President’s Column, January 2008by Bob Morin
Since last month’s column, we had our Holiday Party, held again this year at the Stevenson Firehouse. Thank you to jerri and Willy Wiley for organizing the event and to Barbara Bisset for handling the Yankee Swap. We had a pretty good group and there were several gifts that made the rounds of the room. Our upcoming events include the Annual Dinner on the 26th of this month. As you know by now, there was a mistake on this year’s ballot, as Lisa Mellott has not asked to be considered for the Treasurer’s position, so please keep that in mind if you intend to vote. We have Lee Grannis lined up to speak to us about alternative fuels and of course, there will be the doorprizes; lots of doorprizes. When you get your February ROUNDEL, don’t forget to read the instructions on voting, as you will have to affix your mailing label (if it’s like it’s been in the past) and be sure to vote as people in our region will be asked to vote for the National President, Executive Vice-President and Regional Vice-President. If you’re really planning ahead, Sheila and I are hosting a Top Gear Party at our home in North Granby, CT on April 19th. For those of you unfamiliar with Top Gear, it is a TV car show unlike any other and is very entertaining. We promise plenty of laughs. Our Driver’s School dates are still tentative as I write this, but one thing is pretty certain, we will have to adjust to a new format as The Club at Lime Rock Park becomes a reality for those willing/able to spend $110,000 for a membership fee, plus monthly dues. So please pay close attention as we keep you up to date with how things will have to work this year. If 2008 is to be a year in which you go car shopping, and BMW is something you’ll be considering, you’re going to have even more decisions to make. BMW has announced an extremely aggressive rollout schedule for new models. Here’s what we know so far:
While contacting some of our DZ advertisers whose ads were due for renewal lately, it occurred to me that it was time for me to ask once again that if you are in need of a product or service that one of our advertisers can provide, please consider using them. And if you do, please let them know that you saw their ad in the DZ and that you appreciate their support. The F1 Comedy Hour continues as Renault escapes all penalties for having been found to have McLaren design documents in their possession, just as I predicted in last month’s column. Since it didn’t hurt Ferrari, there was no need to penalize them $100,000,000 and take away all their points, like the FIA did to McLaren when they had received Ferrari documents. Next up, spoiled brat Alonso, now knowing that Renault will not be penalized, immediately signed with them. Then, Renault immediately dismissed Heikki Kovalainen for driving too fast, which would challenge Alonso who couldn’t deal with that much stress. So, Kovalainen lands a job at McLaren with Lewis Hamilton as his teammate and comes out ahead in the whole rotation, in my opinion. Finally, Ferrari is still not satisfied with being handed the Driver’s and Manufacturer’s Championship in 2007, so they are continuing to pursue legal action against McLaren. Isn’t it great? You couldn’t make this stuff up. In News From National, membership had a slight decline from last month and stands at 76,258, but that is .09% ahead of last year. There is a new membership contest that kicked off December 1st however, so hopefully that will help to address the decline. Check out www.bmwcca.org for details and information on how to get some applications if you like to have some on hand to give out. Until next month… Bob Morin |
Happy New Year everyone! I hope you had a great holiday season and that 2008 will be a terrific year for you.Main Page | Events | Calendar | Driver's School | Articles | Gallery
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