BRITISH CAR CLUB of NORTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA •  Serving enthusiasts in the Greater Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area

Good Time Had By All!

NAMGAR IN THE POCONOS

Fall Regional GT of North American MGA Register

"NAMGAR in the Poconos" on Sep. 23-26, 2009, was a tremendous success. We had 33 attendees along with some other members of BCCNEPA joining in the events! People came from Canada, New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, and Michigan.

Wednesday saw most of the people arriving at Pocono Manor and enjoying themselves at a Welcome Reception. Thursday brought a car cruise to Grey Towers National Historic Site in Milford, along with lunch at Earhardt's on Lake Wallenpaupack; the tour and cruise was fun, educational, and enjoyed by all. We especially got a thrill from the PennDOT road crews who gave us a thumbs-up as they let all of our caravan through the work zone!

Thursday evening we enjoyed a delicious barbecue, and one table had a game of Texas-Hold-'Em going strong!

Friday was a free day, and people went horseback riding, antiquing, driving, visiting the quaint village of Jim Thorpe, and kayaking on the Delaware River. We ended the evening with dinner at Smuggler's Cove, a local seafood restaurant. It was declared a wonderful day by all!

Saturday the weather turned colder, and this was the morning of the short car show in front of Pocono Manor Sports; we were all glad when the show was over so we could head for lunch! But before we headed out to lunch, we took a group photo at the entrance to Pocono Manor Inn. We then regrouped and headed out to "Big Daddy's" for lunch; the hostess was shocked to find out we weren't kidding when we said there were 24 in our party!

Saturday evening was the Awards Banquet, where we all were saddened by the fact that this was all coming to an end way too soon. The winners in the MGA class were: 1st place, Liz Ten Eyck; 2nd place, Mike Finch; 3rd place. Barbara Andres. In "Other British" class, the awards were: 1st place, Nancy Ware, 2nd place, Ken Cooney and 3rd place Al Borders. Best of Show went to Liz Ten Eyck and she graciously gave back the award and asked that the next place MGA receive it; so that went to Micky Walka. Our Long Distance Award went to Mark and Cindy Michalak over 652 miles.

We also presented a Spirit Award to a member of our club, Russell Cramer, a resident of Pocono Manor who did all he could to make the event be a success from helping us negotiate a contract with the Inn, leading the cruise to Grey Towers, to actually taking a group kayaking on the Delaware.

Sunday morning saw us up early to try to say "good-bye" to all our friends and to wish them all a safe trip home.

FEEDBACK FROM THOSE WHO ATTENDED:

"Just wanted to send along our compliments about the fabulous weekend. Fred and I chatted throughout the weekend and all the way home what a wonderful time we had. The mountains were beautiful but it was the people who made it for us. Everyone was so friendly and fun. You did an outstanding job Bill & Carol thanks for getting us all together. Let's do it again next year."

"We had an awesome time this past weekend! We met terrific new people, had a few good drinks, lots of great food, and made tons of new and wonderful memories. It all ended way too soon! We only hope that we get a chance to see you all in the future. A million thanks to Bill and Carol for all the work they put in to making this an extra special weekend!"

"Wow! What a great event! Thank you so much for hosting this special event. Linda and I had a great time. From beginning to end everything was fantastic. The accommodations were a reflection of a grand past; the drive and the scenery were outstanding and historic; the food was commendable at every meal; and even the weather cooperated. The event also was a great opportunity to meet so many other car enthusiasts. Thank you for bringing us all together. Also, give Russ a big hug and a special 'Thank You' from us. He did so many nice things from behind the scenes to make the event special for all of us."

"We thank you so much for all of the hard work that you guys, Harry and Nancy and Russ did to make our visit such a great one! You know that you have had a good time when you still have a smile on your face going into work on Monday morning. We enjoyed meeting new friends and seeing old friends. Thanks again for giving us great memories of such a great Regional GT. Looking forward to seeing everybody again soon."

"We arrived home about 7pm last night, drove though rain, sun, fog, mist -- ha ha ha -- and no problems. and it was all worth it for the five days that we spent with you all. Thank you all, and a great big thanks to Bill and Carol for putting on a great program at a super resort. We meet so many nice people since we joined NAMGAR, all sharing the same goal -- driving these great cars that we have, and the big one, getting to events and then the bigger one: getting home again."

"Sharon and I also had an interesting trip home with all the varieties of weather. ... So, someone has already suggested we do this again next year. Sounds like a plan. We really enjoyed the countryside, the roads (I think I used up about 2,000 miles of brake pad, and cleaned any carbon out, zooming around the Poconos!) and the places we visited. But most important were the fun, joking around and interesting conversations we had with all of you. A fun and diverse group for sure. We'd like to repeat our thanks to all who helped out with this regional GT, particularly Bill and Carol Shamonsky and Harry and Nancy Ware. Let's not forget Russell Cramer as well. He was a fountain of information for us."