TRIUMPH TRAILS

PRESIDENT

Jerry Stewart

5100 Trail Ridge Ln

Choctaw, OK 73020

(405) 391-6392

js5100@mcloudteleco.com

VICE-PRESIDENT

Jean Scott Gauldin

Edmond, OK 73034

(405) 844-0413

jscottgauldin@okdisciples.org

TREASURER

Bill Gingerich

18600 Andrew Ln

Newalla, OK 74857-8774

(405) 386-4777

bill@gingerich.us

SECRETARY

Nancy Wise

3900 Patterson Dr

Edmond OK 73013

(405) 285-7157

howard87@cox.net

HISTORIAN BOY

Mike Billotte

8101 NW 28^th St

Bethany, OK 73008

(405) 789-1725

piwac@swbell.net

MEMBERSHIP

Jean Scott Gauldin

Edmond, OK 73034

(405) 844-0413

jscottgauldin@okdisciples.org

MEMBER-AT-LARGE

Dennis Eckhout

641 Jean Marie DR

Norman, OK 73069

(405) 366-0137

deckhout@sbcglobal.net

ACTIVITIES

Anne Gingerich

18600 Andrew Ln

Newalla, OK 74857-8774

(405) 386-4777

raggetyannie@yahoo.com

NEWSLETTER EDITOR

John Gauldin

Edmond, OK 73034

(405) 250-0903

trdr@cox.net

MISSION STATEMENT

The Central Oklahoma Vintage Triumph Register (C.O.V.T.R.) was established in 1982 by Triumph owners and enthusiasts for the purpose of preserving the future of the Triumph Marque. Triumph ownership is encouraged but not a prerequisite for membership. The C.O.V.T.R. sponsors a monthly meeting, monthly SOB’s, car shows, road tours and technical inspections.

From Your President:

Well folks, here it is the second day of spring 2008. It’s 72°, partly cloudy and it’s an outstandingly beautiful day!! I don’t know about you, but after the winter of 2007/8, I’m definitely ready for spring... minus the tornadoes of course. Like many others, Sue and I are still cutting down trees and picking up limbs from the December ice storm. Perhaps Mother Nature will give us a mild summer.

If you did not make Lonny and Kay Wall’s Enid Frost Bite Run, you missed a real treat. Like last year, it was a little chilly for top down driving but that didn’t stop the fun. If I remember correctly, there were fourteen COVTR members who participated. Great turn out for a cold and windy day. Our first stop was Skeleton Creek (film) Production Company. Our two guides, Rick and Larry Simpson (when acting they’re Stormy Lane and Texas Clapsaddle) gave us a first class tour of their productions sets. Their sets included a saloon, hotel lobby, a bank, a chapel, a jail and a hotel room where Texas Clapsaddle tried to get a little “western movie” hanky-panky going with Kay Wall, but she ran away! Rick and Larry were informative, funny and super great hosts. If you have never visited their studio, I highly recommend you make the trip. It’s quite interesting and educational.

Our second stop in Enid was Callahan’s Pub and Gill on North Independence. Everyone celebrated St. Patrick’s Day a little early. Special thanks go to Kip Miles for bringing the two door prizes. Howard Holdsclaw won the six-pack of brew and Kay Wall won a bag of pecans. Kay promised to bring pecan pralines to the Regionals in April…if she gets her oven fixed! Thanks Kip.

Speaking of Regionals, I hope everyone is considering the trip to Tyler, Texas this month. It would sure be nice to see a great representation of Oklahoma Triumphs there. If you haven’t made your reservations yet, it might be wise to do it soon. Sue and I are looking forward to going since this will be our first Regional with “Spidy.”

I was getting ready to wrap up my input to this newsletter yesterday when Lonny Wall called and invited Sue and me on a “spur-of-the-moment” run to Lucile’s Restaurant in Mulhall, OK. As it turned out, ten people with six Triumphs and one PT Cruiser made the trip. What a great turnout for a “quickie” trip! Folks, I have only one thing to say about Lucile’s Restaurant and their chicken fried steak sandwich…it’s huge! If you ever go to Lucile’s and order their chicken fried steak sandwich, I hope you’re hungry. Half of mine went home with Nancy Wise to feed her dog.

I better stop rambling. Hope to see everyone at our next meeting April 1. Take care and please drive safe.

Jerry Stewart

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From the Veep:

As I write this, many of us are still commemorating Easter. John and I have celebrated the secular rites – waited for the Easter Bunny, bit the head off the chocolate bunny, eaten purple, pink and yellow M & Ms, put on our new clothes – and we’ve celebrated the sacred rites, too – “Christ is Risen. He is Risen, indeed.” Out of the realm of both, however, there lies the “pseudo- Easter” (as I call it). This is the commemoration of restoration, or bringing back those items that were believed lifeless. Gabriel is one. Gabriel came to our home (with quite a bit of help from Jack Beckham & Lonny Wall) last week. It is a 63 Triumph Herald. This one, however, did have a faint sign of life – the engine started. I don’t know what that engine was going to transport, since the rest of the vehicle is in need of extensive plastic surgery, a la Michael Jackson. But Easter is the time for hope.

Even though our redbud trees now have just a hint of pink, our forsythia are in full yellow, and it looks like the magnolia tree made it through the winter, the sound of Gabriel’s engine is more than enough to make us believe in rebirth.

I dare say this sign of life will have to be followed by LOTS of assistance if it is to make a complete recovery. The hope that wells up in us during the “pseudo-Easter” may just put Gabriel back into the car lot of the living.

- Jean Scott Gauldin

Activities Report

Greetings fellow members! As I write this I have reviewed the pictures posted from the “Frostbite Rally” to Enid, it appears you had a wonderful time! Bill and I spent the weekend driving back from MN for a “Relies and Kelly’s” event. From a baby shower present delivery, dinners with family and friends (My oldest son & his girlfriend, Sarah, cooked!) To the main event: The funeral of a long-time family friend, Mary Kelly. The kind of friend you feel is family. I know you can relate, as that’s the kind of friends we make in COVTR.

Cheers, Anne Gingerich

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Text Box: Important Notice!
Membership dues are now past due! Please send in your dues ($15 single, $25 couples) ASAP to Treasurer Bill Gingerich, 18600 Andrew Ln, Newalla, OK 74857-8774, (405) 386-4777

The 2008 COVTR Frostbite Run

By Lonny Wall

It was a dark and stormy morning... No, not really, but is WAS kind of brisk (cold!) LuAnne had an interesting comment. Perhaps the name "frostbite run" is a self fulfilling prophecy. Anyway, the run didn't start out as I had planned. It seems that the Oklahoma Visitor Information Center doesn't open the gates until 8:30 am. Since we were to meet at 8:00, which meant that we crowded up in their driveway, while a few folks walked across the street to McDonalds to fortify for the trip. Present were Dennis Eckhout and LuAnn (TR6), the co-sponsors of the event, Mike & Bonnie Billotte (Spitfire), Lonny and Kay Wall (MGB??????????????????), Jerry and Sue Stewart (TR7), Howard and Nancy Wise (TR7), Jerry and Jackie Wall (Stag), and Howard and Lois Holdsclaw (TR-UCK) The Holdsclaws had a last minute brake problem, and came anyway. Good on 'em!

We left the starting point promptly at 8:15 and headed up I-35 to Guthrie, proceeding east on 33 to old US77, then north. The trip through the Wildcat Curves north of Guthrie was fun and then, in Mulhall, the Lucas gods struck Howard and Nancy, and their recently running yellow TR7. It seems the alternator wanted to pout, and the battery was dead. They decided to call a relative and wait for a new battery to get home, and graciously suggested that we go on. We thought we were going to meet the Steindls at the SH51/US77 intersection, but they were not there. On a slight change of proposed course, we proceeded north on 77 to SH164 and turned west through Lucien to SH74 where we turned north through Covington (where we had the obligatory comfort/cappuccino stop) to US412. As it turns out, the thermostat in our MGB (??????) would not allow the car to warm properly, and Jerry's Stag heater is inoperative (gotta fix that someday) so at least 4 of us were READY for the hot cappuccino!!

Heading west into Enid on 412 (a good road) we turned north on Independence a few blocks through the town square, and right on Randolph a few blocks to Simpson’s at the projected time of 10:30. This place was a DELIGHTFUL surprise! The brothers Simpson were dressed in western regalia (including Colt 45's) and treated us to a tour of their facility where we saw movie sets, memorabilia, and stories of the Cherokee Strip and cowboy days. I don't know what I was expecting, but I could have spent a LOT more time there and been happy. They operate on donations, and a few of us bought a couple of their movies on DVD. We were met there by Kip Miles (TR6), and by Fred and Darlene Rabe (SUV) from Shattuck, who drove over to be with us. Regretfully, we had to go because we had a reservation at the restaurant, and Jerry Wall discovered that HIS battery was toast as well. Kip Miles gave him a jump start and led him over to an auto parts store where he bought a replacement.

Because of St. Patrick’s Day (almost) we chose Callahan’s Pub and Grill for lunch, where they had a selection of British style menu items and British beers. I had a pair of Guinness’s and a Dublin Meat Pie. Others had Shepherd’s Pie, and fish and chips. There were good burgers and other menu items for lighter appetites. I was looking for corned beef and cabbage, but no luck. We had the upstairs room to ourselves, and found it a great experience. Kip miles brought a HUGE bag of shelled pecans (for the ladies) and a six pack of Smithwicks Ale (for the men) for door prizes. Kay Wall won the pecans (yum, pecan pie!) and Howard Holdsclaw won the Ale. Fred spoke about the Shattuck car show and gave me information on that which I will share with the activities mavens.

We left Enid about 2:30, well fed, and headed back south. We traveled on 412 east to I-35 and then south to a well deserved nap.

Lessons Learned:

1) Make sure that the meeting place is open at the time to meet.

2) Cell phones sure work well if there are problems. If you don't have one, get one.

3) Leader should carry the cell phone list.

Respectfully,

Lonny Wall

(Editor’s note: MGB, what’s he thinking?)

Membership Meeting Minutes

President Jerry Stewart called the March 4, 2008 meeting to order at 7:10 pm.

Minutes of the previous meeting were discussed and approved as read.

Treasurer’s Report: Bill Gingerich by Bonnie Billotte. Report is for the month of February.

Membership Report: Jean Scott Gauldin

Membership cards were given out. Special cards for lifetime and charter membership were given.

Activities Report: Anne Gingerich

Frostbite Run was canceled due to weather. Dennis Eckhout reported that British Car Week is 5/31 to 6/8. Lonny and Dennis have rescheduled Frostbite for 3/15. The group will meet at the welcome center at I-35 and NE 122 at 8:30 and travel to Enid as planned. The tour of the movie studio and museum will begin at 10:30 and lunch will be at Callahan’s at 11:30 or 12:00.

Newsletter Report: John Gauldin

John asked that when sending pictures to him, they should be under 60K in size.

Old Business:

Mike Billotte gave out t-shirts members had ordered. He also announced that the club made about $1,200.00 working the Leake auction. We logged 248 hours at the auction, thanks to all who worked.

New Business:

Jerry Stewart is putting together a cell phone list for SOB’s. Dennis Eckhout is going to investigate the idea of a joint picnic with other participating car clubs after the next Leake auction in 2009.

Jean Scott Gauldin will organize the Drive-In Movie SOB. Mike Billotte discussed jacket patches with the club logo. You must buy 50 patches at a time. He suggested that the club buy these and give them to new members. He asked that discussion of this be taken up at the next meeting. The question of a new meeting place was discussed. Jerry Stewart and Mike Billotte will research this.

Bitch & Brag:

Lonny reported that he went on a medical mission trip near Cancun, Mexico with his church. He was the “fix-it” staff. He had a great time. (One of the Doc’s who went on the trip told me that, “Lonny can fix anything.” N.W.)

Mike and Bonnie Billotte have a new granddaughter. John Gauldin’s daughter Julie is now “Dr. “. Congratulations to Julie as she recently got an Assistant Professor position at the University of Maryland. She and her husband Ben will be moving to Maryland in July.

Door Prizes:

D-ring – A. Gingerich

Go-Jo wipes – J. Piggott

Liquid tape – L. Holdsclaw

D-ring – M. Piggott

Magnets COVTR – 2008

D. Harrell

L. Wall

N. Wise

M. Billotte

K. Gilbert

Magazines

T. Lane

J. Gauldin

D. Eckhout

Meeting adjourned 7:45 p.m.

2008 VTR South Central Regionals

This year the RRTC is hosting the annual Vintage Triumph Registry (VTR) South Central Regional Triumph Meet. Since your club resides within the region (Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arkansas, Louisiana), we would be pleased if you would add this event to your events calendar and encourage your membership to attend. We’d like to make this one of the most attended and most successful events in years.

This event will be held in Tyler TX at the height of the flower season for east Texas. We plan to have the usual events: Autocross, Fun or Gimmick Rally, Funkana, Breakfast and dinner runs and a Concours d'Elegance car show. Fun drives in the local area, a tour of the Jerry Ball Car Museum and an awards banquet are also on the 4 day schedule.

All Triumph models from the 1930s to the 1980s are expected. All British marques welcome. See website (redrivertriumphclub.org) for details.

Some particulars about our event:

Title: 2008 VTR South Central Regional Triumph Meet

Dates: 16 to 19 April 2008

Location: Holiday Inn Select, 5701 South Broadway, Tyler TX (100 miles east of Dallas)

Hotel Rate: $79 per night.

Host: Red River Triumph Club

URL: http://www.redrivertriumphclub.org/regional2008_index.html

Contacts: Jim Thompson - JimT@ieee.org and Paul Higley - SDIPDH@aol.com

Registration fees: $70 to enter a car. This includes entry in all driving events and two tickets to the welcome party. Additional cars will be $25 per vehicle. The awards banquet will be about $27. Ball caps and T shirts will be offered for a reasonable charge.

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MI POCO MECCANICO ITALIANO (MY LITTLE ITALIAN GARAGE)

by Michael Lake

It's hard to believe it's been a year already here in Italy. The time goes by so fast, but I wanted to share with you some of the things that have been going on Spitfire-wise since moving here to Italy, and some of the work that I've done in my little Italian garage.

It began last February - my first Triumph "hurdle" being stationed here in Italy. "LC" (it stands for Lonny's Car, for those of you who don't know, because I bought the 1979 Spit from Lonny Wall, and my son, Richard, still calls it "Lonny's car", so that's what we call it now) had made the trip across the ocean and wasn't too much worse for the wear, and I had been driving her for about a week. I had to get an inspection in order to license the car through the base, and didn't anticipate any problems because she was running great. As I'm waiting in line at the inspection station, I discover my turn signals no longer work. No kidding, they worked that morning, but now they don't! My guess is there was some corrosion that was facilitated by the salt water atmosphere on the boat trip over. So I fail the inspection, and make my first trans-oceanic plea for Triumph help to my friend John Gauldin, who duplicates the problem in the shop and sends me a fix. Turns out it was a contact that wasn't making the connection in the emergency flasher switch, and I was able to fix it by jumping a "hot" wire to the light green/slate wire on the flasher unit. So I got her registered and she's running great, and one day I notice an oil leak towards the rear of the cylinder head, which is getting progressively worse. Not sure how that happened, since I replaced the head gasket just before moving over here, but I ended up removing the head and sure enough, the gasket had failed and was letting oil through.

Shortly after that repair, the starter failed, so I replaced it. Immediately following that, the overdrive stopped engaging. That's a big deal for me here, because even with the discounted gas coupons that I get through the base, I still pay about $3.85 a gallon - which is a far sight better than the approximately $7.50 the Italians pay! With the dollar getting crushed by the Euro right now, it's probably closer to $8 a gallon. I was getting about 30-35 MPG in my Spit, driving it to work on days when the weather was nice. That extra MPG that the O/D gave me was important, and again, thanks to John, I discovered a wire in the harness leading from the switch to the solenoid was faulty. I still don't know why it did that, but I replaced it with some new wiring and it worked like a champ.

With spring approaching, I replaced the fuel pump, fuel lines and overhauled my carb. My son, Richard, was a great help to me, and we had fun working on the car together. Got everything back together, running great, and then all of a sudden LC won't start one day. I notice that the ignition indicator light on the speedometer isn't lighting up when I turn on the ignition, so now I suspect that I have an ignition problem. I have a spark, and the fuel pump is pumping, so I don't know what else to think. A phone call to John and some great advice: "... if it isn't working, start with the last thing you fooled with". Yes, I agree, but it was working fine after the carb rebuild, and now the ignition light isn't coming on, so it must be that. Turns out that when my dear Richard was helping me clean out the carb, a tiny bit of cotton from a Q-tip (about the size of a BB) got left behind in one of the channels leading to the choke assembly. I didn't notice it because (initially) I could still shoot some carb cleaner through all the channels and orifices, but once it got into the right spot, it prevented the fuel from flowing out of the fuel float chamber. After about 30 minutes of trying to fish the offending cotton out, LC is up and running again. My O/D has quit engaging (again), so that's the next thing on the list to attack now. But I think that today, I'm just going to enjoy the fact that LC is running and go for a drive up in the foothills of the Dolomite Mountains. Hope to see you all again soon! - Michael

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ROAD TRIP TO HALLETT RACE TRACK - CORINTHIAN VINTAGE AUTO RACING

LuAnne and I will lead a group of interested COVTR members to Hallett Race Track to view the Corinthian Vintage auto races on Saturday, April 5. The first qualifying group is out at 8:00am. When we went in 2005 and 2006, we arrived around 10:00am, enjoyed a couple of hours of qualifying before lunch and then racing all afternoon until finished. There are a variety of routes that will take us the 90 or so miles in a bit under two hours.

The Details:

Date: Saturday, April 5

Meet: 8:00 am, depart 8:15 am

Place: Tourist Information Center, I-35 and 122^nd across from Love’s

Route: Rt. 66 east to Rt. 99, north to Hallett* (*Subject to change.)

Admission: $5 per person in any pre-1972 vehicle. $10 otherwise.

Email reminders will be sent to everyone next week.

Adverse weather conditions, including forecast cold temps, wind, rain, etc. will result in postponing the trip until the fall races. We will monitor the forecast through Friday evening, April 4^th, and let everyone know at that time if we decided to postpone. Please contact me if you plan to join us, or have any questions, comments, or suggestions.

Dennis Eckhout, 366-0137, deckhout@sbcglobal.net

COVTR Activities for 2008

Date Activity Notes POC

4/5 Vintage Racing Watch Fuqua Race At Hallett TBD

4/16-19 VTR Regionals Triumphs & Roses in Tyler TX TBD

4/27 Winery Tour Let There Be Wine J&J Wall

5/17 Mt Scott/Meers OK Drive a Mountain H&N Wise

5/31–6/8 British Car Week Drive Your LBC, A Lot!

6/6-9 New Mexico Tour Gotta Love It! J&J Gauldin

6/11-15 TRA Nationals Huron OH

6/21 Rock Café Eat in Stroud OK Old Route 66 J&S Stewart

7/20 Baseball & BassPro Redhawks Game in Bricktown B&A Gingerich

7/26 Wedding Bells LuAnne & Dennis Get Married

8/4-8 VTR Nationals Ypsilanti,, MI www.natc2008.com

8/23 Drive-In Movie Guthrie OK, Movie TBA Jean Scott Gauldin

9/6 Mystery Breakfast Come Along, It Will Be Good! M&B Billotte

9/20 Progressive Dinner Fine Dining in Edmond K Wall & L Speegle

10/3-5 Vintage Racing Hallett Motor Racing

10/24-26 Red River Shootout No More Red Shorts! H&N Wise

11/7-9 Fall Foliage Tour Eureka Springs AK WHEEEE! J&J Gauldin / L Wall

12/6 Tour-O-Lights ~*Twinkle*~*Twinkle*~*Twinkle* M&B Billotte

12/14 Christmas Party Dinner & Dirty Santa H&N Wise

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COVTR

PO BOX 12272

OKLAHOMA CITY OK 73157-2272