Newsletter of the Hidden Valley Model T Club, November 2012 The Hidden Valley Commutator is the newsletter of the Hidden Valley Model T Club. The newsletter is published monthly and distributed online to all connected members. Those without email will get a USPS mail version. The 2012 thru 2013 members of the HVMTC Board of Directors are: President Larry Ciuffo Tours Doug Lested Treasurer Diane McPherson Secretary Stephanie Terrell Editor Tony Bowker Presidents Message I was not able to attend the tour to John and Karen Pepe s home in Temecula for the Car Check Tour. I have been told that it was a great success. We could do this type of tour maybe two times a year. Our vice president finally found out what was wrong with his Ts transmission. Doug has some new ideas for the November tour which he plans to tell us at the November meeting. If you have any back country driving tour ideas please let Doug know. Larry Upcoming Events Wednesday 7 Nov Dinner at Charlies starting at 6pm Saturday 10 Nov - Camp Pendleton s Museum is postponed. Saturday 10 Nov Driving Tour The replacement tour is a driving tour through east county from the Arts Center - Highland Valley Road - Ramona Santa Isabel Lake Henshaw Cole Grade Road Escondido. We will be stopping at the Santa Isabel Casino (http://www.santaysabelcasino.com/) and eating in the Orchard Restaurant. RSVP IS NEEDED BY THE NEXT CLUB MEETING (7 Nov) as we need to tell the restaurant how many will be in our party to Doug at 760-845-5194 or dlested@roadrunner.com. November 2012 Hidden Valley Model T Club Commutator Page 1
Hidden Valley Model T Club Four day Tour to Death Valley The Hidden Valley Model T Club is planning a winter tour to Death Valley. The hub tour will be based at Stovepipe Wells where there is a good Hotel, with a restaurant, gas station, pool and an RV site nearby. The tour will include runs to Furnace Creek, Beatty, Scotty s Castle and Death Valley Junction for a total of 423 miles spread over the four days. The plan is to arrive at Stovepipe Wells on 1 February 2013 and stay for five nights, leaving on Wednesday, February 6, 2013, providing four days of Model T touring. Each day will be a run of between 90 to 137 miles. The weather will be warm on the valley floor, but will cool off considerably when we climb out of the valley floor over 4,000 ft, so bring plenty of warm clothes. There will be a $15 fee to defray the cost of the Trouble Truck and printing of the tour booklet. You are responsible for your own accommodation and meals. The contact for the Stovepipe Wells Hotel & RV Resort is www.escapetodeathvalley.com/ or by telephone at 1-760-786-2387. There are also primitive RV facilities on a first-come-first served basis. Dates Arrive: Hotel: Friday 1 st February 2013 Depart Hotel: Wednesday 6 th February Send the tour fee ($15), names & email (or phone #) to Tony Bowker at email tonybowker@aol.com or telephone at 1-760-789-3954 or USPS mail at 15838 Oak Valley Rd, Ramona, CA 92065 Car(s) Wanted Michael Keller is getting married on December 8 th at the Twin Oaks Valley Golf Course on December 8 th and would like a Model T for their Wedding Get-away Car. Maybe we could make this part of the December 8 th Tour. Contact Michael if you think you can help out. What: Wedding Car for Getaway When: December 8 th, 2012 Where: Who: Contact: Twin Oaks Golf Course located at 1425 N Twin Oaks Valley Rd, San Marcos CA 92069 Michael Keller & Brynn Aufhammer Michael at 760-586-4368 or Michael.keller14@gmail.com November 2012 Hidden Valley Model T Club Commutator Page 2
A Run Up to Temecula by Tony Bowker On October 11 a couple of Model T s met at the Center for the Arts in Escondido for a run up to Temecula to the home of John & Karen Pepe. Along the way Doug Lested & I picked up Dale &?? Stanfield in a T Touring, the Galdi family and Vic Terrell in Model A s. Well at least the T s outnumbered the A s. The run followed old US395 running alongside the I- 15 freeway. Doug was having problems with low band and Tony complaining about poor pulling power, much like during the recent Yosemite tour. However were all reached the Pepe s home with little drama. John had all their cars spread out over the rear garden, quite impressive. He has four T s, an A, three Porsche, a Corvette and several muscle cars with gorgeous paint jobs. We all looked over John s latest acquisition, a gas pump purchased during the Yosemite tour. After a pizza lunch and cookies provided by Anne Tunnell, we decided to look into Doug s low band problem. After opening up the hogshead inspection cover it was apparent that the pins on the low band pedal was touching the adjustment screw. After a little work, we cut off ⅜ inch off the pin on the adjustment screw and all was well. If only my low speed power could be so easily fixed! John then suggested we go on a short tour of about 20 wineries in the Temecula Valley. The run was about 25 miles, very pleasant with surprisingly little traffic. Following the tour, we all set off back down 395, dropping off the Stanfields, Galdies and Terrell s along the way. Eventually Doug & I arrived back in Escondido, I loaded on the trailer while Doug still had a 20 mile run back home. It was a pity there were so few cars on the tour, no trouble truck, but those that made the tour had a good time. Thanks again to the Pepe s for opening up their home to the HVMT Club. November 2012 Hidden Valley Model T Club Commutator Page 3
Yosemite 2012 by Tony Bowker This year John & Judy Burrell invited 40 of their friends for yet another trip to the area around Yosemite National Park. They have organized this tour four previous times, each time Judy claims it is the last, let s hope this is not the last, 'ços we had a great time. There were several couples from the Hidden Valley club on the tour. We took the 14 Touring, Craig & Barbara the 27, Vic & Stephanie, the Galdi boys and Forine and the Pepe s with their beautiful 1911 Touring. The event was set up as a week s touring, with the first day going into Yosemite Park visiting the Overview and the Valley floor. It was long run, especially as Judy had arranged all kind of visits to local garages along the way. Unfortunately I was sick so I missed the first day, probably a result of the car accident we had in Escondido on the way to Oakhurst so I spent the first day in the motel room. No one broke down and was told that everyone had a great time in the Park. The second day was a run over to the Mariposa area including a visit to the garages of Mike O Conner who used to live in San Diego. Then we moved on to the home of Sheldon & Trisha Ball and their collection of gorgeous cars. Then we moved on to the winery which is at the bottom of a huge hill, thank goodness for low gear and Ruckstell. After lunch in Mariposa, we moved on to the home of Fed & Muriel Temps followed by a visit to a marble quarry where we were shown modern techniques for cutting the stone with much reduced waste. Along the way we passed the Great Wall of China. This was built by Chinese laborer s when the railways were completed and naturally marked the land they owned. Each side is about one mile long. Following dinner, we were entertained by John Muir, who recounted important times in his quite adventurous life. On Friday we drove to the exact Center of California, it is marked by a suitable plaque and is in the middle of absolutely nowhere. Several cars overheated on the two climbs out of the area, mine included as the mixture knob vibrated closed On the way home we visited the home November 2012 Hidden Valley Model T Club Commutator Page 4
of Vince & Ginny Smith, but the greatest excitement was a grass fire less than ¼ mile from their property. Some T s were caught out after the road was closed and had to find the long way home. Dinner that evening was at the Elks Club. Next day we toured out to Coarsegold with several miles of dirt road before we had lunch at the Chuckchansi Casino. After lunch we had a straight run back up Hwy 41 to the motel in Oakhurst. That evening the group drove in moderns up to the Yosemite Sugar Pine Railroad for dinner and a Steam Train ride. We have done this several times and we fancied a dinner with waiters and table clothes, so we went to Italian Restaurant in Oakhurst, but everyone who went to the Railroad had a good time. Sunday was a longish run on barely improved roads, and proved to be rather taxing for the Model T s and their passengers. It started innocently enough with a run round the west side of Bass Lake and then north past Manzanita Lake, a visit to Jess Ross cabin and a stop at Mile High Vista (5400 ft). Then we had an option, long way with a somewhat paved road or a shorter run with 12 miles of dirt. That was tough. The longer route went past Arch Rock at 6200 feet. Then we visited the Globe Rock, which most missed as it is 100 yards off the road and the marking are very small. Next was the Jones store, where many bought pie as dessert for the packed lunch we had picked up in the morning. This run was followed by a boat ride on Bass Lake, which several missed as they were struggling to complete the days run. The dinner was delicious, with tables overlooking the lake vista. Next morning was the farewell breakfast, followed by a long run home, no drama on this trip. A great tour, occasionally exhausting but the scenery was just wonderful, California is a very scenic state. Everyone had a great time, even John Pepe who broke a front axle, looks forward to the next event. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Editors Notes Please remember that I am always on the lookout for any articles and pictures of interest to other members. I can usually edit to fit the text format, crop pictures, so please send me stuff. TonyB November 2012 Hidden Valley Model T Club Commutator Page 5
Hidden Valley Model T Club General Meeting Minutes for 10/3/12 Meeting Called to order by President Larry Ciuffo @6:55PM.Flag salute led by Larry. Guests: Anne Tunnell introduced her grandson Kevin who came with her tonite. VP/Tour Report: Doug spoke about our last tour to Bumann's ranch in Olivenhain. He talked about one of our new members, Bob Millen who was given driving instructions by Larry Ciuffo as Bob was driving his car. It was hilarious to watch. Everyone arrived at the ranch safely. The ranch was as it was in the late 1800's. There was a little one room house that was the first house, and then a barn to house the farm equipment, a later house for the family, a livestock barn, a bee house and a livestock barn. Everything was in immaculate condition. It was a most interesting historic tour. Then we went on to Bret's barbecue. Some of the cars went to San Elijo Hills to a park, which had a beautiful view. Next tour will be to Pepe's on Oct. 13th. Doug is trying to get hold of Camp Pendleton to arrange a tour for Nov. He talked about various places to go in Dec. Nothing was decided for Dec. Death Valley Update: Tony Bowker says he has 9 cars going so far. Secy's Report: No report except that Stephanie has to send a note to Bumann's thanking them for their wonderful tour. Treasurer's Report: There is $818.76 in the treasury. New Business: Michael Keller stood up and said he is getting married on Dec.8th. He is having an evening wedding. He would like someone from the club to provide a getaway car about 9PM to drive him for a short distance. Tony said he will put it in the newsletter. Announcements: Virgil White announced that the Antique Gas and Steam Museum is having an Arts Festival and Gem and Mineral Show on the 13th and 14th and 20th and 21st of Oct. and the whole Museum will be open on the 27th and 28th of Oct. Karen Pepe won the raffle. Meeting adjourned @ 7:30PM Respectfully submitted, Stephanie Terrell, Secretary --------------------------------------------------------------------- November 2012 Hidden Valley Model T Club Commutator Page 6