I had a good time at the local Barnes and Noble this lunch hour. First I
picked up the latest Grassroots Motorsports after noticing that they were
doing a comparison amongst roadsters including an Alfa Spider, A Datsun
roadster, A Lotus Elan, A Mazda Miata, a Triumph TR-6, and an MGB. Imagine
my delight when I found that this editorial crew with published Triumph
leanings picked the MGB as the best of the bunch! They also said that the
Miata they tested was pretty much used up and needed restoring. Now
there's a scary thought :-O
Next I grabbed British Car. To my delight I found that they have followed
the lead of Road and Track and have started publishing an April Fool's
issue! There were many articles on Triumphs including one of the rare
Monoposto Fergusson variety. There was a picture of the Spitfire chassis
beside a lament about never being able to sell enough of the cars to afford
the switch to unibody to keep up with MG. There seems to be at least some
serious journalism with a comparison of the big Healies. There is also an
article on the "Double Contour Six" Fordston Martin. I haven't read this
so I don't know if its serious or more April foolery but I expect the
latter.
It was with an air of anticipation that I turned to the last page. Did
British Car follow R&T's lead all the way through and develop their version
of PS? Once again disappointment was avoided as British Car saved the best
for last. What is the single most hilarious imaginable article in all of
LBC? That's right! There on the last page for all the world to see was a
Triumph TR7 buyer's guide. The BC editor's version was somewhat longer
than Trevor Boicey's definitive work and, as such, has lost some of the
hard hitting edge of the original. Then general tone, however has been
preserved. Congratulations to British Car for making my day! I can hardly
wait until I get home and immerse myself in the clever satire.
Regards,
Bill Eastman
61 MGA looking longingly out the garage door at the sunshine because her
X*&%$ mechanic and faithful servant chose now to replace her rear wheel
bearings.
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