Croc

My suggestion would be to go along bridge street, across the bridge, turn right and head north to Easton. Cross over the river again at Easton (which is north of I-78) and come south on river road to Milford. At least I know that route. You could go south towards New Hope but....lots and lots of traffic goes that way for lunch. Also route 29 coming north along the NJ side of the river is a 35mph zone full of slow cars. But what if we go straight ahead up into the hills on the PA side instead of following the river? I don't know that area.... Lunch follows at Ship Inn? There is a community parking lot opposite the Ship Inn next to the Church. Thats where we should meet - plenty of room to park. There is also a park about 4 miles south off Milford on the PA side where we could do a picnic or group photo.

Count me in

2465 miles so far....I am capped at 7500 annually for insurance.

Well there was: 1) Elvis - my former 1965 Series II 2) Amaroo Clubman - an Aussie 7 clone with a 1.6l 4cyl twin cam Toyota engine 3) Westfield narrow body with 1.6l Toyota engine (Australian) 4) Kyle's (KStier) red/silver Birkin with Zetec 5) Birkin IRS with Zetec at Dick Brinks' place 6) BRG Birkin with SVT Zetec test driven in Florida 7) 2004 Orange Caterham SV demoed at George Alderman's shop 8) 2004 Yellow Caterham SV - my current car.

Have you looked up the Birkin Owners Group? I found them a great source of otherwise unadvertised cars when I was in "look" mode for a car. http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/birkinowners/

Well I got the rain starting at Newark airport while heading to Carlisle leading me to drive there with the hood up (oh the shame!). But the drive back was topless Anyway here are some pics from Carlisle that I took: A gaggle (small herd? pod?) of LSIS at Carlisle: http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=DSC05582.jpg Jon's amazing faux Atom: http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=DSC05586.jpg http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=DSC05585.jpg Bob's "beast" (the size of that turbo ) http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=DSC05581.jpg http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=DSC05587.jpg And a very nice Stalker on display at the Brunton stand http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=DSC05580.jpg The only photo I missed getting was one of Mazda's jawdropping creation I especially wanted a pic of the stained passenger seat! It was great to meet everybody in person!

Here are some pics from the LEO Fish & Chip Run Another of the Seven parked in the main street http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=DSC05489.jpg Group photos of the cars that attended the Run http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=DSC05495.jpg http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/?action=view&current=LEOgathering-milfordnj.jpg This last panorama is courtesy of Atwell Haines, LEO Organizer. Multiple pics stitched together.

Both look good. I like the bottom wheel with a platinum silver stripe for a more low key look.

I think an autocross equates to a "time trial" in the UK - racing around cones in a car park (english equivalent of parking lot in the US). A hill climb is a road race for either cars or bikes up a hill on a public road closed for the event. I have yet to see/hear of a hill climb in the US (and probably will not due to public liability laws and litigation). Being an Aussie I can soooo relate to these language differences - I trip myself up every day! Edited to add: There are hill climbs in the US. Discovered yesterday at Carlisle http://www.pahillclimb.org/

On my first Seven, a 1965 Series 2, the narrower tires and the lack of horsepower (50-60 area) still made for a very entertaining car. It would wonderful to chuck it into a corner as limited grip allowed you to play with the car attitude depending on how you wanted to attack the corner. Lack of horsies (and old rubber) means all the fun was accessible at lower speeds. My current Seven is a 2004 SV with fat tires, big brakes and (supposedly) 185hp (at the flywheel). It is entertaining but the limits are far higher now along with the speeds - not a really good idea on public roads. It is however far more reliable and driveable than my old seven. I had my V8 muscle car phase and it seduced me into losing my license. Give me small & light cars packaged with a nicely performing 4cyl.

That description of your car makes me all the more interested in seeing it! Look forward to seeing you there

Why are you guys afraid of rain? Do these cars shrink when they get wet?

That really looks nicely done. At what speed does a diffuser begin to have some effect? Have you noticed anything from your casual drives?

I would give it a month and it will be back up on ebay with an asking price of $25k. It sounds like their strategy is to try and sell it to a "dumb" buyer who will not ask too many questions....

Skip - I love your technique with women - the harder you go the more they scream!

Edited to remove double post

I will be attending Carlisle for the first time and just looked at the site map to register - it is huge! So dumb question moment - how will I find everyone? Is the club assigned an area to park cars and congregate? I really do want to meet you guys in person...honestly.....

I did that type of extreme commuting in a prior life - not easy! Who looks after your cars while you are away working? I was not aware of the show but that looks pretty interesting. http://www.keystonemg.com/hellertown.html I pencilled that date into the calendar - I would like to make it. Why don't we try for a drive day on June 13 with the fall back option of June 20 if it rains? This is all assuming my father does not decide to visit me at the last minute....which he has been known to do...LOL I can sometimes get weekdays off but that is usually a last minute thing decided that week - so this may be another option.

Hi Bruce Will you be at Carlisle next Saturday? If so then maybe we can corral Kyle and Jack and any other keen guys to set a date for an organized run? cheers mike

Congratulations Hank - it has to be a happy moment for you to pass the inspection without a hassle.

If that is upgradeitis then I like it! Where can I get some of these tasteful new accessories for my Se7en? And here I was a moment ago thinking of adding a new camshaft - this has got me going faster already

LOL...I just do not need any beauty sleep! The S4 is an acquired taste...not everyone fits with the styling although the car is still an accomplished performer once you get past the looks. Not sure what you mean by "pre-pubescent" in terms of a car - my mind is boggling at the idea The Birkin S3 at Wirewheel has been up for sale since at least July last year as that was when I first saw it advertised as I was shopping around at that time. I am a little surprised it has not sold already but I suspect the price is too high. I have not dealt with Wirewheel personally. Cheers mike

I drove the grey IRS Birkin listed on Dick Brinks' website and was very impressed by the IRS suspension that Birkin have developed. It is much more composed on rough surfaces than the live axle - less thrown off line when hitting bumps mid corner. I thought it felt better than the Caterham de dion. It would be interesting to compare it to the Caterham IRS which is still pretty rare.

Its not so much regional but state-based. Unlike banks which are regulated federally, insurance co.s are regulated by the states. So to sell insurance they have to do rate filings with each state. It will come down to the nature of the premium rate filing. If you exhaust all other options then Chubb will be your best bet since they are set up in all states to insure specialist cars as daily drivers through their Masterpiece policy (as opposed to the regular auto policy). However, you will find it an expensive option...

Insurance is a really a state based issue. For example I have State Farm under a regular daily driver policy but to get it took 3 months of negotiation/inspection with the NJ underwriters to allow it even though I know for a fact they insure Sevens in NY and PA. I know Safeco also will insure a Seven as a daily driver in NY and PA but not in NJ. I saw above Drew had Met but they would not touch me in NJ. I could have used Chubb to insure my Seven as a regular driver under their Masterpiece policy but in the end I went with State Farm. These are the only companies I found who were willing to insure a Seven as a regular driver in some states (but not all states). It really does help to find a friendly agent/broker willing to work with you to sort it out.