Sunday Morning Breakfast Drive, June 9, 2019

June 10, 2019 RichardReina Drives, Events Readington Diner, Sunday morning breakfast drive

Our second Sunday morning breakfast run of the year was held on June 9, 2019, starting as always at the Crossroads Sheraton Hotel in Mahwah NJ. The assembled group consisted of 12 people in 10 cars. Our eclectic collection included Chevys, Porsches, Miatas, a BMW, an Alfa, a VW, and a Buick. This time, we headed south, with the Readington Diner in Whitehouse Station NJ as our destination. We pushed off at 8:35 am, but not every vehicle was destined to make it to the diner…..

**The morning queue awaits the starting flag**

The Buick, a ’67 Skylark convertible driven by our friend Ralph, had engine trouble on the way. This was unbeknownst to me in the lead car, but I learned later that billows of smoke were wafting from the engine compartment. Ralph quickly got to the shoulder of the highway, and just as quickly, 3 of our other drivers stopped with offers of assistance. A peek into the engine compartment revealed a connecting rod (connects the crankshaft to the piston) extending itself through an aperture in the side of the engine block where previously there had not been an aperture. This is colloquially known as a “blown engine”, and cannot be fixed with Gorilla Glue. Sadly, Ralph missed breakfast.

**Everyone is smiling, so this is obviously after we’ve been served**

While Ralph waited for the flat bed tow truck, one driver who stopped needed to return home, and the other two, having long lost our caravan, found their own way to the diner. In the meantime, a dawdler who had missed our departure came rushing down the same highway, saw the blown Buick, stopped for a brief chat, then continued to the eatery. Yet another driver, residing well south of our destination, came up on his own and met us there. So we still ended up with 12 at the breakfast table!

**1966 Corvette adds glamor to diner sign**

The wait staff at the Readington Diner was outstanding as always; those of us who require morning caffeine were never without hot java. With bellies full of food and beverage, we meandered back into the parking lot, admired each others’ cars, then headed home to enjoy the remainder of what was certainly one of the most weather-perfect Sundays we’ve seen in the Northeast this year.

**Our own impromptu parking lot car show**

We plan to do this again soon. We also hope that Ralph can get his car fixed, because we like Ralph, and want him to be able to enjoy breakfast with us next time.

NJ Alfa Club Spring Driving Tour thru Hunterdon County

June 10, 2018 RichardReina Drives, Events Alfa Romeo, Antimo's Italian Kitchen, AROC, Readington Diner

It was reported the other day that in New Jersey, there has been rain on at least one, if not both days of the weekend for the past ten weeks. The corollary to that is that the weather forecasters have been batting about .210 (if they were ball players, they would have been sent back to the minors by now).

So it should not have come as a surprise to awaken on Sunday June 10 to showers, even if 24 hours prior they had not been predicted. It was two months ago that the NJ Chapter of the Alfa Romeo Owner’s Club (AROC) selected this date for its spring driving tour through Hunterdon County. But Alfa drivers love to cruise so much that a little moisture wasn’t going to deter us. We met as planned at the Readington Diner on Route 22 in Whitehouse at 10am, and after a brief driver’s meeting, ten people in six Alfas were off.

The half-dozen vehicles were neatly divided into two groups of three: in the ‘older’ group were two ’67 Giulias, a sedan and a coupe, along with a 164 four-door sedan. Alfa Romeo’s current model lineup was thoroughly represented by the 2^nd group of three: a Giulia sedan, a Stelvio SUV, and a 4C Spider. The factory couldn’t have planned that better if it tried.

From the diner, we drove about 4 miles on Route 22 before turning south. From that point on, 100% of the driving was on two-lane secondary roads. We wound our way around Round Valley Reservoir, and meandered through the towns of Stanton, Barley Sheaf, Cherryville, Quakertown, and Pittstown before descending into Frenchtown, on the NJ/PA border. The rain at this point was nothing more than a nuisance, and made me long for intermittent wipers on my ’67.

About 12 miles south of Frenchtown, we pit-stopped at Prallsville Mills, a charming collection of historic outbuildings and the site of numerous artistic events. We hung out there for about 30 minutes, because for this group, next to driving and eating, our favorite activity is talking.

Back on the road, we turned left and began to head east, passing through Sergeantsville, Ringoes (named after John Ringo), Unionville, and Reaville. We briefly entered Somerset County, driving through Cloverhill and Montgomery, before circling round, winding through Wertzville, and finally turning south toward our destination, the town of Hopewell in Mercer County. We covered just over 70 miles in slightly under 2.5 hours, including our break.

Lunch was at Antimo’s Italian Kitchen, and it was charming. Our wait staff catered to our every need, and the food was delizioso. Perhaps best of all, new friendships were formed, as several of today’s participants were on their maiden voyage with the Alfa club.

**Both of these cars are Alfa Romeo Giulia sedans! Can you tell them apart?**

The roads were lightly traveled; the scenery was verdant and historic; the overcast skies kept the temperatures reasonable; and no one broke down. What else but to conclude that our NJ AROC Hunterdon County tour was a roaring success?

Sunday Morning Breakfast Drive, April 29, 2018

April 29, 2018 RichardReina Drives, Events Readington Diner, Sunday morning breakfast drive

Richard’s Car Blog has been documenting our Sunday morning breakfast drives going back to 2015, although the drives themselves predate that by a number of years. A quick review reveals that the date of each year’s first drive varied quite a bit: in 2015, it was April 19; 2016’s inaugural run didn’t happen until May 15; and last year, we were out early, driving on April 9.

Every year, my co-organizer Larry and I say the same thing: “We simply must get out there and go on a drive as soon as possible!” With Easter arriving early this year (April 1), we saw that as an opportunity to organize a drive as early as April 8.

Except, it snowed that weekend.

The next best date that worked for us was April 29. Certainly, it HAD to be warm by then….

After a glorious and sunny Saturday which saw temps in the 70s, Sunday dawned with sprinkles, a temperature of 55 degrees, and a stiff wind. Nevertheless, ten intrepid souls ventured out for a drive to the Readington Diner in Whitehouse Station NJ, where good chow and hot java awaited us.

One of the many things I personally enjoy about our informal club is that we have no rules regarding what you can drive. New, old, domestic, import, high-end, rolling wreck(!), if you think it can get you there and back, then we accept you into the fraternity. On some level, everyone’s car is interesting. This can result in quite the eclectic mix of cars, and today’s group was exactly that. We had:

Three domestic cars: a ’39 Ford (wearing a ’40 front clip), a ’72 Nova, and a late-model Mustang.
Six European cars, broken out as two Italian (both Alfas), two German (BMW and Porsche) one British (Jaguar F-type) and one Swedish (Volvo 1800S).
One Japanese car, an NB (2^nd generation) Miata.

**Andy’s Volvo C70 Coupe (he didn’t join us for the drive)**

Another enjoyable aspect is the chance to meet new people. John in his Miata and Tom in the Volvo (which he’s owned for only a month) were both with us for the first time, and I dare say that they enjoyed themselves enough that we can expect to see them again.

**“This ain’t no ’40, this ain’t no flathead, this ain’t no foolin’ around”**

We shoved off from the Mahwah Sheraton parking lot at 8:28 (early for once, as the group was shivering), and headed south on Route 287, destination Morristown. Taking route 24/510 west through Morristown and Mendham, we ended up in Chester, where we made a quick pit stop (for Bill).

**“… and it’s got 3.90 gears so the mileage isn’t too bad….”**

**Tom’s gorgeous 1800 at the rest stop**

Continuing on Route 513 through Chester, we turned left in Long Valley and had a spirited drive along the winding curves of Route 517 South. A quick right turn onto Route 22 West had us motoring only another half mile before arriving at the diner.

Andre the Magnificent served us mightily (anyone who brings coffee refills every 10 minutes is my hero), and as is our habit, we lingered long after the plates cleared. It’s obvious that the camaraderie is there; after all, most of us had not seen each other since last fall. As one participant exclaimed, “we really are CAR people!”

**As we exited the diner, we finally saw some sun (enough for Nick to drop his top)**

Let’s hope that we have many additional opportunities for Sunday breakfast drives in 2018.

Sunday Morning Breakfast Run, August 28, 2016

August 28, 2016 RichardReina Alfa Romeo GT 1300 Jr., Drives, Events Alfa Romeo GT Junior, Alfa Romeo Spider, BMW Z3, Cadillac Eldorado, Chevrolet Corvette, Chevrolet Nova, Classic car drives, Dodge Viper, Ford Mustang, Porsche 911, Readington Diner

It’s been a hot summer in the Northeast, but the morning of August 28, 2016, dawned with somewhat cool temperatures. This usually means that while it would still get quite warm, the humidity would fail to be oppressive. Most importantly, it gave every indication of staying dry for our breakfast drive, a gathering which we last did back in May.

The usual chit chat before breakfast — **The usual chit-chat before breakfast**

Our turnout today was great: 12 cars and 14 participants. Showing the diversity of our automotive interests, we had a mix of 5 domestics and 7 imports, and almost every decade represented from the 1960s through the 2000s. For a switch, let’s list our cars alphabetically by make (OK, I admit it, I want to get the Alfas first):

Alfa Romeo – THREE! Two ’91 Spiders, and your blogger’s ’67 GT Junior.
BMWs – Three: Two Z3s (one an M), and a rather new 2-series convertible.
Cadillac – a ’66 Eldorado convertible.
Chevrolet – Two: A ’72 Nova, and a C4 Corvette coupe.
Dodge – The Green Viper.
Ford – A late-model Mustang convertible.
Porsche – a late ‘80s 911 coupe.

We're now in the habit of including a fuel and restroom break — **We’re now in the habit of including a fuel and restroom break**

Our breakfast destination was the Readington Diner on Route 22 in Whitehouse Station NJ. Once we got off Routes 287 and 10, the roads were a driver’s delight. The diner was most accommodating, as we called ahead, and there was a table waiting for us when we strolled in at 10:30.

Coffee, food, more coffee, talk, and more coffee finally concluded with the usual “why don’t we do this again soon?” So we will. We’re hoping for at least two more runs this year before our classics are tucked away for the winter.