TATTON PARK SHOW - SATURDAY and SUNDAY 16th and 17th AUGUST 2003
The Vintage Classic and Sports Car Show, Tatton Park, Cheshire, was the second of
the year, and members of the North West region hosted the club pitch.
The Tatton Park show is the biggest event in the North West, with over 90 clubs
represented.
The cars ranged from the Ford Model ‘T’ to the new Jaguar XJR!
A meeting point of the B&Q cark park in Warrington was arranged. Linda McLean,
Pete and Vicki Chadwick and John Redmond met up for a convoy to the Swan pub car
park about a mile away from the show ground; here the convoy grew to include
Gary Brown and Wayne Duncan. On arrival at the club pitch the sight of a grass
version of a lunar landscape greeted us! (Petrol Mower now on most wanted list)
The gazebos and club banner were then erected and cars parked, with Lauren Blighton
and ‘Froggy’ joining later in the morning.
Saturday mornings view
The organizers announced there would be a MR2 Mk1 category prize awarded, so polish
and cloths appeared as if by magic, and elbow grease was well used for the next
hour or so!
Gary, hard at the polishing!
It was good to see a lot of interest in the
cars on the pitch, and lots club application cards were handed out. Wayne Duncan
was proud to be showing his newly acquired Helios Blue Coupe, a ‘G’ reg
model with only 35000 miles on the clock!
Wayne’s new acquisition
John Redmond returned from a wander around the show to find a blue card under the
wiper blade, reading, “you have won a prize”! The prize being “Best MR2
Mk1” John had only finished putting his car back together at 10pm Friday
night, after a embarrassing incident with sloped driveway and a neighbours house
(ouch!), he has now promised to do a article for the magazine, and hopes there
is a supply of red ink to match the colour of his face!
John’s prize winner
After the public left, the campers lit the barbeques, a disco was laid on, and groups
of campfires illuminated the night sky, sounds of beer being drunk, and
Froggy’s pink coupe being polished back to Super Red! (He’d tried
‘everything’ except for four eager pairs of hands and some paint renovator!)
Sunday morning arrived overcast but warm, but this soon turned into a beautiful sunny
day, with a reported traffic jam of vintage and classic cars trying to enter the
show ground, an eagle eye was kept for club members and their MR2’s, we
didn’t have to wait long! First arrival was Graham Crook in his Black T bar,
then the trickle became a flood, Ged Armour, Jim Ledden, Mike Fahy, Chris
Johnson in his S/C, Fred and Doris, Richard Morgan among the attendees, we even
had new members joining on the day!
Sunday morning, still more to come!
A walk around the show always brings, eye popping beautiful cars, the hand
reaching for cash at the massive auto jumble, seeing a car type you used to run
twenty years ago, or just getting ideas on preparation. Highlights were a 50’s
baby blue and white Corvette, lines of gleaming Rolls Royce’s and E-types, or
looking at a Jaguar V12 engine, which the owner had polished with a toothbrush!
Toothbrush polished V12!
Gary Brown returned from one such walk to find the little blue ticket under the
wiper, the second of the weekend for the MR2 MK1 club, a great feeling for
everybody on the pitch!
John Redmond and Gary Brown, the weekend’s winners!
After the public had started to leave the show area, we settled back to pack tents and
gazebos away, and reflect on the weekend. Two “best in show” for our
members, lots of interest, and new members joining. All in all a successful event!
John Redmond
15 cars on Sunday
