MINI COOPER REGISTER AUSTRALIA Inc
TOOWOOMBA RUN – SUNDAY APRIL 20, 2008
Look familiar – remind you of another Country to whose Club we belong?
Wrong – this was Sunny Brisbane on a recent Sunday morning as 9 of the Brisbane Group in 4 Minis and a Camry wended our way over a sodden and fog bound Mt Glorious, being chased by unseasonal Autumn storms and rain.
At least the temporary Australians pictured took it a little easier than they normally do, but the roads were slick and tricky and covered in slimy leaf mulch making it paradise for our quick cornering Minis, with even the new Cooper of Scott and Heather admirably keeping up.
Today’s run saw the Mini Cooper Register in Brisbane meeting up with our MCR members from Toowoomba, plus the very energetic team from the Mini Owners Club in Toowoomba, and it’s always a delight to be associated with Toowoomba as the run programmes are impeccable and the venues second to none, especially around the Toowoomba area which many from the Old Country and New Zealand find pleasantly at home. The plan today was to meet up at the picturesque country town of Esk in the lovely Esk Valley just over the mountains from Brisbane, have smoko and then proceed up the Range via Hampton and Lake Cressbrook and Crows Nest to our lunch venue at the Meringandan Hotel outside Toowoomba, of which we’d heard so much and were keen to experience its delights.
Sadly our way west was dogged by bad weather and a pit stop for us at the bottom of the first range, fetching up at Esk much to the consternation and cat calls of our 16 friends and magnificent cars waiting the extra hour at Esk. Following a briefing, John Fett led us off in Colleen’s lovely van up hill and down dale on some excellent roads to our photo shoot at Lake Cressbrook. You can track our route by going to our website and accessing the EVENTS page and clicking on the map.
(http://www.minicooper.org/australia/about.html)
Heather’s new Cooper was pretty full with 4 on board, as her lovely daughter Caroline and Uni friend Ashley from South Carolina were blasting Scott’s eardrums off with loud and vulgar modern music, so he derived a plan to spread the girls around other cars which happened to be mine, and the girls and I enjoyed some wonderful conversation and I’m sure they enjoyed their time in the red and white “brick”. Lake Cressbrook was a sad reminder of the terrible drought gripping this part of the world as we assembled for a photo opportunity before hitting the road again through the little town of Crows Nest and arriving at the Meringandan Pub to park our cars alongside those of the newly arrived Corvette Club.
The chow line was out the door so that’s a good sign that this venue was perfect for good country food at a great price.
We certainly weren’t disappointed in the size of the platters which were hidden by the various gastronomic delights being carried by busy waitresses through the milling throng of hungry guests.
Brian Hey was very busy selling raffle tickets in our final draw of the Esky cooler bag and accessories as all members caught up with their old friends from Toowoomba.
Good things have to come to an end as we said goodbye to our empty plates and assembled outside for the raffle, Club Captain’s and President’s address and a photo opportunity.
John Westaway, recently joined in our Club, and Club Captain of the Mini Owners Club Toowoomba Chapter welcomed all plus his new friends from the Mini Cooper Register. John Heselwood responded with a fine thank you to the Organisers of John and Colleen Fett and Bob and Pat Hooper of this fine run and lovely day, and then continued to address the assembled to allay any fears any members may have about possible conflicts between the Clubs, the reason the Mini Cooper Register was formed – to foster the Mini legend and enjoy our cars and each other’s company, and indicated sadly that the MOCQ was not the Club we all started many years ago as it had lost its focus on its members and their cars, and the MCR provided that original ethos alternative. He indicated most current members of the MCR are still members of the MOCQ and it was a delight to interact with our Toowoomba friends who have always been a very proactive part of the local Mini scene, and we hoped to have more joint runs with them, especially to the David Hack Day coming up on May 4 in Toowoomba.
That done, the raffle was drawn with Caroline’s friend Ashley drawing the first prize in favour of Scott Lascelles.
We all considered it was rigged and requested a redraw but the smiling desperado quickly hid behind partner Heather and wouldn’t release his goods.
The second prize of $5 was won by Peter Thompson from Toowoomba, so well done to all.
Once the photo shoot was complete, we all said our goodbyes – some to return to Brisbane via the exciting Murphy’s Creek road, others to Toowoomba, while a number of the Brisbane and Toowoomba people did an escorted drive around Toowoomba savouring its delightful scenery and beautiful homes, to arrive at Picnic Point with a look out seemingly to the end of the world, to eat a famous Weis bar ice confection and enjoy a warming cup of coffee in the superb weather under pristine skies.
Sadly time to go as we headed down the Range to arrive home after dark and a most wonderful day out thanks to our Toowoomba organisers. 360kms was covered from Brisbane and our Minis couldn’t have run or sounded better if we tried. A quick wash up after the early rain will see our little charges back in concourse condition and ready for the next run.
Please consult the website for updates.
Bob Ward
Today’s run saw the Mini Cooper Register in Brisbane meeting up with our MCR members from Toowoomba, plus the very energetic team from the Mini Owners Club in Toowoomba, and it’s always a delight to be associated with Toowoomba as the run programmes are impeccable and the venues second to none, especially around the Toowoomba area which many from the Old Country and New Zealand find pleasantly at home. The plan today was to meet up at the picturesque country town of Esk in the lovely Esk Valley just over the mountains from Brisbane, have smoko and then proceed up the Range via Hampton and Lake Cressbrook and Crows Nest to our lunch venue at the Meringandan Hotel outside Toowoomba, of which we’d heard so much and were keen to experience its delights.
Sadly our way west was dogged by bad weather and a pit stop for us at the bottom of the first range, fetching up at Esk much to the consternation and cat calls of our 16 friends and magnificent cars waiting the extra hour at Esk. Following a briefing, John Fett led us off in Colleen’s lovely van up hill and down dale on some excellent roads to our photo shoot at Lake Cressbrook. You can track our route by going to our website and accessing the EVENTS page and clicking on the map. (http://www.minicooper.org/australia/about.html)
Heather’s new Cooper was pretty full with 4 on board, as her lovely daughter Caroline and Uni friend Ashley from South Carolina were blasting Scott’s eardrums off with loud and vulgar modern music, so he derived a plan to spread the girls around other cars which happened to be mine, and the girls and I enjoyed some wonderful conversation and I’m sure they enjoyed their time in the red and white “brick”. Lake Cressbrook was a sad reminder of the terrible drought gripping this part of the world as we assembled for a photo opportunity before hitting the road again through the little town of Crows Nest and arriving at the Meringandan Pub to park our cars alongside those of the newly arrived Corvette Club.
The chow line was out the door so that’s a good sign that this venue was perfect for good country food at a great price.
We certainly weren’t disappointed in the size of the platters which were hidden by the various gastronomic delights being carried by busy waitresses through the milling throng of hungry guests.Brian Hey was very busy selling raffle tickets in our final draw of the Esky cooler bag and accessories as all members caught up with their old friends from Toowoomba.
Good things have to come to an end as we said goodbye to our empty plates and assembled outside for the raffle, Club Captain’s and President’s address and a photo opportunity.
John Westaway, recently joined in our Club, and Club Captain of the Mini Owners Club Toowoomba Chapter welcomed all plus his new friends from the Mini Cooper Register. John Heselwood responded with a fine thank you to the Organisers of John and Colleen Fett and Bob and Pat Hooper of this fine run and lovely day, and then continued to address the assembled to allay any fears any members may have about possible conflicts between the Clubs, the reason the Mini Cooper Register was formed – to foster the Mini legend and enjoy our cars and each other’s company, and indicated sadly that the MOCQ was not the Club we all started many years ago as it had lost its focus on its members and their cars, and the MCR provided that original ethos alternative. He indicated most current members of the MCR are still members of the MOCQ and it was a delight to interact with our Toowoomba friends who have always been a very proactive part of the local Mini scene, and we hoped to have more joint runs with them, especially to the David Hack Day coming up on May 4 in Toowoomba.
That done, the raffle was drawn with Caroline’s friend Ashley drawing the first prize in favour of Scott Lascelles. We all considered it was rigged and requested a redraw but the smiling desperado quickly hid behind partner Heather and wouldn’t release his goods.
The second prize of $5 was won by Peter Thompson from Toowoomba, so well done to all.
Once the photo shoot was complete, we all said our goodbyes – some to return to Brisbane via the exciting Murphy’s Creek road, others to Toowoomba, while a number of the Brisbane and Toowoomba people did an escorted drive around Toowoomba savouring its delightful scenery and beautiful homes, to arrive at Picnic Point with a look out seemingly to the end of the world, to eat a famous Weis bar ice confection and enjoy a warming cup of coffee in the superb weather under pristine skies.
Sadly time to go as we headed down the Range to arrive home after dark and a most wonderful day out thanks to our Toowoomba organisers. 360kms was covered from Brisbane and our Minis couldn’t have run or sounded better if we tried. A quick wash up after the early rain will see our little charges back in concourse condition and ready for the next run.
Please consult the website for updates.
Bob Ward
