For our inaugural 2016 road trip, we made a return visit to Niffer’s on Lake Martin. On January 16, we met at the Burlington Coat Factory and were motoring at 10:00am. We had an impressive crowd of BMC members and visitors on hand ready for some good roads with plenty of twisting curves and elevation changes around Martin Dam — some of the best motoring in this area. [Route MAP]
We began our trip with a Jaguar XK8, 3 – MGB s, a MGA , 3- MINI Coopers , a Honda 750, and a Thunderbird . Along the way we were joined by a Porsche Carrera Cabrio Turbo, another MINI Cooper, and a “domestic” (subbing for an ailing Jaguar). Our caravan fell prey to the inevitable traffic light disruptions on US 231, but once we hit Redland Road, we had smooth sailing for the duration of our trip. As we entered Niffer’s parking lot we were met by another Jaguar plus a couple more domestics.
We had invited the River Region MINIs as well as our Brits in the Valley friends and Fountain City MINIs in Columbus to join us there. Friends of friends got wind of our trip. The Columbus Sports Car Club joined the Columbus MINIs on their nearly 2-hour trip. Among this group were: 3 – MINI Coopers, 3 – Porsche 997s, a Viper, a Scion Fr S, and a Lotus Evora 400.
We all arrived at Niffer’s within a few minutes of each other filling the car park and restaurant with motoring enthusiasts. The wait staff at Niffer’s wasn’t fazed by the near full-house crowd, including several who opted to eat on the patio while enjoying perfect January weather.
As we adjourned to the parking lot following lunch to admire the cars, we were approached by Alex Harwick, a coincidental visitor from Tallassee who has an extensive collection of classic British and other cars of interest, as well as a Russian Yak and other planes in a hangar. Sound familiar? Yes, he knows Scott Patterson. They were in flight school together! Mr. Harwick invited us to visit his collection. We’re working to find a mutually convenient date in the spring.
Great weather, great crowd, great cars, great roads AND an invitation to a car and plane collection. It doesn’t get much better than this.
Russell
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