Prior to the Annual General Meeting the officers and guest were given a tour of the Eldorado, Silver Legacy and Circus Circus hotels as a preview of the planned MG2011 event. The tour of the Tri-Property hotel complex was organized by Tony Burgess, the North American MG Council and the Reno All-British Car Club.
Present at the AGM were Richard Liddick, chairman; Kim de Bourbon vice chairman; Alan Magnuson, treasurer, and Denny Elimon, secretary. Others in attendance were Tony Burgess, Robert Rushing, Charles de Bourbon, Rick Ingram and guest.
The meeting was called to order at 1 p.m. by presiding chairman Richard Liddick. The chairman thanked everyone for attending and began by describing the purpose of the meeting. Members were requested to hold all comments or questions until the general discussion section of the agenda. The chairman called for a reading and approval of the minutes of the last AGM, held in Belleville, Ontario, on Oct. 24, 2009. A motion was made by Alan Magnuson, seconded by Kim de Bourbon, that the minutes be approved as presented, and all voted in favor.
The following reports by NAMGRB officers, coordinators and registrars were presented during the meeting or read into the minutes by officers:

CHAIRMANS REPORT– Richard Liddick

It’s hard to believe that a year has gone past, since I became chairman of the B Register. Over the past year, we have made progress in many areas.
The one item I am happiest about is having resolved all the outstanding issues with regard to our non-profit status with the state and federal government. Thanks goes to our secretary, Denny Elimon, for locating an accounting firm that knew the system and filed all the necessary paper work to get us official status of a 501(c)7 not-for-profit corporation. While we have always been recognized by the state of Illinois as a “not–for-profit” corporation, the same could not be said of our friends in Washington. We are now in full compliance, having submitted all required filings.
You should have noticed on this year’s election ballot a by-law amendment requiring the officers of NAMGBR to hire an accounting firm licensed in Illinois to process our annual state and federal IRS forms. The reasons for this amendment are that we are incorporated in the State of Illinois, and to guarantee that future officers maintain the good standing that we currently have.
Some other things I can look back on with pride are the growth in membership, the excellent convention hosted by the MG Car Club of Toronto held in Belleville, Ontario, the two regional events, the increase in advertising of the Register in publications like, Moss’s British Motoring, Classic Motor Sports, and the British Marque Car Club News. This has helped enlarge our exposure amongst MG owners and car clubs.
I have to point out that this is not all my work; I am just the person at the top. While I have my fingerprints on it, without the hard work of the other officers, coordinators, registrars, and volunteers, none of our progress would be possible. I would like to thank Alan Magnuson, Denny Elimon, Kim de Bourbon, Tony Burgess, Robert Rushing and Charles de Bourbon publicly for all that they do. I can’t imagine doing this job without them.
I would also like to thank our past regalia coordinator, Elvin Davis, for his years of service to NAMGBR and welcome Connie Wyckoff as the new regalia coordinator. We also have a couple of new registrars; Bill Barge has decided to step down as the pull-handle registrar after 15 years in the job. Lloyd Faust will be taking over this position; Dan Masters has stepped down as the MGB V-8 & Modified registrar after holding his position for a number of years. Mike Grieco has been selected to replace him.
One of my many duties is serving along with Kim de Bourbon as NAMGBR’s representative on the MG Council. The Council has been planning MG2011 for the last four years and the event is coming together. We are planning on this event being the biggest west coast MG gathering ever. The theme of the event is “MG2011 – A Western Experience” The full website should be up and running soon, and I expect Tony Burgess will have more about this in his report.

VICE CHAIRMAN’S REPORT – Kim de Bourbon

The vice chairman’s primary duties are to work with affiliated clubs to process requests for insurance certificates and maintain club affiliation information. Here’s my report on both areas.
Insurance – By my count, our affiliated clubs have been issued insurance certificates for 45 events so far this calendar year, with most of them coming to me first as vice chairman. For the first time, the vast majority of them were submitted via email, with the club’s filling out a PDF form and emailing it to me. Not only did this greatly improve our ability to track the requests, it also allowed us to get them processed more quickly, as most could be forwarded to J.C. Taylor right away, via email.
Al Callazzo, our long-time rep at J.C. Taylor, retired this year, and will be missed. Our new contact is Tom Meakim, who has worked with Al for 11 years, so he is no stranger to the business of insuring classic cars and their events.
We are continuing to work on ways to improve and streamline the process, including getting most of the certificates to be issued by email. I also will be working with Tom on updating our “NAMGBR Insurance F.A.Q.” packet, which I expect to send out to our affiliated clubs in the new year. Clubs often have questions as to what, exactly, the policy covers and how it all works, and this packet, in PDF format, is great for them to have on hand.
Some clubs continue to submit requests directly to J.C. Taylor, but far fewer did so this year than last, so the word is getting out. Having them processed through the vice chairman is the only way we can assure that only affiliated clubs in good standing are being issued certificates.
Club affiliations – We have 95 affiliated clubs on the books. We initiated the online reaffiliation form in 2009, but it really didn’t take off until this year, when for the first time, most clubs submitted their reaffiliation information electronically. This greatly increased our efficiency and helped keep our records up-to-date.
The annual vice chairman’s letter to the clubs will go out at the end of the year, mostly by email now that we have up-to-date contact info for most of the clubs. This email will contain a PDF of the message, which clubs may print and bring to their meetings or forward. It will also contain an active link to get them to the reaffiliation form on the NAMGBR website.
In addition to thanking each club for its affiliation, the letter will remind clubs of the benefits of NAMGBR affiliation and also the requirements to remain an affiliate in good standing, including the use of the NAMGBR logo in their newsletters and websites, where it should also be an active link.

Treasurer’s Report – Alan Magnuson

NAMGBR had a strong fiscal 2009-10 year as our membership continued to increase. Thank you for renewing your membership in your local club and NAMGBR. We had income of $73,239, with expenses of $78,639.95. The October 1, 2009 – September 30, 2010 Profit & Loss statement accompanies this article.
MG2010 was hosted by the MG Car Club of Toronto, Inc. in Belleville, Ontario. MG2010 contributed $2,993.14 to NAMGBR’s bottom line. Attendees enjoyed the British Loyalist history of the area, the scenic beauty of Prince Edward County, and Track Day at Shannonville.
Income of $73,239 came from several categories; the largest source is membership dues. Additional sources of income are from MG2010, regalia sales, sponsorship in the MGB Driver and the Mutual Aid Directory.
Expenses for the fiscal year were $78,639.95. Printing is our largest expense area (MGB Driver and Mutual Aid Directory). Other expense areas include advertising and promotions, MG2010, regalia, preparation for our December 2010 20th anniversary, insurance, postage, professional fees, taxes, and office expenses.
NAMGBR experienced a negative net income of $4,912.21.
Reports have been presented to the NAMGBR officers and membership, via the MGB Driver, as required by the constitution and by-laws. The financial records are available for review by any member.
I’d like to thank the chapters of NAMGBR for the pleasure of serving as treasurer.

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SECRETARY’S REPORT — Denny Elimon

I would like to thank all the current and past officers for their assistance over the last year. The North American MGB Register is very fortunate to have the dedicated volunteers serving to continue the growth and success of our organization.
After now completing my second full year as secretary it has, once again, been my pleasure meeting and working with our clubs and members. I have met many of our members and have developed a friendship with many of them. We especially recognize and congratulate our affiliate clubs that have served as host for our annual conventions. All 92 of our affiliate clubs are the backbone of our organization.
Our membership remains steady – we currently have 2,076 active members. Annually we have members that elect to sell their cars but fortunately they inform the new owner of the advantages of membership. Some of our registered cars are on their second and third owners.
We can take great pride that we have members in every state in the Unites States, more than 100 members in Canada, members in England , Australia, the Netherlands, Puerto Rico, Japan, and maybe soon from China. A new club is said to be forming in China.
As we approach our 20-year anniversary it is important to reflect back on those members that developed our organization. Let’s all take time; the next time you see a member with a zero, a number 1 or a number 2 membership designation, thank them for helping to start the organization we all enjoy today. (Our new members currently are designated with a number 20.)
Thus far through October 2010 we have had 293 new members join – a “great job!” goes out to all the members who helped to recruit these new members. We have contacted all past members from 2009 and 2010 to invite them to join us in our anniversary year. We did not want them to miss out on our anniversary specials.
As I enter another two-year term as your secretary, I once again call upon our members to assist and support the function of secretary. I am pleased with the understanding and support shown during the last two years – thank you!
We will be once again sending out the traditional e-mail membership reminders along with mailed cards as a reminder of renewal status. If per chance you may happen to receive more than one notice … it is because we do not want to miss you!!
I openly invite our members to contact me if they need any assistance, I can be located on our website, as listed in the Driver — feel free to contact me.
I will strive to serve you as your secretary for 2011 and 2012.

EDITOR’S REPORT — Robert Rushing

2010 was another good year for the MGB Driver. There were a lot of great stories and pictures. A new feature called “Reader’s Rides” was introduced and has proven to be very popular. Also, in celebration for the 20th anniversary of the founding of the North American MGB Register, a special edition of the Driver was produced outlining the history of the Register and spotlighting many of the people who have helped grow it over the years.
We were running a surplus of articles until the November/December 2010 issue and are now cutting it a bit close for future issues. I would like to encourage each of the Registrars to engage members of their registers to produce some general and technical articles concerning their area of specialty. I would especially like to see more articles on the MG Midget and photo technical essays.
As always, I would like to thank my art director/production coordinator, Charles de Bourbon, for all his help. Without his expertise, I would be lost.
I would also like to thank all the local newsletter editors and those who contributed articles over the course of the past year; they are the real talent behind the MGB Driver.

ADVERTISING COORDINATOR’S REPORT — Charles de Bourbon

Thank you for the opportunity to be the advertising coordinator for the MGB Driver. At this time all invoices for the remainder of 2010 have been sent. I am currently waiting for the response from our advertisers. It has been my experience that most of our advertisers take some time to respond to invoices. We have two new advertisers; one is a business card, one is a third of a page.
This year has been the year I decided to streamline the billing for our advertisers. The new advertising structure is simply to invoice all advertisers at the same time, in January. This may have caused some confusion for one or two of our advertisers because their advertising costs are being pro-rated to January 2011. All invoices have a letter of explanation for the new structure of invoicing. Our advertisers are loyal to the MGB Driver and are willing to undergo this change.
Pricing for advertising in the MGB Driver, simply put, is abysmal – it’s just too low. Advertising revenue has never covered the cost of one issue. There are three main reasons for this situation:
1. Advertising rates, to my knowledge, have had only one increase in 20 years.
2. Our printing cost has increased.
3. Postal costs have also increased.
The MGB Driver is now in color, has grown to 68 pages, and our membership expanded over the last few years, so we are printing more issues.
The advertisers, some who are members, advertise because they are loyal supporters of NAMGBR. This is great, but it also poses a challenge for me to treat the MGB Driver as a business because the Driver is, in reality, a club newsletter. It’s never my intention to make our advertisers to feel unappreciated by increasing advertising pricing. This must be addressed in the couple of years, if not sooner.
This coming year looks promising because there is an increasing interest to advertise. I am expecting new advertisers in the coming year.

CONVENTION COORDINATOR’S REPORT — Tony Burgess

Report on MG2010 – June 23-27, Belleville, Ontario
· 241 cars (451 people): 141 United States, 102 Canadian, 3 United Kingdom.
· 155 NAMGBR members.
· 51 clubs represented.
· Wednesday: Registration and a locally hosted barbecue.
· Thursday: Ladies Day activities, peninsula wine/beer/cheese tour, tech session, and barbecue on the patio of the host hotel.
· Friday: Track Day at Shannonville, tech sessions, Ladies Day activities, Canadian Royal Air Force Museum tour, pub night.
· Saturday: Very wet car show on the lawn of the hotel. Ladies Day activities, and evening banquet.
2010 Regional Event: April 15-17, Pismo Beach, Calif., hosted by the Paradise British Car Club.
Plans for MG2011 – June 13-17, 2011, Reno, Nev. The all-register meet held every five years.
· Hosted by the North American MMM Register, the New England MG ‘T’ Register (it will be their GOF West); the North American MGA Register, the North American MGB Register, and the American MGC Register. The local host club is the Reno All-British Car Club.
· Host hotels are the Tri-Property complex: Eldorado, Silver Legacy and Circus Circus, which are all connected. We have 800 rooms blocked, 1,700 are available.
· Monday: Registration, evening event at National Automobile Museum (formerly Harrah’s.)
· Tuesday and Wednesday: Planned tours to Lake Tahoe, Virginia City, Carson City. Eight self-guided tours available. Multiple tech sessions.
· Tuesday night is “Register Night,” which each group hosting its own evening event.
· Wednesday will also feature track time at Reno-Fernley Raceway.
· Thursday: MG2011 car show at Rancho San Rafael Park, just a couple of miles north of the hotels. Awards banquet in the evening at the new Reno Banquet Hall, just across the street from the host hotels.
Plans for MG2012 – June 6-10, 2012, in Dillard, Ga., hosted by the Peachtree MG Registry.
· Located in the northeast corner of Georgia, near the border of North Carolina and South Carolina.
· Mountain valley setting in the foothills of the Smokey Mountains.
· Dillard House Resort, the host hotel, has been family-owned for four generations
· On-site restaurant, pool, spa, tennis courts, stables, petting zoo, hiking camping
· Three additional hotels within two miles, with 200-plus rooms.
· New convention center in 2010, with dining for 450
· 10 acres for the car shows, plus an area for trailer parking
· Wine tours, “Tail of the Dragon,” antique trail, Lake Burton and Lake Rabun driving circuit
· Drive-in movie cruise in
· Tech sessions
· Southern barbecue dinner
Plans for MG2013 – July 17-21, Corvallis, Ore. Hosted by the Willamette MG Club on the campus of Oregon State University.
· Theme: “MGs On The Oregon Trail,” with self-guided tours, Rouge River jet boats, vendors, tech sessions and a “Spruce Goose” trip to the Evergreen Air Museum.
· Housing both on and off the Oregon State University campus.
· Wednesday: Outdoor barbecue dinner
· Thursday: Drive over Santiam Pass, McKenzie Pass
· Friday: Drive to Oregon coast.
· Saturday: Car show on Memorial Union Quad, and banquet

WEBMASTER’S REPORT – Rick Brown

The NAMGBR website continues to draw about 200 hits a week, with most people interested in upcoming events and cars/parts for sale. Hits come in from all over the world with the U.S., Great Britain, Netherlands and Australia showing the greatest interest. The website is kept up to date on a daily basis and with an excellent turn-around time for changes.
If anyone has any suggestions for changes to the website please contact me.

CONCOURS COORDINATOR’S REPORT — Bob Gloyd

Unfortunately due to work assignments, I was unable to attend MG2010 in Belleville. After checking with the usual suspects, I discovered that they would not be attending the event as well. In a panic, I contacted the former NAMGBR chairman, Bruce Wycoff, and (not knowing what he was stepping into) he generously offered to step up and run the concours at MG2010.
Our concours guidelines state that the cars will be judged by representatives of both the local organization and NAMGBR “officials.” With this charter, Alan Magnuson and Robert Rushing represented NAMGBR (this being Alan’s third event as a judge). Representing the Toronto MG Club, Peter Dhama, Steve Jonjef and Keith Holdsworth volunteered. We were also fortunate that Paul Plummer, the overseas director of the MG Car Club of England was in attendance and also volunteered his services. This made for a good cross-section of MG enthusiasts to inspect the cars entered in the concours event.
Nine cars were entered in concours this year with a combination of newbies and veterans. It is always good to see new people step up and offer their pride and joy for critical inspection, as well as former participants return for additional scrutiny. From what I understand, all participants (judges and owners) had to suffer some inconvenient weather until the decision was made to move to a covered parking area.
While I was not able to attend, I was thrilled to learn that Morell Larue had taken Top Points honors for his MGB, as Morell has been a long-time competitor and a deserving owner.
There has been some discussion with previous concours coordinators and “interested third parties” over changing or updating the way our cars are judged, as well as a brief discussion about adding a survivor class.
While I would like to see more consistency from year to year over the judging, with our system of volunteer judges and the criteria that has been established on the judging sheets, it is my feeling that we are doing a very credible job as it is. I am proud of the decisions that are made by the judges and have no qualms about any of the cars or awards that have been presented either at this year’s event or going back to when I was just a spectator or started judging.
I also feel that adding a survivor class will just add to more issues on what does or does not constitute a survivor. At this point, there will be no changes to concours for 2011.
Please offer my sincere thank you to Bruce for taking on the responsibility at MG2010 and offer my greatest appreciation to the people who offer up their valuable time to judge the cars for our club members. Without their assistance and enthusiasm we would not have a concours event.
Also I ask that you accept my apologies for not being able to attend MG2010. (Does anybody want a non-refundable ticket on Air Canada for a Denver to Toronto flight?) I am so looking forward to MG2011 in Reno to be back amongst the cars and people that mean so much to me.

1974½ REGISTRAR’S REPORT — Scott Perry

I’m coming up on two years in this post and I’m happy to say things are going well. We’ve added in the neighborhood of 45 new VIN numbers, plus or minus, and I’m always updating current entries as information comes available. Ken Smith forwards me entries made on the NAMGBR websiste and I find others via eBay, the MG Experience BBS, local car shows and even Craigslist.
I continue to write articles for the Driver and have one currently in the queue. Those I’ve written previously have generated good interest with new and long-time owners. I enjoy the post and plan to be an “in-person” part of MG2011.

PULL-HANDLE REGISTRAR’S REPORT — Bill Barge

The Pull-Handle sub-register of the North American MGB Register is still growing. We currently have 207 registered pull-handle MGBs.
This past year, I received 82 pull-handle-related email messages from 21 distinct pull-handle owners. Correspondence has ranged from simple registrations to parts questions to tracking the history of a classic MG.
The Summer 2010 edition of British Motoring magazine helped generate over one-half of the email messages I received this year. Although I had no input on the content of the article, “Pull-Handle MGBs: The Purest Form of an MGB,” the author, Kathleen Mangan, mentioned that I am the Pull-Handle MGB registrar. Six of the seven newly registered pull-handle MGBs were in direct response to this article.
The Pull-Handle Register was introduced by the first pull-handle registrar, Will Zehring, in the September/October 1995 edition of the MGB Driver (Vol. 5, No. 5), in the article “Pulling It All Together!” on pages 46-47. I succeeded Will just a few months later and was introduced in the May/Jun 1996 issue of the MGB Driver. Now, as my 15th year as the Pull-Handle registrar is coming to a close, I am announcing my intent to step down from this position.
I have very much enjoyed hearing from the many enthusiastic pull-handle owners. The wealth of information they possess on these original MGBs is almost overwhelming.

MIDGET REGISTRAR’S REPORT — Bob Swetzer

It has been two years this month since I took over the Midget Register, and as of now we have a total of 22 cars registered. This may not seem to be a significant figure, but one must take a few factors under consideration.
First, we began with a zero inventory of registered cars.
Second, we spent some time without success trying to obtain a list of our Midgets registered with the British Midget and Sprite Club.
Third, there are relatively few Midgets in NAMGBR, judging by the turnout of only 12 Midgets at MG 2010.
And, finally, it is hard to get the word out with most of recent registrants learning of the register through our web site.
Nevertheless, we now have cars registered from 16 states, Canada, and – oh my – Scotland. I have had several applications from UK Midget owners, to whom I have usually recommended that they apply to the British club.
I had also recommended to you that we end our connection with the Midget and Sprite Club, but the other day I received an email from Greg Gutierrez of the club. It was a copy of what is in our web site, with no comment. However, this could open the door for some sort of cooperation with them. I envision sending them copies of what we have so that they can update the number of Midgets still existing in each category. More on this later.
To conclude, here are the totals of our registered Midgets by mark: Mk I, 3; Mk II, 2; Mk III, 9; 1500, 8.

SERVICE COORDINATOR’S REPORT — Bruce Wyckoff

The Mutual Aid Directory (MAD) was published again this year and mailed to the members of NAMGBR in the United States and Canada. We also handed out copies to new members during MG2010 in Belleville, Ontario.
This year’s cover honored our 2009 Enthusiast of the Year, Laura Magnuson, with a picture of both Laura and her car. We started this tradition a few years ago and it has been a fun way to pay tribute to our award winners.
Once again this year, we want to thank the businesses that support the directory through their advertising. We have a number of companies that answer the call every spring and send in their advertising and checks to help defray some of the costs involved with published the MAD. I would encourage all the members of NAMGBR to support these businesses in the same way they support us.
We are anticipating a large turnout for the next all-register meet next June in Reno, Nev. The lure of MG2011 promises to draw MG enthusiasts from around North America, and the Mutual Aid Director will be in the glove box of many of those attendees.

MGB REGISTRAR’S REPORT — Ken Smith

Currently we have details of 3,244 MGBs on the database. This includes 420 Limited Edition MGBs and 135 1967 MGB/GT Specials, plus 16 genuine factory V8 GT’s
Numbers for the 1974½ MGBs, will, I’m sure, be submitted by the appropriate Registrar, although these are included on the main database.
The split between MGB roadsters and GTs is approximately 70/30.
Throughout the course of the year we receive many new registrations, although I am sure that many current members have not registered their MGBs with me. That is why I constantly exhort members through the pages of the MGB Driver to send me details of their car (s). The inclusion of registration forms by our secretary in new member’s packets is also much appreciated.
We also receive many queries both by regular mail, and email, in regard to numbers, identification, colors, originality, and especially people trying to find an MGB they once owned. However, if a car does not appear on the register, or has never been registered with the NAMGBR, this is sometimes an impossible task. Only this week we had a chap who wished a trace a 1970 Primrose Yellow MGB out of the Bay Area, for which he had no numbers, no registration, no bill of sale, and which was sold by his wife some 30 years ago! (Sorry! Can’t help.)
We not only receive inquiries from the North America and Canada, but increasingly as word of the NAMGBR spreads, quite a few from Europe and Australia. We have sent information to England, Norway, Holland, Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Australia.
We maintain a constant dialog with the MG Car Club and the Jubilee & LE Club (J.U.L.E) in Britain, also with the MG Car Club of Holland, who have been most useful in supplying information on MGBs exported to Europe.
My regular column in the pages of the MGB Driver brings a constant source of information from members each issue, and where relevant we endeavor to pass this on to readers.

100,000/200,000 MILE REGISTRAR — Jai Deagan

We need to order a new supply of 100k dash plaques. The current version of the plaque has the old Akin address under the logo. It has been suggested that the address be replaced with the web site address. We have a good supply of plaques for the 200k Registry.
The database contains 172 cars with nearly 160 members. Some members have registered more than one car in this sub-register. There were seven members who requested to join the 100k Register and one that requested to join the 200k since my last report. There were several MGBs, a BGT and a Midget which joined this registry since my last report.
As has been the case in the past, a majority of the new members to this sub registry this year were fairly new members.
Many different models of MGs are represented in the registry. The greatest majority of owners have an MGB or MGB-GT. Next most plentiful model are Midgets and several MGC and MGC-GTs. Members have joined this sub-register from north to south and from coast to coast. It appears that a majority of the members of this sub-register are still members in good standing of NAMGBR.
I still get the occasional request to join this registry from persons who are not members. When this occurs, I send them a polite response with information on joining NAMGBR.

REGALIA COORDINATOR’S REPORT — Elvin Davis

Regalia Sales $514.73
Postage $136.65
Expenses regalia to Toronto $148.01
Money from Regalia Sales 2010 $230.07
Add $230.07 to regalia sales from AGM 2010. Alan should have the figure in his report. Those two figures will give you the total regalia sales for 2010. (I don’t handle money for MG2010; I left that to the treasurer.)
Alan Magnuson reported the following:
Total Regalia Sales $2,791.05
Regalia Expenses $5,800.00
(Not including mileage, postage, amount includes for 20th anniversary key fobs to be mailed to members December 2010)
Report from Elvin can read:
$514.73 + $2,791.05 = $3,305.78
Less expenses -$284.66
Regalia Sales for 2010 $3,021.22

V8/MODIFIED REGISTRAR’S REPORT — Mike Grieco

I will gratefully accept the position as The V8/Modified MG Registrar for NAMGBR.
Let me introduce myself: My name is Mike Grieco and yes, the little British car has got me by my initials. My MG experience started back in 1969, when I met my best friend, Butch, at college.
Butch had a 1960 MGA, and we would cruise the back roads of Delaware. At the time my main interest was two wheels – I was very involved with the bike scene (since “Easy Rider” was at the theater), and I continued with motorcycles for quite some time, actually joining a local bike club, colors and all.
It was not until 1980 after I was involved in an industrial accident that I finally had to realize that motorcycles were not in my future. As it was to be. another friend Jim showed up to my house with his brother-in law’s MG Midget. I looked at it, went for a ride (with my leg still in a cast) and said, this is cool, and when it rains the top will go up and you will not get soaked.
(Well, I did find out later that MG do leak a little!)
So I purchased the Midget and have been infected ever since. As time progressed I sold the Midget and picked up a 1970 MGB that my neighbor had in his garage. After being t-boned by a truck and totalling that car, I found an 1965 MG in another garage and restored it, but not to its original form. It was positive ground and had other attributes that I changed to improve on its ability to stay on the road.
In 1998 I was divorced and the ’65 frame was in very bad shape. Rust had taken its toll on the car, and I had to “put it down.” I picked up the dream car I also wanted as a young man (OK, kid.) It is a 1973 MGB V8, British Racing Green, full of power, and really fun to drive.
With the help of Glen Towery, I became more involved with the V8s and MGs. I was one of the “founding fathers” of the British Car Club of Delaware, a member of NAMGBR, and the Spurious MG Club. I also am very, very involved with the cruise night activities in Delaware, and setting up car shows.
I have driven my car to Keaney, Neb., which is my wife’s home town, up to South Dakota, to Mount Rushmore to say “hi” to the presidents, and to Leadville, Colo., to visit her brother there.
I drive the car every time I get the chance to just cruise. I have put more than 199,000 miles on the car, and will break the 200K miles sometime this year. A picture will be taken the moment she rolls that number!

HAMMER & TONGS REGISTRAR’S REPORT — By Rick Ingram on behalf of Phil Smith

The Hammer & Tongs Registry has “pressed on regardless” this year, even though activities have been numbered for this group of enthusiasts. The H&T Register grew as a result of the Triple Crown series of endurance rallies held in the Midwest (the Missouri Endurance Run, the Grand Lake Tour, and the Abingdon Trials.)
For the past three years or so, only the Missouri Endurance Run has been held as participation in this type of rallye has diminished over the years. Rallyemaster Robert Rushing is to be commended for keeping the MER alive. His development of the “mini rallye” and the active involvement of the local St. Louis M.G. club has kept the MER alive.
We hope that interest will return in promoting and participating in these rallies. Rallyemasters will be looking at different formats and/or other changes that will make the endurance runs more appealing to M.G. enthusiasts.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR:

After the reports were read, Chairman Liddick called for questions from the floor:
Rick Ingram stated that he noted there was a negative operating loss for the year, as reported in the treasurer’s report, of approximately $4,000. He expressed his concerns for the overall financial health of the organization.
Treasure Magnuson commented that NAMGBR experienced increased expenditures for legal and accounting services, anniversary special expenses such as the purchase of key fobs keepsakes for members, and especially an increase in NAMGBR promotional advertising. He stated that even with the net loss ,things were positive on the backside of the overall budget.
Chairman Liddick commented that this year NAMGBR had purchased advertising in the British Marque Car Club News, Moss Motors’ British Motoring, Classic Motorsports, etc. He noted that our increased membership for the year can be traced to our advertising efforts. Liddick commented that he appreciated having an advertising budget for the year, and acknowledged that he, too, was concerned with the negative operating budget and recalled years past when financially we were in dire shape.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND BYLAW CHANGE:

Chairman Liddick called for a break during the meeting, during which time he and Magnuson tallied the ballots for election of officers and an amendment change presented to the clubs.
The meeting was called back to order by Chairman Liddick, who reported that 44 clubs returned ballots, of the 95 that were presented ballots.
Chairman Liddick reported the following election results:
Elected for a second two-year term to vice chairman: Kim de Bourbon.
Elected for a second two-year term to secretary: Denny Elimon
Also, the by-law change was approved as submitted, with no objections. The amendment requires NAMGBR officers to file annually all required state and federal tax forms to maintain full compliance with our new 503(c)7 general “not for profit” status.
Vice Chairman de Bourbon and Secretary Elimon both thanked the members and the clubs for their support and expressed their appreciation to NAMGBR members and the other officers.

ANNUAL AWARDS:

Chairman Liddick called for presentation of the annual awards. He indicated that NAMRBR annually recognizes members who have, by their actions, provided special efforts that warrant recognition. This year’s awards once again recognize members that have made significant contributions to the overall operation of the organization.
The NAMGBR Chapter of the Year Award: Presented to MG Car Club Rocky Mountain Centre for their time and efforts hosting MG2009 in Breckenridge, Colo.
The NAMGBR John Twist & Caroline Robinson Enthusiast of the Year Award: Presented to Webmaster Rick Brown, for his years of work maintaining NAMGBR online.
The NAMGBR Ken Smith Best Newsletter of the Year Award: Presented to “The Octagon,” published by the MG Owners of MG Owners Club of Northern California; Jeremy Palgon, Editor.
The NAMGBR Good Samaritan of the Year Award: Presented to Andrew Taylor, Belleville, Ontario, for his work and efforts maintaining cars during MG2010.
Special Awards: Presented to Stuart “Mac” Macfarlane and Peter Mittler for their time and efforts during MG2010
Chairman Liddick expressed his appreciation to this year’s award winners.
A special award was presented to all officers upon completion of the NAMGBR awards, presented by Rick Ingram.

NEW BUSINESS:

Convention and AGM Coordinator Tony Burgess made a request that the date of the 2011 Annual General Meeting be changed to Nov. 5, 2011. The change of date requires a vote, he explained, since the annual general meeting date is set in the bylaws of the organization.
Burgess explained that we traditionally hold the fall meeting in the location of the next year’s meet, and that the host hotel for MG2012 in Dillard, Ga., was not available during the required weekend in October. The motion was made by Kim de Bourbon to set the AGM date as November 5, 2011 in Dillard, Ga. Seconded by Alan Magnuson, and the motion approved as presented.
Rick Ingram requested a report from the officers on their goals and objectives for 2011.
Richard Liddick expressed a need to track cars in our database, as our current systems track members, not cars. He further indicated a need to develop a master file to incorporate all NAMGBR data. He reported that the affiliation with the Sprite Midget Club was being dropped. He commented on the need to develop a new updated website, and reported that Elimon had recently researched possible change and had turned over his information and involvement on website to all officers. He stated that he would be following up on the website issues.
Kin de Bourbon indicated, as she earlier reported, that her primary function would remain being a contact for the affiliate clubs and to maintain the flow of insurance certificates. Most of her new goals were presented in her AGM report.
Alan Magnuson acknowledged the recent change for the filing of requires tax forms and indicated that he would be meeting the requirements. He commented that he too was interested in updating the website and hoped that it would incorporate business functions, especially for data entry into QuickBooks. He commented on the changes to the membership payments stating that the most recent changes have seemed to work successfully. He made a special call for candidates for a new treasurer, as his second term would be ending at the end of 2011, and the bylaws establish term limits. He expressed a need to locate candidates with hopes that some transition could occur as his term comes to an end.
Denny Elimon stated that with hope and proper care he would be around for another two years to serve NAMGBR, and thanked everyone for their support during the last two years. He stated that at times the responsibilities of the office were a bit overwhelming. He was especially happy with the continued growth of the organization and indicated that those email and postcard reminders would continue to be sent as in the past. He commented on the need for lapsed members to rejoin now so as to not miss out on the anniversary specials soon to be presented to all active members. A special reminder mailing had been recently sent to all lapsed members in 2009 and 2010 to rejoin now.
He then presented a motion that the NAMGBR officers retain the services of an Illinois accounting firm to prepare the annual reports. The motion was made by Kim de Bourbon, seconded by Richard Liddick to retain a firm to prepare required filings. Motion approved.

Hearing no other comments or call for other new business, Chairman Liddick adjourned the meeting at 4:30 p.m.