The weather forecast looked promising so I was confident of a good turn out for the meeting. All together 10 MR2's turned up with Andy Green in his Mercedes A class, his MR2 still under repair, Alan Jones in his Corsa, Supercharger still bent!! and Keith Smith in his works car, his MR2 without a radiator, but he did manage to source one from my parts collection. Oh, and let's not forget Andrew Hudson in Claires Mazda MX5!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was contacted earlier by a local guy called Adam Bell who was looking to spend around 3.5K on a MK1, his dream car. I suggested he came along to the meeting to discuss buying an MR2 and to meet some of the members who owned them for advice and guidance. At the same time member Michael Clemitson was looking to sell his immaculate coupe reluctantly due to the announcement of a baby in the near future. The two got together at the meeting and a deal was instantly done. Therefore I'd like to welcome Adam to the club.

It was great to see a couple of new faces at the meeting and different cars, more of this next time when all will be revealed. John and Claire Moore brought their new baby along who was presented with a nifty suit with a great MK1 cartoon picture on the front and back, superbly made by Mike Johnson.

Next meeting on Sunday April 6th will be a visit to the rolling road tuning centre at Well lane in Leeds, contact me for information on this. This event will replace the trip to Diggerland which has been re-scheduled for later in the year.

We had 10 cars but 18 people turned up.

Adam with his new purchase

Dave Moores new purchase, now all 3 brothers have white MK1's

I love the colour of this new members car, not mica blue but a metallic bluey/grey, very nice

Recently purchased for £850 by our new member

Overall a great meeting, see you next month.

29th January 2003

We will now have a whole page each magazine dedicated to bringing you information on what is happening in the north east region of the club.

As always we meet on the first Sunday of each month at the Church Mouse Innkeepers Lodge on the A167 between Chester-le-Street and Durham from 11.30am. We would love you to come along and meet like minded enthusiastic members who like nothing better than discussing and tinkering in the world of the MR2 MK1. We are a very friendly, grass roots bunch and are keen on welcoming new members to the club, so come along and see what's happening in your club. It's worth noting that some monthly meetings are replaced by club runs around the region, especially during the summer months, so please contact me before attending a meeting to avoid any disappointment. We look forward to welcoming you to the club in the north east.

Last year saw the birth of the region in February 2002 with our first monthly pub meeting which set a precedent for other regions to follow. This trend has proved very successful throughout the UK and today we now see new regions developed in Wales, the South East, and the North West. Another first for the club was the regional Christmas party which we held at the fantastic Lumley Castle in December 2002. We had a superb night and have already booked a number of rooms at the Eden Arms Hotel at Rushyford near Durham for our 2003 Christmas bash, which will be held on the night of Saturday 13th December. If you would like to come then contact me to discuss the arrangements, I know its early but the sooner we have confirmed numbers the easier it will be for me to organise things, which will mean a better deal for our members.

Lets talk about events. Last year we held 11 regional club events which included our first classic car meeting at Bents Park in June 2002. Today we now see the MK1 recognised as a true classic sports car, most of us already knew this of course, however it's now official following the MK1's inclusion in the 2002 London to Brighton rally. I feel for this year it will be important for us to get recognised more around the region and around the classic car rally scene. To help us with this I have appointed club member Andrew Hudson as Classic Car Rally Events Manager. Andrew has always had a good attendance at meetings and always promotes the club at every opportunity. Already Andrew has 4 classic car events in the pipeline, so watch this space. Here is a list of the provisional planned events for 2003, give me a ring to discuss them in more detail, alternatively check the north east newspage here on the club website for regular updates.

February - Cobweb Run 2003 to Keilder Forest

March - Pub meeting at the Church Mouse / Track day

April - Rolling road tuning centre at Well lane in Leeds. Visit to Diggerland at Langley Park ( JCB racing )!!!! Rescheduled for later in the year

May 4th Sunday - Ripon Classic Rally

May 25th-26th - Fins 'N' Chrome Show in Preston Park Stockton

June - Le Mans 2003 national event

June 28th-29th - Fire Engine and Historic Vehicle Rally, Preston Hall Museum, Stockton on tees at Yarm.

July - Billing 2003 national event / 2003 North Of England Motorshow

August - Classic Event / Visit to The Cars Of The Stars Museum

September - Track Day

October - Pub meeting

November - Winter Run / to be announced

December - Pub meeting / regional Christmas party at Eden Arms Hotel

As well as these events we would like to get the track car project back running, so anyone who can help us with performance parts, tyres, brakes etc. please get in touch. Our first outing in the track car was a major success, again another first for the club, we now have other regions desperate to follow in the fun, thrills and excitement of the track car experience. We plan to squeeze as many track day opportunities in as possible this year so watch out.

Other events we would like to attend this year are meetings at our local race circuit Croft. They have not published their 2003 events calendar as yet, but its likely we will attend the British F-3 Championship around May and the British Touring Car Championship usually around July/August with a British Rallycross event towards the end of the year.

I really would like our region to support a couple of national events this year. These events give us the opportunity to travel around the UK and meet other members from different regions around the country. Le Mans 2003 is really going to be a bit special. This will now be my third visit to the fantastic French circuit which we in the club treat as a holiday. Camping in the beautiful Chateau de Chanteloup, enjoy a couple of days relaxing in the glorious Loire countryside before sampling the greatest spectacle in motorsport, Le 24 Heures Du Mans, fantastic. Let me know ASAP if you would like to book this event.

The clubs national rally/event is always held in late July at Billing Aquadrome in Northampton during JAE weekend ( Japanese Auto Extravaganza ). Last year we broke the record for most cars at an event which now stands at 54, this year the club is going for 100 cars and they will need the help of north east members, so come on lets give them our support at the clubs biggest national rally.

As you can see there is a lot planned for the region this year. To make it a success and worthwhile I really do need your local support, remember its your club so get the most out of it. You are very lucky that you have one of the most successful and active MR2 MK1 regions in the world, and its right on your doorstep, so what you waiting for, get it out and play!!!

Michael Sheavills 01207 231601 07814347042