Event Organizer’s Report 2019
Year 29, “And the Beat Goes On!”
Year twenty-nine of the British Invasion featured perfect weather for the Friday Street Party and some brief moisture on Saturday Morning, clearing to a sunny Sunday in Stowe, VT.
As the Village of Stowe, VT embraced the 200-year celebration of Norwich University on the weekend of the 3rd Saturday in September, we were left with no choice but to move the Invasion to the weekend of the 2nd Saturday in September in order to help ensure availability of accommodations for our faithful attendees. With wet and damp weather on Saturday, our Ice Cream Vendor opted to stay home and due to a conflict with a pre-booked Wedding, the Away Café was not able to join us this year, which left us without coffee and breakfast sandwiches. These issues aside, Invasion 2019 was a success. With MG as our featured marquee, we enjoyed an impressive turnout in the Concours, the British Classic and even the Car Corral. Enthusiasts drove in from Utah, Tennessee, Nova Scotia, Western New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ontario, Quebec Canada, and from other points on the Compass as well. A review of the WINNERS Roster on Britishinvasion.com will reveal the home base for all of our award winners.
We were most pleased to enjoy the active participation of Jaguar Land Rover Performance Center from Manchester, VT who have already pledged to return in 2020.
Land Rover was complemented by the collection of Land Rovers belonging to Jim Macri of High Meadow Farm in Saxtons River, Vermont which featured a prototype 1947 Centre Steer Land Rover. Jim entered a 1947 Rover Motorcar in our Concours Competition that had just finished a complete restoration and was recognized by our Concurs Judges as the Best of Concours 2019.
As the largest All British Motorcar Show in the Eastern United States, we managed to field over 550 British Motorcars on Saturday, of which several had paid a premium to register on Friday afternoon for either the British Classic Motorcar Show (People’s Choice) or the Car Corral.
The British Classic Motorcar Show, (People’s Choice) is where the vast majority of our entrants are located. We had 66 separate classes and we awarded 125 Awards to Class Winners. Our Best of Show Award in the British Classic, (People’s Choice) went to Foster & Phebe Whitworth of West Lebanon, NH with their 1948 MG TC. The Concours d’Elegance, our Judged Competition, challenges owners not only to compete against other entrants, but also against a Code of Excellence which sets the minimum score required to be awarded a Third, a Second, or a First Place Award. The Best of Show in the Concours d’Elegance, (Judged Competition) went to Jim Macri of VT and his 1947 Rover P2 Sport Motorcar.
A complete roster of all the Winners at British Invasion XXIX is available for your viewing pleasure on the British Invasion Website.
The American Cancer Society, who managed General Admission Parking, raised a respectable amount of money for their cause during the Invasion Weekend. Habitat for Humanity ran a couple of very successful raffles that raised needed funding for their latest building project in nearby Morrisville, VT.
Sunday started with our largest following of British Motorcars for the morning “Notch Run.” I believe we attracted over 40 Motorcars who followed along behind my ’47 Bentley as we climbed over Smuggler’s Notch and managed a 70-minute rural Vermont morning run. Meanwhile back at the Show Field, entrants were setting up for the “Competition of Colors” and also for the “Tailgate Picnic Competition”.
We owe a special debt of gratitude to the more than thirty volunteers who made the British Invasion the success it was as they helped with Field layout, Show Car Parking, Registration, Regalia Sales, General Admission, Concours Judging, Ballot Counting, the Awards Program, the Queen’s Court, and then the breaking down of the show field and packing up. Once home everything needs to be unpacked, inventoried, and re-prepped for the next show.
As you mark your calendar for British Invasion XXX, please note that in 2020, in order to help ensure room availability, we have once again moved one week earlier than normal to the weekend of the 2nd Saturday in the Month of September (11th to the 13th). We encourage you to make your plans and book early. 2020 will mark year number 30 for the British Invasion. The featured marques will be Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Austin-Healey, and Singer. 2020 will mark year 20 for the active participation of the Singer Motorcar Club and they promise a Special Display and challenge other British Motorcar Clubs to also present a club display. For 2020, the Rolls-Royce Owners’ Club / Bentley Drivers’ Club will join us creating what they refer to as an “RROC Mini Meet” in that it will be a separate event from their annual National RROC Meet. Jaguar Motorcars will be present in 2020, as will McLaren. We are exploring the possibility of hosting a one-week, point-to-point tour, which I have presented twice before for the RROC. This Tour would start in Sturbridge on Sunday, travel to Manchester, VT on Monday, then on to Lake Placid for Tuesday and Wednesday including Whiteface Mountain, the Olympic Village and more. Then off on Thursday over Lake Champlain to Shelburne and Burlington with dinner on the lake Thursday evening. Friday it is off to the stone quarries of Barre, VT and points north culminating with a drive over Smuggler’s Notch, ending in Stowe on Friday. This Tour will be open to Show Registrants.
To all who attended and helped to make British Invasion XXIX a memorable weekend in scenic Stowe, Vermont over the past Twenty-Nine years we say, “Thank You”. We wish you many miles of carefree and enjoyable touring in your British Classic.
Michael F. Gaetano
Event Organizer
