About 2 miles from my house is a public park with a paved circular track. I head up there several times a week to walk or jog. It’s deserted on weekdays, while on weekends, one or all 4 of the soccer fields are active (oh, and the pickleball courts are always packed). Last weekend, while returning to my car after a jog, I was taken aback by the sight of a collection of British roadsters. They were tucked into a corner of the crowded parking lot, and were obviously a pre-arranged group. Despite the cloudy and cool conditions, most of them had their tops down.

There was no choice but to wander over and find out their raison d’etre. I inquired of the first owner who would speak with me and he quickly filled me in. They (“they” being members of several local car clubs) were about to embark on a road rally, and had just been handed their route instructions. He pointed to the first car which was being flagged out, an Austin-Healey 3000. One young lady was more than happy to show me her father’s immaculate green-over-tan MGA, and was very quick to give her dad full credit for the restoration. “But do me a favor”, she implored, pointing to her father, “and ask him to turn up his hearing aids”. Oh boy, I said to myself, I’m staying out of this one.

As I turned around, I spotted an intruder. Was the guy in the silver Alfa invited to join these UK-built cars, or was he crashing the party? I wandered over to find out. When I told him that I owned a GT Junior Coupe, he said, “Oh, the green one? I know you and that car. You were with us on that Hudson Valley run a while back”. It’s a small world when you own an Alfa Romeo. (He cared not a lick that his was the only non-British entry.)

My wife and I were going to be headed to our grandson’s baseball game in a short while, so my time to gaze and chat was limited, but I did manage to fire off several shots with my always-available phone camera. It was great to see old sports cars on the road, being used as their makers intended them to be!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All photographs copyright © 2024 Richard A. Reina. Photos may not be copied or reproduced without express written permission.