Special thanks to Tom and Rick of Bavarian Rocket...

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NPATROON CHAPTER

New York’s Capital DistrictBMW CAR CLUB OF AMERICA

Special thanks to Tom and Rick of Bavarian Rocket Science for hosting our March meeting

2nd Quarter 2017

2 2nd Quarter 2017 HALF MOON

The Half Moon, after which this newsletter is named, was the ship Henry Hudson used to explore the Hudson River, including what is now known as Albany and the Capital District of New York.

TABLE OF CONTENTSThe Steering Column.................3

Everettorium........................... 6-7

Let’s Get Technical..................8-9

Driving School Schedule...........11

Meeting Minutes..................12-13

Membership Corner.................14

Upcoming Events......................15

Newsletter Editor/GraphicsTony Verrengia

[email protected]

Webmeister/PEWASScott Gold

[email protected]

ADVERTISING RATES 2016

Full Page..............................$100.00 per issueHalf Page..............................$ 70.00 per issueQuarter Page.......................$ 35.00 per issueBusiness Card......................$ 20.00 per issue

The Half Moon is published quarterly or 4 times per year.

Permission is granted to any BMW CCA chapter to re-produce articles contained in this newsletter, provided full credit is given to the author and the Patroon Chapter. Advertisements seen in the Half Moon do not imply endorsement by the Patroon Chapter, BMW CCA, Inc., or the BMW CCA, Inc.

Disclaimer: This newsletter and all its contents shall remain solely the property of the Patroon Chapter, BMW Car Club of America, Inc. All the information supplied herein is provided by and for the Club members only. The Club is in no way associated with the importer, any other agent, or the Bavarian Motor Works AG. The Club assumes no liability for any of the information contained herein. The ideas, opinions and suggestions expressed herein are those of the authors and no authentication is implied. It should also be noted that the use of these ideas, opinions and suggestions, or modifications during the warranty period, may void the vehicle warranty. The Half Moon is mailed using the United States Post Office. The Patroon Chapter should not be held responsible for the final delivery date to your home or mailbox.

SUBMISSIONS

Deadline for any articles, submissions, or ads for 2017 is as follows: 1st Quarter January 13th 2nd Quarter March 17th 3rd Quarter June 23th 4th Quarter September 22ndAll submissions should be in either a word document or pdf format. However, we’ll work with other formats as well. email:[email protected]

or send to: Patroon Chapter BMW CCA PO Box 3918Albany, NY 12203

AdvertisersBMW of South Albany...............4Bavarian Autosport....................7Bavarian Rocket Science.........10

PresidentBrian Bailey

[email protected]

Vice PresidentDavid Izzo

[email protected]

SecretaryEverett Mayhew

TreasurerShaina Bass

[email protected]

Board of DirectorsBruce Kosakoski

Scott GoldBeverly StowellNicholas CattellMartin Finkle

Nicholas Turner

Driving School CoordinatorBob Martin

[email protected]

Chapter Hotline(518) 899-5940

HALF MOON 2nd Quarter 2017 3

TheSteeringColumnBrian Bailey -President

Addiction = “the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity.” Kate will attest that I have been a little addicted to my hunt for a new tow vehicle. My 2001 Ford F150 has lived a good, long life and has given me 12 years of fairly trouble-free service. Yes, the cruise control, odometer, air conditioning, temperature

control, dash lights, manifold bolts, and ABS have been a little sketchy for six of those years, but it has continued to start and haul everything that has been thrown at it. With the onset of terminal rust and a sketchy fuel pump, it is time to find my next tow vehicle.

The Ford F150 is the #1 bestselling car in America. One would think that a flooded Ford market would mean that it is a buyer’s market, but this is not so. A nicely equipped 2012 Ford F150 with 50-80K miles is close to 60% of its original sticker price. That is great if you are a new truck owner, but not great if you are a used truck buyer. As we know, the luxury car market is fickle and these cars, even our beloved moniker, depreciate like gangbusters as they leave the lot. Despite costing twice the price new, this brings a 2012 BMW X5 into the same price range as a 2012 Ford F150. Granted, the X5 has a towing capacity of only 6000 pounds, but that is more than sufficient for a lightweight trailer and an E30. I thus decided to take one for the team and aim my used car compass at a diesel X5. Here are the fascinating specs:

Year Make Model Displacement Horsepower Torque MPG

2001 Ford F150 5.0 liter 360 380 17-21

2012 BMW X5 Diesel 3.0 liter 265 425 19-26

I thus forged ahead in earnest to find the X5 “xdrive35d” of my dreams. I began with the word “addiction” and will tell you that, with the wonderful proliferation of car shopping search engines, it is very easy to get sucked into the vortex of used car shopping. I have spent A LOT of time looking for the perfect X5 and by looking at all of the major

automotive search engines, I can say with moderate confidence that I have looked at every publicly advertised, dealer-listed, X5 diesel in the United States. I am not shy about the location of that perfect car. I have travelled to Pennsylvania, Illinois, Massachusetts, and all over New York to either inspect or purchase our automotive acquisitions. The key to taking on such adventures is being able to say “no” if the deal just isn’t right. That is sometimes hard to do when you have travelled four, six, eight or more hours to get a good look at a car. Pictures are okay, but you really have to put your hands on the wheel and butt in the seat in order to close the deal.

A few weeks ago I hit the road for what appeared to be the perfect X5d. I gathered the funds, a pile of unread Roundels, and a bag of snacks and hopped on the Megabus to NYC. I caught the Long Island Railroad to Great Neck L.I. and hailed a cab to the dealership. Five hours of travel got me there in the early afternoon…where I waited for two hours for the salesman to arrive with the X5 in question. That was not cool, but when he did arrive, the vehicle proved to be in excellent condition as promised. I got behind the wheel of this diesel and drove the first 100 yards and wow! There was no turning back to a gasser after this drive. The torque was eye popping and the diesel gobbles up six miles more per gallon than the 4.4 liter gas engine.

Needing to check my excitement, I did an inventory: comfort access, check; technology and premium packages, check; cold weather package, check. Black sapphire metallic exterior with brown interior: check…but a strange brown, not the saddle brown that I was hoping for. The comfort access wasn’t working…hmmm, maybe not the perfect X5…so, back in the cab, back on the train, and back on the bus until my next adventure. Walking away certainly wasn’t easy, but at least I got to browse for more X5s on my phone all the way home. That X5 is out there somewhere and the next trip just might find the perfect fit, leaving some time for a new addiction. A new 49 year old BMW might tide me over, but that is a story for next time.

2017 BMW M3M Sport Package, Lighting Package, Executive Package, Drivers Assistance Plus, Competition

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2017 BMW M3M Sport Package, Lighting Package, Executive Package, Drivers Assistance Plus, Competition

Package

Black Saphire/Sakhir Orange

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BMWOF SOUTH ALBANY



8th Annual

July 7, 8, 9, 2017

The Patroon Chapter of BMW CCA Presents

All BMWs 1999 and earlier including all E36s

At the Saratoga Auto Museum, Saratoga Springs, NY

vintageatsaratoga.com

BMW Car Club

Patroon Chapterof America


EverettoriumEverett A. Mayhew Jr.

Most of us club members, the hard core of BMW fandom, believe that tires are where the rubber meets the road. That makes them important. We are the ones whose enthusiasm for standard-fare run-flats range from lukewarm to ice cold. As soon as we can, we replace them with high performance shoes that compliment and assist the fine Bavarian automobiles in our possession. This, unfortunately, can be expensive.

To a great swath of America, who judge a tire only by (1) how cheap it is and (2) how long it will last, a self-inflicted tire obsession must sound a little bit like a Bentley owner complaining that his dashboard Breitling Mulliner Tourbillon clock has stopped ticking. Maybe, but for those of us whose wallet was stretched to buy our BMW in the first place, there is a mixture of pain and pleasure in getting sticky (and quick-wearing) tires that can handle any speed our BMWs can dish out. The pleasure is in the highly-addictive aspect of not having to brake for corners other cars ahead of you must, and generally being glued to the road. The pain is the money you must shell out, both in quantity and frequency.

So it is. Once you’ve seen how wonderful your BMW is on high performance tires, you can never go back. But the relatively soft rubber compounds mean that buying these expensive tires often becomes an annual or biannual event. I got hooked a long time ago, when my 1998 Z3’s (“Zelda’s”) OEM tires needed to be replaced and I went for the brass, or rather rubber, ring. We experimented with brands: Michelin, Bridgestone, Pirelli, Yokohama, BF Goodrich etc. But we always went for tires at the top of the Tire Rack (tirerack.com) performance list.

My other BMW, the 1 Series M Coupe (“1M”) came with high performance tires, so the addiction was built in. And, since this was my (ha ha) “regular” car, used for all the things a two-seat roadster convertible is not suited to, it required an extra set of tires: snow tires. And because the 1M was my first “regular” car that clearly had superior performance compared to my sports car, it caused an unforgiveable error: on the last go-round I bought cheap tires for my Z3! Not only were they at least a level or two down Tire Rack’s performance list, they were a brand that, let us say is “unproven”. So for the last couple of years…maybe three or four, since “Zelda” is reserved for sunny warm days pretty much now, I’ve had to put up with the consequences. These tires seem to stick OK, but there is a slight softness, just a bit of diminution in the razor-sharp response I expect. It makes the sports car feel just a bit vague. I’ve learned my lesson.

If you’re following the math, I’ve got 12 expensive tires in constant rotation, so to speak. This is a heavy price that I pay willingly, but now that yours truly has retired from gainful employment, the cost can be scary!

This was brought home to us recently, when it became clear that all 12 tires would have to be replaced in short order! The first to go were the snow tires. My Bridgestone Blizzaks had been providing yeoman service since my first winter of 2011-2012, but even though they were only used four months a year (late-November to the first week of April) it was getting time to replace them. My hand was forced when, avoiding some debris on Rensselaer County Route 7, I hit

TIRED AND RE-TIRED

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a tank trap/pothole at the edge of the road that immediately imploded my passenger-side front tire. With the help of foam and an air compressor I managed to limp into Grand Premier in East Greenbush the next day. Because all the tires were getting old I decided to replace them all, and not just the one assassinated by the county road. Now, Blizzaks are good snow tires, and I was planning on replacing my old Blizzaks with new ones, but there is one snow tire that is better than any other, and it turns out Grand Premier was selling them: Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2’s. Naturally I went for them!

Sometimes, if it’s mild and the roads are dry, I’ll air out Zelda during the winter. For some time the front passenger-side tire (why always this tire??) had a slow leak, but I’d just top it off once a week and we were good. Then, lo and behold, I go out to the garage and see the rear passenger-side tire is flat! It turns out to be another slow leak, but when, after pumping the tire back up, I was feeling for any escaping air I realized these tires were also toast. Among Zelda’s modifications are H & R sport springs and Bilstein sport shocks, which lowered the already-low sports car by an inch. This gave the rear tires extreme camber, which is great for cornering like you are on rails, but also causes the inside tread to wear faster. This isn’t always that visible on the very low car, but my searching fingertips revealed the truth. Since Zelda’s season starts in April, it was time to replace the tires. Learning my lesson, I ordered good quality Bridgestone Potenza RE-11’s from Tire Rack, which was at the top of Tire Rack’s performance testing.

So now we’re up to 8 tires. And I already knew the 1M’s Michelin Pilot Super Sports needed to be replaced, at least the rears. These are 19 inch tires, 265 mm wide, and so just the size alone makes them pricier. The fact that they are one of the best, if not best period, street performance tire makes them even more dear (not available in the Z3’s 16 inch size). I managed to pass my September inspection last year, but just barely, and I had promised myself new tires in the spring. The front tires might last one more summer, but if I decided to replace all four tires we’re up to 12 tires in short order, at a cost around $3,000! For those of us now on a fixed income, this can cause small beads of sweat to form on our forehead.

But I am addicted, and tires are my drug of choice. If I have to put my furniture on sale on Ebay, so be it. At least I should be good for tires for another 2-5 years, which will give my credit cards time to cool off. And I’ll almost never have to brake for corners.


Let’s getTechnicalTom Dobush and Christian Schaefer

It’s a question that has been asked countless times in automotive repair shops and parts stores across the globe for nearly a century. The answer to which is far from simple to understand. Debate is often sparked once this inquiry has been posed. Reasonably subjective wisdom undoubtedly ensues. A great movie from some years back fondly comes to mind. The film featured a jolly, rather portly salesman as the main character and revolved around the age old question: What are the best brake pads for my car?

When enthusiasts think about improving the stopping power on their cars, ideas of big brake kits bounce around in their heads. For most folks, they need not worry if bigger is better. Turns out, in most cases they would be better served with more aggressive brake pads of the standard size. With a bigger brake setup, there is more pad and rotor contact area which is better for track oriented performance, but for modern road cars the factory stock brake size is usually more than adequate. On the road, brake performance comes down to brake pad compound and tire choice mostly.

Choosing a brake pad compound can be a seemingly overwhelming task. For the average consumer, whatever pad comes from the factory will be sufficient. For enthusiasts, those looking to make an improvement, hopefully this article will help give a better understanding of what pad will best suit you.

The most basic brake pad compound you can find at your auto parts store is an organic pad. Organic brake pads, also known as NAO, or “non-asbestos organic,” will be the least expensive pad available. Made from rubber, glass, carbon, Kevlar and other organic compounds. The materials are bound together in a resin and formed into the pad shape. They are made from relatively soft materials, so the wear on your rotors is relatively lighter than other styles. These pads give a nice initial bite when they contact the rotor. They also create less heat, and tend to make little noise while in use. Conventional NAO pads are ideal for the average commuter econobox as well as some vintage applications.

A step up from an organic pad is a semi-metallic pad. These tend to be standard on modern BMW road cars. Comprised of a wide range of different metals, they are blended with graphite and other compounds to create a harder and more aggressive compound than the organic. Many popular aftermarket manufactures offer this type of brake pad. They can vary in a wide range of styles, from a softer, more streetable compound, to a harder and more metal heavy, track day type compound. From a wear standpoint, the semi-metallic pad life is better than organic, but the wear on the rotors can be significantly more. Along with the increased rotor wear, noise can be significantly more than organic pads and they produce the most dust as well.

Now from a mechanical engineering point of view brake dust is a good thing. It shows that the brake system is working correctly. Braking is a physical conversion of kinetic energy into heat, sound and gas. Brake dust is a chemistry of materials issue. Brake rotors and pads made by various manufactures to OEM spec and beyond (think track performance upgrades) are made of many different materials, each with their own properties and pros and cons. We’ll come back to this later.

Braking Dust Bad?


On the stopping performance compared to organic pads, semi-metallic is in another league. Even the softest semi-metallic pads will offer a great blend of performance and everyday usability. These pads perform well with prolonged use, while still providing a good initial bite and pad life. There are several semi-metallic pads available that would be well suited for the enthusiast who is looking to gain an advantage at an occasional autocross on Sunday and still be able to drive to work on Monday.

With the increased performance, so too comes increased dust but have no fear, there are products out there that can help. Wheel waxes and sealers are available and can create a slick barrier to most wheels making it easier to clean up the brake dust off your wheels, when it comes time for a wash. There is another alternative type of pad that will produce very little noise and much less dust. When cleanliness trumps cost, one might consider ceramic brake pads. As the name suggests, they are manufactured with ceramic materials that are similar to what would be found in pottery, but much denser and more durable. They tend to be able to withstand very high operating temperatures, which is primarily what they were developed for. This can be good for endurance racing, but some of the side effects on the road can manifest as less initial bite and a lack of feedback or a numbness through the pedal, especially at cooler temps and in the wet. All brake pads produce heat and need to operate within certain temperature ranges to function properly. Some ceramic pads’ resistance to heat can put the pads potentially at a disadvantage in colder conditions causing the possibility of increased stopping distances as well. These disadvantages are usually fairly negligible in most cases however. Ceramic pads tend to be considerably more expensive than the semi-metallic and organic pads because of their hi-tech manufacturing processes.

Personally, we tend to lean towards overall performance, feel and safety, where brake dust is a trade off, we prefer over increased stopping distance. Granted, tire choice and condition, along with driver reaction time, are much bigger factors in safety in an emergency situation. All other things being equal however, there are perceivable differences in brake pad types and braking performance is not to be taken lightly. Any questions or tips you would like me to share with the rest of the club? Please feel free to contact me directly anytime at [email protected].

Thank you for reading and be safe out there!

Since 1982. Thank you!10 2nd Quarter 2017 HALF MOON

Classics: Preservation & Restoration • Daily Drivers: Tune ups, Maintenance & Service, Winterization & Long Term Projects, Oil Changes • Inspections: NYS, Tech & Prepurchase, Check Engine Light & Computer Diagnostics, Tire & Wheels • Safety Equipment: Brakes, Roll Cages & Harnesses • Engines: Tuning, Rebuilds, Intakes, Carburetors, Exhaust & Mufflers, Turbos & Superchargers • Suspensions: Alignment & Corner Balancing

The 2016 Season is all set except you need to register as soon as registration opens!.

Saturday May 21st — Lime Rock Park Monday & Tuesday June 6th and 7th — Watkins Glen International Fri to Sun July 15th-17th — Calabogie Canada with a BMWCCA Club Race Saturday September 10th—Lime Rock Park Saturday & Sunday October 15th-16th — Whiskey Hill/Palmer MSP

Event Registration will open in February at Patroon.Motorsportreg.com

Find more information at PatroonHPDE.com

Volunteer!! Receive credit towards a future school!!.

The 2016 Season is all set except you need to register as soon as registration opens!.

Saturday May 21st — Lime Rock Park Monday & Tuesday June 6th and 7th — Watkins Glen International Fri to Sun July 15th-17th — Calabogie Canada with a BMWCCA Club Race Saturday September 10th—Lime Rock Park Saturday & Sunday October 15th-16th — Whiskey Hill/Palmer MSP



Volunteer!! Receive credit towards a future school!!.


2017 High Performance Driving SchoolThe 2017 Season is starting to take shape.

Here is the un-official schedule:

Monday and Tuesday, May 8th and 9th - Watkins Glen InternationalThis a co-event with the NY Chapter and the DelVal Chapter

friday through Sunday, July 14th -16th Calabogie CanadaThis is an un-official “On the road with Patroon” event hosted by

the Ottawa Chapter. There is also a BMWCCA Club Race

Saturday, July 29th - Lime Rock Park

Saturday, September 23rd - Lime Rock Park (Tentative)

Saturday and Sunday, October 14th and 15th – Whiskey Hill/PalmerThis is a co-event with the Connecticut Valley Chapter



We are revamping our Volunteers Reward Program. More details to follow.Thanks to our Sponsors!


MEETING MINUETS Mister Secretary

First allow Mr. Secretary to point out that he chooses to entitle this reportage “minuets”, not “minutes”. Not that he is implying any association of the club’s formal functions with the rococo and mannered 18th century dance in any way. Our editor added a “sic” to our title last quarter, and although his heart was in the right place, our perversion of the expected word “minutes” was intentional. [The Latin adverb sic (“thus”; “just as”; in full: sic erat scriptum, “thus was it written”) inserted after a quoted word or passage, indicates that the quoted matter has been transcribed exactly as found in the source text, complete with any erroneous or archaic spelling, surprising assertion, faulty reasoning, or other matter that might otherwise be taken as an error of tran-scription.] Of course, he is sane, and we are not. So we forgive him. He also suggested that we are one in the same as the club’s brilliant and scintillating…even sparkling…columnist Everett Mayhew Jr. We prefer the nom de plume “Mr. Secretary”, although we can’t deny we are the alter ego (how many egos can one person have?) of the famed columnist. We would try, but our name is on the masthead.

Second, and after this we will not enumerate our paragraphs in ordinals, Mr. Secretary has come upon the stunning realization that club events outnumber newsletters by a significant amount. So, we will try to be more succinct for each entry. We have signed up for lessons taught by Ernest Hemingway and Gary Cooper from Trump University, which are offered free of charge as long as I sign over the title to my house, which, I am assured, is a mere formal-ity.

Board Meeting, January 30, 2017 The meeting was convened at Director Stowell’s house. Mister Secretary was not there, however. Avoiding some debris on a lonely Rensselaer County road near his house, he hit a roadside pothole or tank trap with his 1M, killing his passenger-side front tire. M models use “mobility kits”, essentially sealing agent and an accessory plug-in pump. Did you know the liquid has a “sell by” date? It’s in the instruction manual, which of course you only refer to when you open the mobility kit, which of course you only open up when you have a flat. We slowly drove the two miles back home, not knowing how much air we had left in the tire, only that the red low pressure light was glaring at us. We assumed, without any basis whatsoever, that the car would be screaming (visually) more loudly if we had no air in the tire. Once we got home though, our tire gauge indicated exactly that. Our garage pump would get just over 20 lbs. of pressure (35 lbs. normal) before the telltale hiss of escaping air became noticeable. That’s when we remembered the mobility kit. The main problem with old mobility kit goo is that it doesn’t like to mix very well. The top of the goo was like water, and wasn’t sealing anything. The bottom was like toothpaste. Anyway, we finally got enough toothpaste into the tire so that it would hold. There was a lot of air pumping, stopping to hear a telltale hiss, squeezing more toothpaste into my tire with Herculean effort, and pumping again until finally I killed my air pump. This was an expensive electric pump, but we’ve had it for quite a while, so it was probably due to die anyway. Fortunately, we have a small air compressor as a fallback, and that’s how we got the tire full enough to take me to Grand Premier in East Greenbush the next day. Meanwhile, our esteemed President took notes for the Board Meeting: • In attendance: M. Finkle, B. Stowell, B. Bailey, S. Gold, B. Kosakoski, S. Bass, N. Cattell, N. Turner. • The Board spent 1.5 hours working through the Operations Manual. • “Assignments” for 2017 • Pick up the mail. Shaina Bass • Vintage at Saratoga, Frank Greppo • Bob Martin, Head of Driving School • Webmaster, Scott Gold • Newsletter, Tony Verrengia • Membership Chair - Facebook, Scott Stowell • Show and shine - ? • We don’t have anyone to run our Show and Shines; we need to determine this by March to prep for future events. • Tabled: Web presence; what do we post and where (confidentiality, platforms, etc.)? • We must discuss the potential of having an audit of our “tax-exempt status” by-law alignment with NYS law (perhaps Sarah Gold can help with this).

MONTHLY MEETING, FEBRUARY 8, 2017

To continue our theme as “Secretary in absentia” we were also not at the Monthly Club Meeting in February. We were drinking rum in Boca Raton. However, we arranged for our predecessor Bill Dosch to chronicle the meeting. This meeting was in fact the Pinewood Derby event at the Saratoga Auto Museum, where we have the run of the place after hours, and get to race little wooden cars down a wooden track, like the good Cub Scouts we are! Bill reports that approximately 27 members were there, feasting on pizza and wings. He notes that he finished 13th out of 14 entries, and is damned proud of it! We would print the results supposedly indicated in the sheet at right, but frankly we can’t make heads nor tails of it. But apparently, someone could, as we have the official photograph of the winners.

We believe these victors to be, left to right, Scott Stowell,

Wayne Bunn, and Nicole Whitney


Board Meeting, February 27th, 2017 Because Mr. Secretary was not at the previous Board Meeting, when this date was announced, and there was a glitch in the Club’s secure communi-cation system, he continued his stint as Secretary in Absentia. This was again, reported by Mr. President, Brian Bailey.

Minutes Board Meeting (informal) 2-27-17Castle Gold

2/27/17, 7 pmAudit of non-profit status: We agreed to have our chapter’s administrative non-profit status reviewed by an independent counsell. The Board will officially ask Sarah Gold to please do an audit of our non-profit. Brian will prepare a correspondance to send to her.

Show and Shines: We don’t have anyone to run our Show and Shines; we need to determine this by March to prep for future events. - Marty has reached out to BMW of South Albany and they (Jay) are interested in hosting us in August.- Shaina is going to speak to the people at Keeler (Brian will go with her if that is possible)Web presence: what do we post and where (confidentiality, platforms, etc.)? • Facebook: we currently accept any patroon member that requests to join. There are about 250 members and there have not been very little if any issues • Newsletters are on the “Issuu” website. • We have a website • We cannot invite any strangers to any rolling events (because only members can roll), but we can invite them to static events. Is there a potential for gaining new members by inviting them to static shows, such as a show and shines? • The biggest question is, we have 700 members and have 30 come to monthly meetings, what do the other 670 want? • We get most of our new members through driving school and street survival • Action: We need to ensure that we have pictures on Facebook that are representative of our club and its activity. Such as the Redline videos from Vintage at Saratoga, active - recent pictures that show the action of the club. If our photo presence is old, then it is not representative of our live club. Scott Gold will add a request to the PEWAS to ask members to post their pictures up on Facebook. • The Board members will each post two pictures prior to our April Meeting

Our next meeting will be after our April monthly meeting at the German American club.. Tabled - privacy on our newsletter • Follow up on show and shine • Follow up on Facebook • Data on membership

MONTHLY MEETING, MARCH 8, 2017

At NASA, the center of technical information is in Houston and Cape Canaveral. For Bimmerheads in the Capital District it’s the headquarters of “Bavarian Rocket Science”, a/k/a R & D Auto, on Tivoli Street in Albany (http://www.bavarianrocketscience.com/). The March meeting was held here. We counted 34 members in attendance. The Rocket Scientists provided refreshments for the club: two kinds of ziti (we went for the meatball ziti), a salad, garlic knots, and a chicken and cheese combo. Labatt Blue was available for those drinking beer. I love you Bul Automotive, but the Scientists have stepped up the refreshment game way beyond pizza and soft drinks. Members milled around amongst the Porches, Mercedes, and BMWs being nursed back to health by the experts at R & D. Editor Tony Verrengia was describing his visit to the International Towing Museum in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Past Vice President Frank Greppo was, as he often is, talking about removing rust from very old BMWs. Harry Adalian, who first prompted me to try autocrossing back in ’98 and then to take my 1M to a Driver’s School at Watkins Glen, was beginning a story with “Long story short…” whereupon he would tell a very long story. Eventually the members gravitated to the tables set up in the garage once the food arrived, and similar scintillating conversations continued over pasta and beer. After the refreshments, President Brian Baily, after surveying the crowd with his wise but humorous visage, spoke. He noted that we were surrounded by some unique and amazing cars (we already knew this) and reviewed coming club attrac-tions, since it’s nearly spring and things are heating up. April’s Club Meeting will be at the German American Club, but we are trying to schedule roughly half of the monthly meetings “off-site”. If the possibility of a bus to the New York Auto Show was mentioned, we missed it, but if it happens that would be on a day during the April 17th to 23rd run. Mr. Secretary was asked about the Flyer’s Club, and responded with a blank stare…a common occurrence…but further research shows this is scheduled for May 7th. This is when we meet in Malta and “fly” up to Dunham’s Bay in a line of BMWs. Sometimes there are two lines: those willing to risk arrest, and those who are not. A champagne brunch awaits at Dunham Bay. Rick and Tom Dobush spoke briefly (if you want a mechanic with an RPI background, Tom is your guy). They noted it was getting hard to get good qualified mechanics and they are expanding and are willing to train anyone interested in that kind of career. Mr. Secretary, having retired from the practice of law, would be inter-ested except he has no aptitude for that kind of thing, and he is old. Mr. President then continued, saying that he and the club treasurer Shania Bass would be travelling to the national conference in Dallas. Tony Verrengia said the 17th of March is the deadline for newsletter articles. Then a member of the Porsche Club (we didn’t get his name, but we are new at this) invited one and all to a Porsche Driver’s School meeting the following Saturday and listed all of the great events that BMW owners could attend. The meeting then formally ended, although many club members wandered around examining the fine automobiles there, and were still doing so when Mr. Secretary left.

The distinguished President Brian Bailey and assembledClub members at the Bavarian Rocket Scientists


MembershipCornerScott Stowell

Total Members on 1/7/17 743Total Members on 3/7/17 741

WelcomePatroon Chapter BMW CCA

NEW YORK

New Members in January

Andrew Halliday Glenmont Katherine Cornell Clifton ParkMatthew Kent Schenectady 2014 X3Charles Wesley LoudonvilleJonathan Holder Poughkeepsie

New Members in february

Bob Bownes TroyTara Bartkoski RexfordRichard Checca Ballston SpaColin Brown RexfordRobert Bailey SchenectadyDavid Troeger Shokan

five Year AnniversariesZiyunZhuang Waterford Brian Biittner ManliusGeorge Probolus Pleasant ValleyKrina Homrighaus Amsterdam

Ten Year AnniversariesDebasish Das AlbanyJohn Livingston Clinton Mark asalle AlbanyPaul Dvidson Queensbury

Fifteen Year AnniversariesBruce Boisen EssexDaryl Cutler Ballston LakeDorinda Burton AlbanyPierre Respaut HolmesJeff Wicklund AlbanyDavid Collins Greenfield CenterJoseph Kravetz Clifton Park

Twenty Year AnniversariesMarge Farnett WoodstockJohnathan Groat ManliusIllan Levy Cherry Plain


UpcomingEventsScott Stowell, Senior Seer 518-899-5940 [email protected]

calendar

Sunday April 9th Tire Rack Street Survival at the Saratoga Auto MuseumThis is being sponsored by the SCCA, but they can always use our assistance. Driving coaches and students can register at Streetsurvival.org, and we can always use volunteers to assist throughout the day.

Wednesday April 12th April Membership Meeting This month we will be meeting at the Albany German American Club. Socializing starts at 6:30 with dinner and a meeting at 7:00. Please RSVP so we can send in a meal count.

friday April 14th to Sunday April 23rd NY International Auto ShowThe Jacob Javitz Convention Center hosts this amazing collection of everything automotive.

Sunday April 16th Sharkfest Snowbelt Shakedown RunThis will be a great opportunity to allow our cars to fail close to home while getting a wonderful meal. We’re thinking about putting a couple hundred miles on them with a run to Rochester. Contact me if you want to go, or if you are in Central NY and want us to stop and pick you up.

Thursday April 27th to Sunday April 30th Southeast SharkfestEarly and late model coupes, sixes, and eights will gather just north of Atlanta to celebrate the sharks. Although these models are featured, all people are welcome to attend. More information can be found at www.bmwsharkfest.org.

Sunday May 7th flyers Club to Lake GeorgeWe’ll be leaving the Malta exit 12 Marriott parking lot at 10:15 and driving up to Dunhams Bay Resort on Lake George for a lovely brunch. After we can stop at Springbrook Farm Distillery if you are interested. Pull those beautiful Bimmers out of storage and join us!

Monday May 8th to 9th High Performance Driving Event at Watkins GlenWhat a great way to start our 2017 driving season! This event is being hosted along with the DelVal chapter registration and further information can be found at www.PatroonHPDE.com. Wednesday May 10th May Membership Meeting @ BMW of South Albany This month our meeting will be hosted by our friends in Glenmont. We gather at 6:30 for a light meal and have a short meeting at 7:00 before heading down to the showroom floor and service bays. Please let us know if you are attending so we can plan for dinner.

friday May 19th to 21st The Vintage in Asheville, NC This event gets bigger and better each year… put it on your list if you like the older BMWs.

Sunday May 21st Saratoga Auto Museum Spring Invitational and ShowMore information to follow on this classic. Keep an eye on the museum’s web site.

friday July 7th to Sunday July 9th Vintage @ SaratogaLooks like we are ready to go for another year. Save the date and join some of the nicest people you will meet from all over the East coast right here in our back yard.

friday July 14th to Sunday July 16th HPD Event @ Calabogie CanadaWe dust off the passports and head north for this one. While we won’t be officially hosting this event, we will enjoy the hospitality of the Ottawa Chapter and witness some BMW club racing. friday July 14th to Sunday July 16th Pittsburgh Vintage Grand PrixThe Vintage Grand Prix is an event you must experience at least once in your life. Part car show, part vintage car race, all kinds of vendors and a BMW hospitality tent which is unbelievable.

Sunday September 17th Bavarian Autosport Show and ShinePatroonies will be showing up in Portsmouth NH starting Friday September 15th until the day of the show, so feel free to bounce into town anytime. If you want to park with the group for this event, we will be leaving the Portsmouth Marroitt Fairfield Inn at 6:30AM to line up at the entrance of Bavarian Autosport. Please contact me if you are planning on joining us.

.HM


BMW CCA, Patroon ChapterPO Box 3918Albany, NY 12203

[email protected]

www.patroonbmw.org

2nd Quarter 2017

To join the BMW CCA or to renew your current membership, you may: Use your Visa or MasterCard with our Secure On-line Service at www.bmwcca.org or call (800) 878-9292 with your Visa or MasterCard number (answered 24 hours per day), or e-mail: [email protected] (BMW CCA National Office). BMW CCA Phone (864) 250-0022, Fax (864) 250-0038. BMW CCA, 640 South Main St., Greenville, SC 29601

PRESORTED STanDaRDU.S. POSTagE

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Special thanks to Tom and Rick of Bavarian Rocket...

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