DeTomaso Mailing List: May 2001, Message #123

hi all,

yes, i was one of the few alfisti/pantera-isti at the d.c. italian car tour.
in my pantera tho...  wooda brung the '78 ducati darmah, but the 5-yr-old
son decided at the last minute that he wanted to go.  it was more than a
fair trade-off!  :>)

there were ~80 fine italian cars at the concours, mebbe ~60 ackshully took
part in the poker run.  the countryside driving was a bit better than in the
past, w/ample opportunity to let yer car stretch its legs.  playing cards
were given at checkpoints; there was some stuff given away at the end, to
those w/the highest poker-hand.

motorweek *was* there, i was filmed cruizin' down the road, & pulling in to
a czech-point.  will i be on the toob?  who knows.

the bbq was catered by red-hot-n-blue, a nice dc-areasouthern-style
chicken-n-ribs place.  good food, as much as ewe could eat.  as they dint
charge the $45 for my son, it wasn't such a bad deal for us!  ;~)  

ya, i thought the $45 entry fee was a li'l high, but i'd still do it again -
it's really a hoot to be cruizin' down the road in a big group of exotic
italian machinery.  there were 2 miura-s' on the tour, & a 3rd showed up at
the concours.  there;s nuttin' quite like hearin' one-o-these get on the gas
- like f1 hit the streets!  :>)  there were a few alfas, mostly recent
spiders, w/a wery nice duetto & a fabulous giulia.  i'm not much of a
rag-top fan, but if i ever do get one, boy, those giulias sure are purty!
:>)  one gtwe6 showed up at the concours, & there was an immaculate milano
werde.  also was a nice looking giulia sz coupe (i think?).  there was one
fiat spider, a few older lambo's, ferrari's, & masers, a real cool bizarrini
gt 250 america, and a couple drop-dead gorgeous ferraris - 250's?  i dint
really pay much attention to the models, to be honest, i was dazzled by all
the paint & chrome!  :>)  several late-model cars, like countach's & ferrari
328/mondial/testarossa/360's  one brand-gnu lambo diablo, from the dealer -
sticker $260k+  ouch!  one other hotted-up pantera gt5 conwersion, & one
pantera-L that looked absolutely showroom.  no, it *wasn't* on the tour,
yust at the concours.  the owner sez he yust recently bought it & will drive
it once everyting is fully-sorted...

all in all, a fine time - isle certainly do it again.

doug *want a miura-s, so low my pantera looks like an off-roader* sedon