Gary,
Can I imply from your statement:
"Our official concours attitude is that cars can NOT be restored exactly
as
original and still be operational and capable of being enjoyed. "
that the Austin Healey should never have been sold, or that all the years
I drove a factory original Austin Healey, I wasn't really enjoying the
experience or really operating the car? How did they operate when factory
original? The engine ran, the brakes worked, the steering worked, it
drove. And, is it really the official attitude of ALL concours (sp)
officials? Does Rich feel that way? It may be Barrie's official attitude,
mine and many others, that the Austin Healey can be restored to EOM
factory specs, be driven and enjoyed.
"Frankly, I have been embarrassed in the last few years to record some
scores that I knew could not be accurate"
Does this imply poor judging or corruption in the process? If you were
embarrassed to record the score, then it should be incumbent on you to
challenge the score. How else can integrity be maintained. You either
have concours judging or you don't. Perhaps the answer would be to have
judging for originality (OEM) and judging for "upgrade" restorations. It
is sort of like telling a story from one person to another. The more
people who are told and then tell the story, the more it changes until it
is nothing like the original. That is why we have books, etc.. Without
people like Rich, Roger, Barrie and others, the Austin Healey would
eventually be such in name only. I applaud those who take the time and
effort to insure originality and the survival of the Marque. IMO.
Doug
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