MG Vintage Racers – Thirty Years and Counting
As I sit at my computer this morning, I am looking at, and reflecting on, the first issue of the “MG Vintage Racers’ Newsletter” – which I mailed out in December of 1981 – 30 years ago!
Could 30 years of MG memories have passed already? I began vintage racing my MGTD in 1977 – it was not even an eligible car with the VSCCA yet! I met MG vintage racers at various events with different clubs, but we had no common forum. Often there were on a few MGs, and sometimes there were only two race classes – “Fast”, and “Not so Fast” regardless of what you were racing! So in the fall of 1981, I surveyed every MG vintage racer I could contact in North America to see if there was interest in a MG Vintage Racers Newsletter of some kind to connect us. Response was very positive, and therefore I founded the MG Vintage Racers’ Newsletter, with the first issue being mailed out that December. At that time vintage racing was relatively obscure, and who knew what its future would hold! MGB production had just ceased in 1980, and some vintage racing clubs did not even recognize the MGA. There was no “future plan” for MGVR other than to just get out the next issue and maybe contact a few more MG vintage racers.
The first issue was 17 pages, typed up on a manual typewriter (this is pre-PC technology). Feature articles in it included: an introduction and purpose letter by me as its founder; review of the SVRA MG Safety Fast Championship at Road Atlanta by Tony Roth; an article on “Planning for Vintage Races”; the MGs competing at the Duryea Hillclimb (Pa.); a tech article on installing a sway bar on a MGTD; and several other items and comments, with the target date for the next issue of March 1, 1982. No commercial advertising in it – which is a policy still maintained! Truly a grass roots newsletter for MG racers! Question was – would the newsletter survive? It not only would survive, but would grow and thrive, in support of MG vintage racers, and in support of MG races at vintage events, even collecting a few newsletter accolades along the way! Along that road of 30 years I would make so many MG friends through the newsletter and MG vintage racing!
Below are the original MGVR founding members of 1981:
Will Bowden – TD, Fl.
Ben Bragg – TF, Ct.
Mark Brandow – TC, Mn.
Keith Brown TF, Mi.
Sarah Carr – TD, Pa.
Oliver Clubine – Lotus 6 (XPAG), Ont.
Bob Coleman – TD, Tn.
Kevin Cox – TA, Ma.
Jim Denning – TD, Ga.
Blair Engle – TD, Fl.
Beau Gable – TC, Fl.
John Gardner – TD, Fl.
Paul Gaynor, Ct.
Rich Germano – TC, Ga.
Billy Gillis – TC, Ga.
Gary Hatch – TD, NY
Don Hoeft – TD, Tx.
Roy Jacobson, TD, Ma
Rich Kellogg, TD, Ga.
Richard Knudson, TD, NY
Gary McGovern, TC, Ga.
Jerry Morici, TC, NJ
Al Moss, TC, Ca.
George Pardee, TF, Fl.
Bill Parish, TC, Tn.
Greg Prehodka, TD, NJ
Alex Quattlebaum, Cooper MG, SC
Dave Raymond, N Type MG racer, Ct.
Tony Roth, TD, Fl.
Sue Salsburg, MGA, NJ
Bob Satava, TD, Oh.
Tom Scott, TF, Oh.
George Smith, TC, Ct
Rick Smith, TD, Ma.
Jerry Storch, TC, NJ
Lou Zuger, TC, Ct.
I was the MGVR editor 1981 to 1995. But I have to give special thanks to Mark Palmer – MGVR editor 1996 to 2005 – and to Chris Meyers – MGVR editor 2005 to current – for their continued dedication to the MGVR newsletter, its spirit, and MG Vintage Racing! And of course the biggest thanks to all of you who have been MG vintage racers and MGVR subscribers over the years – “…we few, we happy few, we band of brothers” – plus your supporting crews and friends! MGVR is only what its subscribers and friends make it – and you have made it wonderful! It is the “people” who make MGVR special! Plus special thanks to Chris Kintner, MGVR webmaster for his great web site for MGVR. MGVR currently has over 250 “subscribers” racing MGs! A more detailed history of MGVR, and many photos and articles, can be found on the MGVR website.
So many years – so many memories, and hopefully many more still to come! Thank you ALL !
The MGVR Focus Event 2012 – will be with VSCDA at Michigan’s Grattan Raceway – details will be posted on the NAMGAR website as they become available).
