We have had a good start to the year with the All British Day (reported on in my February report) and the All Triumph Observation Run in March. Unfortunately, circumstances conspired to have this last event poorly supported, despite a lot of planning put in by Dean and Lisa.

I am not sure why this was, as the weather was great, as was the lunch venue, being Mary Ann Reserve at Mannum. Those of us who did attend had a very enjoyable picnic lunch by the banks of the Murray. We collectively decided to forgo the questions and answers, due to there being only three Triumphs in attendance.

The low attendance, which contrasts with other club events in recent times which have good attendance, begs the question as to whether the club wishes to continue the tradition of annual observation runs. I know there were various reasons why people could not attend, including a clash with MSCA at Mallala, big increases in fuel prices because of the middle east war, and being in “mad March” with Fringe and other events happening. I plan to email all members with a questionnaire regarding social events in the future, including whether they want us to continue to have observation runs, as there is a lot of work involved in setting the run, as well as catering, and it is not fair to organisers (this year Dean and Lisa) if the event is not well supported.

At our last meeting, we had an extensive supper, which Mark Griffin sourced from Banjo’s Bakery Café at Glenelg. Sue Smithson has done a short article thanking Mark and Banjo’s in this Fastrak. It has also been great to have several members volunteer to do a supper during the year, rather than this task fall upon the same few each meeting. Between Mark and the others offering to help, we should continue to have great suppers at meetings to come.

We had two cars on stage at our March meeting, being Norm Barrett’s Spitfire 1500, and Paul Marshall’s TR6. It was also great to see Norm’s wife Camille at the meeting.

Norm’s Spitfire is work in progress, and whilst it is in good condition, he does not have a hood or frame, so it is very much a dry weather car. Luckily, it did not rain on Tuesday night.  It was an original Adelaide delivered vehicle and had not been driven for quite a while before Norm purchased it.

Paul had already purchased another TR6 a few months ago, however he saw this one on Carsales, which was in excellent condition, and decided that the cost of getting his original purchase to this standard would be way more than the cost of buying a fully restored vehicle. Paul purchased it from Warrnambool and drove it back via Mount Gambier on a day of around 42 degrees.  The car performed well and did not overheat, unlike the driver Paul, who by his description, was suffering from potentially serious heat stress by the time he reached home.

Paul does, however, now have a very nice car, being an American import, but fully restored and converted to a PI with overdrive, in a full body-off resto some years ago.

At our last meeting, I advised that life member, Roger Lange, after many years being club webmaster, now wishes to relinquish this role. We, as a club, are very grateful for all the work Roger has put in to maintaining our website, including having to rebuild it due to hackers infiltrating it a couple of years ago.

Filling this vacancy may have been a difficult task, as the collective level of computer skills in our club is not anywhere near the level of mechanical skills, however I am pleased to advise that Terry and Sue Dowden have stepped up to take on the webmaster role as from July, when they return form the overseas travel. Thanks Terry and Sue (both of whom are self-described computer nerds, as well as car nerds), and to Roger for all his past work, and agreeing to continue in the role until the July hand over.

At our next club meeting, we will have finalised the club budget and will announce membership fees for the next club year. We will be issuing an email to all members advising them of this soon after the April meeting. We ask that all members aim to have fees paid prior to 30^th June. Logbooks will be able to be updated/stamped or replaced at the May and June meetings in preparation for the new financial year, for all those members who are financial.  Please get in early as the jobs of Treasurer and Conditional Registrar are onerous enough without them having to follow up members who have not complied as at 30^th June.

Our next mid-week run is scheduled for Thursday 9^th April, being lunch at the Bridge Hotel in Langhorne Creek. The fuel situation due to the Middle East war remains uncertain, with fuel now at record high prices. Lawrie Placing will monitor the situation, as Langhorne Creek is quite a long drive from Adelaide. Lawrie has contingency plans in place if he decides closer to the event that we should have a venue closer to Adelaide.

We then have a run on Sunday 19^th April to Tenafeate Winery at One Tree Hill. Whilst not as far for most people to travel as Langhorne Creek, we will similarly monitor the fuel situation prior to this event. Hopefully by then, the world may have got back to some semblance of normality.

Alex Smithson

President

I have been away travelling and then at the TSOA Nationals for the September and October club meetings respectively, and thanks our Vice President, Richard Sellers for chairing these two meetings. Secretary Duane was also away for these meetings, and thanks to Ian Rigby and Lisa Macleod for taking minutes at these meetings. We are now back to normal, albeit that there are no formal club meetings in December or January.

We have traditionally held an informal meeting in January however the committee has decided that due to low numbers attending in past years, we will not book the Sporting Car Club for January. If any member would like to organise an informal meeting either at their house or another venue, please advise me and I will ensure it is properly publicised.

The TSOA Nationals at Port Stephens were a great success. A report is on the website and is in this edition of Fastrak. Superb location, 110 registrants and a full week of activities as well as great meals and great company. Next year is a Toowoomba, and expressions of interest will be called for shortly, and registrations open in February.

The Day of Triumph was organised at short notice by Dean and Lisa Berlemon at Civic Park, Modbury on 2nd November after the original event had to be cancelled due to bad weather. Although the weather was still not brilliant, there was a good turnout of 31 Triumphs. Congratulations to all winners, and special thanks to Dean and Lisa for the great effort both put in to make this day successful. Also, thanks to all those who assisted in judging and tallying scores, and of course, Dino and Lisa Vettese for providing discount breakfasts at Café Primo.

As Trevor Hawkins’ TR4A is now in master class, due to winning the last three concours events, there was at least a chance for the rest of us. Roger Lange’s TR7V8 was judged the best car on display.

Thanks again to Lawrie and Kaye Placing for organising a mid-week lunch at the Old Noarlunga Hotel, on 11th November. I was unable to attend; however I understand there was a good roll up and an enjoyable time was had by all who attended.

The Presentation Dinner was on Saturday 22nd November. There will be a report on this event in the next edition of Fastrak.

South Australia’s turn comes around again in 2027 to run the TSOA Nationals. A committee has been formed, and I am calling for others to join this committee. We have booked a venue for the event which will run from Friday 22nd October 2027 to Friday 29th October 2027. Being part of the organising committee is a great opportunity to get involved with our club. Having not attended a Nationals previously is definitely no impediment, so please contact me if you are interested.

All British Day registrations close on 1st December. The event is at Echunga Oval on Sunday 22nd February 2026. TSOA traditionally has a strong turnout of members attending this event, and it would be great to see this tradition continue. Contact Stephen Wade if you need any further information.

The After Christmas run has been organised by Natalie, Charlie and Carol, and will be on 30th December. This is always a well-supported event and I am sure this will be the same again this year. We also have our annual ice cream run through the beachside suburbs to finish at the Grange Jetty kiosk on Sunday 18th January. Another club event not to be missed.

We had on car on stage at our November meeting, being Dylan Taylor’s 2500TC saloon. Dylan has had two PI saloons previously and has owned this car since 2009. He was overseas for 10 years, and so the car was in storage for that time. He has liked Triumphs since he was a boy, and enjoys driving this car.

Alex Smithson
President

Welcome back all TSOA members and friends to another year’s club activities. I trust all had a great Christmas and New Year and are raring to go in 2026.

Since my last report, we have had several club events, including the Après Christmas Run in late December, ice-cream run in January and mid-week lunch in early February. Thanks to Natalie Farrell for organising the Après run, Charlie and Carol Onody for the ice-cream run, and Lawrie and Kaye Placing for the mid-week lunch.

The All-British day was on Sunday 22nd February. Despite the forecast of 25mm or more of rain, we had a mainly overcast, but rain-free day, which also was not too windy (no repeat of the disaster of three years ago). We had 40 owners nominate TSOA for their display, although there were at least 6 people who I don’t think are current members of TSOA, but were listed with us in the programme. Unfortunately, we were down a few cars turning up on the day, due to a variety of reasons (including one car having been sold prior to the day, and a break down en-route to Echunga), as well as the non-members almost all being no-shows.

Overall, however, the TSOA display was again one of the largest marques at ABD, and there were around another 15 Stags on display with the Stag Owners’ Club. Thanks to everyone who attended, and in particular; Ian Rigby, Dean Berlemon and Lisa Macleod for marshalling and bringing, setting up and dismantling the gazebos, and Duane Kaak and others for marshalling. Our ABD representative, Stephen Wade has worked all year on the committee, and had our layout worked out and managed with military precision. Thanks Stephen, for all your work on the committee and on the day itself.

The ABD president, Jamie Sandford-Morgan indicated in his welcome, that in 2027 the feature marque will be Triumph, due to it being 50 years since the last Stag was produced. Whilst I would have thought that being 60 years since the first TR5 was produced may have been a better reason, I am however, still very pleased to hear this news. I hope that we can have a record turnout of Triumphs next year, and will be talking about this more, as the 2027 ABD approaches.

As previously advised, South Australia’s turn comes around again in 2027 to run the TSOA Nationals. A committee has been formed and had its first meeting. Thanks to all those members who have joined this committee. We have booked a venue for the event which will run from Friday 22nd October 2027 to Friday 29th October 2027. We are now working through the daily program and have plenty of great ideas to make a fun-filled week.

Our first club meeting for 2025 in February was well attended, and we had a couple of guests looking to join our club in attendance. It is great to see that we continue to grow. Ian Rigby gave us an update of life member, and club stalwart, Bill Berlemon’s health. It sounds like treatment has been quite successful and Bill is feeling better than he was a few months ago. It was great to see Bill and Margie at the All-British Day, with Bill’s green 2500PI saloon back on the road, with some considerable help from Ian.

We had one car on stage at our February meeting, being Nigel Genders’ 2500S saloon. I had planned to have a second car on stage however the owner had a last-minute family commitment and will hopefully have it at our March meeting. Nigel has not had his car for long, however has had numerous Triumphs previously, including a Herald when he was 18. The car may have been in the club at some time previously, however I understand the last owner was not a club member.

Nigel is very happy with the car, and thinks it drives better than any of the ones he owned previously.

My wife Sue talked at the February meeting about suppers, ongoing, as Margie and Bill are having a well-earned rest from doing suppers each meeting. Sue has also done a short article for Fastrak. Thanks to those members who have put their hand up to help. We have most of 2026 sorted. As with all jobs in the club, the workload tends to fall on a quite small group of members, all of whom are volunteers. Please support us by offering to do supper for one meeting during the year to share a small part of the club workload around.

I look forward to a good turnout for the next club activity, the All-Triumph Observation Run on the 15th March. I have been instructed to ensure that Sue and I do not win under any circumstances, and as Dean and Lisa are running the event and therefore, also can’t win, the event is wide open.

Alex Smithson
President

Prior to the July club meeting we had a thankyou night pizza meal for members who have helped the club during the year. The club does not run itself, and we have a range of people who make things happen, including the executive committee of Richard Sellers (Vice President), Duane Kaak (Club Secretary and Competition Secretary), Lisa Macleod (Treasurer), Natalie Farrell (Social Secretary), Katherine Bradley (Newsletter Editor) and Dean Berlemon (Committee Member, as well as Regalia and Display Day co-ordinator).

Other key club members include Ian Rigby as Membership/Concessional Registration Secretary and his committee of Duane, Kevin Foster and Graham Dean, mid-week run organisers, Laurie and Kaye Placing, Weekender organisers Bill and Margie Berlemon, Web Master Roger Lange, and Librarian Greg Page. Margie and Lisa also greet us at the door each meeting and organise the raffle, and Bill and Margie also organise supper rosters, and do much of this catering. Sue Gibson has for many years, organised the Christmas Dinner, and she and Rory remain very involved with our club. Various other club members also help out at events, including motor sport, Day of Triumph and organising individual runs.

I am very grateful for all club members who contribute to the running of our club, and hope that other members will give serious thought to becoming involved in some of these tasks at our AGM in August. Without members taking on these roles, our club will cease to function, despite being 250 strong.

There were no cars on stage at the July meeting, Unfortunately, the members who I organised to bring their vehicles were unable to do so, however cars on stage will resume as from our September meeting.

Our 60th Birthday Lunch at Dimples, Tea Tree Gully Golf Club was on Sunday 20th July, and was a great success and enjoyed by all who attended. A special thanks to Sue Dowden who is Business Manager at TTG Golf Club and was able to get us a special deal. We had around 80 attend the event, with more booked in, however there were some last-minute apologies for health reasons. Our Secretary, Duane Kaak was MC for the event, and as well as telling some very amusing jokes, up to the high standard he sets at our club meetings, also wrote and recited a great poem about our club which was arguably even better received by the attendees than his jokes. Life Member Roger Lange gave a great talk about the life of our club over 60 triumphant years of our history, and Life Member Bob Anderson cut the cake to celebrate the occasion. All attendees were able to take home an etched glass with our 60th logo, a printed placement/poster and a piece of birthday cake.

I would particularly like to thank Noel Schmidt who did the artwork for the 60th Logo, and also worked until midnight, one night getting the 250 or so photos for the slide show properly formatted, Dean and Lisa for organising the glasses and getting them etched, Duane and Roger for making the day so entertaining and enjoyable, Natalie and Sue Gibson for doing seating plan, Lawrie and Kaye Placing for manning the welcome desk, everyone who brought along memorabilia, trophies and supplied photographs, and. Last but far from least, my wife Sue for doing many behind the scenes tasks too numerous to mention.

The display of Triumph Cars did not go completely to plan, due to the excess of vehicles to parking spaces at TTG Golf Club on a Sunday morning and particularly around lunchtime. Whilst there was a spot on the pitching green reserved for us, it was not signposted, and lots of others at the Club who could not find anywhere in the car park, decided to park in our space. Ian Rigby has agreed to direct our vehicles to this area, but by the time most TSOA cars arrived, the pitching green was full of TTG members’ cars.

Victor Harbor Rock ‘N’ Roll Festival is returning for its 16th year from September 19 – 21, 2025. Cars will feature in Shannon’s Show ‘N’ Shine across Warland Reserve and Albert Place, and registration is free. Register now at rocknrollfestival.com.au via the Vehicle Display.

Alex Smithson
President

I would like to thank all club members who have assisted to make this club year very successful. We have had a hard-working committee, supported by various appointees, who have put in a huge effort to keep things on track and allowed the club to prosper and grow.

Although Vice President Richard Sellars was not called upon too often, he was always willing to step up, including taking meeting minutes in Secretary Duane’s absence. Richard has prepared guidelines for nominating Life Membership, based on his research and experience with kindred organisations. This has been adopted by the club and we are grateful to him for his work in this regard.

Secretary Duane Kaak continues to be a tower of strength within the club and provides us with great service. It is hard to imagine the club running successfully without Duane.

Our treasurer, Lisa Macleod maintains the books very efficiently. Having had this role for the previous 10 years, I know what a time consuming and at times complicated job this is, and the club owes Lisa a debt of gratitude for her hard work. We had budgeted for a deficit for the club year, however managed to finish at close to break even. Lisa and I also attended a Federation, one-day workshop with the ATO regarding tax return requirements to which all not for profits must comply. Again, Lisa was able to lodge our tax return on time, and we did not incur any tax liability.

Katherine Bradley as Fastrak Editor position two years ago and continues to produce an excellent publication each month. Again, we are very grateful for all she does in this production.

Neil Martin relinquished the role of Competition Secretary last year, and Secretary Duane Kaak has taken on this role in addition to his other secretarial duties. Unfortunately, we did not have a team to compete in the MSCA 6 Hour Regularity Relay this year, and we have only small number of members participating in competition events.

Life Member, Natalie Farrell as social secretary provided a great range of monthly events which continue to be well attended. Several members have assisted Natalie by organising individual monthly runs. Lawrie and Kaye Placing continue to arrange mid-week lunch runs which have a small but keen following. Thanks to all who have contributed to the varied program.

Ian Rigby has, as he does every year, carried a heavy club load, and worked tirelessly as Conditional Registration Scheme Registrar and Membership Officer. Ian has a band of helpers on his committee, and I thank these members for assisting Ian in this major role. Ian is also our representative on the Federation of Historic Motoring Clubs and has been instrumental in gaining grants from the Federation for our Day of Triumph.

Bill and Margie Berlemon ran the Weekender again this year, this time based at Burra. This three-day, two-night event was highly successful and enjoyable, and is always a highlight of any club year. Bill has been on the sick list this year, and the club hopes that he is now over the worst and can get back to normal activities as soon as possible. Margie, along with Treasurer Lisa, has also been the stalwart on the door, and, together with Bill, organising the raffle and supper at club meetings. A particular vote of thanks to both Margie and Lisa, and other club members who have assisted for suppers.

Dean Berlemon was again the convenor of the day of Triumph Display Day, as well as Regalia sales. Dean, assisted by wife Lisa, did a great job and team Berlemon/Macleod remains integral to club operations and success.
Dean also joined the club executive committee this year . This came about because of there being no dedicated Competition Secretary in 2024/25. Our constitution provides for this position to be “Competition Secretary or Committee Member”. An anomaly of our constitution is that one of the most important roles in the club, that of Concessional Scheme Registrar is not a committee position. Altering the constitution is a laborious process, so I have proposed that the position of “Committee Member” be reserved for the Concessional Scheme Registrar if there is no separate Competition Secretary.

We had a great turnout of Triumphs at the All British Day in March and Stephen Wade was our club representative on the ABD Committee. Thanks to Stephen for all his effort albeit as well as being a member of TSOA, Stephen is also a member of several other British car clubs, so is representing more than just us on the ABD Committee.

Our Christmas Dinner continues to be our largest and best attended annual function of the year. Life member Sue Gibson, along with Natalie, is the main organiser of this event, as she has been for many years. Thanks, Sue once again for making this such a successful and enjoyable event.

This year has been very special as it is our 60th Anniversary. A TSOA club in South Australia was proposed by a then youthful Tony Case, together with the late Ron Fergusson. The first meeting was held on 22nd January 1965 at Ron Fergusson’s house to discuss the constitution and aims of the new club. To celebrate this milestone, we had a birthday lunch at Tea Tree Gully Golf Club on Sunday 20th July. This was a great event attended by around 90 past and present members. Secretary Duane Kaak was MC, and Life Member Roger Lange gave us great talk about the club through the years. The birthday cake was cut by life member Bob Anderson. Thanks to everyone who assisted in the organisation, helped on the day, provide photos and memorabilia, and attended the lunch.

We have maintained membership numbers at around 250 in total despite members leaving each year due in most cases, to having sold their vehicles. New members are joining, and our challenge is to get these new members involved with our club, which offers so much more than just the concessional registration scheme. I have encouraged new members to attend meetings and bring their vehicles for “cars on stage” which continues to be a key part of each meeting.

Storing and transporting our club equipment remains a significant task, and Ian Rigby and the Berlemons (Bill and Margie, as well as Dean and Lisa) continue to do most of this work. It would be great to see another club member take on some or all of this role as Ian, Dean and Lisa are already heavily committed to working for the club in many critical areas.

Our club has two awards for service made each year. The President’s Award is made to the Committee member who has made an outstanding contribution to the running of the club, and the Vice President’s Award is to a club member, other than a committee member. The committee is a small group, and all do a fantastic job. Our secretary, Duane Kaak is always ready and willing to take on any additional tasks asked of him, including this year, Competition Secretary, and MC of the 60th Birthday lunch. He is also on Ian’s Concessional Registration Scheme committee and does a lot to assist Ian in this regard. Duane’s joke telling is legendary, and he is always there to talk with me about any club issues that may arise. I am therefore very pleased to announce that Duane is the winner of the 2024/25 President’s Award.

Regards
Alex Smithson -President 2024-25

Thanks to Graham Keynes and Richard Sellers for bringing their Stags along to this month’s meeting and having them on stage, for a club “Stag Night”.

Richard has recently sold his TR8 to an interstate buyer and purchased a very tidy white Stag from Collectible Classics at Strathalbyn. Unfortunately, Richard has been through bit of a bad patch, health-wise, and has not driven his new car more than a handful of times but is very happy with how it drives.

Graham has a Tahiti Blue Stag which was at some time previously, owned by past club member, David Treen. I have been going through old photos of club events for a slide show at the 60th Birthday lunch and have seen this car is in several of those photos, when in David’s ownership. Graham is also greatly enjoying the Stag experience.

I am pleased to advise that we have over 80% of members financial as at the writing of this report. If you have yet to pay your subscriptions for 2025/26, please make sure these are paid prior to 30th June and save a lot of unnecessary work for Treasurer Lisa.

The Conditional Registration committee of Ian Rigby, Kevin Foster, Duane Kaak and Graham Dean were once again, hard at work stamping logbooks at the June meeting. Remember that you need to have your logbook stamped and signed by an authorised signatory by 30th June for your vehicle to be legally registered after that date, so please contact one of these committee members to arrange this if you have not already done so. This obviously can only be done if you are a financial member.

Bill and Margie Berlemon organised a fantastic weekend away at Burra from Friday 6th June to Sunday 8th June. We were not blessed with great weather (Saturday in particular, was very cold, wet and windy), however despite this everyone attending had a great time. Bill and Margie have a knack of finding very interesting places to visit. We had dinner at the Burra Bowls Club on both nights and enjoyed great home-cooked meals provided by bowls club members, and Paxton Cottages were very cosy and comfortable, and provided very good-value accommodation.

We are close to 100 people booked for the club’s 60th Birthday celebrations which will be on Sunday 20th July, at Dimples Restaurant and Function Centre at Tea Tree Gully Golf Club. If you have not done so, already, please do this as soon as possible, so we can lock in numbers. As previously advised, this will be great celebration of an amazing 60 years of history and should not be missed. Please see the flyer in FasTrak regarding booking for this very special event. There is a $10 discount for the first 100 registrants which is still available. Get in quick as there are only a small number of places left at this discount price.

Noel Schmidt is putting a photo slideshow together, to run during the lunch. If you have any photos of the early days of the club, could you please contact me ASAP so these can be included in the presentation. We also will be having a memorabilia table and again, please contact me if you have any items that you think would be suitable for display. We will have club perpetual trophies and the like, but I am sure there are other items of interest that we could display on this table.

Orders have now closed for the special shirt being offered to members to celebrate our 60th Birthday and will be delivered at the July meeting, so those with shirts will be able to wear them to our 60th birthday lunch.

Alex Smithson
President

Thanks to David O’Loughlin for bringing his TR3 to have on stage at our May meeting. David’s car was an original Triumph company demonstrator and press vehicle in the UK and was fully optioned from the factory. David has much original paperwork for this special vehicle, which is in fantastic condition, and is probably the only “Salvadore Blue” TR3 that most of us will see in our lifetimes.

David is a passionate Triumph side screen owner (he also has a TR3A) and we are very pleased that he has decided to be a member of our club, as well as being actively involved with the TR Register.

As advised at the April club meeting, the executive committee has decided to increase subscriptions for 2025/26 to $60.00 for full members and $30.00 for social members. I am pleased to note that we have over 50% of members now financial for 2025/26. Hopefully we can get all renewing members to pay subscriptions prior to 30th June and save a lot of unnecessary work for Treasurer Lisa.

Unfortunately, our conditional registrar, Ian Rigby was a late apology for the May meeting due to coming down sick after his recent overseas holiday. Thanks to Ian’s fellow committee members, Kevin Foster, Duane Kaak and Graham Dean for all their work stamping logbooks at the meeting. The team will be available again at the June meeting. Remember that you need to have your logbook stamped and signed by an authorised signatory by 30th June for your vehicle to be legally registered after that date.

Thanks to Roger and Cherri Lange for organising the run to Middleton Tavern on Sunday May 18th. The event was well attended, and we had a great meal at Middleton.

Bill and Margie Berlemon have organised a fantastic weekend away at Burra starting on Friday 6th June through to Sunday 8th June. As always, this is packed with visits to interesting places and great meal venues. We are staying at Paxton Cottages and Bill has suggested to those attending, that bringing a small fan heater for the bathroom may be wise. Thos attending are really looking forward to a great weekend away.

Lots of members have booked their places at our 60th Birthday celebrations which will be on Sunday 20th July, at Dimples Restaurant and Function Centre at Tea Tree Gully Golf Club. If you have not done so, already, please do this as soon as possible, so we can lock in numbers. As previously advised, this will be great celebration of an amazing 60 years of history and should not be missed. Please see the flyer in FasTrak regarding booking for this very special event. There is a $10 discount for the first 100 registrants which is still available.

Orders close for the special shirt being offered to members to celebrate our 60th Birthday at our June meeting. This costs $55.00 and must be pre-ordered. Please see details in FasTRak and on our website. These will be delivered at the July meeting, so those with shirts will be able to wear them to our 60th birthday lunch.

Finally, Dean Berlemon gave us the exciting news that this year’s Day of Triumph will be held at the National Motor Museum, Birdwood, on 21st September

Alex Smithson
President

Thanks to David Stephens and Ivan Powell for bringing their immaculate, but very different TR2’s to have on stage at our April meeting. David’s car was restored over more than 3 years in Victoria, starting as a relatively small engine bay project, but ending up as a full restoration. This must now be one of the best TR2’s anywhere and has a high degree of originality. It has won several awards at national TR Register meetings.

Ivan’s TR2 in contrast, is a tribute to its racing heritage in the Mille Miglia in Italy and is quite heavily modified. It is also in great condition and turns heads wherever it goes.

As advised at the April club meeting, the executive committee has decided to increase subscriptions for 2025/26 to $60.00 for full members and $30.00 for social members.

We are forecasting a modest operating loss for 2024/25, and we have budgeted some $2,000 for subsidies and other costs associated with our 60th birthday lunch and related celebrations in July. We expect other costs such as hire of Sporting Car Club rooms, and administration systems and insurance to rise next club year, so a modest increase in subs seems appropriate.

Our subs in 2018/19 were $75.00 for full members and were reduced during COVID, as many club activities were suspended at that time. We have managed to keep subs at a low level since then however we now believe a small increase is appropriate. TSOA is still one of the lowest cost car clubs in South Australia, and my thanks go to our treasurer, Lisa Macleod who has been able to keep operating costs down and subsequently, maintain low subs.

You should have received an email advising that these subscriptions are now due, and we ask all members to pay these promptly, and by 30th June at the latest. Lisa has a big job in keeping track and receipting 240 members’ payments, and it is unfair if she needs to chase late payments. Please try to make her job as easy as possible.

We had a great run to Stockwell in the Barossa Valley on Sunday April 6th. Thanks to Katherine Bradley and husband Derek for organising such a great run, which was very well attended. Unfortunately, I had mechanical problems on the North South Motorway coming home and spend some 3 hours at the start of the exit ramp to Port Road, waiting for a tow truck. A new alternator has however now fixed the problem (I hope).

Also, thanks again to Lawrie and Kaye Placing for arranging another well attended mid-week lunch to The Green Man Inn at Ashbourne on 10th April.

Lots of members have already booked their places at our 60th Birthday celebrations which will be on Sunday 20th July, at Dimples Restaurant and Function Centre at Tea Tree Gully Golf Club. Although still a little way off, we are looking to lock in attendees, so please book early. This will be great celebration of an amazing 60 years of history and should not be missed. Please see the flyer in Fastrak regarding booking for this very special event. There is a $10 discount for the first 100 registrants, so get in quickly.

There is also a special shirt being offered to members to celebrate our 60th Birthday. This costs $55.00 and must be pre-ordered. Please see details in FasTRak and on our website.

We now have a workable proposal for the 2027 Nationals, and after the 60th Birthday is behind us, a committee will start the planning for this event. Thanks to those who have already volunteered to join this committee, and please see me if you also wish to be part of the 2027 team.

The Weekender will be in Burra in the first weekend of June. This is always a great event, and Bill and Margie Berlemon have, as usual, arranged an exciting and full program at an amazingly reasonable price. I believe there are still a couple of rooms left, so please contact Bill or Margie if you would like to attend.

Alex Smithson
President

Thanks to all TSOA members who attended All British Day on Sunday March 2nd. It was very successful with a good turnout of Triumphs from our club, as well as TR Register and The Stag Owners’ Club. We had good weather and no incidents, unlike a couple of years ago.

Special thanks to ABD Committee member Stephen Wade for all his work on the organising committee and the layout of the TSOA display on the day. Also thanks to Dean Berlemon and Lisa Macleod for being marshals from the start, and Lisa for bringing the gazebos, cones etc. She overcame major (modern) vehicle problems with her car being stranded on Saturday with electrical problems, and she had to borrow her mother’s car to bring all the gear. This was dedication from Lisa above and beyond the call of duty.

Numerous members helped on the day with the setting up and dismantling of gazbos, and this was greatly appreciated.

Planning of our 60th Birthday celebrations are well under way with a 2-course lunch planned for Sunday 20th July, at Dimples Restaurant and Function Centre at Tea Tree Gully Golf Club. Member Sue Dowden, who is also the financial controller at the Club is helping with organisation of the event and giving us an extra special deal. We are aiming for a big turnout of existing and past members for this very important event.

Noel Schmidt has used his creative flair to design a logo for special regalia for the event, as well as a great poster. I hope that all members will try to get to this lunch, celebrating an amazing achievement of 60 years. Please see the flyer in Fastrak regarding booking for this very special event. There is a $10 discount for the first 100 registrants, so get in quickly.

Vice President Richard Sellers has circulated the new Life Membership criteria to all members and has made some minor changes as a result of this feedback. The document will now be adopted by the club and will be available on the club website.

As previously advised, the 2025 TSOA Nationals in Port Stephens NSW are fully subscribed, but there is a waiting list. Please see me if you want any further information. I have also been advised by TSOA Queensland that planning is well advanced for the 2026 Nationals, at a location is west of Brisbane.

Our turn to organise the TSOA Nationals comes up again in 2027, and although this seems a long time away, we need to start planning now to make sure we can put on a high-quality event. We have limited options, as we need a venue with 50 rooms, and with access to a range of activities and dining options for 100 people, at a reasonable price. As many attendees tow their cars on trailers, secure parking for tow vehicles and trailers is also a necessity.

I am looking for volunteers to join an organising committee. We have some “old hands” already on that committee, as well as some newer members who have volunteered, however new ideas and enthusiasm would be gratefully appreciated. Please see me if you wish to be part of the 2027 team.

The executive committee will consider the budget for 2025/26 prior to the April meeting and set subscriptions for next club year. Subscriptions will be open after the April meeting.

Alex Smithson
President

We are back to our regular club program in 2025, with a well-attended February club meeting. There were three cars on stage, and thanks to members Charlie Onody, John Golding and Ron Corso, for bringing along a Mark 3 Spitfire, Herald coupe and TR3B respectively. Each of these cars are somewhat of a rarity in our club and it was great to hear their respective histories and be able to look at such well-presented cars close up.
As advised at the meeting, the new life membership criteria policy document has been reviewed by existing life members and will now be circulated to all club members for any further input. My thanks to Vice President Richard Sellars who has done a great job in instigating this initiative and preparing the document.

The committee has decided that the comparatively low numbers at the informal January meeting does not justify the expense of hiring the room at Sporting Car Club, and that we will look at having an off-site location for future January informal club meetings.

At the time of writing this report, the All British Day is scheduled for next Sunday, 2nd March. I know that our ABD committee rep, Stephen Wade has done a lot of work in the layout of the ovals, and the Triumph marque clubs (TSOA, TR Register and Stag Club) display area in particular. I am sure this day will be a great success, and I thank Stephen for all his work with ABD on our behalf.

The committee has agreed in principle to having a celebration lunch to commemorate the 60th birthday of TSOA SA on Sunday 20th July, and we will shortly form an organising committee. More details are to follow, but I would like to see this as a major celebration, and hope that many of our club members who we don’t see regularly these days will attend.

The date of the Christmas dinner has now been set for Saturday 22nd November, and we plan to again hold this function at the Royal Adelaide Golf Club. More details to come closer to the event.
Unfortunately, registrations have filled for the 2025 TSOA Nationals in Port Stephens NSW in October, and there is now a waiting list. Previous Nationals attendees were given the first opportunity to register, and all spots were taken by these previous attendees within a few days of release. If you are interested in being placed on the waiting list, or would like to know more about this event, please call me on 0412 823 798, or log onto the TSOA NSW website.

Social Secretary Natalie Farrell continues to organise great social functions, ably assisted by Lawrie and Kay Placing who are organising mid-week runs. The MSCA picnic on 23rd February and All British Day at the start of March has curtailed other club activities for this period, but we will be getting back into the swing of things on the 6th April. See Fastrak or the website for more details.

We have two of our life members, Bill Berlemon and Rory Gibson on the sick list at present, and both were not able to attend the February meeting. Both Bill and Rory have been stalwarts of our club over many years, and I know all TSOA members will join me in wishing them both speedy recoveries. We hope to see Bill and Margie, and Rory and Sue back at club meetings in the near future.

Alex Smithson
President