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There
were twelve members from the California Roadsters
that attended this years gala Deuce Days in Victoria BC. Steve Schmidt
and his wife Danielle, Max Jamisson and Sue, Jerry and Judy Kugel, Dr.
Mark Van Buskirk and his brother, Phil Whetstone and his pal Keith,
and Patti and me, who made the trip from the Los Angeles area to
Canada. Some 1400 miles in hot rods and it quite the adventure.
We
gathered the first night in Redding and spent the night revving
engines and squealing tires till all hours….some not all.
Some launched in the early dawn in an attempt to avoid the traffic
jam that is the Portland rush hour. Others left later and suffered
the heat of the day. All arrived safely and we had another
gathering at the bar and told lies and made up stories.
We left
early am on Thursday so as to make the ferry schedule at Port Los
Angeles. Not much time for sightseeing, but the scenery
at the landing was a sight to behold. Roadsters, Coupes, Tudors,
Fordors, all 32 mixed with a bonch of other non 32 hot rods that
were allowed this year.
Once loaded,
we sailed for about an hour an a half for the quaint little
island town of Victoria, B.C. Dr. Mark left the key on in my
sedan and the battery ran down because the fan runs constantly. Well
it wouldn’t start and we had to get the ship steward to get a jumper
box. We finally got going but were the last off the boat. Upon
disembarkation we showed our pass ports then drove across the street
to the hotel. Beautiful place right next to the Government building
with a dome 400 feet high that greeted us when Patti and I looked out
of our window. After a couple of cocktails an a nice dinner we hit
the sack to remove the road weeryness.
Saturday
was spent cruising the local territory or taking in some of the
many sights. Patti and I chose Bouchard Gardens …others
chose the Air Museum, or just kicked back and commiserated with
friends. The Gardens, I’m here to report, are stunning. I appears
that every one in town has a green thumb…there were flowers
everywhere. Most impressive. We spent several hours wandering
from garden to garden with Max and Sue and Jerry and Judy. We were
overwhelmed. It is breathtaking sight.
Bright and
early Sunday morning, Dr Mark and Mike got up at Zero dark thirty and
got a prime parking spot on the corner of the main
intersection. We got up later and parked 100 yards away in front of
the Empress Hotel. After getting our fill of parked hot rods
and talking to curious spectators Patti and I went to “High Tea” at
the Empress…everyone should do it at least ounce…but once is clearly
enough.
Phill's Ford Roadster was one of featured 32s having won the
Participants Choice award along with a friend of the
California Roadsters, Denny Sissel's
Roadster. They were placed on the lawn in from of the
Government building along with Jerry Kugel's 32 Roadster. They
tell me that is the highest honor from this organization and it
certainly showed well. All in all, the California Roadsters
were well represented and nobody did anything to damage our
reputation.
The show
is clearly one of the finest displays of hot rods particularly 32
roadsters that I have ever seen, and We, Dr Mark and I,
are planning on doing it again 3 years from now. After striking
the set so to speak, we all went out to eat at a fabulous Italian
restaurant that Steve chose and we had our fill. With bellies
full and tired dogs from walking all day looking at cars, we
retired to our respective rooms.
Monday
we drove 2 hours to catch the Ferry back to Vancouver and head
south for the trip home. The return home was uneventful,
I’m told, except for Max and Sue. They ran over one of the many
truck treads laying in the middle of the road and ripped out the
oil drain plug. The loss of oil had it appropriate effect and
seized the engine. Max shrugged it off saying: "I’ll bring it
down to Doug and he’ll put a new engine in it."
Other
than that unpleasantness, a great time was had by all….and most
are looking forward to doing it again.
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