Our busy year is continuing with attendance numbers being very good at club meetings and events.

There was a good representation of members of TSOA and TR Register at the McLaren Vale Vintage and Classic 2024 on Sunday 14th April. This is a great event, and we will think about incorporating it as a club event next year, as all who attended had a great time.

We welcomed our secretary, Duane Kaak back at our April meeting, and had two more cars on stage. Errol Murray told us about his TR4 which he purchased last year from Collectible Classics at Strathalbyn. Errol is new to the Triumph world, although wanting one for many years, and we are very pleased he finally took the plunge. His Four is a particularly nice car and I am sure he will get great pleasure in owning it.
Rob Hanna has a great looking 2500TC Saloon which he purchased reasonably recently to add to his fleet of two other Triumph saloons. Rob lives at Greenock, so he had quite a distance to drive to and from the Sporting Car Club at Unley.

We had a committee meeting prior to the April club meeting, where we accepted our treasurer, Lisa Macleod’s recommendation to maintain subscriptions at $50 for full members, and $25 for social members for 2024/25. The club is in a strong financial position, and the committee believes that it would be appropriate to use some of these funds to subsidise subscriptions for another year. Subscriptions in 2017/18 were $75 for full members, and were reduced at the time of COVID, due to normal club activities being suspended. We have reduced some operating costs such as mailing out hard copy newsletters, and have operated at around break even since the end of COVID. We are budgeting operating losses over the next two years, and therefore, next year, subscriptions may to have to increase.

Thanks Lisa for her careful management of club finances, which has allowed us to keep subsriptions at such a low level for another year. Lisa will be sending out renewal notices shortly. Please pay these promptly, and by 30th June at the latest. All club committee positions are voluntary, and following up slow payers is a time-consuming exercise for an already very busy person. As we have to report non-financial members on the concessional registration scheme to DIT, and they then have registrations cancelled, there is significant responsibility and high workload that Lisa, Ian Rigby have, and late payers make their task that much harder.

Our most recent social event was a run from Burnside Town Hall to Riverbend Park at Clarendon on Sunday 21st April. This was a most enjoyable day, being a scenic run through the Adelaide Hills, and ending at what really is one of Adelaide’s hidden gems, a lovely park at Clarendon. We had excellent attendance, most in their Triumphs, and enjoyed a gourmet BBQ by Bill and Margie Berlemon, and icecreams provided by Lawrie and Kay Placing. Lawrie and Kay helped social secretary Natalie Farrell organise the run, and Natalie also excelled in arranging perfect weather. I know all who attended had a great day.

There is still a room left for the Weekender on the 17th to 19th May, based at the Goolwa Motel. This promises to be one of the highlights of the club year, and for anyone (particularly any new members who may not have thought about it until now) who would like to attend, please contact the Berlemons (Bill ph 0409 894 314 or Margie ph 0438 836 837) to secure this last room.

Our next social run is on 16th June, when we are going to the Beach Road Winery at McLaren Vale for lunch – Pizzas and/or salads will be on the menu. See the TSOA Calendar for more details.
Finally, congratulations to Tim and Carolyn Wachtel who’s lovely GT6 won “Best British Car” at the Swan Reach Classic Auto River Run 2024, against stiff competition from a range of Britain’s finest.

Regards
Alex Smithson
President