Here we go for another year. If the way that 2001 has started is any indication it is going to be a bigger year than the last. I was again voted in as your President at the AGM, so I guess that I must have done some things right. There were no other contenders for the position. Welcome to Megan Gould, our new club Secretary and first female on the executive. Our Club Captain, Tony Formosa elected not to stand again as he wants to take a few steps back and hand over to someone else. I thank Tony for all the past work he did which made my job that much easier. Tony will stay on as a general committee member and still chair the Australian Mini 40 committee. The new committee has a lot of new faces and I look forward to working with them. I thank those who chose not to stand this year for their efforts in the past, no matter how big or small that may have been.
Our club had great exposure at the recent Brisbane Motor Show. We had a large display with 4 Minis including an original Morris 850 and one of the last Rover Coopers to come off the production line last year. Thanks to all who helped in the setup and the manning of the stand. I am sure that we will get a lot of new members as a result. Thanks also to BMW Australia for supplying the Rover Cooper.
While on the subject of motor shows, three of the NEW MINIS will be on show at the Melbourne Motor Show starting on the 1st March. One will also be on display at the Australian Grand Prix. It is a pity that BMW did not see fit to have one up here for the Brisbane Show (there was one in Sydney at the time for a photo shoot). There are a lot a Mini owners in Queensland who would have liked to have had a look at one in the flesh before making up their mind if they would even think about buying one.
Just when you thought club runs could not get much better, over 40 cars turned up for the February 17 (Election Day) Saturday afternoon run along the southern bayside to Mt. Cotton. The fact we were having a driver training day & night at the driver training centre might have had something to do with it. When we arrived at Mt Cotton we had 50 cars, yes 50! What a night it was and I am sure that it will become an annual event and possibly even a twice annual event with another planned for later in the year.
The Australian Mini 40 Committee, headed by Tony Formosa, has been hard at work and the event is shaping up to be BIG BIG BIG! We are still looking for a major sponsor for the event as well as many minor sponsors, so if you know someone who you think might be interested, no matter how small, give me or Tony a call.
The next meeting on the 13th March will be our second birthday. This will be held at Mt Gravatt, our normal venue, not Wests Leagues Club as advertised. We are hoping to have a special guest speaker, but so far are having no luck as they all seem to have another engagement on that night.
February 2001