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Re: Maintaining the Breed, a dilema (long)

To: mg list <mgs@autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: Maintaining the Breed, a dilema (long)
From: James Nazarian Jr <jamesnazarian@netzero.net>
Date: Mon, 5 Feb 2001 13:48:51 -0700
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Date: Mon, 05 Feb 2001 13:48:54 -0700
From: James Nazarian <jamesn@plutotech.com>
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To: jamesnazarian@netzero.net
Subject: [Fwd: [[Re: Maintaining the Breed, a dilema (long)]]]

This didn't seem to go out the first time.

Begin old message:
 Unfortunately, the problem is that we start modifying cars when they
aren't rare (mgb-v8s) and then they get rare.  I think having a class
for stock show cars is nice, but I know a LOT of people that have
stopped going to shows and started doing other stuff with the cars
because they are tired of the show atmosphere.  IMO the only thing we
can do to maintain originality is to depend on those out there that
don't modify thier cars.  I personally quit going to shows because of
the idea of a concours.  
A coucours is a judging to see if the car is exactly as it rolled off
the line;  with jags and others there is a right and wrong way a bolt
goes through a hole, there is a right and wrong engine color, there is a
right and wrong marking on each bolt head, you get the point.  There are
so many different ways MGs got built (maybe more so with Bs?) the cars
got build with what was on hand, if the part they wanted to use wasn't
there then something else went on.  Parts didn't always get painted the
same color, again it was done by what was available.  The idea of a
concours MG is laughable.  

I had a very good friend with a completely restored TC that was getting
penalized at a  national level show (I forget which) for some mod the
judges claimed he had done, well it just so happened that there was an
unrestored TC next to him of same year and it had the same part
installed.  In this case the judges didn't even know what was original. 
I traded car shows in for autocrosses years ago, because my perfectly
original unrestored, but freshened, 71B couldn't compete with cars that
cost $15k and had unoriginal work done to them.  People want to look at
pretty cars, and people who want to win will always make them look
prettier, even if it isn't original, in order to win.  The only way we
are going to preserve these cars, is to hope that there are still enough
people out there who want to keep them original.  One other consolation,
is that as they get older and rarer, people are going to go farther and
farther to restore one.  I can only imagine the kind of condition
Dusenburg, Bently, Ferrari, etc someone would consider unsavable.  Any
car can be restored to original if the desire is there, so as they get
rarer, people are going to go farther to get them back to original
condition.

IMO of course  
-- 
James Nazarian Jr
71 MGB roadster
71 MGBGT (the one that is supposed to be a v8)
01 Impreza 2.5RS

A complex system that does not work is invariably found to have
   evolved from a simpler system that worked just fine.


On Thu, Feb 01, 2001 at 10:40:21PM -0500, Leckstein profoundly declared:
> At 10:06 PM 02/04/2001 EST, Emgeeguy@aol.com wrote:  
> >>>> 
> > I have thought for several years that there should be two classes of 
> > voting.   
> > The popular vote has always been the norm at GoF West, and it can 
> > sometimes   
> > r 
> > I would like to see another round of judging, similar to a concourse 
> > event,   
> > where a team of 4-5 expert judges look at the cars for originality, 
> > quality,   
> > presentation, etc., and perhaps considering whether the car was   
> > professionally restored or done by the owner, and whether it was 
> > driven (or   
> > at least is driven rather than sitting around waiting for shows) or 
> > trailered.  

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