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Out of the Woodwork 2004We could not have asked for better weather than that which we experienced at this year’s Woodwork show October 9-11, 2004. A number of TVRs had already shown up at the Holiday Inn/Somerset by the time I finally made it there through horrible traffic, lane closures and other traffic problems on Friday afternoon. Seeing all those excited and eager members helped to chase away the stress of the 11 hour drive. By late Friday night, we already had about a dozen and a half TVRs in the hotel parking lot.
Saturday was spent making last minute preparations for the weekend as more and more TVRs arrived and members spent the day reviving old friendships, making new ones, and admiring everyone’s TVRs. It was exciting to see all the cars and members arriving. I was also quite pleased to see such a strong contingent from Canada arrive on both Friday and Saturday. And, we also had three visitors join us all the way from Germany this year. In addition, we had one new member, who doesn’t even have a TVR yet, drive in from Tulsa, OK to attend Woodwork.
As the afternoon drew to a close, everyone gathered in the hotel’s Jersey’s Sports Bar for the annual club banquet where we were treated to a great meal during which our special guest for the weekend, Alex Saidel and noted author Jonathan Stein, gave a joint powerpoint presentation on the Jomars that Alex’s father produced in the 1950s. It was amazing not
only the wealth of information that both gentlemen had collected on the
subject, but also the myriad of photographs of the different cars, chronicling
the history of these rare and special cars, two of which were on display
throughout the weekend, a Jomar roadster, and a Jomar coupe. Following
the banquet, our multi-talented UK Regional Officer, Colin Lyons, managed
to separate members from their money for the rest of the evening as he
auctioned off numerous items of interest to raise money for the club treasury.
Although donations for the auction were lighter than in most previous
years, we still managed to be profitable for the night. The next morning,
despite a few rogue sprinkles and light showers on the way out to Round
Valley for the show, TVRs headed out to Round Valley Recreational Area
for the show where we ended up with 109 cars on the show field, about
55 of which were TVRs. Even though we say this every year, it is true.
The quality of the cars on the show field, TVR and otherwise, seems to
keep getting better each year. There were a number of cars there that
we had either not seen at previous Woodworks, or it had been some time
since they were there. In addition to the TVRs, other marques represented
ranged from Messerschmidt to MG, from Aston Martin to Mini, Lotus to Austin
Healey, and other marques in between. Throughout the day, participants and spectators walked throughout the show field, admiring all the beautiful cars, talking to owners and learning more about the various cars. One of the cars that really amazed me was a red Triumph TR-4 that I was told had 453,000 miles on it and that it was the only car the owner had ever had! Now, how’s THAT for stick-to-it-ivness?
I wanted to express thanks not only to everyone who came out and participated in Woodwork 2004 with their cars, but also to all the vendors who were there and to Culinary Concepts who provided some great food throughout the day. Also, thanks to Round Valley Recreational Area and to the staff at Holiday Inn Somerset for doing such a great job in providing the sites for our activities.
In addition, I wanted to thank Colin Lyons for generously donating the refreshments for the hospitality suite for the weekend, to Hayes Harris of Wire Wheel Classic Sportscars, Doug Ellwood and John Chatley of David Gerald TVR, and to all the other people who helped support the TVRCCNA for the weekend. The weekend would not have been a success without all of these people and their support. Finally, as the day drew to a close, it was time to start making plans for next year’s very special event. Next year we will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the first Out of the Woodwork event so start making your plans now to finish that project, schedule the vacation time, and come join us for a really special event. See you then. Marshall Moore For more details of the TVRCC in the States please click HERE. |
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Replacement 400 / 450SE OZ Wheel Centres Now Available - 07/10/04Ever been out for a 'blat' in your Wedge only to return with one or more of the TVR wheel centre badges missing? Ever tried finding a replacement? As the wheels have been out of production for quite some time and due to the recent changes in the TVR factory with regards to keeping spares for older cars these have now become very scarce indeed and almost impossible to find. Richard Thorpe, owner of RT Racing (formerly Wedge Automotive) has now got a batch produced and is currently selling them from his business based in Sheffield. He is offering a set of four replacement self adhesive centre badges for £16.95 plus Vat. Richard has kindly offered to let TVRwedgepages readers have the items at a reduced price of £12.00 plus the Vat. This offer is only available to TVRwedgepages readers however and when ordering you must quote that you have seen the offer on this site - otherwise you will be invoiced the full price! The replacement centres are slightly thinner than the originals but are now self adhesive instead of requiring to be glued into place. Richard has said that this will mean that the glue will not fail as it gets old with the result that the wheel badge should not come off at speed like the originals. Hopefully this will mean an end to missing centre badges on the 400 / 450 series at least. Mike For further details please speak to Richard Thorpe on 0114 2817507 or see his new website which you can find by clicking HERE. |
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News of the 2004 Big Bad Wedge Fest Reaches Far & Wide - 14/09/04I have today received my Issue 6 / Volume 11, September 2004 copy of the TVR Car Club North America club magazine 'The TVR Times'. I was surprised to see nestling on one of the pages a full page article on the Big Bad Wedge Fest event that happened earlier this year. I have reproduced the front cover and the article page so you can see what the magazine looks like. Please click Here to view the pages. It is good to see that the event has attracted the attention and grabbed the imagination of other Wedge owners from across the globe. Marshall Moore who is the TVRCCNA president has also informed me of his interest to visit the UK next year and hopes to attend the BBWF 2005. If you do manage to make it Marshall I will be the first to buy you a beer. I must take this opportunity to thank Marshall for his interest in the BBWF event and for the continued support of the TVRwedgepages site. Mike Bressington For more details of the TVRCC in the States please click HERE. |
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BIG BAD WEDGE FEST ( BBWF ) - UPDATE 19th July 2004It's been and gone, if you missed it then you can read all about it in the 'Owners' section.
It was one of the biggest Wedge car meets ever. Organised by Wedge enthusiasts for Wedge enthusiasts and it was FREE!. 80+ Wedges in one place at the same time, 400/450SE's, Tasmins, 280i's, 350i's, 390's and a car park full of SEAC's. Oh and the SEAC factory racer.
Read all about it by clicking HERE. Mike |
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BIG BAD WEDGE FEST ( BBWF ) - 2004After some debate on the Wedge forum pages over the last few weeks the date has been set for one of the biggest Wedge meets in 2004. Organised by Wedge enthusiasts for Wedge enthusiasts the event is set for the weekend of the 17th and 18th of July 2004. Bring a camera as at least 80+ wedge cars should be at the event, as if just getting all these Wedge cars in one place at the same time was not enough there is also talk of prizes for the worst condition car and prizes for the Wedge with the worst paint job!!.
This is your chance to also meet up and have a chat (and a few beers) with loads of other Wedge car owners to talk technical or just talk TVR. Hopefully every type of Wedge car should be present everything from a 200 to a SEAC so this is a chance not to be missed. If you are interested in coming along to the Big Bad Wedge Fest please use the email link below to firstly express your interest. If you can quote your PH name and Wedge model details as well you will be added to the list of possible attendees. Further details of the event will then be emailed back to you. A BBQ in the evening has also been planned and this costs £10 per head. This kicks off around 8pm and has been arranged by Neil & Karen Hyde. Booking is essential as tickets will not be available on the day. For further details on the BBQ please use the email below:- Then please keep checking in on the forum thread to keep track of what is planned. The thread link is below:- http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?p=1&f=12&t=80229&h=5 As well as the forum pages you can also visit Neil and Karen Hyde's new Wedge website to keep up to date with event details:- http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/wedgies/index.htm If you wish to book accommodation, a venue has been identified as a central point for Wedge enthusiasts to gather. Please use the reservation number below for you to make your booking at Ettington Chase for the night of Saturday 17th July - Please contact the hotel directly to book. By all reports the place also happens to be rather nice indeed. The hotel also has a 24hr CCTV monitored reserved car park arranged for us and by all accounts the staff at the hotel are very 'TVR friendly' as well!!. A virtual tour of
the hotel is available by following this link:- http://www.hayley-conf.co.uk/pages/vtour/vtour.html Quote reseveration No. 32303 The room rate for bed and breakfast is £32.50 per person (i.e. £65 per room based on double occupancy), If you are intending to stay the night you will want to be booking early. The hotel details are below:- Ettington Chase Telephone 01789 740000 http://www.hayley-conf.co.uk/pages/ettington.html It should be a fantastic couple of days, Wedges of all shapes and sizes will be present so don't be shy - book up now to attend - you know you want to!!. Please note: This is not a sanctioned TVRCC meeting or event, it is a result solely of a Web Forum chat suggesting we all get together to share our Wedge gossip & experiences over a beer ot two!. Thus it is your responsibility to book your hotel accommodation and travel to / from the venue. Any issues are solely your responsibility. Please use the contact details mentioned above for further information of the event, please do not contact the TVR Wedge Pages directly. ++++++++++ LATEST UPDATE (03/07/04) ++++++++++ I have been informed by Neil & Karen that the total number of TVR Wedge cars confirmed to attend the meeting has reached over the 80 mark!!!!. The list includes Tasmin Race cars, 14 SEAC's, a load of Tasmin, 280i, 350i and 390's as well as a large bevy of 400's. 420's & 450SE's. If you are interested in TVR Wedge cars then this is THE event to be at!. Time is getting short and places are getting limited so if you are thinking of attending you need to get your name down ASAP for both the hotel and for the BBQ in the evening. I will be attending and will be snapping away with my camera throughout so I should have a zillion pics to post after the event has finished - watch this space....... This is one meeting that you don't want to miss. See you all there. Mike ++++++++++ LATEST UPDATE (12/07/04) ++++++++++ I will be offering for sale at the BBWF meeting the TVR Wedgepages static cling double pack of Window Stickers at the special offer price of £3 instead of the normal price of £5.50.
The offer is strictly for those attending the BBWF meeting and only for the duration of the BBWF weekend. If you want a set please just grab hold of me at the event or mail me before and I will set aside a pack for you and arrange to meet up with you in the bar! ;-). Mike |
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Castle Combe F3/GT Festival - 20/06/04I had a great weekend this week, I drove up to the John Guest Speedfit F3/GT Festival races held at the Castle Combe circuit in my 350i wiith my boy Greg. On the way up I hooked up with Jeff Morgan and his red SE for a blast up to the event. Once in the circuit car parking field I also met up with some of my other Wedge owning mates Duncan with his SEAC and Mike Bowen with his 400SE. I easily picked out Duncan's car as he had a 30ft flagpole sticking out of the roof complete with TVR flags and a large fish! Some of the Tuscan and GT racing was extremely exciting, especially watching the Tuscans hammer around the track in the rain! I have included some pics of other wedge cars that I saw around the circuit. I think that everybody throughly enjoyed themselves despite the damp weather later on in the day.
I totally enjoyed the weekend and will be looking forward to seeing everybody next year and at some of the other events planned for later on this year. Mike |
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Wedge Pages 'Shop' Now Online!After a bit of a struggle the first item has gone on sale in the 'Shop' section of this website. The item consists of a double pack of static cling window stickers, one for you to proudly display on your TVR and the other for your normal car!. The pack even comes with a window glass cleaning cloth sachet for you to clean the glass on the car prior to applying the stickers.
The item is priced at £5.50 and all proceeds going towards the running of this site. Please look out for more Wedge Pages related items coming real soon. For more details check out the new 'Shop' section by clicking HERE. |
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TVRs in the US of A - Report number 2 - from Marshall Moore 30/04/04Hello again, it's time for another event report from overseas. I took my Taimar to
a very new British Car Show/Wine Festival this weekend and out of less
than 30 cars on the field, three were TVRs, one of which was a wedge.
The warehouse has
been converted into a modern day farmers market and played host to the
Danville Wine Festival, featuring over a dozen Virginia vinyards where
you could sample their various vintages. Thanks, For more details of the TVRCC in the States please click HERE. |
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TVRs in the US of A - Report number 1 - from Marshall Moore 01/04/04It's good to see enthusiasm for TVR cars is still going strong over in the US. Marshall Moore president of the TVRCC in the States regularly sends in updates of TVR 'happenings' over the other side of the pond. Marshall's latest post is a report on the first event of the season this past weekend:- 'Of the six TVRs in attendance, we had one wedge, So I thought I'd send you a photo for the website. The details are as follows: The second annual
British Car Gathering at The Cove in Farragut, Tennessee USA.
The car pictured above
is a 1986 280i Series 2 owned by Tom Owen of Chattanooga, Tennessee. As
you can see from the photo the car is in beautiful original condition
with only 45 thousand original miles and red with black interior and black
top. For more details of the TVRCC in the States please click HERE. |
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I'm Back!!! - 01/02/04Well after a long absence i'm back. I have dusted off the old Macintosh computer, fired up Dreamweaver and got myself some new webspace to host this site. You may notice some changes to the site, some small, some big but all hopefully for the better. To help fund some of the bigger changes and to help keep the site going I have introduced a Shop section where I am offering you the chance to buy some WedgePages gear. The page will be uploaded in the next few weeks just as soon as I get the stuff back from the printers.... Although I love my Wedge and enjoy producing this site it does take a lot of my time up and I have other costs to pay for as well - just to keep the website on the air. So if you feel like supporting the WedgePages and fancy purchasing some Wedge related regalia please check it out. On another note, If you have something that you might think other Wedge owners or enthusiasts might be interested in then please send it over and I will do my best to put it online. I can accept digital pics and text via e-mail (or CD) or if you prefer you can send me good old photographs and the words scribbled on a piece of paper, my new address is posted under the Contact Page. Remember it's you who make this site what it is. |
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Tasmin Challenge - change to series and new race dates2004 brings big changes to the popular TVRCC Tasmin Challenge. The series this year will be open to not just Wedge cars but to all other TVR cars as well. The series will be split into 3 classes: A. up to 185bhp, B. up to 285bhp and Q. 285 bhp plus.
The cars must all be fitted with a compulsory in car data system to keep things fair and the power output will be monitored at every race. The thought of seeing all the different TVR cars racing on the track together in a strictly regulated class systems at the same time should prove enough thrills for any spectator, so get yourself along to have a look for yourself. The Manugistics TVRCC Challenge Cup race dates have been announced and are provisionally as below. The TVR Wedge Pages will be keeping a close eye on the season and will be posting the results as and when, so keep tuning in. You can download the 2004 official regulations by clicking HERE.
If you fancy a race or just want further information on the series, please check out the Tasmin Challenge website or contact the series co-ordinator Steve Lewis directly. |
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This site has been online since 1st Sept 2001. The site is edited, maintained and owned by Steve Davis.. I would like to thank everybody who has shown an interest, taken the time to contribute and for the many letters of encouragement from people near and far. I would also like to thank Simon from Leven Technology, Trevor from TET Mouldings and Tim from Act Performance Products for providing valuable information, advice and much needed sponsorship. If you would like to advertise commercially on this site then please click HERE for more information. I would also like to thank David Edmonston at Pistonheads.com and TVR Engineering for their help. |
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