MX5 Owners Club Gauteng - January 2020

Hello All,
Well now a lot has happened since my last post in November 2018. Missed a lot due to ill health and being in and out of hospitals.Sue has remained my anchor through all of this and assisting me back on the road to recovery.
Anyway let me start off by wishing everyone a very happy,prosperous and healthy new year.
So drive off into the New Year with 2020 vision!

We have re-located to Mossel Bay, one of the main reasons being it is better healthwise and the sea level air is much better for my breathing.
So I will no longer be doing the blog for the MX5 owners club Gauteng,however I will be blogging on my personal  Blogspot  "Geralds Blog,will give you the link soon.
On this blog I will re visit previous posts of "Best Scenic Rides in South Africa" published in September 2015
I am fortunate to have some of them on literally on my doorstep.
Amongst them will be Meiringspoort, Outeniqua Pass and others along the Garden Route.
Will also post some short video clips,in order to show the true beauty of this magnificent drives!
It has been an absolute pleasure blogging for MX5 Owners Club for the past few years.
Annatjie you have done a sterling job holding the club together through some difficult periods, ably assisted by Carin and the other committee members.
Rijkent,Heli,Rod,Joan,Gary,Stuart,Bubbles,Glen,Alta,Wendy,Vaughn,
Debbie,Jos,Wendy,Pieter,Alta,Eugene,Jenny and the Rest of the club
it has been an awesome journey and many pleasant drives! Go back in time on this blog and reminisce, it has to bring a little smile and a little tear to think of all the good times this club has had together.
But with every ending,there is a new Beginning! 
Stay in touch and if down in the Garden Route look me up and go through some of these drives with us.
Love you all,
Sue and Gerald

Outeniqua Pass elevation 800m

Looking down from Outeniqua lookout point

Meiringspoort rest camp and picnic spot

Meiringspoort Waterfall,
best water to enjoy with a Johnny Walker!

Helicopter view into the Poort near
Prince Albert.

MX5 year end function Werners Bistro,November 2018

MX5 owners club year end function at Werners Bistro, a really special event in the clubs calendar was made extra special by the attendance of Mazda South Africa Nosipho and Bheki, Autotraders Chad Luckhoff, and Citizen Motoring Journalist.
The big offering sponsored by Mazda South Africa, lucky draw with the prize being use of a new MX5 RF for a week, a worthy prize indeed. There were also prizes for the best costume representation of the use of the MX5 brand. Check the link below for Chad`s comments on the night.

https://www.autotrader.co.za/car-news/mazda/mx-5/720871cd-1e41-441b-9707-367fec4c7015-password%3A-mx-5

 

 

Sharon out and About with the MX5 RF 

which the Minions retrieved, 1 week goes by quickly

Hoi Polloi 8th July 2018

Picture a cold winters day (3 degrees C or 37.4 F) on the Highveld, overcast, gloomy and pretty dismal. Definite stay in under the duvet type day, one may be tempted by this thought.
No, not for the MX5`ers, we decided instead that this would be a great day for a run to Parys.
We met at the Blockhouse 1 Stop on the R59, a very popular meeting place for Bikers and Car clubs en route to various Breakfast and Lunch Venues. There were very few bikers there and the MX5 club being the only Car Club there, really not the usual busy meeting place we have become used to.
The run itself of about 100 km`s was pretty good on a road, with minimal potholes and no real bad surfaces. Scott headed up in the lead, and due to the lack of traffic on the road it was a clear run to Parys in very good time. I noticed a few drivers driving "top down" in this inclement weather.
These are the ones that when they really feel the cold, they wear "two pairs of shorts" to keep warm.
Neil and Scott, don`t know why you guys don`t feel the cold, but good on you anyway.

Meeting point at R59 Block-house 1 Stop

Hear about the lady who invented the rear view mirror,
She never looked back!

Low visibility on a very overcast day

We had booked for lunch at 12:30 at the Hoi Polloi Bistro & Wine Cellar. Having arrived earlier than expected, it gave us an opportunity to stroll around the many and varied craft and curio shops.
The one shop offering a "Fish Pedicure" in which you immerse your feet in a tank, and the tiny Gara Rufu fish nibble away at the dead skin! Takes about 30 minutes.
There are all sorts of goods for sale, biltong, chocolate, leather goods and many more, too many to visit, so we would have to come back after lunch to continue our meander around this quaint area.

Gluten free beer at the Pickled Pig

View down Bree street

Hoi Polloi Bistro & wine cellar

another alleyway

alleyway to shops

Eiffel Tower in Parys?

Hoi Polloi bistro itself, is worth a visit purely for the Bohemian and Quirky decor, with a multitude of bric-a-brac and antiques casually placed all round the place. The welcome was warm and friendly, the contemporary menu was varied and not favouring any particular cuisine. Really something there to suit all tastes.A large variety of craft beers on offer and a well populated wine list completes the whole dining experience. We were twenty guests and were well served, with the meals being served timeously, correctly and efficiently. This all enhances the total dining experience and thanks must go to the staff at Hoi Polloi for making this all possible.

Rib-eye tasted as good as it looks!

Ice-cream in this weather?

Bunny chow of note!

Cups & Saucers chandelier

Special announcements on this run, Carin our hard-working and caring Club Secretary was not present at this run, her and hubby Johan were blessed with a baby boy Cihan ! Congratulations Carin and Johan, and welcome to the newest member of the Club !

Congratulations Carin & Johan and baby Cihan

Graham, not to be outdone announced his engagement to Miemie, Congratulations to you both !

After a leisurely lunch, (we were not rushed by the staff at all, Nice) we headed back home, well fed and relaxed. The weather was still pretty much unchanged and a bit of drizzle did not make it pleasant, however having enjoyed an excellent meal with good company really lifts the spirits, taking away the gloom of the weather. The MX5`ers just keep rolling on "Zoom-Zoom" what a good feeling.

Cheers to Francis.
Francis came into my life a few years ago, and has kept me occupied for a few years in which I restored and brought out the beauty in this timeless classic.
Francis is actually a 1991 MX5 Eunos roadster, with Botswana registration. She was named Francis due to the fact that she was registered in Francistown Botswana.
I bought her off a dour Scotsman, Dave Rough. This was a deal that would have made Richard Rawlings of Gas Monkeys look like an amateur.
It went down like this. " Hey Dave how about I offer you R30,000 for your Eunos? "
He replied "How about giving me R20,000 cash and you can take it! "
" OK its a deal ! " I`m thinking ,doesn`t this Scotsman know the art of negotiation ? I offer 30K, he should counter with 35K and then we negotiate in between.






So deal done, I picked her up and then started the restoring episode, about 2 years worth.
I had her for about three months, and the old Dave passed away, leaving me in a quandary, because I could not transfer Francis into my name.
Why are old cars stored under pine trees?
Why do rats nest in said cars stored under pine trees ?
Restoration was mainly cosmetic, steam cleaning, re-upholstery of seats and panels, dashboard restoring, original wheels restored, and relaced the soft top.



I watched the U-tube where they remove and replace the soft top in 2 hours, no way, it took me a weekend, 6 on Saturday and 4 on Sunday, 10 hours in total.

soft top start

Soft top, very hot work, so jumped in pool.

Replacement parts for soft top, rain guard in the back,competely rebuilt with duct tape.

Old soft-top removed, ready for new one!

Dashboard before restoration

Console restored and Nardi steering and gear lever added.

Seats and panels were pretty bad,looking much better now, back to original.

Before original wheels restored, looks better than this!

Stared the clean-up, looking better

First Arrival back home, so the work begins

Using the Hardtop from my silver MK2 waiting for soft-top replacement

New battery, Cam belt, water pump, radiator and after market  radio, completed most of the restoration. So in my humble opinion, Francis is a true Classic car, 26 years old, and going very well.
So in part of my downscaling I had to sell her off.
Sold her today, to Chris and I know she will be well cared for.
Cheers Francis

All done, isn`t She lovely?