Wickham Park Event Offers Normalcy Amid Pandemic

By Janet Thomson

With strict state requirements for outdoor events and uncertainty around the level of interest, the organizers of this year’s event had every reason to cancel CTR’s 40th Annual British Motorcar Gathering and Picnic. However, show coordinators Chris and Christina Wilson took up the challenge and worked closely with Wickham Park and kept abreast of state re-opening guidelines. The result on Sunday, September 13th was a
re-imagined, safe, and successful event. It was helped by a beautiful day and folks itching for a destination drive with their British cars.

Almost 60 cars were parked on the field in a physically distanced fashion. There was a nice mix of British cars. Triumphs edged out MGs in terms of volume followed by Jaguars. Land Rover and Austin Healey vehicles were also represented on the field. Participants and spectators alike were following mask and social distancing
practices. And eyes were smiling! The event offered a good opportunity to view these beautiful cars and learn from owners about what it takes to own and maintain a vintage vehicle.

While the event did not include the usual show activities (classes, judging, raffle), a small group volunteers were needed for greeting and parking. Hats off to the folks who stepped up to help: Jay Jablonski, Bob Gillis, Jeff VanZandt, the Laird Family, Janet and Alex Thomson. Thanks go to park officials and rangers for making it possible for CTR to have a successful event. And finally a BIG THANK YOU to Show Coordinators Chris and
Christina Wilson who were instrumental in making the day go smoothly. See you next year!

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All about us:

Membership in the Connecticut Triumph Register is open to anyone with an interest in Triumph Cars – any year, any model, any condition! Previous Triumph owners, current Triumph owners, even prospective Triumph owners are welcome to join our family-oriented Club. To join the club, just click on ‘Join CTR’ at the top of this page.

CTR Club meetings are held at the Bell City Diner (formerly the Oasis Restaurant) in Forestville (860-585-9393) on the third Monday of each month (except for December). The gathering usually starts with food and drink around 6:30 pm, followed by the business end of the meeting, and is usually over by 8:30 p.m. To reach the Bell City Diner, take exit 33 off I84 (east or west). Follow route 72 west to the second light (approx. 2 miles). Turn left onto Lincoln Street, then left again onto Pine Street. The Bell City Diner is on the right.

The CTR club tries to sponsor an event each month, such as trips to other club shows, Auto-jumbles, trips to local wineries, drive-in cruises, etc. and our annual car show held each September at Wickham Park in Manchester, CT. All of these events can be found by clicking on ‘CTR Events Calendar’ at the top of this page.