2007 Mystery Tour Friday October 12, 2007

Transcription

1 Volume 40 Issue Number 11 MAFCA 2007 CERTIFICATE OF MERIT November 2007 General Membership Friday, November 16, :00 p.m. 1st Lutheran Church Hall, Concord Special Attractions Pie Social Mystery Tour Chapter History Very, Very Last Laugh Inside Insights Johnny s Journey 3 Sunshine Report 4 Classified 4 Caught in the Headlights 5 The Garage Mystery Tour Friday October 12, 2007 In case of drought, call the Mick-Watsons. This is the fourth tour we have led in the rain. Our Mystery Tour to the Contra Costa Times started at Best Buy on a drizzly day and ended at our home in Alamo with a downpour. The Times tour was new to everyone. We split into two groups. One group toured the newsroom, editorial offices, composition area and the enormous print plant. The other group heard a presentation on the history of the Contra Costa Times, recent developments in newspaper publication, economic factors, and future possibilities. The groups then switched so that everyone had the same experience. One group was a bit luckier then the other - they got to meet and chat with Gary Bogue and Joan Morris. The number one question the Times has received recently is regarding the change of the TV booklet to a tabloid size. They pointed out that it was an economic decision: the old guide carried no advertising and cost $500,000 a year to publish. Twenty-eight Diablo A's braved the elements, but only Dee and Denny Desmond drove their Model A. Also included in the tour were Rich & Eileen Anderson, John Bailey, Elsie Boarman, Ann Becker, Wayne & Peggy English, Alex & Ruth Janke, Bill & Donna Truesdell, Bob & Lynn Grady, Adell Kirk, John & Marge Tait, Evelyn Wilson, with her son and granddaughter, Cal & Cheryl Pierce, Bob Reed & Lynda Oliver, Herb & Marilyn Neumann. Just before the end of the tour Marilyn and Alicia left early to pick up lunch at the La Ultima restaurant in Danville. They pulled up to the house just as the rest of the group arrived. We ate for about two hours. Prizes went to the Desmonds for driving their Model A. John Bailey for best mileage guess and the Truesdells for guessing the tour leaders. Thank you to Marilyn & Herb for all of their help and all of the attendees for pitching in to help "Stumper" as I am using a walker until my toes heal. Continued on page 2 Technical Seminar 6 Era Notes 8 Upcoming Tours & 9 Meeting Minutes 10 Calendar 11 A drizzly start to the 2007 Mystery Tour

2 2 Here are the Mystery Tour clues and their meanings: Clue Number 1: "Where the sun don't shine" The Contra Costa Times is located in Shadelands and the sun doesn't shine in the shade. Clue Number 2: "It was the best of times. It was the worst of times" Actually, it was the CC Times. Clue Number 3: "It's only a matter of time" Another clue on the "Times" theme The group queuing up for the CC Times tour Clue Number 4: "The never-ending story" Newspapers provide a never-ending story. Clue Number 5: Mountain east Mount Diablo Hills west The Coast Range Water north Suisun Bay, etc. Food south Alamo Alicia & Steve The Mystery Couple in their kitchen fixing lunch for the hungry hoard Bob Reed, Linda Oliver, Marilyn Neumann, John Bailey Adell Kirk, Dee & Denny Desmond, Evelyn & Steve Wilson Elsie Boarman, Ruth Janke, Ann Becker, Lynn Grady Wayne English, Marge & John Tait, Peggy English The Hungry Hoard

3 VO LU ME 40 I SSUE NU MB ER 11 Johnny s Journey What a great job by Steve and Alicia putting together this year s Mystery Tour and lunch. The tour of the Contra Costa Times was interesting and informative. The lunch and company afterwards was even better. Thanks Steve and Alicia for a very nice day. I understand the Sand Hill Crane Festival was outstanding as well. There were plenty of cranes to see and really great weather to boot. Nice job Ruthie and Alex. By the way, at the Garlic Festival you eat garlic, at the Harvest Festival you eat fruits and vegetables, and at the Crawdad Festival you eat crawdads. What did you guys have for lunch? Ron s committee on preserving chapter history has decided how our history will be preserved and presented. He will report to the general membership at the next meeting. Thanks Ron and all who participated. Unfortunately (for me) I ve had to miss a few events, like the Sand Hill Crane Festival and the history committee meetings due to my new work schedule. One of the down sides to returning to work is I m now the new guy. Consequently I work a lot of weekends. Oh well, it s only temporary. By now you may all know that Alex had heart valve surgery on November 9 th. We re all looking forward to you re speedy recovery Alex. Let s keep Alex, Ruthie, Art, and Matt in our prayers. While I m on the subject we have a number of members with health issues. Please remember them all in your thoughts and prayers. Don t forget next meeting is the pie social. I can t wait! John Moto-Meter Elected Officials 2007 Board of Directors President John Bailey (707) Vice-President Ron Accornero (510) Secretary Cheryl Pierce (925) Treasurer Ruth Janke (925) Tour Coordinator Mariyln Neumann (925) Past President Marianne Goodson (707) Editor Peggy English (925) clockman51@astound.net Appointed Services ACCC Representative Herb Neumann Historian Barbara Sharman Membership Services Marianne Goodson Refreshments Co-Coordinator Donna Staggs NCRG Representative Alex Janke Photographers Wayne English & Bob Rigor Public Relations Bob Rigor Sunshine Reporter Elsie Boarman Club Vests Marge Tait Video Czar Bill Truesdell WebCzar Steve Mick The Moto-Meter: The Moto-Meter is the official publication of the Diablo A s Chapter of the Model A Ford Club of America. The Moto-Meter is published once a month and is mailed to each member in good standing and other Model A Ford Clubs in exchange for their publication. The Moto-Meter takes no responsibility for the accuracy of materials, dates, places, etc. of its contents. Permission to reproduce items in The Moto- Meter is hereby granted provided credit is given to The Moto-Meter. The Moto-Meter welcomes any article, artwork or suggestions. Please submit all materials by the Tuesday following the Board Meeting. Meetings: Meetings are held on the third Friday of the month at 8:00 PM at First Lutheran Church LCMS at 4000 Concord Blvd., in Concord unless otherwise indicated in the Calendar of Events. GUESTS ARE AL- WAYS WELCOME. Membership: Membership in the Model A Ford Club is not a prerequisite to join The Diablo A s. Both MAFCA and The Diablo A s membership commence on January 1st, and expire on December 31st. MAFCA dues are $30.00 (MAFCA, 250 Cypress Ave., La Habra, CA 90631, ). The Diablo A s dues of $45.00 per family is payable to the treasurer. Subscriptions to the Moto-Meter are $15.00 per year. 3 We thank the various clubs for the use of the many articles, jokes, fashion and technical advice that we have used. We are glad to share any articles that would be of interest to other clubs providing proper credit is given.

4 Sunshine Report Elsie Boarman For Sale door Murray body sedan. Copra & Chicle w/ black wheels and a Kerry Keen trunk. Very good original condition. $15, I am sure you know that our Mystery Tour leaders were Steve Mick and a Gimpy Alicia Watson. There they were, in the meeting place, He with his papers of instruction, She with her sturdy walker. Yes, our Gimpy leader had broken her toe, foot...whatever!. I might add it was also a little wet. We all had a great tour of our local newspaper, The Contra Costa Times. I thoroughly enjoyed the tour. It made me appreciate my paper more and the various articles. We saw Gary Bogue and Joan Morris. The Queen was unavailable. At our last meeting, we had quite a celebration. Cal and Florence Rose had brought a cake celebrating Cal s birthday, Florence s birthday and their 65th wedding anniversary. It was also Donna Truesdell s birthday I understand from Geneva Chiabotti that she is wearing a new chapeau made by Claire Bailey. It is a turban with fruit glued to it, ala Carmen Miranda. She is also wearing very pretty scarves. She will finish chemo and start radiation the first week in November. Called Carol and Mike DiPietro. Good News. Mike s blood level is good, his energy is up and they are hoping they can help the chronic leukemia with medication. Continue to keep Jerry and Rosella Hendrickson in your prayers. All would appreciate cards and calls. Our Diablo A s family extend their deepest sympathy to the family of Glenn Fuller. Glenn was a member from 1989 to He lived in Vallejo and was very active when he was well. Looking forward to our Christmas Banquet, at Zio Fraedo s, December 7. May we all be thankful for friendships, loved ones and family as we celebrate thanksgiving Happy A ing Elsie 1930 Roadster. Recent restoration. Spare tire in rear. French Gray with dark belt. Straw wheels. Directional lights and heater. Beautiful car. $18,500.Cars are in San Leandro. Call Tom Murray, Roadster Pickup. 2 wheel wells, 6-volt. Call Bill Duncan, , for description and price Model A 79B Panel Delivery. New Mitchell overdrive, V8 clutch, iron brake drums, vinyl top and head liner. $24, Contact Troy Whitehurst, A-400. Asking $30,000. Contact Peggy Goldey, (916) Stockton Swap Meet & Car Show December 2, 2007 Sunday 6 am 3 pm Bigger and Better every year! Indoor & outdoor classic car & truck show Hot Rods, Street Rods, Muscle Cars, Customs & Original Classic Cars & Trucks competing for over 20 trophies. Car Show entry fee $15.00 (day of show) Swap Meet spaces 15 x 20 on pavement or 20 x 20 on grass pre-paid or $25.00 day of show s of buyers! Rain or Shine we swap. Model Car Show put on by Bob Carrol. Antique Toy & Collectible Show indoors. Gates open 5am for sellers 6 am for buyers. Held at San Joaquin County Fairgrounds. For more info call

5 Caught in the Headlights By Pete Goodson Doug and Reyanne Freeman Doug was born in Springfield, Vermont, and attended Springfield High School where he was the trainer for the football and basketball teams. He also played the trumpet in the school band. Reyanne was born in Merced and attended Capuchino High School where she played the flute in the band. The band was honored with trips to the Far Western Band Review a few times. She also played in the California Youth Symphony. But one of the most exciting events was when she (and the marching band) played in the inaugural parade of John F. Kennedy. Doug heeded the call to go west young man and that is what brought him to California that and to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. While there he majored in Aeronautical Engineering. Reyanne also attended there majoring in Social Science. But it wasn t at Cal Poly where they met it was on a blind date. It was love at first sight and they continued dating for 3 years before they married on August 20, 1964 in San Bruno. They have 3 daughters the twins Kristie and Kerie and their third daughter, Kimberly. They also have two grandchildren Kailie and Nickolas. Doug worked for the Southern Pacific Railroad until 1964 and then worked for Sprint which was owned by Southern Pacific. He retired in Reyanne is still working part time as Controller at Brady Marketing. They both have hobbies outside of Model A ing. Doug collects O gauge model trains and every year there is a train around the Christmas tree. He also enjoys hunting, woodworking and baking pies. Reyanne enjoys reading and taking cruises (she d love to go to Italy), but her favorite hobby is spending time with her children and grandchildren. When Doug was still in high school, he went on a cross country trip with his uncle. This started his interest in Model A s since they kept their eyes open for barns and other places that might be hiding them. They found what they thought was the running gear of a 1929 station wagon. This was given to Doug and he started the restoration which consisted of taking everything apart, cleaning it real good and then reassembling it. In his senior year in high school his frame was entered in the local parade with a sign saying So little done, so much to do. Doug actually became a member of MAFCA in In 1963 he bought a 29 roadster. It was rust colored (guess why) and the running boards were so sharp you could cut yourself if not careful. The Freeman s joined the San Francisco Model A Chapter where Doug was President and Editor at the same time. Reyanne was Treasurer. They became Diablo A members in the early 70 s. Doug has been both Vice President and Treasurer in our club. In 1972, at the MAFCA Nationals in Seattle, they took second place with a car he started restoring in I asked them what was the most exciting thing they could remember in their lives and almost simultaneously they said the birth of the twins. You must remember back then people didn t know quantity or gender of their babies. It came as quite a pleasant surprise to both of them. What you might not know about Doug he has driven a 1909 Model K Stanley Steamer. He also was the get away driver when he and a friend stole a motometer from a car sitting in a field. Again, Marianne and I really enjoyed interviewing another Diablo A s family. And when originally asked to be interviewed, Doug said that he wasn t very interesting. I disagree.. Appointed Services The people who volunteer each year to fill positions in our Appointed Services perform a very valuable service to our Chapter. With a new slate of Directors taking over in January 2008 it is important that we ask the current volunteers if they would like to continue or do they wish to step aside after serving this year. Some current volunteers are now running for 2008 Board positions. I d appreciate hearing from those currently assigned and, if they wish to retire, have they talked to someone who would like to take over. It would be nice if these positions can be filled by the time we attend our Holiday Party on December 7 th. The positions are: ACCC Representative, Historian, Refreshments Coordinator, NCRG Representative, Photographer(s), Public Relations, Sunshine Reporter, Club Vests, Video Czar and Web Czar. Please let our current Vice President, Ron Accornero, know your desires by this November General Meeting on November 16 th. Thank you to all who have been serving and to those who can help in

6 The Garage. by Cal Have you noticed what is happening to our hobby on EBAY lately?? Well the prices just keep going up and up. I wonder if some are just buying in the hopes of reselling that part or car later. There are those who advertise parts as Model T or A or Model A parts. Obviously they do not know what they are selling. And sometimes they admit it if you question them about it. The price of cars is steadily increasing. I never thought I would see $30K Model A s for sale, but there they are. Along with $20K coupes, sedans and a pickup or two. The last few seconds before a bid closes is getting frantic action. I just saw a sidebowl carb go for $ while $ seems to be about average for a supposedly rebuilt run of the mill carb. There are quite a few street rods on the net. Everything from a small block V8 to Chevy 350 s with blowers. I wonder what all has been done to the frame to support such power and to the steering to hold the thing on the road. Sorry, but I will stick to my little 4 banger and be satisfied with MPH driving. As one of our older members once said why not leave a little earlier instead of driving so fast. The roadster project is slowly taking shape. With lots of sanding and patience, form and function slowly returns. I wonder why I started the project. But that is another story. I visualize doing a parade with the top down and several grandkids or even great grandkids throwing kisses to the crowd. What fun. This is what makes all the hard work worthwhile and makes you forget all about those hours and hours of knuckle busting. OH YEAH!, it was worth it. Meanwhile it is back to sanding and still some parts to buy. That is why I check EBAY. But I am getting discouraged there. So back to established parts suppliers. Sorry about losing Vern as a source. There are some unfinished carbs that I have to get to, so its back to work. TECHNICAL SEMINARS 2007 Put The Bounce Back In Your A Rebuilding Model A Springs Spring 2008 RSVP Alex Janke ( ) or Bob Grady ( ) Diablo A's Now Has International Stars It's official. Our very own Alex Janke and Bob Grady are now International celebrities. Old Ford Parts in England is now a distributor of Diablo A's technical seminar videos. Soon, our very own on-camera personalities won't be able to go anywhere without being hounded for their autographs. You can find the new outlet at Bill Truesdell 6 Take care and have fun. That's Model A ing. Cal

7 7 On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11tth month, we pay tribute to the veterans and soldiers who have served, and continue to serve. The men and women who have died or risked their lives defending our freedom and democracy. Please remember these brave men and woman this Veteran s Day Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us. Bless them and their families, for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need, especially the loved ones of those that have died to keep us safe and free. Amen

8 VOLUME 40 ISSUE NUMBER 11 8 F A L L Era Fashion Information The September 2007 issue of Threads Magazine has some very interesting articles about vintage patterns and sewing them. Even if you don't sew, the pictures are great. I purchased two patterns from evadress.com, and both patterns were reasonably-priced copies, and they were mailed without delay. They also offer larger sizes. I have referenced the following web sites for purchasing original or copies of vintage patterns: The web sites don't always give you the date of the pattern, just the decade, so check the Fashion Guidelines published by MAFCA to see what was in style during the Model A Era, 1928 to There are also fashion articles on the MAFCA website. Judy Lewis, from the Grapevine Gazette, newsletter of the Sonoma A s Check out for some beautiful new hats in the vintage style. They are pricey, but worth a look For the gentlemen, try for authentic Panama Hats. Also pricey, but aren t the men worth it?

9 9 UPCOMING TOURS & EVENTS Friday, November 16, 2007 General Membership and Pie Social The doors open at 7:30 p.m. and the meeting begins at 8:00 p.m. at First Lutheran Church, 4000 Concord Blvd., Concord. Guests are welcome. December 7 Christmas Banquet Zio Fraedo s December 5-9 MAFCA Annual Mtg Ontario, CA January 20 January brunch Sierra Dinner Train Oakdale January Turlock Swap Meet, NCRG Mtg February? TBD May NCRG Roundup, Auburn, CA June MARC/MAFCA World Model A Ford Meet Dallas, TX Monday, Dec. 3, 2007 Board Meeting The Board Meet ing will be held at the home of Pete & Marianne Goodson. Please R.S.V.P.. PIE SOCIAL November 16, 2006 It s that time again to enjoy the fruit of the harvest!! Food assignment is a follows: K-W Bring you favorite pie and serving utensil Plates and forks will be provided. Roger and Donna will bring the Vanilla Ice Cream. Roger and Donna I'm sorry we didn't have a better quality camera available to record last night's celebration. I hope they will be good enough to enjoy long after the cake has settled and the events have gone. Thank you for allowing us to share in that celebration. Congratulations to you both! Love, Bill & Donna

10 10 DIABLO A s Membership Meeting Date: October 19, 2007 Called to Order: by John Bailey Guests: New member Wayne Hollister, guests Herb s Granddaughters Nicole Thayer and Ariel, and Rick Mahan and Claire s son Paul Secretary s Report: read by Cheryl Pierce Club Correspondence: Presented by Alex Janke Appointed Services and Committee Reports:PR and Advertising: Bob Rigor announced an event to be held in Lodi on the upcoming Sunday Sunshine Report: Provided by Elsie Boarman Editor: Peggy requested that those interested in receiving the Moto-Meter in PDF file to sign up. Technical Coordinator: Next project will be done in the Spring, will be for the Capitol A s on Rear End Assembly. Tour Coordinator: The Christmas Party to be held December 7 at Zio Fraedo s will cost $32.00 per person. Must make choice off selected menu by November 17 th. Zio Fraedo s is at 611 Gregory Lane in Pleasant Hill. January 20th, we will go to the Sierra Rail Road in Oakdale and take a 3 hour train trip. Old Business: Audit is in order. New Business: Discussion with the General Membership and a motion was made and carried authorizing $ towards a one year commitment and the sale of Raffle tickets to support M.A.F.C.A. Youth in the restoration of Model A s. Wayne announced the opportunity to purchase magnetic signs at $80.00 a set identifying the Diablo A s on our cars. Appointed Services: Committee heads were asked to stay on Board. Raffle: June Gentry won $46.00 and the Pierce s won a $25.00 Target Gift Certificate. Announcements: Nov.5 th is the next Executive meeting scheduled at Ron s House. Please RSVP Respectfully Submitted Cheryl Pierce ANNUAL HOLIDAY BANQUET DECEMBER 7, 2007 The Diablo A s annual holiday banquet is less than a month away. We will be celebrating at Zio Fraedo s in Pleasant Hill on December 7 (Friday) from 7:00-11:00 p.m. 611 Gregory Lane Make sure to mail your reservation form and a check (made out to Diablo A s) for $32/person to: Marianne Goodson 322 Larkin Drive Benicia Please send it to me by November 17.

11 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Veteran s Day NOVEMBER Thanksgiving Day Birthdays November 3 Florence Rose 6 Jerry Hendrickson Paul Kraintz 7 Gloria Rose 10 Ron Accornero 11 Wayne English 24 Holtzman Frazier 29 Paul Peterson Anniversaries November 1 Nick and Peggy Houmis 6 Alex and Ruth Janke 8 Cal and Florence Rose 27 Mike and Carol DePietro 11 Preserving Chapter History The Committee has held their 2 nd meeting and decisions have been made on how club history will be handled. We are going digital, keeping binders of photographs only long enough to move selected photographs into DVD s. We decided on 3 steps to reach this goal. Step 1 is to review all binders back to the very first one (1968) and purge them of every photograph that does not contain people or is of poor quality. We will eliminate things like cars, buildings and random scenery. The Committee will do this at 1:00 PM at the Lutheran Church the day after our December 7 th Holiday Party. Step 2 is to invite all the original and old timer members to review all the remaining unidentified photographs by year to identify as many past or present members as possible. This may take a while, maybe 4 or 5 albums at a time. All photographs purged in Step 1, all remaining unidentified after Step 2 and any photographs not selected for preservation in Step 3 below will be made available to members, anything left to be pitched out. Step 3 will determine the selected identified photographs to be scanned and then posted on our website where they will be available for viewing by members interested in past history. Here is where the labor intensive work begins! Starting with 2007 all photographs selected for preserving will be scanned for the website. This means digital cameras should now be used to capture our events. It is hoped that members who took event pictures this year still have them saved in their cameras or in their computer. In addition to these procedures a President s Book containing each of the President s columns from the Moto-Meter will be maintained by the club Vice President. We are already starting to gather all these columns from all past Moto-Meters. We found most Presidents columns contain quite a bit of detail of the prior month s club activities and are a good source of history. To accommodate those members without access to computers we are considering a periodic slide show of these DVD s at a regular membership meetings. Now, these steps will take time and the need for dedicated club members volunteering to help. We are possibly looking at years of work! This time-consuming burden needs to have many willing hands. Could you possibly volunteer?

12 THE VERY, VERY, VERY, LAST LAUGH What Are Volunteers? Volunteers are like FORD..They have a better idea Volunteers are like COKE...They are the real thing Volunteers are like AVIS...They try harder Volunteers are like PEPSI..They ve got a lot to give Volunteers are like PAN AM...They make the going great Volunteers are like DIAL SOAP..They care more: don t you wish everybody did? Volunteers are like VO-5 HAIRSPRAY...Their goodness holds in all kinds of weather Volunteers are like HALLMARK CARDS..They care enough to give the very best Volunteers are like STANDARD OIL..You expect more and you get it But most of all Volunteers are like FROSTED FLAKES.. They are GREAT! Where would our club be without volunteers.thanks to you all!!!!!! Maxine s Maxims My mind works like lightning, One brilliant flash and it is gone. Mainly, the time the world beats a path to your door is if you're in the bathroom. I hate sex in the movies. Tried it once. The seat folded up, the drink spilled and that ice, well, it really chilled the mood. It used to be only death and taxes were inevitable. Now, of course, there's shipping and handling, too. My next house will have no kitchen - just vending machines and a large trash can. A blonde said, "I was worried that my mechanic might try to rip me off. I was relieved when he told me all I needed was turn signal fluid." As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point the wrong way. Why Do Americans Eat Turkey At Thanksgiving? Not because of the Pilgrims. Turkeys were probably eaten at the famous "first Thanksgiving" in 1621, but there is no hard evidence. Colonial records mention only "fowl" and deer, the latter supplied by the Indians. Turkey did not become customary Thanksgiving Day fare until the turn of the nineteenth century, and it did not become the traditional main course until the 1860s. Moreover, the Turkey Day tradition became firmly established only after World War II, thanks to an aggressive marketing campaign on the part of the poultry industry. That effort, which coexisted with the development of hybrid gobblers, helped to invent the supposed Pilgrim tradition and successfully made the stuffed bird an image of American abundance. General Meeting November 16, :00 p.m. First Lutheran Church, Concord Tour: Holiday Banquet December 7 Membership expires December 31, 2007 Please remit dues, in the amount of $45.00 to the chapter treasurer. Make checks payable to the Diablo A s Lest We Forget 9/11/01