Hi guys, It=92s been awhile since my last road trip report. I spent the better part=20= of=20 the winter flying for the Air Force Reserve in an attempt to rebuild my bank= =20 account, which took a pretty serious shelling during last year=92s prolonged= =20 European adventures. In this, I was only moderately successful, but I wasn= =92t=20 about to let that stop me from playing cars again this year! My season actually began with a drive in my 427 Cobra replica to the annual=20 Pantera Owners Club of America Las Vegas Fun Rally back in April. After mon= ths=20 of preparation, the car was in tip-top shape as I left the house, but then=20 slowly fell apart like a soup sandwich during the course of the weekend, and= I=20 only made it home after replacing a busted pushrod and rocker arm. So, with= =20 the Cobra now looking very tired and decrepit and demanding attention to the= =20 engine, clutch, exhaust, windshield, electrical system, and steering systems= , I=20 decided that the prudent thing to do would be to turn my back on it and go o= n=20 another vacation! And so it was that after flying a quick trip with the Air Force (gotta earn=20 some bread to try to pay for all of that), I returned home to do laundry and= =20 answer the mail, then packed my bags and headed for England. Some of you may recall my description of the RAC Euroclassic, the vintage ca= r=20 rally that I ran last year in my GT-350 clone with my British friend, George= =20 Gordon-Smith. The route took us through France, Switzerland, Monaco and end= ed=20 up in Italy, and featured spectacular driving on deserted roads combined wit= h=20 tours of auto museums and the opportunity to drive on various racetracks. This year=92s Euroclassic was moved from the fall to the spring, as the=20 organizers are also responsible for staging the British Formula One Grand Pr= ix and=20 the British round of the World Rally Championship, and thus their plate gets= =20 pretty full later in the season. Their credentials should be obvious to see, and one of the principal reasons= =20 I like to participate in this event is the extreme professionalism of the=20 entire thing. From a comprehensive route book that even a child could follo= w, to=20 the excellent accommodations, and the supreme talent of the dozen or so=20 mechanics who follow along and try to fix any cars that happen to have issue= s, the=20 event is truly a marvel to behold, much less participate in. This year=92s route covered uncharted territory, aiming for Denmark and Swed= en.=20 Now, those might not seem like obvious locations for driving enthusiasts,=20 but with Volvo Cars coming on board as an event sponsor, a trip to Sweden wa= s=20 more or less preordained. Anyway, I flew to London a few days early, both to ensure that I would in=20 fact make it there in time for the event=92s start (as I fly standby, and th= us=20 can=92t be assured of a seat on a given flight), and also to enable me to he= lp my=20 Mustang=92s host with his ongoing Pantera restoration. Upon my arrival early in the morning, I was picked up by Geoff in his daily=20 driver Bentley (they are surprisingly cheap over there, secondhand, and deli= ver=20 the most bang for the buck of any car on the road), and soon found myself=20 back at his house and hard at work. My first job was to install the=20 reconditioned brake calipers--except that new caliper mounting bolts had bee= n forgotten=20 and the old ones were buried in a giant pile of trash hardware. Eventually=20= it=20 was all sorted out, but it took substantially longer than we=92d planned. On the second day, John Woods was wiring up the dash and Geoff was working o= n=20 the MSD ignition system. He broke one of the studs off his coil, so he had=20 to rob a coil from his Rover V-8 powered MG drophead. By late in the evenin= g,=20 we were ready for the big moment. Turn the key, pump the gas and VAROOM followed immediately by expensive=20 grinding noises and SMOKE coming from the bellhousing. Hmm. That doesn=92t sound right. We shut everything down, scratched our heads and pondered the situation. =20 Clearly, something was broken, but what? We gave up in disgust and called it a night. The next morning, John and I=20 took it upon ourselves to yank the transmission back out to see what was wro= ng. =20 Expecting carnage, instead we found everything looking pristine. George Gordon-Smith had arrived by now, and it was time to leave, so I left=20 John to the project and we headed down the road (it was later discovered tha= t=20 the starter was defective or incorrect, and wasn=92t disengaging after the e= ngine=20 started. Thankfully the ring gear was unhurt but the starter took a bit of=20= a=20 beating). Throughout the event, George and I would take turns driving and=20 navigating, and also share the track-driving duties. George and I drove in a very light rain to the coastal town of Harwich, whic= h=20 I was pointedly informed is not pronounced =93Harwich=94 as you might imagin= e,=20 but instead is called =93Harrich=94 for reasons that were never adequately e= xplained. It is there that we were scheduled for an overnight ferry which would deposi= t=20 us in Esberg, Denmark. When we arrived, the dock was already filled with=20 classic cars of every description--fellow participants all. We reacquainted= =20 ourselves with several people we remembered from last year=92s event, and on= e new=20 team as well. Imagine my surprise as I pulled into the lot and looked in my= =20 mirror and found an Ivy Green =9167 Mustang fastback behind me! This more-o= r-less=20 Bullit clone was being driven by a pair of British gents, and was equipped=20 with a moderately pumped up 289, five-speed, and Total Control power rack an= d=20 pinion steering. Once loaded on the ferry, we enjoyed a light dinner and then retired to our=20 inboard cabin. The berths were exquisitely comfortable, and we slept soundl= y=20 for almost 12 hours! We were awakened by a loud announcement over the ship=92s PA system that=20 Breakfast Was Served. After an absolutely dynamite all-you-can-eat buffet,=20= we=20 waddled down to the car and soon found ourselves on the Danish motorway, des= tined=20 for the starting location, the town of =C5rhus.=20 Annoyingly, both Denmark and Sweden have ridiculous traffic laws that mandat= e=20 the full-time use of headlights, we we had to constantly remind ourselves to= =20 turn the damn things on, and then turn them off when we stopped so we didn= =92t=20 drain the battery. Along the way, I discovered that my horn button, which had failed on me on=20 last year=92s rally but had been patched together in Geneva by Thierry Monne= y, had=20 conked out again. Upon arrival and check-in at =C5rhus, we were subjected t= o a=20 moderate technical inspection, consisting of a test of turn signals, lights,= =20 and the horn. All went well until I was asked to sound the horn; as=20 spontaneously but as if on cue, both George and I leaned our heads out the w= indow and=20 shouted =93BEEP!=94 The inspectors laughed, and then waved us on. I noted that the clutch pedal was high and had zero free play, this despite=20 the fact that I had adjusted it not that long ago. I steered my way to the=20 Royal Auto Club mechanics, and asked if they=92d take a look at it. Within=20= five=20 minutes, the car was in the air, the adjuster adjusted, and I once again had= =20 free play at the clutch. Gotta love those guys. By now, there were over 80 cars gathered in a gravel lot in front of the=20 town=92s cultural center and museum. Oldest and arguably most significant w= as a=20 1928 Bentley race car, of the type which won Le Mans that year. This partic= ular=20 car had been sent to Argentina from new where it enjoyed a successful race=20 history during the pre-war years, and had eventually found its way back to t= he=20 UK. The car broke on the first day, suffering a starter failure, but they w= ere=20 able to push-start it, and as it had a 100-liter fuel tank, they could drive= =20 it all day without shutting it off! Replacement starter bits were flown ove= r=20 and the car was fixed on the third day. We were treated to a welcome reception and a greeting by a city councilman,=20 then took a Volvo shuttle to our hotel, which was a beautiful creation datin= g=20 from the early 1800s and located near the city center. After getting situated, we strolled the cobblestone streets, and sat down at= =20 a quiet outdoor cafe in a small square, basking in the sunlight and watching= =20 the world go by. I was especially taken by the scenery, in the form of=20 delectable Eurobabes who seemed to travel in packs. Tall, Nordic with blond= hair and=20 blue eyes, they seemed to be everywhere. As this is a college town, they ar= e=20 also of an age where flaws are few and far between. I could get used to this place. :>) We decided to forgo a heavy meal and eventually decided on a bowl of chili,=20 which seems strangely out of place in a small city in Denmark, but it appear= ed=20 on the menu of virtually every restaurant and bar. I wasn=92t expecting muc= h=20 and was therefore greatly surprised to discover some of the best chili I=92d= ever=20 had in my life! A post-dinner stroll took us to a more populated part of the city, teeming=20 with nightlife, with large outdoor cafes filled with people. We spotted sev= eral=20 of our fellow rally participants and settled down to join them for a beer or= =20 three. We were well-entertained by a father-and-son team, a pair of Irishmen from=20 Dublin driving a Jensen CV8 (called a Chinese Eyes Jensen, go ahead, do a Go= ogle=20 search on it). Vincent and Rolan O=92Reilly had us in stitches all night lo= ng.=20 Commenting on the high number of Eurobabes and the seemingly favorable=20 babe-to-guy ratio among the people in the area, Vincent remarked in his thic= k Lucky=20 Charms brogue, =93I tink dey must drown fifty percent of d=92boys at birt!= =94 The next morning, we were away on the first official day of the rally. Our=20 first stop was Legoland, a stop which drew some healthy skepticism among som= e=20 participants but which was actually greatly enjoyed. Snacks and drinks were= =20 waiting for us in our private parking lot, and complimentary admission to th= e=20 park allowed us to ride the kiddie roller coaster (we couldn=92t resist) as=20= well=20 as eyeball the rather comprehensive Lego exhibits. This was followed by a very rural drive of some 82 miles, over some roads=20 small enough to not warrant any kind of center line; the destination was Ege= skof=20 Slott, a castle in the Danish countryside. Besides featuring beautiful=20 grounds and a stately castle complete with moat, the owner of the castle had= a=20 rather large collection of cars, trucks and airplanes on display in his priv= ate=20 museum. We spent a good part of the afternoon there, then pressed on via a short=20 20-mile run to Odense, site of the home of Hans Christian Anderson and featu= ring a=20 museum of his works. We didn=92t arrive until after it had closed and misse= d=20 it not one bit. After getting our route card stamped and sucking down a qui= ck=20 drink, we continued on to our overnight stop at Nyborg Strand, where all the= =20 participants were able to share the same hotel (the only time this was true=20= on=20 the whole rally). The traditional end-of-event dinner was thus held on the=20 first night instead of the last, and we enjoyed great conversation with a ta= ble=20 full of Irishmen, including a couple who were returning to the event in thei= r=20 Ferrari 330 GTS, having elected to leave the Ferrari Daytona and Maserati=20 Ghibli at home. His daily driver is a Ferrari 456. Must be nice! :>) The weather had been decent during the day, but during dinner the heavens=20 opened in a hellacious torrent. This was a pattern to be repeated several t= imes=20 during the course of the event. In the morning the skies were still rather gloomy and we encountered some=20 light drizzle as we crossed a massive suspension bridge to Denmark=92s main=20= island.=20 The skies cleared as we approached the Koreteknisk Institut, a small privat= e=20 race track used for historic and club racing as well as driver training. The track was open for our use, and after a quick rest, we set out to feel=20 our way around. The track was short enough that it could be circulated in a= bout=20 one minute. It feels decidedly odd bashing around a race track in a car tha= t=20 is loaded to the absolute maximum with a trunk and passenger floorboards=20 filled with luggage, computers, cameras, tools, and a comprehensive array of= =20 (heavy) spare parts, while not wearing any helmets, and with no restrictions= or=20 rules to speak of. The organizers rely on the instinct for self-preservatio= n as=20 well as traditional British civility to avoid any problems, and in this they= =20 are universally successful. Among the participating cars, by far the fastest one was a genuine 1973=20 Kremer Porsche 911 RSR. This particular car was the =91mule=92 given to Kre= mer to=20 develop their RSR Group 4 race cars, which subsequently proved to dominate i= n=20 European racing. While boasting no racing history itself, it was nonetheles= s=20 wicked fast! Although in terms of speed, and talent, I am most assuredly in the bottom=20 half among the people I normally open-track with in the Nor-Cal Shelby Club,= I=20 found that in this particular group I was rather near the top of the heap. =20= I=20 was keen to see how I would do against the =9167 Mustang, and was quite chuf= fed=20 when we took to the track at the same time and I simply drove away from him=20= and=20 left him for dead, eventually catching and passing him again. Whee! The only drama of the day was when a fellow named Bill spun his big-block=20 1969 Corvette convertible in a big way coming onto the front straight on his= =20 first lap, and wound up in the grass. However, he soon rejoined the fray an= d=20 continued to drive around, albeit with a degree of circumspection that might= =20 better have been introduced earlier. This was followed with a short drive to Ledreborg Slott, a privately owned=20 castle which also has one the longest tree-lined avenues in Denmark, over fo= ur=20 and a half miles. There we found a luncheon waiting for us, and we enjoyed=20 fine conversation with a husband-and-wife team driving a Sunbeam Tiger, and=20 another couples team in a custom 1951 Bentley set up as a 1930s-style racing= car,=20 completely devoid of any weather protection whatsoever. We then set out on a short 10-mile drive to Roskilde, the seaside town which= =20 has a fantastic Viking museum featuring five original Viking ships which had= =20 been sunk in the mud and thus preserved for thousands of years, and recently= =20 unearthed and preserved. It was here that the problems started. =0BWell, to be honest, the problems really started years ago. I had the eng= ine=20 in my car rebuilt in 1997 and it was supposed to be fitted with a new clutch= =20 at the time, but instead a cheaper rebuilt stock-style clutch was installed.= =20 It was never really satisfactory, and always had a fair bit of chatter. But= =20 now, suddenly, it was markedly worse, requiring brutal slipping in order to=20 avoid tooth-jarring shudder which seemed to want to tear the driveshaft out=20= of=20 the car. Not good. We blew off the museum and struggled to make it to Copenhagen, a further 20=20 miles away. We made it into the town square and parked in front of City Hal= l,=20 then sought out professional help. The RAC mechanics had already been busy that day, changing out the entire=20 back axle on a Fiat 124 after the differential blew out. They were not plea= sed=20 at the prospects of pulling the transmission and changing the clutch on my c= ar,=20 at night, on their backs with the car on jackstands--and this presumed that=20= a=20 replacement clutch could even be found. Things were looking grim. Fortunately, the RAC had a Danish opposite number in their midst, and they=20 conferred with him. He suddenly got the big A-ha!, snapped his fingers and=20 whipped out his cell phone. I soon found myself speaking with a fellow named Bryan Stoltze, who runs an=20 outfit called B&S Auto just outside of town. As my considerable good luck=20 would have it, Bryan runs a shop that deals exclusively with vintage Mustang= s! =20 (His website is www.b-s-auto.dk, check it out). Furthermore, he had a=20 replacement clutch disc, pressure plate and flywheel just sitting on his she= lf (used,=20 but like new), and said that if we got there in an hour he could do the work= =20 right that night! The RAC boys all had GPS nav systems so two of them piled into one of their=20 trucks and led us through a driving rainstorm to the shop. We encountered=20 heavy traffic which did the clutch no good at all. George and I were a bit skeptical as we approached, expecting to find a=20 backwoods shade-tree joint. Instead we were pleased when we pulled into the= =20 industrial park to find five 60s Mustangs parked in front of the shop, inclu= ding a=20 fully race-prepared GT-350 clone on a trailer, and inside found a totally=20 immaculate shop jammed with more Mustangs, including a =9167 coupe that was=20= being=20 turned into a killer dedicated race car. The =9167 had been brought over from the USA a few months earlier, and had=20 recently been fitted with a new clutch. As part of its race preparation, it= had=20 been replaced by a Tilton multi-disc setup, leaving the stock clutch surplus= to=20 the cause. My car was wheeled onto the lift, and up we went. Bryan showed himself to b= e=20 a fellow of uncommonly good humor, and made it a point to laugh in hysterics= =20 at my car, which was both filthy and suffering from unpardonable (in his vie= w)=20 mechanical sins such as rubber motor mounts, stock (but in good shape)=20 suspension bushings, etc. Initially we thought the RAC boys were going to turn around and head for hom= e=20 once they=92d led us to the shop, but they couldn=92t help themselves and so= on=20 they were in there spinning ratchets alongside Bryan. That left no room for= me,=20 so I stood aside and made gentle suggestions or pointed out various m echanical idiosyncrasies unique to my car. Down with the parking brake, out with the driveshaft and starter, off with=20 the exhaust, disconnect the shifter, and heave-ho, the gearbox was out. The= n=20 the bellhousing had to be removed. It wouldn=92t quite clear the exhaust u= ntil a=20 big piece of steel was introduced to one of the collectors and suitable=20 influence brought to bear, at which point it popped free. =93This clutch is history=94 Brian said, as a cloud of debris fell from the=20 junction between the bellhousing and block. The pressure plate was removed,= and=20 dropped straight into a well-positioned trash can, along with the disc. The= =20 pressure plate and flywheel were both blue and cracked from severe overheati= ng. =20 The disc was pretty well worn-out, but the problem immediately became appare= nt=20 when we turned it over. Half the friction material had broken away=20 completely, leading to metal-on-metal between the clutch disc and the flywhe= el, never a=20 good thing! Once it was determined that the =91new=92 clutch was identical to the old on= e and=20 repairs could continue, suddenly the spanners hit the floor, for now it was=20 7:00 p.m. and time for the Danish equivalent of a traditional British tea=20 break. We all gathered in a conference room and enjoyed coffee, soda, and a= cake=20 that Bryan=92s wife baked for us upon learning of our pending arrival, and=20 ordered dinner from a local take-out joint. After an hour of BS-ing (Bryan=20= is a=20 singularly entertaining fellow), dinner arrived and we spent another 45 hour= s=20 chowing on cheap but delicious steaks. Bryan has won the FIA Historic Touri= ng=20 Car championship for the last ten straight years behind the wheel of his=20 self-prepared 1966 Mustang coupe, and also prepares the cars for a good perc= entage of=20 his competitors. He said that his business strategy was to build their cars faster than his,=20 visibly faster, but then beat them anyway! Once dinner was through, we continued with installing the new clutch and=20 screwing the car back together, finishing up just before 10:00 p.m. For thi= s, I=20 was charged 2000 Danish Kroner for the parts and 2000 for labor, something o= n=20 the order of $700 or so. Under the circumstances, I couldn=92t have been=20 happier, and of course the car was transformed! We drove back to the town square and parked the car, then walked to the=20 Tivoli Gardens across the street just in time to have the gates slammed in o= ur=20 faces. Oh well, we wandered to an Irish pub instead and found Bill the Corv= ette=20 Guy lamenting the sorry state of his car following his first-lap off-track=20 excursion. Talk of worn-out shocks and crappy tires ensued, although my gen= tle=20 suggestion was that going full throttle in the middle of a turn after four=20 corners in a big-block ANYTHING was a sure-fire recipe for disaster! A hoped-for early evening failed to materialize, and we plopped into our=20 hotel room well after midnight. =20 The next morning we had a short, clutch-chatter-free urban drive to the=20 Sommers Automobil Museum, a small and tidy collection of cars with a nice em= phasis=20 on Jaguars, including both C- and D-types, as well as a rocketship TVR=20 Griffith which itself won the 2003 FIA European Historic Sports Car champion= ship. We had a brief drive to a ferry, where we then sailed for about 30 minutes=20 across a channel to Sweden. A short road section took us to Knutstorf Circu= it,=20 a small club racing track. When we pulled into the paddock George and I wer= e=20 greatly surprised to see a white Pantera sitting there, with Mats Gorski,=20 president of the Svenska De Tomaso Kl=FCbben waiting for us! Apparently word had spread around among the Swedish De Tomaso community that= =20 we were coming to town, and Mats fired up the 351 Cleveland-powered welcome=20 wagon and drove almost 100 miles to come see us! Mats, who is well into his 70s, had been racing at this track for many years= ,=20 so I asked him if he wouldn=92t mind showing me =91the line=92. He strapped= in and=20 we took off. Mats speaks seven languages fluently, but all of them exceedingly slowly=20 (including his native Swedish). Thus when he was giving directions, by the=20= time=20 he had finished we were already to and through the corner! =20 The track featured some really interesting elevation changes, leading to=20 blind brows. He would stick his open hand out in front of us and point, say= ing=20 (slowly), =93Lefffft=94 or =93Righhhht.=94 The thing is, I thought he was t= elling me=20 which direction to turn, but in fact he was simply telling me which side of=20= the=20 track to be on. Thus after exiting a very slow 2nd gear uphill corner and=20 seeing a blind crest ahead of me with cornering berms on the right, as he sa= id,=20 =93Righhhht=94 I set myself up for a right turn, only to find upon cresting=20= the=20 brow and turning right that the track in fact went to the left! I narrowly=20 avoided the grass, and undoubtedly Mats wondered what the hell I was doing??= ? I soon cracked his code, and he then became extremely helpful. After a few=20 laps I pulled in and turned the car over to George, and he took the car on a= =20 few laps, while I sat in the right seat and said, (rather more quickly) =93L= efft=94=20 and =93Righht=94. I then took over again and bashed the car by myself while George and Mats=20 enjoyed conversation in the paddock. A section of the track is configured=20 exactly like the Esses at Sears Point, although on a smaller scale, so I was= able to=20 really fly through there. Another corner featured a steep, 45-degree descen= t=20 into the braking zone, which took a great leap of faith since there were no=20 corner workers anywhere! (The event organizers did have a doctor at each of= =20 the circuits as part of the organizational team). Eventually I pulled in and the three of us had coffee while Mats briefed us=20 on his upcoming trip to Modena, where he was part of a small delegation=20 travelling to the De Tomaso factory to formally say goodbye for about the te= nth time,=20 as the company continues to devolve. We were one of the last cars to leave the track as we continued on for 65=20 miles to B=E4ckaskog Slott (castle) where a nice luncheon awaited. 70 more=20= back=20 roads miles led us to the town of V=E4xj=F6, our next overnight stop. I should mention that Sweden was completely different from what I had=20 expected. Somehow I had it in my mind that it would be rather like Iceland-= -cold,=20 windswept and rocky. Nothing could be further from the truth, as in fact it= is=20 heavily forested, and equipped with rather wide and fast roads. Oddly, Swed= en=20 was recently struck with a hurricane (who knew they had hurricanes in=20 Scandinavia?) which had knocked down 20% of the trees throughout the country= .. So=20 everywhere we went, we saw signs of the recent devastation, and logging comp= anies=20 were busy scooping up the fallen trees and trying to salvage something. We pulled into V=E4xj=F6 and parked in the town square, then attended anothe= r=20 reception with a welcome from the town=92s mayor. Soon a familiar rumble co= uld be=20 heard, and over the tops of the other cars a white wing could be seen. Bj= =F6rn=20 Carlsson had arrived behind the wheel of his 1986 Pantera GT5-S. We exchanged greetings, then set out to head back to his house for dinner. =20 He lives out in the country, in a small village about 45 miles from the city= .. =20 Now, in previous international meetings the Swedes had earned a reputation f= or=20 overly conservative driving, tooling along in groups in the slow lane going=20= 5=20 mph under the speed limit, etc. So when George piled into the Pantera and I= =20 followed along in the GT-350 I had a leisurely drive in mind. But as soon as we got to the city limits, suddenly there was a puff of smoke= =20 from the quad tailpipes, the rear suspension squatted down and the Pantera=20 simply took off! I grabbed third gear and stood on it, then banged into 4th= and=20 did it again, and soon was sailing along at over 100 mph in an effort to kee= p=20 up! There was a bit of a rubber band effect as we would get slowed up by a=20 logging truck, then Bj=F6rn would make it around him but I couldn=92t due to= =20 traffic. So at the next opportunity I had to really fly to catch up. It wa= s a=20 fantastic, life-affirming drive, and when we turned onto a slightly bumpy ro= ad, my=20 suspension bottomed a few times as we hurtled along, now completely devoid o= f=20 traffic. We got to Bj=F6rn=92s house, situated alongside a beautiful lake, and spent=20= a=20 good hour admiring his garage, which he had expanded a few years ago. Besid= es=20 his white GT5-S Pantera and his daily driver something-or-other, it also=20 contained a beautiful red 1971 Pantera (only the 14th car made), and a blue=20= De Tomaso=20 Longchamp GTS couple (think Mercedes 450SL) undergoing restoration, two=20 motorcycles, and a fully-equipped underground machine shop! His wife fired up the BBQ and we enjoyed a terrific steak dinner, along with= =20 his parents, who were equally charming (and in fact who we had met at a De=20 Tomaso event in Austria three years ago). Eventually George and I headed back to town, at a slightly reduced pace (!),= =20 but we could still hustle along since it was still light out, even at 10:30=20 p.m. The next morning we arose early, and lined up for our departure. Vincent,=20 our Irish friend in the Jensen was ready to pull out, and George yielded to=20= him,=20 waving and saying, =93After you!=94 Vincent waved back and said, =93Tanks, yer a gentleman=94 to which George=20 replied, =93Why thank you, nobody has called me that in quite some time.=94 =0BQuick as a flash, with a twinkling smile, as he pulled away Vincent said=20 over his shoulder, =93Well, most people=92r honest....=94 HAHAHAHA!!! We cruised to a glassworks (the seemingly obligatory shopping stop for the=20 gentler participants) and blew right through the checkpoint after a quick bi= te=20 to eat, then enjoyed a very rural section through typical Swedish villages t= o=20 Eksj=F6, a charming 600-year-old town, where we were greeted by a wonderful=20= array=20 of local car enthusiasts who had brought their own classic cars out to=20 display them alongside ours. We were once again allowed to park right in th= e city=20 square and were greeted by the mayor, before wandering through the old woode= n=20 buildings and finding a place to eat. We chose a place called the Balkan Pizzeria, which we learned (after we had=20 ordered) was in fact a Chinese restaurant! So instead of Balkan or Italian=20 food, we enjoyed Chinese beef, pork and noodles with rice. Our next leg took us some 60 miles along deserted roads to Mantorp Park,=20 Sweden=92s main race track. Until now, the circuits we had been driving on had been small and tight, and= =20 thus very easy on the brakes. But Mantorp Park has a single, long straight=20 that ends in a tight 2nd gear hairpin right hand turn, and soon after taking= to=20 the track, I began to doubt the wisdom of continuing without changing brake=20 pads. My car is equipped with Porterfield R4-S pads, which are excellent=20 dual-purpose pads but which most decidedly will not tolerate full-on racetra= ck abuse for=20 long. Knowing this I carry a set of slightly used R4 race-compound pads=20 among my piles of spare parts. The smart thing to do would have been to fit= them=20 right away, but I was seeing the red mist, and having fitted brake cooling=20 ducts I thought that perhaps I could get away with it. Actually, no. After about 45 minutes of blasting around (George and I took=20 turns), reaching speeds in excess of 110 mph on the back straight, I pulled=20= in=20 to give a ride to a fellow in a Triumph TR6, and on my next lap heard a=20 somewhat familiar sound--the sound of backing plates lightly kissing rotors. I pulled in and wheeled up to the RAC van, and asked to borrow a jack so tha= t=20 I could remove my now-destroyed street pads and fit my race pads. Instead I= =20 was kindly shoved out of the way and the RAC men promptly changed the pads f= or=20 me! We still had some time left, so I grabbed the owner of the green Mustan= g=20 and took him out for a ride. What a revelation! I had forgotten how much more effective these=20 race-compound pads are at racing speeds, since I hadn=92t used them since 20= 03. I could=20 now reach eye-popping velocities (well, for my passengers anyway) on the bac= k=20 straight before absolutely standing on the brakes, heel-and-toeing down into= 3rd=20 then 2nd and pitching the car into the corner for a nice, controlled slide=20 all the way around. Whee!!!! As I mentioned before the Porsche RSR was without a doubt the fastest car=20 present, but oddly enough the owner would normally only take a few laps, bli= tz=20 everybody, and then disappear down the road. George and I, on the other han= d,=20 fully exploited the opportunities to drive on the track, and I in particular= =20 would go around and around and around, pulling in to switch passengers, then= go=20 around and around and around some more.... The other Mustang owner was quite surprised to see how well my car handled=20 and braked compared to his. His is equipped with exceedingly crappy street=20 tires while mine enjoys quality Z-rated Firestones, and that undoubtedly mak= es a=20 big difference; the Shelby handling package also goes a long way. My car is= =20 seriously hobbled by over-tall gearing (3.25 rear end) and a general lack of= =20 power, at least by USA Mustang standards. So it is very much a back-of-the-= pack=20 kind of car at US track events, and thus my little ego was greatly inflated=20= by=20 my near-top-of-the-heap status here. A well-driven Sunbeam Tiger was closel= y=20 matched with me; I could out-corner him easily but his superior power and=20 lighter weight and better gearing allowed him to just drive away from me in=20= the=20 straights. There was also a Ferrari 246 Dino running with us, and depending= on=20 the track layout, either car might enjoy the advantage. Once again cornerin= g=20 seemed to be my strong suit, and he seemed to enjoy a bit of a speed=20 advantage on the straights. Another improbable contender was a bone-stock Triumph Stag. This is a car=20 that, although equipped with a V-8, should have quickly receded into my wake= ,=20 were it not for the fact that the driver knows the car intimately and is, to= put=20 it mildly, a complete wild man. Following behind him was highly=20 entertaining, for he danced on the absolute limit of adhesion in every corne= r, with the=20 car rolling over on its soft suspension, lifting the inside front tire off t= he=20 ground, and generally sliding and slithering around as he sawed at the wheel= .. =20 I prefer to keep a rather healthy margin of error as the Armco barriers=20 typically found at European tracks tend to be rather unforgiving of errors i= n=20 judgment, but he seemed rather less concerned.=20 In one instance I got the Red Mist and out-powered him down the back=20 straight. He waved me past and I pulled a good car length ahead of him, but= as I was=20 still on my street brake pads I braked rather early and cautiously, at which= =20 point he out-braked me and took the corner back from me! In any case, George and I drove the car literally until the gas tank was=20 empty, and I limped into the pits with the engine sputtering from fuel starv= ation.=20 The other Mustang offered up five liters of fuel and I made my way to=20 another fuel stop (one of countless, and countlessly expensive fuel stops al= ong the=20 way) before arriving in Link=F6ping. Another Swedish Pantera owner named Yngve Pettersson lived in this town, but= =20 he was in Milan on business and couldn=92t meet us for dinner, so instead we= =20 joined a half-dozen other rally participants and enjoyed a feast in an outdo= or=20 cafe on the main square, right next to all the cars. Literally thousands of= =20 people turned up to look at the cars, as in fact they had at virtually all o= ur=20 lunch and overnight stops. As it had almost every night, the heavens opened up after we had parked, but= =20 we had enjoyed dry driving all day long. A local TV station ran a five-minute feature on the event on the news that=20 night. They had set up their camera along the shorter straight, and on two=20 separate occasions, they were panning a particular car (1961 Corvette in one= =20 instance, Jaguar 140 in the other) as it accelerated down the straight, when= VAROOM=20 out of nowhere a red and white GT-350 clone roared past and absolutely blew=20 the other car=92s doors off. Hee hee...:>) The next day dawned overcast and chilly. We drove to our first stop, the=20 castle and fortress at Karlsborg, some 80 miles distant. Yngve had come in=20= late=20 the night before, but got up early and drove down in his Pantera to see us=20 off; sadly we only had about ten minutes to chat because we were running lat= e due=20 to a problem with the hotel shuttle bus driver, who apparently didn=92t=20 understand that once his bus was full, he was supposed to drive us back to t= he cars! Along the drive, we enjoyed mostly twisty roads at elevated speeds although=20 occasionally we=92d get backed up behind a truck or bus for a few miles. =20 Rounding a corner I saw a red sports car in front of us, nearing the bottom=20= of a long=20 downhill straight followed by an uphill. Believing it was an MGA which=20 historically had been running quite slowly, I was determined to pass him bef= ore he=20 reached the twisties at the top of the hill, for afterwards it might be mile= s=20 before another opportunity presented itself. =0BSo down the hammer went, and the speedo needle quickly climbed, but oddly= we=20 weren=92t catching him nearly as quickly as I thought we would. As we=20 continued to accelerate, to and through 100 mph, I realized that the car in=20= question=20 was in fact a well-driven Triumph TR4, which was probably going 80 mph himse= lf.=20 At this point I was morally committed, so kept my foot in it, and right as=20 we got to the bottom of the hill, I glanced down and saw the speedo going=20 through 120 mph. At the bottom there was an irregularity in the road, which= =20 bottomed the suspension and caused it to lurch to one side, inspiring an=20= =93OH!=94 from=20 my intrepid passenger. Nevertheless, we swept past the Triumph and powered=20= up=20 the hill, lifting to whiz through the corner at a more sedate speed, althoug= h=20 we soon left the Triumph in the dust. A few minutes later, George quietly said, =93That was a little fast for me..= ..=94=20 to which I replied, =93Me too!=94 After yet another greeting by a local politician, we blew through the castle= =20 and then continued on to the Kinnekulle-Ring circuit. This is another=20 smallish club racing track, but one for which my car seemed rather well-suit= ed. =20 George took a few exploratory laps and pressed the car a bit, and then I too= k over=20 and, having gone to school while George was driving, pressed it a bit=20 further. Knowing that this was our last track opportunity, and with the rac= ing brake=20 pads still in place, I felt more comfortable pushing the car harder, and lon= ge r. I would periodically pull in to drop off a passenger and give a ride to= =20 somebody else. I gave a ride to the tirelessly working RAC mechanic who had= =20 worked on my clutch; they had a rather easier time of it on this trip than i= n=20 years past and found themselves with free time on this last day. He really=20 seemed to enjoy his ride. I also gave a ride to the driver of the =9151 Bentley Special. He had seen=20= me=20 running on the track, and my car was noticeably faster than his, but he was=20 literally shocked and astounded when he rode with me and saw how neutral the= =20 handling was, how powerful the brakes were, and how much cornering grip the=20= car=20 had, even running on street tires. In fact, three or four people came up to me during the course of the event=20 having been astounded that an American car could not only run with, but run=20= away=20 from most of the European sports cars, and now several of them are seriously= =20 contemplating adding a well-prepared 60=92s Mustang to their stables! Duncan was back out in his green =9167 fastback, and we ran together for=20 awhile. He seriously held me up in the corners, but then slowly, due to gea= ring and=20 power again, pulled away from me on the straight. Lap after lap we circled,= =20 until he finally let me by, and then I pulled away from him. The Triumph St= ag=20 appeared in my mirrors, and deciding that discretion was the better part of=20 valor, I waved him by and then chased him for awhile, laughing out loud as I= =20 watched his car careening and sliding all over the track. This track was unusually hard on my car though. From the second corner all=20 the way back around to the front straight, I NEVER got below 5000 rpm. I= =92d=20 scream through the right-hand turn two in 2nd gear, bang into third just bef= ore=20 the exit, but only for a moment, then heel-and-toe back into second for the=20 left-hand turn 3. Hard on the gas for a moment, then tap the brake to settl= e the=20 nose as the car went over a rise into the next right-hand corner, taken at=20 about 3/4 throttle, 5000 rpm in second. Up to 5500 or so, then tap the brak= e=20 and turn in to the left, again going from 5000 to 6000 through the corner, t= hen=20 hard on the brake, and a tight right-hand corner, short straight and another= =20 right-hand corner leading onto the front straight, where I=92d see 4th gear=20= for a=20 short time. Lap after lap, and then I started thinking about the fact that at most track= s=20 I was spending a lot less time at those elevated rpms. My motor has a=20 completely stock crank with stock rods and bolts, and I=92m sure it just doe= sn=92t like=20 spinning that high, that long, so eventually I decided to call it a day. I=20 had still driven 50 or 60 laps, easily twice as many an anybody else though.= =20 Mine is the Energizer Bunny of track cars. :>) I let the car cool down for awhile and shot some photos of the other cars on= =20 the track before changing to a third set of (new) generic street brake pads=20 that I had with me. After a quick stop at a Scottish restaurant (McDonald= =92s)=20 for a very late lunch, we went on to Trollh=E4ttan, home of Saab, where we t= oured=20 the small but very tidy Saab museum, then continued on to Gothenburg, the la= st=20 stop on the rally. Upon entering the city and parking in the city square, we were presented wit= h=20 finisher=92s medals, and then enjoyed another fine meal in an outdoor bistro= .. Although the event had nominally finished, in fact it hadn=92t. For the nex= t=20 morning, we all got up and drove to the Volvo headquarters, where we were to= be=20 treated to a morning of corporate hospitality. After a brief audio/visual=20 presentation and an address by one of the Big Kahunas of the company, we wer= e=20 split into three groups and boarded buses. My group=92s first stop was a small meeting center in a manufactured garden=20 environment on the water. There we were briefed by a pair of female designe= rs on=20 the development of the YCC, which stands for Your Concept Car. This was a=20 concept unveiled last year that was entirely designed and engineered by wome= n,=20 for women. There was a small bit of derision from the male chauvinist pig=20 section of the gallery but most people seemed impressed with its innovative=20= and=20 chick-friendly features. :>) Our next stop was the Volvo museum, which was much larger and more=20 comprehensive than the Saab museum had been. Volvos weren=92t imported to t= he USA until=20 the 50s so most Americans don=92t realize that they had been producing cars=20= since=20 the 20s, cars which were almost exact copies of American designs of the day,= =20 looking very much like the full-size Chevrolets, Pontiacs and Fords which=20 trolled our highways back then. Our next stop was a small, one-lane test track, where about 20-25 current=20 Volvo cars and trucks were parked. Here we were afforded the opportunity to= =20 test-drive anything we wanted, taking two laps before pulling in and switchi= ng=20 cars. Although we hadn=92t thought this would be overly interesting, in fac= t it=20 was surprisingly enjoyable, as we leapt out of an SUV and into a sedan, then= =20 back into a coupe, and then a wagon, and so on and so forth, and drove them=20= like=20 rental cars when out of sight of their minders. ABS working? Check. =20 Stability control working? Whoops, not installed on this car, mind the grav= el trap! Predictably enough, we were the very last to leave and the others were all=20 patiently waiting on the tour bus as we pulled in, parked and ran to join th= em. The event finally drew to a close with a giganto buffet luncheon, where it=20 was announced that the 2006 version of the event would again feature Volvo=20 sponsorship, and would concentrate on Sweden and Norway. Most people were planning on spending the afternoon enjoying the town, then=20 heading for home in the morning, but George and I had other, more ambitious=20 plans. For the Swedish De Tomaso club had several members who had invited u= s to=20 pay them a visit in various other parts of the country. When agreeing to the agenda, I didn=92t take into account that Sweden is an=20 improbably large country, considering that it=92s in Europe. We typically t= hink of=20 European nations as little dinky things, but Sweden is bigger than Californi= a=20 (although with only nine million people, has a population smaller than Los=20 Angeles). So when we set off for the Stockholm area, we faced a drive of so= me=20 325 miles or so. Initially we were on a motorway, but this soon turned into a strange two-lan= e=20 road. Strange because it was unusually wide, with a paved hard shoulder. =20 And unlike virtually any other country I=92ve ever seen (and I=92ve seen a b= unch),=20 the drivers here treat the shoulder as a driving surface. Much of the traff= ic=20 would drive along straddling the line with two and sometimes all four wheels= =20 on the shoulder, to enable faster traffic to overtake without actually cross= ing=20 the center line. Lane-sharing, if you will. It was a very odd sensation to= =20 pass cars on a two-lane road with oncoming traffic, but everybody seems to=20 cooperate, and indeed oncoming cars would move over to the shoulder to allow= you=20 enough room to cross the centerline into their lane and effect a pass! We waited for a =91rabbit=92 to appear, somebody with local knowledge who co= uld=20 lead us at an elevated pace, and after not too long, we tucked in behind a f= ast=20 Audi sedan and hustled right along. When he suddenly slowed, we did too, an= d=20 soon a police car materialized. He led us for a few miles before turning=20 off, at which point the hammer came down and away we went again. Our destination was actually the city of Uppsala, perhaps 40-50 miles north=20 of Stockholm. When we reached the town, we were met by Tomas Gunnarsson,=20 behind the wheel of his Mercedes since his Pantera is scattered about his wo= rkshop,=20 as he bravely tackles an overhaul of the fiendishly complicated ZF gearbox.=20= =20 He led us through the town to the home of Thomas T=F6rnblom, our host for th= e=20 upcoming weekend, and there we enjoyed a huge feast with his wife and three=20 children. The next morning, we piled into an Audi wagon, gathered up Tomas and set off= =20 for a big car show and swap meet. Nothing could have prepared us for what w= e=20 saw when we got to the big farm about 30 minutes outside of town. Simply put, Sweden is absolutely CRAWLING with American cars! No lie, the=20 car show probably had 2000-2500 cars, and at least 85% of them were American= ! =20 And there weren=92t many dogs here--these were NICE American cars! Big 50s=20 boats, street rods, pickup trucks, and on and on. We were just knocked out=20= at the=20 whole scene. The Mustang Club of Sweden had a nice display (significantly, the Mustang=20 Club of Sweden calls itself just that, not Svenska Mustang Kl=FCbben; in fac= t every=20 single person we met in Sweden spoke excellent English, making us both feel=20 rather ignorant and lame), as did the Cadillac, Jaguar and several other clu= bs. Yngve Pettersson had driven up from Link=F6ping accompanied by his wife Inga= in=20 their black Pantera; another Pantera was also parked but we never managed to= =20 link up with the owner. =20 The swap meet was filled with all sorts of car parts, much of them American,= =20 as well as a bunch of other flotsam and jetsam. One of the most impressive=20 cars in the parking lot was a huge 1931 Cadillac V-16. Very few of these ca= rs=20 were made and they are enormously valuable, the kind of thing that you norma= lly=20 only see at Pebble Beach or Amelia Island. Yet this one was street-driven=20 and ENJOYED, and we got to see the owners pile in and drive off late in the=20 afternoon. There was a short aerial display as three pre-war biplanes circled overhead=20 in formation, and then suddenly and surprisingly just plopped down and lande= d=20 ial!our trip that much more specat the edge of the parking area!!! After spending all day at the show, we left and drove a few short miles to a= =20 local auto museum, which was small but boasted an impressive variety of cars= =20 and even a few airplanes. From there, we drove to the home of Ulf Larsson,=20 where we enjoyed afternoon coffee and (surprise) talked about Panteras. Then it was back to Thomas=92 house for another dynamite dinner! Sunday morning, we again collected Tomas and then set off for Stockholm. Ou= r=20 first visit was the home of Goran Malmberg, the well-known chassis engineer=20 and custom guitar builder whose e-mail handle HemiPantera refers to the fact= =20 that his totally re-engineered Pantera is powered by an all-aluminum 8.1 lit= er=20 Hemi! The motor is absolutely huge, and even with silencing discs in his=20 Supertrapp mufflers, it literally shakes the ground when he starts it up! The neighbors don=92t like him. :>) Ulf=92s Pantera was in his shop having new high-dollar shocks and springs=20 fitted; Goran pointed out to us that the car was absolutely riddled with ser= ious=20 chassis rust! So certainly fitting expensive suspension to this car is a bi= g=20 waste of money, as the car itself is basically one big oxide undamped spring= ! :<( >From there, we drove another 40 minutes or so to the home of Kjell Jansson,=20 who owns not only a 1985 Pantera GT5-S, but also a 1990 Pantera Si (one of o= nly=20 about 29 built) and a =9198 De Tomaso Guara. He and his wife have a beautif= ul=20 cottage overlooking a lake, and she knocked out another dynamite lunch. Kje= ll=20 had been with Mats on the trip to visit the De Tomaso factory earlier in the= =20 week, and so he briefed us on the latest goings-on there. It=92s difficult=20= to=20 predict just exactly what will happen to the company, but all the employees=20 will be leaving within the next two weeks, since under Italian law, if they=20= don=92t=20 depart within a year of the announced liquidation, they render themselves=20 ineligible for the (generous) governmental financial support that accompanie= s a=20 liquidation. So now the company will have a warehouse full of parts, but nobody will be=20 left who knows where each part can be found??? We then returned to Tomas Gunnarsson=92s workshop and checked out his gearbo= x. =20 He had all the parts, both old and new, carefully laid out on workbenches,=20 and he explained to us the many variations and intricacies of his less-commo= n=20 5/DS25-1 transmission when compared to the more common 5/DS25-2 variant. We left him behind, as this was Swedish Mother=92s Day and he was going to m= ake=20 an appearance at his mom=92s house, and instead returned to Thomas=92s house= =20 where we took him and his wife out to dinner at a restaurant downtown. Strangely, we had been in Sweden for a week and hadn=92t actually had any=20 Swedish food yet??? And so we found ourselves in a Thai restaurant, which w= as=20 nonetheless excellent! Following dinner we took a walk through the historic and exceedingly quiet=20 old section of town. While walking alongside a river, we heard an incredibl= e=20 shriek. A guy in a Ferrari 355 was doing drag-race starts on the road along= side=20 the canal, using the paddle shift to accelerate from a standing start to=20 perhaps 80 mph before honking on the brakes and coming almost to a stop, the= n=20 doing it again. The car was fitted with a Tubi exhaust, and although it=92s= =20 certainly nothing compared to a well-tuned Ford, it still sounded lovely bou= ncing off=20 the old stone buildings. :>) The next morning we bid them farewell, and headed back south, this time=20 aiming at the home of Kjell Iseborn, who lives on a farm about 80 km south o= f=20 Gotenburg. We got there by mid-afternoon, and after a tour of his HUGE work= shop in=20 an old barn, containing his Pantera GT5-S as well as his Longchamp GTS, like= =20 Bj=F6rn=92s undergoing restoration and in fact being painted the same color=20= (=93I=20 was first, and he copied me, the bastard!=94 he said with a big grin) and an= =20 assortment of De Tomaso-themed murals and flags on the walls, he and his wif= e took=20 us on a windshield tour of the neighboring town, including a stop at an old=20 hotel that he had remodelled (complete with large swimming pool placed on th= e=20 sixth floor!) =20 After a walk around the outside of a large 14th century fortress and a stop=20 for ice cream, we returned to the farm for what would prove to be an excelle= nt=20 traditional Swedish dinner. Unfortunately something had gotten the better o= f=20 me, some kind of ear infection I think, and I wound up crawling into bed an= d=20 napping through dinner, so I missed it. :<( The next morning, we blasted off at 5:30 a.m. to make the 7:30 a.m. ferry=20 from Gotenburg back to Denmark. Traffic was light and we got to the town mu= ch=20 earlier than anticipated, which was a good thing. While sitting stopped at=20= a=20 red light, a Volvo police car crossed in front of us, then suddenly the fron= t=20 bumper almost hit the ground as he slammed on the brakes, stopped dead in th= e=20 road, then zipped around the block to pull behind us and light us up. :<( This was the obligatory police stop, similar to one I=92ve had on virtually=20 every other trip to Europe thus far. My car has no front license plate, whi= ch=20 sends up red flags, and the rear plate is an American plate, which is enough= to=20 clinch the deal and inspire the light show. After the requisite display of documents, all was forgiven and we were on ou= r=20 way. We loaded up on the ferry, and noted a couple of other classic cars=20 getting on as well. They were bound for England to participate in the Three= =20 Castles tour, an event roughly similar to ours, but lacking any sort of trac= k=20 driving, being mostly an organized low-speed tour through the countryside. After three hours we disembarked in Denmark, and then had to drive back to=20 Esberg in order to catch the overnight ferry back to the UK. By now it was=20 absolutely pouring with rain, as a big storm swept in from the North Sea and= =20 lashed the countryside. With howling winds and driving rain, we elected to=20= forego=20 the motorways (since we had time to kill) and take the secondary roads=20 instead. Unfortunately they were polluted with big trucks and other slow-mo= ving=20 traffic, so after a quick map check we pulled onto even smaller tertiary roa= ds,=20 which were devoid of traffic and thus enabled us to move along at a much fas= ter=20 clip, albeit not exactly in the direction we might have intended. This was nevertheless a very enjoyable drive, for we could go quickly in the= =20 wrong direction, enjoying the scenery even as we got pounded by the rain, an= d=20 normally not having to deal with other traffic, then emerge at a crossroads,= =20 consult our map, and make a correction to continue on in a slightly less wro= ng=20 direction. We got to Esberg with plenty of time to spare, and not feeling like being=20 particularly adventurous (not to mention spendy, as restaurants in Denmark c= ost=20 an absolute fortune, a decent lunch costing at least $25), we again opted fo= r=20 Scottish food in preparation for our sea journey. We loaded up on the same ferry we had crossed over on, and skipped dinner in= =20 lieu of an early turn-in, after watching Jeremy Clarkson hosting Top Gear on= =20 the BBC. After an 11-hour sleep and a monster breakfast, we arrived back at= =20 Harwich. At this point a funny thing happened--we basically got stuck on th= e=20 ferry. The ramp was lowered, but the gate meant to keep people from walking= on=20 the ramp got stuck. It was a simple affair, just a big metal garden gate=20 secured with a one-inch-diameter pin. But the ship was tweaked, and the pin= was=20 stuck. Loads of people standing around looking helpless, waiting for =91somebody el= se=92=20 to fix the problem. The ship=92s workers were powerless to do anything. =20 Finally I got disgusted, walked the full length of the ship back to my car,=20= reached=20 into my tool bag and got a big hammer, then walked all the way back to the=20 front. People parted as I approached, I nudged one of the ship=92s workers=20= out of=20 the way, and went WHAM! and busted that pin free with one good whack! There was a muted round of golf applause from the assembled masses as the=20 gates swung open, and as I walked back to my car triumphantly, I thought to=20 myself, =93THIS is why we were the ones who walked on the moon!=94 :>) We then disembarked onto a moderately sunny England, and drove back to=20 Geoff=92s house. We had made it. I forget how many miles we had driven, and I shudder to=20 think of how much money we spent on gas (but unquestionably it was a lot--a=20= whole=20 lot). The car is absolutely filthy, and will remain so until I return to=20 England to drive it again--after all, what=92s the point of washing it if it= =92s=20 pouring rain the next time I show up to drive it? We made a bunch of new fr= iends,=20 got to visit numerous old friends in their homes (previously we had only met= =20 at club meetings), learned a lot about countries that we knew absolutely=20 nothing about, drove some superlative roads, flogged the car on four differe= nt race=20 tracks, and generally had an absolutely fantastic time! I=92d especially like to thank our Swedish friends and hosts for making us f= eel=20 so welcome and making our trip that much more special! I didn=92t feel nearly as compelled to document this event with photographs=20= as=20 I have in previous runnings, but nevertheless I did get off a few happy snap= s,=20 which can be found here: http://members.aol.com/mikeldrew/euroclassic2005.jpg Now I am sitting in an American Airlines Boeing 777, enjoying the hospitalit= y=20 of Business Class (with a very nominal increase in cost since as an employee= =20 I only pay the taxes; the ticket itself is basically free), heading back to=20 California. But not to work--no, of course not! For tomorrow is the first day of the=20 Wine Country Classic, the vintage races at Sears Point raceway. And Lord kn= ows I=20 haven=92t spent nearly enough time around old cars lately, so you can guess=20 where I=92ll be all weekend! See you at the races! Mike
