Suggestions for Model A Club Activities?

[Napa Skip]

Our club is fairly active (for a bunch of older Model A owners) but we would like to add some new Model A activities to our repertoire. We have any number of the “let’s meet on Saturday morning and go tour the XYZ” activities (as in, Anheuser-Busch Brewery, Jelly Belly Factory, Anheuser-Busch Brewery, Western Railway Museum, Anheuser-Busch Brewery…), poker runs, garage-sale scavenger hunts, etc. And we just spent several weekends over a 3-month period repairing one member’s 1930 Fordor Sedan (that he inherited from his aunt/original owner and subsequently left in the care of his younger brother while in the service, said younger brother basically ripping out the interior and making other mods as yet unrepaired).

Additionally, we have a monthly club meeting with a mid-month ice cream social (that has basically turned into a mid-month ‘climb-in-your-Model A-and-eat-out’ event), punctuated with the occasional trip to local swap meets (Petaluma, Turlock, etc.).

However, does anyone have any other ideas for club activities (besides road rally’s, gymkhanas, and such, that require more judges/timers than drivers)? Any ideas (and a simple set of rules if the event is somewhat esoteric; after all, I’m an engineer…) would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance

[glenn in camino]

I just bought a new California atlas by Delorme (www.deLorme.com). On pages12 & 13 there are well over 100 listings for family outings. They probably make an similar atlas for every state. Happy touring.

[Arlen]

Our club does a yearly rally. Kinda like Great Race but easier. We've also done a few haunted tours where we spend the night in haunted hotel and at night take a ghost tour around town.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Originally Posted by Arlen

Our club does a yearly rally. Kinda like Great Race but easier. We've also done a few haunted tours where we spend the night in haunted hotel and at night take a ghost tour around town.

Sounds like great fun! May I come? Bill W's GHOST

[V4F]

we do parades , breakfast , drives to old places . not much when its this hot !

[Bruce Adams]

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NAPA VALLEY, and you didn't list Winery trips?
Do you do LADIES DRIVING CAR GAMES, with potatoe pick up, carry the wine glass, stop short of the marks, forward and backward, etc? (Maybe two judges, but the guys are there anyway)
I didn't see picnics or pool parties at members' homes on your list.
While they take a lot of helpers, you didn't list Technical Inspections.
Do you go LOOKING for undriven member cars that must be tuned up and such to have them participate in your many varied activities?

[Napa Skip]

Bruce - all good suggestions (as well as the others listed above). Winery tours are de rigueur out here (the daughter of our immediate past president works at Artesa Winery and we're there every year and our secretary works at Benessere Vineyards, so the club showed several cars there last month); you can't 'swing a cat' without hitting a winery in this neck of the woods (there are less than 7000 wineries in the US of which over 400 are in Napa Valley) so I didn't want to belabor the point - we've got wineries covered. Ditto picnics (an integral part of every tour, at least for those which don't include a breakfast or stopping at a restaurant) and our last pool party was last week (to celebrate our past president's 70th birthday). Every spring we have a Safety Inspection before we start club tours (actually, out here in California we are fortunate to be able to tour year-round as evidenced by our end-of-year holiday luncheon at the upvalley culinary school which is a joint affair with the Marin A's). Sadly, we don't have to go looking for undriven member cars that need work - they are legend and we've got at least two on the back burner.

But I really like the idea of a ladies driving car contest (not sure what to do about our secretary, who owns her own Model A and can probably out-drive most of the men in the club, truth be known) and the suggested elements (potato, wine glass, driving marks, etc.) are a great help. Then, when the guys quit finish making fun of the ladies we can see how well they do... Anyway, thanks again.

And for glen in camino, thanks - I've just ordered the California Delorme. For steve norcal - maybe we can do a joint club activity (such as tour the Anheuser-Busch Brewery).

[Muttley]

What about a burnout contest?

[400A-64]

My Wife & I with the help of another couple have put on several MYSTERY TOURS, some a one nighter and some two nighters. All were well recieved. We were able to get people to drive their "A" to places that they would never do on purpose. One that comes to mind was a picnic on top of MT Lassen on our way to Burney Falls. Once folks attend such a tour , they find confidence in their car that the did not realize that they had!! We instructed folks to bring swimsuits,heavy jackets,light summer attire and above all service their car especially the brakes!!
TRY IT ,YOU'LL LIKE IT!!!
Bruce Davis [email protected]

[Napa Skip]

"What about a burnout contest?"

Muttley - we'll schedule one when the temperature gets to 106 F up here (I can feel the eyes rolling in Fresno even as I type this...)

[JtownJoe]

That's funny, I don't care who you are!!!!

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

How about swapping distributors, timing the dang thing, and be first to a 300 yard finish line?? Bill W.

[zzlegend]

How about visiting the Anheuser-Busch Brewery?

[gweilbaker]

What about blind folding the better half, doesn't matter which side, and listen to direction from "another half", sort of tricky but they listen to others before you and do cones?

[dean from bozeman]

How about a Charity Rally?

There isn't a club for over a hundred miles from me and for about a month now I don't even have a driveable Model A but I do believe that I/we could develop an idea together.

Model Aers love to drive their A's and it's always nice to get new folks to enjoy the Model A experience. I am also the secretary-treasurer for a nonprofit that does things for the local youth.

How about organizing a car rally. Get 5 (or more) local organizations/businesses to pop for a $100 (or some nominal amount) entrance fee for their team. Have each team represent a local charity. Figure out some competition that would use 3 (or more) different navigators from each team ride seperately (tag team) in a Model A. One navigator would ride/direct at a time in each Model A.

At the completion of the event places would be calculated. The teams from the competition would split the $500 (1st = $150, 2nd=$125, 3rd=$100,4th=$75, 5th=$50).

1. Businesses would get a great PR boost by raising money for a charity.
2. The local charities would get donations and PR.
3. The local Model A club would get some PR, introduce some new folks to the joys of riding in a Model A and possibly get a new member or two out of the event.
4. Local TV and radio would eat this up because it is a triple whammy: Local charities benefitting from local businesses while the Model A gets showcased.

A picnic would be a great central location. The each of a team of navigators could take off from the event, drive seperate courses and then finish at the picnic. The final tabulaions could be do on a giant white board (Home depot sells 4' by 8' sheets of this for bathrooms).

The number of teams, the number of navigators, the number of Model A's used and the entrance fee could all be adjusted to suit a particular locale.

What say ye?

[glenn in camino]

Back in the 70s & 80s when I was in the Orange County chapter, we used to have a once a year progressive dinner, but as Orange County got more & more crowded, and dangerous in the dark, we changed it to a progressive brunch. We also used to have a wine tour on mother's day before all the wineries turned into subdivisions.

[Clem Clement]

Visits to senior centers. Breakfast's out some where. Surprise visits to a member unable to get out. The center square of some old quiet town. Have any drivein movies left in your area?

[Bruce Adams]

Visits to local VA Hospital and/or to Senior Residence Homes. The Senior homes generally give us bagels and coffee in the morning and a BBQ or luncheon later.
The residents sometimes have a popularity vote for favorite cars.

[Fred K-OR]

Skip, sounds like you have a active schedule of events already. But some of the suggestions could be interesting.

BTW Oregon is just about as good/or bad as far as the wineries that the swinging cat can hit.

We do tour around the local area seeing various points of interest. Sometimes these are things that have been visited before but as memtioned above, Model A'ers just like to drive their cars so going again is not a problem.

Also we did a route, I think it was called a "treasure hunt", where we drove a route and people had to spot certain things noted by the person setting up the route. Some items were easy to spot and some were not. So the car getting the most correct and driving the least number of miles (may have to turn around to find something), would win. Followed by lunch afterwards to award the prizes. Fun time.

[John LaVoy]

How about hosting a hub tour. We all come to Napa, stay in a hotel there, your group leads us on tours around the area, going a different direction each day? Works for me!