Hampton Roads Club Mini

Thanks Angela.  We can work out the details about the shirts later on.  Please tell everyone hi for me. 

Here's my run down. Steve beat me to the keyboard, but he also summed it up well.

We left Cracker Barrel pretty much on time and headed out on 64. Took a northerly turn on Rte 17 and headed to Yorktown. We then picked up the parkway up to Jamestown. We made a quick stop at the visitors center for a brief potty break. I ran into the gift shop and made a couple of quick purchases. After trying to check out for 10 minutes I gave up on getting everything. Seems the cashier lady (who was trying very had, very unsuccessfully) couldn't get Regina's chocolates to ring up. I left those and the run got back underway. Thanks for waiting! We then headed up through James city county onto some pretty nice twisties. I've run a couple of gimmick rallies through there YEARS ago. After that, West Point was the next destination. Nice new bridge they have up there. Glad the wind was blowing out of the south, keeping the paper plant "aroma" down wind of us. Out of West Point and with Urbana in our sites we hit a handful of smaller backroads. I swear I heard banjo music a few times.

Once in Urbana, we got right into the Virginia Street Cafe. They had the entire left side of the place reserved for us. We definitely took over the place. Our Hot pink and black shirts vastly out numbered the locals there for after church lunch. The service was good and the food was well priced, delivered quickly and was delicious. I had the clam strips and they were delectable. I didn't hear anyone complain about the food. If I'm up that way again, I"ll make a return trip for sure! Someone else will have to describe Heather's Balloons though!

The trip home was also great. After stopping by Short Lane Ice Cream, only to find they were closed, the great ice cream search was on. Culminating in a stop at Ben and Jerry's on the Yorktown waterfront. Always a good choice. Is there a bad ice cream?

Summing it up, aside from a few clouds and a few swishes of the windshield wipers I had a great time! Neil did a great job of route planning, Angela choose a fantastic restaurant and, as with any HR MINI event, we had some of the best damn people on the planet attend! It was also great of Susan (MINIFIED on TarHeel's site) to make the event, coming up from Raleigh. And if you haven't been following the thread, she was also on a mission collecting toys in the memory of one of their members Grand Son, who passed away on Christmas day. The toys will be donated to a NC childrens hospital. Pretty sure she needed a bigger MINI for the trip back to NC.

Thanks to Angela and Neil for throwing this together and for inviting up. We had a blast!

Hi HR MINI'ers!

Back in NC safe and sound .. and actually made pretty good time! Sorry about the quick "send-off" there, for some reason I thought I'd be tailing you for a few more miles before I headed west as the rest headed east!

I concur with the previous descriptions -- will add that I found it quite significant that our drive started with a rainbow while congregating at the Cracker Barrel this morning. I thoroughly enjoyed the route -- including those Corvette-unfriendly roads that I would have otherwise mistaken for driveways :-)) -- the drive, the lunch, and the company! Thank you so much to Angela for organizing a wonderful event!

I am also amazed at the generosity of my fellow MINI brethren -- you are so correct that I almost needed a clubman to make the drive back to NC ... hmmmm ... about that need for a 2nd MINI ... :-)

Thank you so much to Angela and Heather for allowing this to become a "dual cause" benefit at the last minute .. and may Heather's surgery outcome eliminate any need for additional benefit drives ~ only good health to you in 2009!

I will be in touch with Chuck shortly to arrange the hand-off -- I know he will be thankful, also.

I hope that those of you who have not joined THMMC will plan to do so -- our clubs are close enough distance-wise that there should be plenty of joint-drive opportunities -- please check out what we have going on and join us sometime! And I will continue to watch the HR MINI site for another "excuse" to head north! Thanks to all of you for making me feel welcome!

-susan
MINIFIED
THMMC
Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to drive in the rain ...

Okay....Drum roll please..........

Today's benefit drive for Heather was a success with a total amount raised of $704.50!!!!!!! 

This doesn't include all the donations that were sent directly to Heather's benefit account or the $5 per MINI matching from Chuck with Tar Heel MINI.

Thank you sooooo much everyone for making it out today.  We had a really great time.  Neal did a wonderful job with the route and the restaurant did a great job serving all of us.  We have some great pictures to post but Neal will do that from his office tomorrow.

For future runs we will start including an ice cream store as a final stop.  LOL!!!   

I've got to tie up a couple loose ends with shirts then I will be making the deposit into Heather's account this week.

Sean, please keep us posted.  And when Heather is ready, we'll plan a Victory Dinner to celebrate!!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you! You all have been really wonderful to Sean, the kids, and especially me, and I'm not really sure what I've done to deserve it... Today was so much fun-- and I needed that, because Xanax really isn't all it's cracked up to be    I just hope I can convey how much it is appreciated, and that anything I can do for any of you-- name it.

 I also want to mention that I think Fletcher looks way too happy with that handful of boobs in the picture... definitely a McConnell.

Love and thanks to you all!

Heather

I forgot to mention last night that we have the following items left over.  Please contact me if you'd like to purchase any of them.

1 - XL Shirt - $15
2 - Grill Badges - $5
12 - Window Decals - $5

Thanks again to everyone for making this a huge success!   

Hello again, HR MINI friends,

I have waited to post regarding the toy/donation drive in memory of Chuck's grandson, Isaiah, until after the donation hand-off had been made .. and I'm pleased to report that Chuck was able to join the THMMC club for the drive to Stone Mountain Park (NC) yesterday and the donations from the HR MINI club and some additional from the THMMC members will make their way via Chuck's lovely family to the Brenner Children's Hospital (this will be donation trip # 2 for them -- the toy count on the first one was 200+ and the MINI had 50+ toys etc. in it yesterday)

Chuck sent me some photos that I will post to the photo gallery for this drive as soon as I finish this post.

An interesting idea -- one of our club members who donated said that this year for Christmas he and his wife requested that their teenage children buy them (the adults) toys as gifts that they could then subsequently donate to a worthy children's cause .. being one of those parents who also does not need my children to try and think of something to buy me when I've usually already acquired the things I need throughout the year, I think we will adopt that tradition in our household, too. So not only has Isaiah's memory served the children of Brenner's Hospital ("Isaiah's Gifts" will be an annual event for Chuck's family) but it has also made others re-think their priorities .. such an impact for a short life.

I have followed the posts on Heather's (co-incidently enough, also Chuck's daughter's name) surgery and outcome and it sounds like all was successful so prayers are being answered!! I know I speak for Chuck also when I say from the bottom of my heart, thank all of you for welcoming us from the THMMC, as well as your generous hearts. I know we both look forward to driving with y'all (we can say that here, ya know!) at a future event!

-susan
MINIFIED
Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to drive in the rain ...