Past Editions:
Apr/May '06
Mar/Apr '06
Feb/Mar '06
Jan/Feb '06
Monthly Newsletter Of
MINI-SOTA MINIS, PIZZA EATING, AND PSYCHIATRIC SELF -HELP ASSN
Volume VII, Number IV December 2005/January 2006
Happy Holidays All......
2005 was another fine year for MMPEAPSHA. We had a whole bunch of fun events, signed up a whole bunch of new members, and committed ourselves (along with 'SotaMINIs) to hosting the 50th Anniversary MiniMeet East Meets West, 2009. And, right now, we're busy planning another year of fun Mini/MINI meetings and events.
In This Issue.....an amusing story by Geff Galbari on The "Italian Job" Of The Midwest; details on our upcoming January meeting; more of our Winter Schedule, plus the usual this & that and fluff & fill......and many thanks to Miguel Plano for neat Mini Cartoon in our header.
Our Last Meeting.....Due to the Holidays, there was no December meeting.
Our Next Meeting.....will be our MMPEAPSHA Championship GoKart Races on Saturday, January 21st, '06 from 11AM until ???? at ProKart at 11700 Troy Lane in Maple Grove, MN. We'll be getting a special rate, and you can bring your own helmet or ProKart will supply one. Last year we had a whole bunch of members and their families show up for some exciting Kart racing to beat the Winter Blues. See: http://www.prokartindoor.com/mapletrack.htm for directions and a map to the track. Bring the whole family and have a ball!!!
As Usual......our next issue will be coming out at the beginning of February (more or less), so, if you have anything you'd like to contribute to the newsletter...articles, news items, technical tips, helpful hints, Mini jokes, pix of your Mini, items for the "For Sale & Wanted" pages....send them to Jim Baumann at: cbaumann@lkdllink.net or call me at 1-320-963-5681. Deadline for the next issue is the end of January (more or less).
UPCOMING EVENTS
Dates in RED are MMPEAPSHA Club Events
Dates in BLUE are other local events (and we're invited)
Dates in GREEN are other events of Mini/MINI interest
January, 21st (Sat.), '06, 11AM-????.......GoKart Racing at ProKart (see Our Next Meeting)
January ???, '06.....MMEW '09 Planning Meeting & Breakfast at The Square Peg Diner.
February 11th (Sat.), '06, 8:30AM - ????.....Valentine's Day Breakfast.....Bring Your Sweetie To The Meeting at The Square Peg Diner. More details later.
March and the rest of 2006....Lots of fun Meetings and Events in the planning stages......
See you all at the sleigh.....errrr.......GoKart Races!
The "Italian Job" Of The Midwest
By Geff Galbari
Any Mini aficionado knows about one of the "Italian Job" films, either the original romp or the modern version. But I was part of another Italian Job before I knew anything about Minis.
I grew up in a small town in Wisconsin in the 1960s. We lived in a typical ranch house on a dead end street in a new sub-division on the outskirts of town. Like all the neighbors around us, we had the prerequisite family station wagon parked in the gravel drive way.
My father worked two jobs, days at a cheese factory, and evenings at the airport. One spring afternoon he surprised us all by pulling up the drive on a motor scooter. This was no ordinary scooter though, this was an Innocenti Li 125 Lambretta from Milan, Italy. Where he got it from I have no clue. Like most countries, Italy was in a state of depression after WWII. Companies had to switch from war production to a more peaceful endeavor. With a talented engineering staff on hand and a flair for design, an affordable scooter was just the product to get the company and the country back on its feet. So Innocenti, and the more well known Vespa, scooters arose from the ashes of war.
For a country that was eager to move forward, and a young population who wanted to be mobile, the scooters were just the thing. Later Innocenti would build cars under license from BMC, hence the Mini connection. Unlike America with our big cities, Europe was made up of small towns with narrow cobbled streets, these new scooters were perfect. Their fuel economy, and an aggressive ad campaign featuring modern girls in skimpy outfits using their scooters for everything from the beach outings to a night at the opera, assured their success. Don't compare these Italian scooters with their chunky American counterparts, they had more curves than an Italian actress and were designed more like small cars than bikes.
My father worked two jobs, days at a cheese factory, and evenings at the airport. One spring afternoon he surprised us all by pulling up the drive on a motor scooter. This was no ordinary scooter though, this was an Innocenti Li 125 Lambretta from Milan, Italy. Where he got it from I have no clue. Like most countries, Italy was in a state of depression after WWII. Companies had to switch from war production to a more peaceful endeavor. With a talented engineering staff on hand and a flair for design, an affordable scooter was just the product to get the company and the country back on its feet. So Innocenti, and the more well known Vespa, scooters arose from the ashes of war.
For a country that was eager to move forward, and a young population who wanted to be mobile, the scooters were just the thing. Later Innocenti would build cars under license from BMC, hence the Mini connection. Unlike America with our big cities, Europe was made up of small towns with narrow cobbled streets, these new scooters were perfect. Their fuel economy, and an aggressive ad campaign featuring modern girls in skimpy outfits using their scooters for everything from the beach outings to a night at the opera, assured their success. Don't compare these Italian scooters with their chunky American counterparts, they had more curves than an Italian actress and were designed more like small cars than bikes.
Ours was white with dove grey side cowls, complete with glove compartment and spare tire. It was a step thru design with running boards and the brake pedal coming up thru the floor boards, the powerful 5.2 hp 2 cycle engine was neatly hidden under the side cowls. The only thing that marred its good looks on ours was an aftermarket windshield with vinyl skirt and saddle bags on the flanks. My father took great pride in touring around town on his Lambretta, and how does a busy man find time to give his 4 boys rides? He multi-tasked Galbari style. He took 3 of us out at a time, my youngest brother on the back of his seat, me on the passengers seat and an older brother on the spare tire. In this configuration he would take us on thrill rides to a nearby gravel pit and jaunts into town. I can only imagine what people must have thought of us.... possibly that the circus had come to town.
About this time mini bikes were beginning to get popular and after perusing the Sears, Penny's and Montgomery Wards catalogs, we all wanted one. My father let us know there was no way, besides we had the scooter. An unwritten rule in our house was if you could start it, you could ride it. We didn't weigh enough to kick start it, it took two of us to get it off its kick stand, and then the beast threatened to crush us. Not being able to go solo, we eventually lost interest in our scooter for a few years. Then in the early 1970s, we watched the movie "The Great Escape" when it played on the late show on TV. Every kid in america wanted to ape Steve McQueen's antics on a motor cycle as he jumped fences, trying to escape from the Germans, after escaping from a POW camp. All winter my younger brother and I would sit on the Lambretta in the garage and practice braking and shifting it. By spring we were ready to actually ride it. By this time the kick starter had broken off and it had to be "bump" started by running along side and popping it into gear. After a few wobbly starts we were soon circling the house and tearing up the lawn. But, try as we might, we just couldn't get the scooter to jump as Steve McQueen had done. We would just clear the ground as witnessed by the neighbor kids with their eyes at road level. The only part of the movie we could re-create was when Steve Mc Queen stopped and rocked the bike from side to side to check the fuel level. With no fuel gauge on the scooter this was a normal operation. Lucky for the scooter we were old enough to realize that the Lambretta was not an off road bike, and never would be. After an afternoon cleaning and waxing it, we saw the real beauty of the design and retired it form field service.
From now on it was the open road for us. We would spend many a summer day on the Lambretta scouting out the back roads near our home. One day as we were out cruising, throttle full open, with the speedo needle just tickling 45mph, I caught a glimpse of a large motorcycle closing on us in the rear view mirror. A fully dressed Harley Davidson with a mature couple on board pulled up along side of us . We nodded at them and they waved back, they were all smiles and trying to hold back their laughter. What a sight we must have made, two kids hunched forward on this Italian scooter going flat out with its 2 cycle engine screaming like a banshee. We rode side by side for a short while and then with a wave they zoomed past us , leaving us in the rumble of their exhaust. My last outing on the Lambretta was that fall. I was off to college, my brother would get into motorcycles, and the Lambretta would be sold.
4 boys had done their worst to that little Italian job, and in the end it had the scars of a hard life, but it was still a work of art on wheels. Thank you Ferdinando Innocenti.
WANTED & FOR SALE
Please Note! The Wanted & For Sale pages have been getting a bit too long as a result of old ads. Our new policy will be to list "For Sale" items three months. Ads will run for three months, and will then have to be renewed or will be deleted....to renew your ad or list new ones, you can contact me at: cbaumann@lkdllink.net or call me at 1-320-963-5681. The Service Offered ads will be continued indefinitely.
Mini For Sale.....Great winter car!
WANTED: Hosts for MMPEAPSHA meetings. If you'd like to volunteer your home or place of business to host a club meeting, contact Karl Jenstad at: jenstad@pro-ns.net or call: (612) 869-7611.
WANTED: Any Mini, decent condition, preferably running, if not all parts to make it do so, low cost (<3000), basically I am getting sick of looking at them and would love to have one of my own. Please call Nick Brogren at (651) 407-9579.
WANTED: Minis wanted, prefer '59 - '67, but will consider all models. I'm looking for pristine, or daily drivers, or even project Minis. We also accept Consignments, and the Mini can even stay with you until we bring you a buyer! Please call for details. We invite you to visit our web site at: www.miniguy.com or visit our Ventura, California showroom. References gladly provided. Michael "MiniGuy" Lewis (805) 641-1970 or miniguy@miniguy.com
WANTED: I need some headlamp bulbs, the early MK1 type bayonett style with the slotted flange at the base and the glass tube that looks like a pear.These are the old Lucas lamps.Any help would be appreciated. Thanks again Mark A.Illinski (715)342-0361 or e-mail me at: cindylou1@charter.net
SERVICE OFFERED - Dependable Car Maintenance - Tire Rack dealer, Amsoil sales, nut’s ‘N bolts, and repair items, automotive tools & equipment. I have a shop at my home in Ham Lake, MN where I sell tires from the Tire Rack at discount and mount them. I have a computer balancer, and a rim clamp tire machine. I can mount tires from 10" up to 17" and 9.5" wide. Dwight McCullough, 763-754-7111 or dcm@mnautox.com
SERVICE OFFERED - Winter Car Storage....Greg Wold has now opened a car storage business in Maple Grove, MN. The new building has heated car storage complete with security system and sprinkler protection. Store your car with confidence that it will be safe and secure AND will stay warm and dry all winter long. $59/mo for Club members. This site is between I-94 and Hwy. 169 just north of I-494. Sign up now while there is still room! Fourth Stall Car Storage. Greg Wold 763-420-4503 or 612-801-7256
SERVICE OFFERED - Winter Car Storage....Greg Wold has now opened a car storage business in Maple Grove, MN. The new building has heated car storage complete with security system and sprinkler protection. Store your car with confidence that it will be safe and secure AND will stay warm and dry all winter long. $59/mo for Club members. This site is between I-94 and Hwy. 169 just north of I-494. Sign up now while there is still room! Fourth Stall Car Storage. Greg Wold 763-420-4503 or 612-801-7256
SERVICE OFFERED - Good Food! Member Phil Vanner owns The Square Peg Diner "Where The Mini Elite Meet To Eat!" and the home of the BBC Saturday Breakfasts. The diner is located at 2021 Hennepin Ave., E, in Mini-apolis and is open Monday thru Friday from 6am to 3pm and on Saturdays from 8am to 1pm. Check out the website at: www.squarepegdiner.com
SERVICE OFFERED - Member Michael Lewis is a Mini dealer. Minis of all types, including genuine "Cooper S" models, "Cooper replicas", woodie wagons, panel vans, Riley Elfs, Mini Mokes, and even project or race Minis. Call about our specialty, the Minis we've sent "sight unseen" to their new homes in dozens of states across the nation. Ask about our Satisfaction Guarantee, and we gladly provide references in your area. We also handle the shipping to the port nearest you, and can arrange for Customs clearance and overland transport, if desired. Please visit our web site at: www.miniguy.com Call for more details, or just to say hello. We always enjoy talkin' Minis! Michael "MiniGuy" Lewis (805) 641-1970 or miniguy@miniguy.com
SERVICE OFFERED - Mini Towing & Transport. New Members John & Mary Cooley own Classic Transport Services. They specialize in transporting Classic Cars in the Twin Cities Area. John has a 2003 Ford 6500 Flatbed. If you need your Mini or MINI moved, contact him at: 1-651-777-0193, or by Email at: cooley777@aol.com . Check out his website: www.prostreetnova.com
SERVICE OFFERED - Auto body work and painting. John Durant owns Spraywerks body & paint shop specializing in Minis! From dings & dents to total body restoration. Panels welded, rust repair, everything a Mini needs. Reasonable rates, free estimates, free pickup and delivery of project cars within 50 miles. Contact him at 1-763-360-3527 or email: spraywerks@hotmail.com
SERVICE OFFERED - Minis and Mini parts: Now, you have a choice. Always the right part at the right price! Free 108 page catalog and MMPEAPSHA club special - free UPS on members orders. Call Harvey or Ernie at 707-570-0511, or miniman@sonic.net and visit our website at www.minimotors.com
SERVICE OFFERED - Mini Parts: Members Graham & Susan Reid own the Heritage Garage. Mini parts at very competitive prices. Friendly, knowledgeable staff with many years of mini experience. Contact them at 949-646-6404 to get on their mailing list for specials or visit the web at www.HeritageGarage.com
SERVICE OFFERED - Auto Accessories: Member Jim Huston owns the
Auto Toy Store and
Motorsport Seats..Discount Quality Motorsport Accessories. He has a full line of after market seats....Recaro, Corbeau, Cobra, Sparco, ProCar, and so on . He also has a full line of street or race harnesses. You need it, he's got it! Call for liberal discounts. Visit his website at: http://autotoystore.com/ and http://motorsportseats.com/
SERVICE OFFERED - Mini Dealer: Member Bill Cox is a Bonded and Licensed North Carolina dealer, Licensed Manufacturer, and Bonded U.S. Customs Importer. See his website at: http://www.montecarlomini.net/
SERVICE OFFERED - Website Design: Member Jen Mueke is a freelance website designer, so if you need any website work done, contact her at: rhen@roadkill.de or at: 1-612-414-5205
SERVICE OFFERED - British Car Repair: BMC Restoration and Repair..... servicing British built vehicles from a minor tune up to full restoration. Correctly restored or built to your requirements. Pick up and delivery service of vehicle or parts on request. Talk to me about your specific needs. Brian Mc Cullough Call (651) 462-0145 or mailto:brian@bmcautos.com See my website at: http://www.bmcautos.com
SERVICE OFFERED - British Car Restoration: Honorary Member Dave Wintz owns a full restoration facility specializing in classic British Cars. Contact Dave Wintz at New Life To Classics, 1101 N. Riverfront Drive, Mankato, MN. Phone (507) 387-2277.
FOR RENT: Pole Barn ...... 30X64, located approximately 35 miles So of Burnsville. Lockable with one service door and (2) 11 ft high sliding doors. Building has dirt floor and was probably used for machinery $200 / month with lease. Contact Jerry Harvieux at 952-440-3567 or email: jharvieux@aol.com.
FOR SALE: Winter tires for a MINI. Complete set of Bridgestone Blizzaks mounted on steel wheels from The Tire Rack. They have approximately 6600 miles on them. I am moving to Virginia and will no longer be needing them. The tire/wheel set was $536 new. I'll sell it for $250. Contact Gary Maher at gmaher@mn.rr.com or phone 952-943-1755
FOR SALE: 1969 MGB GT. Great winter project or driving restoration. The brakes have been gone through and it has new front springs. Many, many new parts ready to use including a new hood, passenger floor, badges, door cards, and boxes of other new stuff. Has almost new tires and Minilite-style alloy wheels. I still have wires too. Workshop manual and other books too. Will trade for Mini of similar value or sell outright. Andy Lewis alewis@mailbag.com or 608-233-9470.
FOR SALE: 1972 Mini Van, 1,000cc engine, completely restored. $7,500. For pictures & further info see www.bklillibridge.com or call 1-218-753-5070
FOR SALE: - I have two beautiful minis for sale ,they will never rust , they are factory fiberglass ,they came from CHILE and they ready to go for the mini meet at Rockford IL in June. My phone # is 515-570-3888 or 515-955-2425 call any time. I will send pictures and information to anybody that is interested in them. Francisco Visedo visedo@dodgenet.com
FOR SALE: 1972 Mini Van, 1,000cc engine, completely restored. $7,500. For pictures & further info see www.bklillibridge.com or call 1-218-753-5070
FOR SALE: - I have two beautiful minis for sale ,they will never rust , they are factory fiberglass ,they came from CHILE and they ready to go for the mini meet at Rockford IL in June. My phone # is 515-570-3888 or 515-955-2425 call any time. I will send pictures and information to anybody that is interested in them. Francisco Visedo visedo@dodgenet.com
FOR SALE: Fiberglass "Novadash" fits Mini with single or 3 clock center binnacle, N.O.S -- $35; Early style Mini front subframe, seen better days but suitable for as alignment jig when replacing front sheetmetal -- $15; 3 ea. Dunlop SP-Sport Radials, 165/70-10, old, hard, but never used, more suitable for show, not go -- $15 ea.; Left & right Mini front floor repair panels, aftermarket -- $15 ea.; Left & right Mini inner sill repair panels, aftermarket -- $10 ea.; Left & right Mini Mk. 3 & up inner wing hinge panels, M-Machine -- $10 ea.; Heavy duty tow bar for chrome bumper Spriget -- $60. Can Email photos. Contact Karl Jenstad, jenstd@pro-ns.net or 612-869-7611
FOR SALE: Just arrived from england - 10 cheap minis. Most in the $5k range.. all run and drive and have NC titles..all are RHD. lic. NC dealer and bonded importer... go to www.montecarlomini.net for photos .. ps.. no trades, no finance , and for tyrekicking call on rainy Tuesdays after my NAP.. bc 1-704-487-6406 Earl, North Carolina
Any Comments or Suggestions? Any ideas for improving "The Oily Edition"? Give me a call at: 1-320-963-5681 (if line is busy, try 1-612-599-0735) or e-mail at: cbaumann@lkdllink.net ......
Happy Christmas To All, and to All a Good Night!
See You All At ProKart