rcollum

This morning, I took my Elise to Katie's for the first time this year. We had snow last night, but the streets were dry when I left home, and the temperature as above freezing - 34F, in fact. This is what passes for good weather here, lately. It seems like, when it's cold & wet & snowy, almost all the cars that show up to Katie's are German. --Bob Collum

At this time of year, this might be more properly termed a 'Coffee with Some Cars'. I don't mind the cold - it's early March, so that is to be expected in the Northern Virginia area. However, we are fed up with rain, snow and ice... and the tons and tons of salt put down to prevent occasional ice patches. Had it not been for the excessive salt on the roads, I would have driven my Seven today. So, a large number of interesting cars typically doesn't happen at this time of year. Still, it's an opportunity to catch up with fellow car people, and talk about the cars we wish we could have driven. --Bob Collum

Actually, I was pleasantly surprised by the 8 in person. It looks far better than the magazine pictures, and my pictures, show. --Bob Collum

It's March, and I say it's time for better weather. It seems like we've had rain practically every weekend since the middle of last summer. Who do we contact to fix this? Cold and misty today, but (as often on bad-weather Saturdays), German cars came out in numbers. Lots of BMWs, including a new BMW 8 Series. --Bob Collum

Thanks! I've never taken a 5-week vacation before! Yes, that was a new NSX. You're right, it's not very recognizable. On the Lotus forums, people went crazy, because it looks quite a lot like the proposed new Esprit developed during the evil Bahar's tenure. --Bob Collum

I've been on vacation for the last 5 weeks. I had a great time, but it's good to be back... --Bob Collum

While on vacation, throughout Australia & New Zealand, I kept an eye open for interesting cars. I never saw any Lotus, but saw several Ferraris, Porsches, Maseratis, and even a Viper. Then, while my wife & I were walking after lunch in Rotorua, NZ, I came across this car, Fraser 7, made in Auckland, NZ:

Mike: It's a project vehicle from Virginia Tech - they trailered it. I didn't have a chance to talk to them about the details, but heard it used a 42 hp Yamaha motorcycle engine. --Bob Collum

It was cold this morning - 27 degrees. No wind, but snow is coming this afternoon. Why didn't I drive the Seven this morning? Because it was 27 degrees. Why didn't I drive the Elise? The Elise, which has been on its CTEK charger all along, would not start this morning. Grrr…. So, I drove my wife's Smart ForTwo. Not impressed with the performance? Well, it's a rear-engined, 2-seater, 1650 lb. car. Still not convinced? OK, it fits in our two-car garage, with the Elise and the Seven! --Bob Collum

A nice day for the first Cameron's Cars & Coffee of 2019: clear skies and mild, for January. It was high 30's, with no wind. We had a pretty decent turnout, including two Lotus - my Elise, and Bob Scates' Esprit. Happy new year! --Bob Collum

For reference purposes, here is a link to the 2018 Sunday C & C thread: http://www.usa7s.net/vb/showthread.php?11839-2018-Northern-VA-Sunday-C-amp-C-Thread

Here is a link to the continuing 2019 Katie's thread: http://www.usa7s.net/vb/showthread.php?12205-2019-Katie-s-Cars-amp-Coffee-Thread-Great-Falls-VA

I hope 2019 is not an extension of 2018, weather-wise. The first Katie's of 2019 was hampered by rain, but the loyal core group still showed up. On a positive note, it wasn't too cold, and it was not actively raining. The gray Porsche was one of four factory racers - very rare! --Bob Collum

For reference, here is a link to the 2018 Katie's Cars & Coffee thread: http://www.usa7s.net/vb/showthread.php?11840-2018-Katie-s-Cars-amp-Coffee-Thread-Great-Falls-VA

It is nice - it's a new ZR-1, with all the factory performance options. Over 780hp, and he chose the option to go to the factory and assemble the engine himself. --Bob Collum

The last Cameron's Cars & Coffee of 2018 was a nice one. Dry and clear, but cold, we had a pretty good turnout of a wide variety of cars, and people. --Bob Collum

The last Katie's Cars & Coffee of 2018, but I'm afraid I didn't drive anything interesting today, since the roads were still wet. Luckily, others brought a nice variety of interesting cars. Chuck Stone drove his Westfield. --Bob Collum

It was clear and cold this morning, but we had several regulars get together once more before Christmas. Happy holidays! --Bob Collum

Katie's Cars & Coffee founder, Bob Morris just acquired this MG Type L. Supercharged straight-six. Terrific details on this car - that's a form-fitting tonneau surrounding the bucket seats. The Brooklands windscreens behind the folding 'full' windscreen seem to be a 'belt-and-suspenders' design! --Bob Collum

Yesterday was the Winter Solstice, so.... today was the first Katie's of winter! A good turnout, 3 days before Christmas. --Bob Collum

This week at Katie's: The good - it warmed up considerably. It was 42 degrees when I got to the parking lot. The not so good - a steady rain, all morning. (The DC area has set an all-time record for rainfall this year.) Still, a bunch of us got together, had breakfast, talked cars, told jokes -- it's what we look forward to, each week. --Bob Collum

Cold and clear today - it was 21F on my way to Katie's this morning. The good news - no wind, no rain, and no salt on the roads yet. A pretty good turnout today. The Middleburg Christmas parade we were supposed to participate in was called off last week, so I still had the Christmas lights on my Seven. --Bob Collum

Sorry to say, the group I was joining to drive in the Middleburg, VA Christmas Parade has been rained out. Last year, I drove with the group, and had a great time. I made one error: I decorated my Seven with a garland made of red and green tinsel. It 'shed', and I'm still finding small pieces of tinsel everywhere! Below is a picture of the Seven last year. Then, see what I did for this year... http://www.usa7s.net/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=14829&stc=1

You can't ask for much better weather than we had this morning, considering it's the first of December. Low-to-mid-thirties, at 5:00AM, with no wind - it was actually pretty nice. Katie's was certainly not as crowded as July or August, but that's perfectly OK with me, considering the general quality of vehicles and people there today. --Bob Collum

A gorgeous morning, and a good turnout at Cameron's today. --Bob Collum