LOG 30 (US Lotus Owner's Gathering, Oct 2010)

PostPost by: RotoFlexible » Thu Jul 08, 2010 2:30 pm

Who's planning on going?

I registered and made hotel reservations a couple of weeks ago. It will be my first LOG. I plan to drive the Elan unless a problem crops up or I lose my nerve. We'll be doing a tour with stops to visit family (McLean VA) and at Monticello - about 10 days and perhaps 1100 miles in all. Quite an outing for a car that is generally not asked to do anything more than get me to work and back.
Andrew Bodge
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PostPost by: garyeanderson » Thu Jul 08, 2010 4:29 pm

I plan on attending at least for one of the days. I hope to bring the S2. I will probably wimp out and bring it on a trailer. I hope that others can make it, I would hazzard a guess that it may be the last LOG where there is much of a presence of the older Lotus car's the club seems to be moving quickly away from 60's and 70's cars and onto the newer 21'st century produced Lotus. I hope that I am wrong but thats just my feeling about the club. Looking forward to meeting everyone attending.

Gary
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PostPost by: gjz30075 » Thu Jul 08, 2010 6:00 pm

Gary, you're right, unfortunately. But that's just the way it is, as time marches on. What really irks me though, is, when I was at the Mitty race this year at Road Atlanta, with Lotus as the theme (along with Datsun), I was parked next to a red Elise with my Elan and he had no idea what kind of car I had. He only had a inkling because I happened to be parked in the Lotus section. Very sad.

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PostPost by: dusty » Thu Jul 08, 2010 7:47 pm

It's the same this side of the pond, far more Elise's, M100's and even Evora's than the "Classic" Lotuses at the annual lotus club show.

But I suppose that is to be expected as time marches on, the Elise is now nearly 15 years old!
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PostPost by: garyeanderson » Thu Jul 08, 2010 8:31 pm

Dusty, Greg

I suppose that you are right, but I guess I see things the way I want to. Some folks except that this is just the way it is and say oh well, time moves on. Well in 2001 at the LOG in Worcester there were only 3 Elises there and the rest of the nearly 300 were Elans, Elites, Europas, M100, Esprits and an Eleven and mkVI that my friend Chris brought. Most folks still own there old cars, they just don't bring them out to play. I have talked to a number of folks about going, some of them I have not met in person but email and talk some what regularly. If you don't make this LOG there may not be another worth going to as far as I am concerned. There are still a lot of the old Lotus Cars in this area and those that choose to bring there new Lotus I guess just bore me. The pictures I have seen and the reports that I have heard are just piss poor, the fact that the Lotus Limited Club has moved on doesn't mean that we all have to. I hope to see you all there with your early Lotus no mater what it is. I guess I just don't see much value in a sea of Elises. If I don't see what and who I would like I won't be back. Stand up and be counted, vote with you wallet, its the only thing that make others sit up and think.

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PostPost by: Ross Robbins » Thu Jul 08, 2010 9:29 pm

Well, I will be there with TWO old Lotus cars...my Elan S2 and my Seven S3. How does one guy bring two old cars, you ask? I have three friends (yes, I know, that is three more than you thought I had) from England coming over to help me drive them from Littleton, Colorado to LOG via Ocean City MD across US 50 all the way east. Then my wife Ann and I will each drive one back. Advanced estimates suggest a 4,000 mile round trip.

And Gary, I don't share your concern about the lack of old cars. They are not in the majority that is true, nor would I expect that as it is so much easier to bring a newer car with A/c and weather protection, but in the last five LOG panorama photos there is a sizable representation, perhaps 40% of the cars and I'll bet there will be at Gettysburg too.

Greg, I also see the lack of awareness from the young guys with the new cars about the heritage of Lotus. I have just made it my mission to educate them whether they ask or not. Most seem to genuinely appreciate that there is a long and proud history and then want to find out more. I encourage them to borrow my books or visit Coterie press and get some of their own to understand what Lotus really stand for and why it is special and different. Sometimes I feel like Don Quixote though most of the time I win a convert to the faith of lightness. Keep preaching, Brothers!!
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PostPost by: garyeanderson » Fri Jul 09, 2010 11:23 am

So that?s 3 Elans and a Seven, I guess that folks have a lot to do in October. Here?s the link to the Lotus Limited Log 30 site
http://www.lotuscarclub.org/log30.php

Just for anyone thinking about going and have a problem with the driving. I went down to meet Mike Braun 8 years ago to pick up a tail section for an S3 and the date was October 8th. I remember it quite clearly as it was the BEST foliage viewing I have ever witnessed in my life, I left the house at 5 a.m. and had the sun at my back the whole way there. At every turn on I 84 there was just the jaw-dropping site of magnificent reds of the swamp maples and yellows of oaks mixed in with the leftover greens. Mike and I met at around noon in Snowshoe, Pa. and exchanged the $150 for the tail section a bit of talk and some picture swapping. After a brief meeting I turned around and now with the sun at my back witnessed the same jaw dropping Technicolor presentation in reverse. Folks must be on vacation or just don?t care anymore about this gathering thing as so far only 84 views and comments for 5 members, how sad I think that the interest is that low. I have used U.S. 15 through Gettysburg to travel down to Maryland and Virginia a number of times and you can just feel the history of the Civil War oozing from the surroundings. You can almost feel the soldiers marching North and South in the Valley to meet up for one of the bloodiest days in U.S. history, the first time it seemed quite eerie to me like ghosts form the past.
Anyway there are lots of good reasons to go, I just hope that the one that I am going for this time is there to see and that?s a bunch of Old Lotus Cars that everyone owns. If not, I probably won?t be bothered again, Lotus Limited will be just a club with a memory of the past to me.

Ross looking forward to meeting you this time and everyone else that can spare the weekend away for their busy lives.

Gary
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PostPost by: collins_dan » Fri Jul 09, 2010 4:25 pm

I will be there. I live in Baltimore, which is maybe an hour or so away from Gettysburg. I am happy to be the local host to anyone that needs help. I will also be meeting up with Ross and company in Annapolis to drive around the area and make everyone jealous of our cool cars. October is a beautiful time of the year around here. This area of the US is a bit gentler on cars that further up the east coast, so my observation from having lived in many other parts of the US and UK, is that you see quite a lot of older cars being used on a regular basis.

Dan
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PostPost by: cabc26b » Fri Jul 09, 2010 7:57 pm

I'm thinking about going , got a few contingencies to work out first though - one elan is apart being put together, the other is together but may come apart in August..... Never officially been to one, but did a race where was being held does that count ?

George

PS It might be an ATL thing on the clueless Elise guys - I pulled into a British car day with my race car a couple of years back, lots of noise form the clanky dog box with sintered clutch and 4into1 boomtube - the guys from the e-type group waved me into a spot with their group , across from an enclave of lotus elises , whose owners did not even look up at the strange little car making enough noise to set off car alarms .....
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PostPost by: elancoupe » Sat Jul 10, 2010 9:47 pm

I am on the fence, but you guys are making me lean a bit.
Mike
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PostPost by: gordont » Mon Jul 12, 2010 8:39 am

garyeanderson wrote:I plan on attending at least for one of the days. I hope to bring the S2. I will probably wimp out and bring it on a trailer. I hope that others can make it, I would hazzard a guess that it may be the last LOG where there is much of a presence of the older Lotus car's the club seems to be moving quickly away from 60's and 70's cars and onto the newer 21'st century produced Lotus. I hope that I am wrong but thats just my feeling about the club. Looking forward to meeting everyone attending.

Gary

Gary - down here in Oz it seems to be the same as you describe it up there, I joined Club Lotus originally in the early 90's with a Lotus 7 clone and always lusted after the multiple elans that were regularly there and driven often - 20 years on I have a S2 but now I am usually the only elan in attendance and seems that the elise is the dominant car, seems sad and no idea where all the old ones went.
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PostPost by: Ross Robbins » Mon Jul 12, 2010 10:57 pm

Gary,
The first beer is on me and I look forward to putting a face with the helpful name!

Dan,
I will stay in contact with you as things get closer and look forward to lunch in Annapolis on Oct 5th per our current schedule. As I said, I'll keep in touch. You can get your beer at lunch or at LOG, your choice.

George,
Y'all come now heah? We need another qualified expert on Elans and you can bring either one and have a ball. Same offer for the first round.

Elancoupe,
Get off the fence and come on in to the fun! I don't know where you are but if you are anywhere along US 50 you are welcome to travel with us in a group which is always reassuring. And same libation offer to you if you come.

I thought I was going to have another S1 Elan with us but unfortunately it is not to be. Nonetheless, I promise that the small but powerful Elan contingent will be noticed and appreciated by a large percentage of those attending, but I will have fun and be glad I came if it is just the few of us sharing stories til we close the bar. Here's to the old cars and the old guys who collect them!!!
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PostPost by: Frank Howard » Mon Jul 12, 2010 11:27 pm

One note of interest to this group should be that Brian Buckland, author of the Elan Addendum Workshop manual is coming over from England to be one of the guest speakers if not THE guest speaker. I seriously doubt he will be talking much about the Elise.
Frank Howard
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PostPost by: elancoupe » Tue Jul 13, 2010 12:54 am

Thanks Ross. I am giving it some thought. I am about 5 hours from Gettysburg, it is an impressive place to visit.

I have been to 8 or 9 other LOGs, always had fun.
Mike
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PostPost by: Greg Foster » Tue Jul 13, 2010 1:24 pm

I will be there with my 67 s3. See y'all.
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