We have reached the end of another club year and I would like to take this opportunity to thank the committee members for helping me work through the last year as President. There were many  things to learn throughout the year that weren’t too obvious at the beginning, in order to make the club run seamlessly and smoothly. The committee are a dedicated group of people who carry out their responsibilities in the running of the club very effectively and it has been my pleasure working with them.

I would also thank all the various members who work tirelessly and proactively behind the scenes in many ways carrying out small tasks that generally go unnoticed because they just get done when needed.

This year’s August meeting is significant not only because it is our AGM but it is also the 50th anniversary of the TR4 and it is proposed to have a celebration to mark this event at our meeting, so I would invite all to attend on the night and join the festivities on this occasion.

As is the usual practice at the AGM all positions are declared vacant and I would ask all members to consider if it is your turn to do something for the club. No position is too onerous and everybody helps out, so if you think you would like a new challenge or can help out then let me know either before the meeting or on the night, I am sure it will be a rewarding experience.

Several of our recent club runs have been dampened by the weather, but it did not dampen the enthusiasm of the members who attended, again I must thank those who organised these events,

Our July meeting was well attended as it provided a one stop shop for membership renewal and log book sign off for those on concessional registration. The registration scheme requires members to be a financial member of the club to participate in the scheme and there will be another opportunity at the August meeting to finalise these matters so you can legally drive your pride and joy.

Last year we held a very successful Day of Triumph and we are hoping that again this year we can equal or better the 70 or so cars we had on display at TTG Civic Park opposite the TTP shopping centre. Not only is this a great picnic day for all members to attend and mingle with fellow Triumph owners, but it is a tremendous opportunity to promote our marque at this fantastic venue.

Details of the Day of Triumph are shown later in the magazine and I urge to take this opportunity to clean and polish your car and participate in this event, this will also mean that your car is well prepared for the coming summer months of club runs.

For those who may not have caught up the fact, I am pleased to report that Brian Argent is home and recuperating well after his major operation of a couple weeks ago and we wish both Brian and Peggy all the best, and look forward to seeing them again soon at club functions.

Till we meet again

John Sampson

The weather was perfect for the club sponsored sausage sizzle held on Sunday 19th June at Thorndon Park. The Sunday morning run was well attended by about 48 members who met at “The Place Next Door” at Burnside for coffee and then enjoyed a drive to the pleasant park surroundings at Thorndon Park, Adelaide’s first reservoir.

Although I was away for the weekend and could not attend, I understand an enjoyable lunch of Gourmet sausages was provided on the day. Once again my thanks go out to Margie and Bill for organising the day.

For those members who have their cars on Historic Concessional Registration and do not have internet access, we have included later in the magazine, an extract from the “Code of Practice” detailing the eligibility criteria as documented in the code.

Just a reminder that the August meeting is our AGM and all official positions will become available for re-election, so if you are looking for challenge or feel the need to participate in the running of the club in some small way in the coming year then let your thoughts be known.

Many of the current committee and appointed club positions have been held for several years by a same willing people, and some may be interested in having a break, so speak up as one of these positions may be just what you are looking for.

Till we meet again,

John Sampson

What a TRiumphant weekender 40 plus members enjoyed on the 21st and 22nd of May in the Clare valley, lower Flinders rangers, Pt Pirie and Bute. There will be a report later in the magazine so I will not go into any details here, but it would be remiss of me not to give a huge vote of thanks to Margie and Bill for planning a pleasant scenic drive, interesting stops and a great evening on Saturday night, not to mention a BUTE day on Sunday. (sorry, I resisted but in the end I could not stop myself from saying it)

Some members went back to the motel early on Saturday night and missed an exciting new range of talent that was exposed to the population of Pt Pirie at the karaoke night held at the Broken Hill Club, I have had it on good authority that the talent scouts have been alerted and are waiting in the wings for next year’s weekender so they can see them and sign them up.

On a more serious note our club along with all other clubs associated with the Federation of Historic Motor Clubs have received advice from the Department of Transport, Energy and Infrastructure (DTEI) of impending proposed changes to the concessional Historic Registration scheme, which may impact on those vehicles registered under the scheme.

The proposed changes will be reported in more detail later in this magazine, and over the next couple of months we will pass on more details of the current scheme and include a copy of the “Code of Practice“ applicable to the scheme.

Briefly the proposed changes involve the deletion of the rolling 30 year date for historic vehicles and a retrospective final effective date of the 1st January 1979 introduced, as advised at our last general meeting.

We have sent a letter to DTEI and the Federation of Historic Motor Clubs expressing our concerns in relation to the introduction of the proposed retrospective date, and the significance of the 1981 date to the Triumph marque.
In a conversation I had with a representative of DTEI, I understand that any vehicles of 1979, 1980 and 1981 vintage that are currently registered on the scheme will be able to be on sold and the historic eligibility carried over to the new owner with the appropriate sign off and paperwork as would normally apply.

The second proposal is for a yearly sign off of each concession registered vehicle to ensure the integrity of the historic vehicles, and the alignment of the LHD concessional vehicles from the current date of 1974 to the 1979 proposed date.

It is my understanding that a range of concerns have been registered by various clubs and these will need to be worked through before the legislation is approved, and therefore it won’t be finalised until next year.

This time frame will allow us to discuss internally, plan what we have to do and how we implement the proposed revisions, but it looks as though we will have a couple of days set aside next year to conduct the yearly inspection.

We will keep you informed as the proposed revisions to the scheme are finalised.

At the last General meeting it was decided that the general meeting planned for October will be cancelled as it clashes with the National Rally.

I would like to remind members who have registered for the National rally in October that the next instalment of your entry fee is required by the end of May.

While we are on the subject of dates here are two important club events to put in your diary and plan to attend before other commitments in your activities are locked in.

The 2011 DAY OF TRIUMPH, Pride of Ownership and Concours Day at the TTG Civic park opposite the TTP to be held on Sunday the 11th of September.

The Annual club Christmas dinner and trophy presentation night at the Royal Adelaide Golf Club Seaton to be held on Saturday the 10th of December.

Look forward to catching up soon,

‘Til we meet again
John Sampson

Just prior to the last general meeting the committee held a short meeting to sanction a few changes we have been working on over the last couple of months, and I thought the general membership should be advised even though it will not affect the day to day running of the club.

First of all Peter Davidge has been reviewing the clubs finances and how the funds are managed, and we have approved his recommendations to continue forward with three accounts that will gain an improved return on our funds and allow the treasurer greater flexibility in running our accounts. We will progressively move to electronic fund transfer and rely less on our old cheque account.

At the same meeting Peter presented, and the committee approved the budget for next year and we are please to advise that the club membership subscriptions will be held at the same level as the last couple of years, while maintaining the level of activities we have come to expect.

The weather has been kind to us on our last couple of runs and the breakfast run to Clarendon and beyond was enjoyed by all who attended, and my thanks go to Lyle and Sue for again organising this event.

The technical meeting held in early April with a practical session on spray painting was well attended with approximately 25 participants and thanks goes to John Tuohy and Richard Sutherland for planning and organising this event.

On Easter Saturday I ventured out to Mallala to watch the National Historic race meeting and again the weather was great and I had an enjoyable day watching the older cars compete in their historic events as well as several club members participating in the modern regularity events, due to another commitment I had to leave before the day was over and I am sure any results achieved on the day will be reported later in this magazine.

On the day it was pleasing to see a TR2, TR3A, TR4, TR4A, 4 x TR6’s, a 2500 estate and a Daimler Dart on display in the designated area, and while 2 of these cars did not belong to our club members the marque was again well represented amongst the 50 or so vehicles on display.

Three of the Triumph display cars took advantage of the lunch time parade and did five or six laps around the circuit under the control of a pace car, and while it was not race conditions it was a bit of a buzz to get a feel of the circuit.

Look forward to catching up soon,
‘Til we meet again

John Sampson

Global disarray with floods, earthquakes, tsunami’s and nuclear plant meltdowns, while I share all the sorrow, concerns and sympathy for those countries and people caught up in these events, it brought home to me how lucky we are in S.A. and again reminded me that we should get out and enjoy our wonderful state and all it has to offer.

I would like to bring to your attention upcoming club events even though the specific details will be shown in following pages.I am not sure if this magazine will get to you in time for the next “Technical meeting” but on Saturday the 2nd of April there is a practical workshop on “Automotive spray painting” starting at 9.00am for approximately 3 hours. I understand we have just over 20 members interested in this event and there are still a couple of positions left, so if you have delayed your decision to attend to the last minute then ring John Tuohy on 8443 5493 or 0418 838 074 and I am sure he can get you in.

Over Easter the Sporting Car Club of SA will be holding the 30th Easter National Historic race meeting and Classic Display / Lunchtime Parade on Saturday 23rd at Mallala Motorsport Park If you have nothing planned for that day there is a Golden opportunity to promote the club and our marque, by attending this event and displaying your vehicle either as an individual or with the club at the Saturday display day.

There is a cost to enter but if you have more than one person in your car then it is cheaper than attending the day just to watch the event, and if you are interested then you can also do a lap or maybe two of the Mallala circuit under controlled conditions. For further details again see inside this copy of Track, but remember you must register and have your entry in by the 8th of April.  Contact Trevor Lindsay for details, again his contact details are in the inside front cover of Track, or visit the Sporting Car Club of SA’s website sportingcarclubsa.org.au for more details of this day and the full long weekend’s activities.

The Triumph Weekender in late May is filling up quickly and if you intend joining this special club weekend then ring Margie and Bill on 0409 849 314 / 0438 836 837 to confirm your booking, thanks goes to Margie and Bill for all the work put in  to this event over the last weeks.

Do not forget the TSOA National rally to Mt Gambier, Victor Harbor with the side trip to K.I if you so desire, bookings are being finalised now but there may still be a chance to join in for last minute booking contact Bob and Natalie on 8370 7210.

Of course all the planned Sunday and mid week runs are as normal so there are many opportunities for the balance of the year to take your pride and joy out on the road and mix with fellow club members and enjoy our state.

Till we meet again

John Sampson

Last week I read an interesting article in the January 2011 edition of OCTANE magazine, so I have paraphrased some of the detail (and hopefully not infringed any copy write)The regular column was written by Jay Leno the American Talk show host who is also well known as a true petrol head with a “massive” collection of classic and prestige vehicles. That’s the magazine’s description of Jay not mine.

The Article starts off “My McLaren F1 went back into the McLaren service centre near LA recently” and he goes on to describe how depressing it is for him that he cannot do the work in his own workshop as there is no workshop manual. While he loves the car his passion for it has not grown because he doesn’t feel involved with the car.

Jay goes on to say he enjoys cars like his Lotus Elan, XK120 and others in his collection because he is “involved in their inner workings” and finds them much more exciting to drive, because he is intimately involved with them, and therefore wants to use them more.

He wonders if today’s “enthusiasts” (I guess meaning the next generation) feel and care for their vehicles as much, as they do not understand how they work, he refers to a website called wrecked Exotics, which is about people who have wrecked the newly purchased exotic cars, sometimes in the first few weeks of owning them and then go out and buy another one, the throwaway society. He obviously mixes in different circles than we do. He goes on saying that you rarely see a classic vehicles on this website as their owners have worked on, polished, changed the oil on their special vehicles, and drive them with respect.

The article continues on and makes other similar points, and I feel no need to continue, but in made me ponder, our club and our members who obviously fall under the same heading as Jay’s Classic vehicle owners, are passionate about their vehicles, but what about the next generation ?I think it is important for us as a club and club members to get out there and display our vehicles, learn more about how they work and pass this on to the “next generation”

To this end I am pleased we as a club are trying to promote and revive our Technical meetings and I would encourage as many members as possible to attend these special events as they evolve.

Hopefully you will pick up and learn techniques therefore gaining confidence to attempt the work yourself.

The next “Technical meeting” is a learn how to “spray paint session” with a practical workshop. Details can be found in this edition of Track. Come along and learn, but be quick as there are only about 30 places. New members and those currently restoring their cars who normally do not attend our functions are welcome to come along too.

If any member has ideas or suggestions that could evolve into further Technical meetings then I am sure John Tuohy (contact details inside font cover of Track.) would help develop them.

There is also a Golden opportunity to promote the club and the marque, by attending the Easter Historic race meeting at Mallala on Easter Saturday the 23rd of April, and displaying your vehicle either as an individual or as a club at the Saturday display day. There is a cost to enter but if you have more than one person in your car then it is cheaper than attending the day just to watch the event, and if you are interested then you can also do a lap or maybe two of the Mallala circuit under controlled conditions. For further details again see inside this copy of Track, but remember you must register and have your entry in by early April.  Contact Trevor Lindsay for details, again his contact details are in the inside front cover of Track, or visit the Sporting Car Club of SA’s website.

Last Sunday the All British Day was held at the Uraidla oval, and it was a roaring success, the weather was perfect and there was a record attendance. I would like to thank Arrand Ellery, Kevin McEnroe and Kevin Foster for helping with the marshalling on the day.

A special thanks also goes out to all the club members who helped make up the TRIUMPH Display on the day, it was a great turn out.  Again the 47 vehicles from a single marque club was up there as one of the largest club displays. If you missed out this year then mark the second Sunday in February each year for this special picnic day and keep your eyes open for the entry forms in September each year.

That’s all for now.

Till we meet again

John Sampson

Welcome to an exciting New year of TSOA events for 2011, once again the committee believe we have planned a great year of events and activities to satisfy and expand our active membership.

Furthermore this year again it is our privilege to host the Triumph National Rally, and some of our organising sub-committee have recently been away fine tuning the program. The event is planned over 7 nights commencing in Mt Gambier, and concluding in Victor Harbor with an option to tack a 1 or 2 day post rally tour to Kangaroo Island. This is a wonderful opportunity to showcase our great state, renew past friendships, and make new friends with likeminded enthusiasts from interstate. I encourage you to consider participating in the whole Rally or take advantage of attending part of the event. Details on our website or for part Rally participation please contact Bob Farrell 8370 7210, but be quick.

The annual ICECREAM run is to be held on Sat 29th January commencing just off Greenhill road and cruising along the beaches from Glenelg to Semaphore, a great night run for all.

The annual ALL BRITISH DAY will be held on Sunday 13th February at the Uraidla Oval. If you have not booked your car into this fantastic day as a display vehicle, then make your way to the oval and enjoy the 875 British vehicles on display. This year we are located under the  shade of the trees so an enjoyable picnic day is assured. A great lunch is available from the local CFS at a very reasonable cost, so just hop in your car and come on up.

The following week on Sunday 20th February we have another picnic day programmed to the Peter Lehmann winery Tanunda for the MSCA PRESENTATION DAY, we are meeting at the TTP car park for a leisurely run to the event, we look forward to seeing you there enjoying another fantastic day.

More details of the above events are available in the magazine on the promotion pages and the Event Calendar in the back.

Our informal general meeting held on January 18th at the Sporting Car Club rooms was well attended, and from the questions raised hopefully our technical presentation on brake lines and fittings was well received. Should you have any further questions or require a clearer explanation on any associated subject then feel free to contact me or catch up at a future event, and I will try answer them.

Watch the magazine promotions for future technical meetings and practical demonstrations we are planning for this year.

‘Til we meet again

John Sampson

Two recent events are worthy of reporting in this column, the first was a tour of the manufacturing plant of Performance Alloy Wheels at North Plympton, where approximately 25 club members took the opportunity to learn more about the process of making Alloy wheels.

During the visit we witnessed the manufacturing process from the melting of the alloy in the furnace, the pouring of the molten metal into the forming moulds the subsequent heat treatment and quenching process that prepared the cast wheels ready for the machining and pressure testing after this the wheels were moved to the painting / clear lacquering process in the spray booths, all processes were working during our visit and members found them most interesting. Our tour was guided by Ed Sanders the owner of the business who was willing to discuss and answer all questions put forward.  I believe we all left with a better understanding of manufacturing process and how the wheels are made ready for the showroom.

We are most grateful to Ed who has kindly donated a set of Performance Alloy Wheels and these  will be our major prize for the raffle at the TSOA nationals next year.  My thanks to Bob Farrell and John Tuohy for organising the visit.

The other event held during November was a combined run with the Healey Sprite club to the Greenock Aviation Museum, the event was very well attended with a total of 60 people meeting at Civic part opposite TTP for a pleasant Sunday run through Gumeracha, Williamstown, Springton and then to Angaston for a coffee break. We then travelled on through Nuriootpa to the Greenock museum where we set up a display of our cars prior to enjoying a BBQ lunch and visiting the aviation display.

The museum was a unanimous success with the display of many planes, aero engines and memorabilia along with a collection of Commer trucks, farm equipment and other miscellaneous items. Some of us stopped for more coffee and shopping on the way home at the Virginia Nursery.   All in all a very full and successful day, and I thank all who attended from both clubs.

The last event for the year will be our traditional mid week run between Christmas and New Year, so give some thought to attending, for details please refer later in this Mag.

Our January meeting is normally an informal get together at the club rooms with the ladies leaving us for a period to partake in gelato and or coffee, with the men discussing cars and old times.  This year we are trying something different and I will be presenting a talk on brake line material and hopefully a simple flaring and tube bending demonstration if I can acquire the tooling. So if you have heard of BUNDY TUBE and know it is the material to use for brake lines, but do not know why, I will try and explain the difference between BUNDY and other tube types.

Other topics to be covered on the night will be a brief history and description of the manufacturing processes, tube coatings, types of flares and tube nuts. Come along bring your questions and I will try and answer them.

Your committee has recently reviewed the point structure for the Clubman Trophy and has made revisions to points awarded for attending, planning and reporting on club events. New points as follows –

3 points for organising a club run
3 points for attending a TSOA event
3 points for attending a run in a Triumph
1 point for attending a run in other vehicle
3 points for an original article of substance in TRak
1 point for a monthly article of information
3 points for a letter of substance published in TRak
10 points for attending the National Rally

We have introduced this revision to encourage the promotion and use of our special vehicles, and in an effort to encourage a closer more even competition for the Clubman trophy.

I look forward to seeing you all at the Presentation Dinner on the 4th December at the Royal Adelaide Golf Club.

On behalf of Barb and myself I would like to wish everyone a very happy Christmas and New Year.

Drive safely over the festive season and hope to see you soon . . . . .

John Sampson

My thanks go out to Ian and Raelene Rigby for setting this year’s All Triumph Rally for the Tony Esau Memorial Trophy. The wet weather held off and we had a pleasant run through the Adelaide hills to Strathalbyn with a club sponsored BBQ for lunch. The lucky winners this year were Bill and Margie Berlemon who will set the challenge next year.

Ian and Raelene set a new standard in the presentation of the run sheet with colour photo’s and other helpful information to help us get through the event – well done.

The club Christmas Dinner and trophy presentation night will be held at the Royal Adelaide Golf Club, Tapleys Hill Road, Seaton on the 4th of December.  Please contact Sue Gibson on 8449 7814 if you intend coming but have yet to book.  Your reservation and full payment is required no later than our November 16th meeting or you will miss out on our final event for the year. The venue and the meal are tops and I encourage any member who has yet to book their place for this year’s dinner to do so soon.

Your committee is currently working on the event programme for year 2011 and this will include the normal once a month Sunday run and the occasional mid week run as we have traditionally done. Further to this we are proposing to put a plan in place to reintroduce a minimum of 3 Technical meetings during next year. These could include practical demonstrations of panel work, spray painting and other restoration type work that would be of interest to members working on their own restoration projects.

We are hoping that this type of activity would be held on week nights or on Saturdays, and we will advise in the club Magazine from time to time. We would hope this may encourage members who would not normally attend club functions to come along and learn from these sessions but more importantly meet club members who could also pass on some experiences from their restoration projects.

Hope to see you soon

John Sampson

The NSW national rally is over and 18 weary South Aussies who attended, are now adjusting back into normal life patterns again. This year’s event was held in Kangaroo Valley just inland from Nowra on the picturesque NSW coast. This was a tremendous event and the NSW committee should be proud of their efforts, as there were activities to suit every taste from motor sport to a guided tour of a Buddhist temple, or a visit to the Bradman Museum in Bowral, but I am sure full reports will be published, if not in this month’s magazine then in next months.

While on the subject, next years national rally is to be held in S.A. in October, with 4 nights in Mt Gambier and 3 nights in Victor Harbor, with an after rally option on Kangaroo Island at an additional cost. We invite you to attend and meet new like minded friends and renew old friendships.Our rally committee is currently working hard fine tuning our event in an endeavour  to satisfy every Triumph enthusiast. The registration forms are now available on this web site.

I would like to remind you of the combined run with the Austin Healy Sprite club to the Greenock Aviation Museum on the 14th November.  For catering purposes I will need to confirm our booking numbers with the venue by 5/11/10. There will be a $10 cost to cover the BBQ lunch and entry to the museum, details of the run are shown later in this mag.

I believe a lot of members have heard of Bundy tube, but how many people know what Bundy tube is, what makes it unique, why it is specified for automotive brake lines and what safety issues should you be aware of when using it. Since I retired from TI Automotive (formally Bundy Tubing Aust.) a couple of years ago, I had heard some worrying stories from individuals and even Brake industry outlets that they were advising and or supplying unsuitable product to the public, to my knowledge this has now been rectified.

While it is not specifically a Triumph issue, I am proposing to make a technical presentation and answer any questions that members may have during our informal January 2011 meeting while the ladies are away enjoying a cup of coffee or ice cream. Don’t get me wrong if any ladies are interested they will be more than welcome to stay for the presentation, if it all comes together in time for the meeting. I will keep you informed over the next few meetings.

I hope to see you soon
John Sampson