ate at 620 State, a local restaurant specializing in sushi, Asian and American fare, located on the first floor of a nicely renovated historic building.  The food and service were excellent and we went across the street (from TN to VA) for dessert at an ice cream store.  We passed by the very hopping Quaker Steak and Lube Restaurant that had live music on its packed patio.  You could hear the music all up and down the street.  Luckily, it was good, classic rock!

 

Bristol - VA on the left, TN on the right.

Great music from the patio of the Quaker Steak and Lube restaurant

  

Homeward bound!

6/22/2018

The show is over, its now time to head home.  We'll be taking a slightly different route home so we can see some different scenery.  We left Gettysburg about 9:00 AM with 11 other cars and our lunch stop is the Main St. Mill Restaurant in Front Royal, VA.  It was raining when we arrived at the restaurant, but we were able to park close to the building.  This stop turned out to be quite a memorable one.  There was a gentleman eating lunch and saw us all drive up.  He  introduced himself to us,  his name is Walt Moyer, and he said he has a shop and warehouse close by full of Rolls Royces and Bentleys and we were welcome to stop by after lunch to look around.

So, after lunch, we all drove about 2 miles to his shop, Moyer Motorcars, Inc.  Turns out he specializes exclusively in the service of Rolls and Bentleys, and has been for some time.  The service facility looks like any other shop with several lifts, except that every lift had a Rolls on it!  And, the parts cars in the back yard were all Rolls or Bentleys!  Plus, there was an attached warehouse full of all sorts of vintage Rolls and Bentleys in addition to a bunch of other special interest vehicles.  It was pretty jaw dropping to stroll around that many special vehicles. 

                                    I felt in good company when I parked at Moyer Motorcars!
   

We finally had to tear ourselves away and get back on the road.  Our destination for tonight is Staunton, VA.  After checking into our hotel, several couples headed downtown to the Mill Street Grill for dinner.  This is located on the first floor of an old flour mill building.  The interior was nice and the food excellent, but the waiter was terrible.  Very unfriendly and brusque.  But, the company and food were good!  Afterwards, we gassed up and got ready for tomorrow's trip.

Mill Street Grill - Staunton, VA

Showtime - MG 2018!

6/21/2018

After breakfast, we drove the car to the show field about 200 yards in front of the hotel.  After putting the car in our assigned space, we cleaned it up and then walked around looking at the approximately 250, or so, other cars.  In the sea of about 200 MGBs, there were about 15 Midgets.  But, we're used to that.  That is what makes us "special"!

Panoramic view of part of the show field.

Panoramic view of the Midgets.

One of the more interesting MGs on display, was an electric model.  This was a (non-running) project from an engineering school, whose name I forgot, that was built in the '70s!  Quite a lot of technological improvements in the last 40 years!

Its not only entertaining to see all the cars, but also educational.  I always see new ways to do things, and always learn something about these marvelous little cars that I didn't know before.  And, of course, its always nice to meet new MG friends.  MG is truly "the marque of friendship".

Later, at the awards banquet, several of our Peachtree MG Registry from Atlanta won awards in their class.  Tomorrow we'll start the trip back to Atlanta, following a different route back.

Steve Ratcliffe - 1st

Larry Norton - 1st

Mike Cook - 3rd

Tim Gaffney - 1st