None of us could believe it! There were thirty-three of us - yes, 33 - at the last meeting including six ladies in attendance! Not only was the meeting room packed, but in the parking lot were fourteen British Cars; a veritable car show! These are both new records dating as far back as records have been kept - at least a few months. Keep up the good work, ABCS!

We had some visitors at the meeting, including Jane Ogle, a Jaguar XJ-S owner from Johnson City, Bob McFall, who has an MGB Jim Falin, an owner of a Series I Landrover, and Johnathan Nickles even returned to pay a second visit. As always, we are happy to have guests and hope they will see fit to join in with us.

President Rich Williams began the meeting by informing us all of the calendar of events.

Upcoming drives include:

7/25 Tour the Morristown, TN
area. Meet at K-Mart in
Rogersville at 2:00 PM.

8/14 Grayson Highlands State
Park trip. Meet at Abingdon
Cracker Barrel, I-81, Exit 19.
We will depart at 9:00 AM.
Pack a picnic lunch.


Programs at upcoming meetings include:

8/12 Dave Valentine will tell us about his recent
search for British Cars in Australia.

9/9 Mark Whitt on carburetors.

10/14 Mitch Bowerly on the Jaguar S-Type.

The final calendar item was to note that the date for the ABCS Get Together (GT) has been set for 12 September at Warrior's Path State Park as usual. We meet around 1:00 PM at shelter number 1 and the club provides the hamburgers and hot dogs. Members are asked to bring a dish with them.

The program tonight was an informal one. We were all recently saddened by the loss of Bill Bolyard, one of the founders of the ABCS. So President Williams invited Wayne Grills, one of the first ABCS members to talk about the early days of the club. Wayne stated that it was indeed Bill Bolyard, along with co-worker ken Hirsch who started the ABCS. Bill had purchased his Triumph and Ken had an MGA and they ran an ad in a local trade publication seeking members. Wayne was one of the first to answer the ad. Wayne remembered that the club started around 1990, instead of 1992 as stated elsewhere. Wayne also remembered the first official drive by the ABCS was to Middlesboro, KY and everyone froze. Bill Bolyard, of course, refused to put his top up and he and Luisa soldiered on in his TR-4. Wayne also recalled that James Childress was searching for an MG in Bill's neighborhood and actually went to Bill's house by mistake, thereby being enlisted in the ABCS.

We all adjourned to look at the many cars in the parking lot

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Local Club Featured by "British Car"

Blount British Cars of Maryville, TN had three of their members and their cars featured in an article entitled 'Running with the Big Dogs' in the most recent (August-September, 1999) issue of "British Car" magazine. The article features BBC members Ted Frasier of Maryville and his '74 TR-6, Alan Rhodes of Conyers, GA ( '67 Sunbeam Tiger), and Terry Denton of Rockford, TN ('64 Austin-Healey 3000) on a tour of the newly-opened Cherohala Skyway which traverses part of the Cherokee and the Nantahala National Forests.

This six-page spread in a widely circulated magazine is a great effort towards promotion of the British Car restoration hobby in the Appalachian area and should benefit us all greatly.

There is a well devised comparison of the three cars artfully done by allowing the owners to trade vehicles and drive the serpentine National Scenic Byway (designated Route 165).