2010 - Leaf Peeping Rally

This rally began as a desire to augment the annual British Sports Car event schedule with something that provided many hours of pure driving pleasure for the driver and replaced the hours of sitting at the shows with hours of pure sightseeing and even shopping pleasure for our passengers. The inaugural event was held in 2009 with only two Triumph TR6's and with four people in attendance, but despite the small numbers the rally proved to be everything all of us could hope for, it made everyone happy and yes, the original four are going again!

Besides, what better way to enjoy the beauty that an Ontario autumn has to offer, than by going 'Leaf Peeping' in a British Sports Car with your partner for a weekend! Travelling along only secondary roads, no 400 highways on this event, it is back to what driving was meant to be a pleasure. You will be visiting some of Ontario's most picturesque small towns, many of which hold festivals on the first weekend of October. You will be amazed by the scenery, the colour of the leaves, the lakes, the rivers and even waterfalls, plus the many quaint little establishments that we will visit along the way. Just imagine what it will be like, this is a event that you both will remember for years to come.

Should you wish to read about and see some images of the 2009 - Leaf Peeping Rally press here.

The rally begins Saturday of first weekend of October each year at 9:00 AM (SHARP) at the parking lot of the Admiral Hotel located just outside Lindsay, Ontario.

You must be on time, as a record will be kept and being late will result in the offenders buying a round of Guinness or other libation for all at Bancroft!

Starting at the Admiral Hotel parking lot just south of Lindsay we will drive east, this allows for a counter-clockwise western heading going through Algonquin Park ending back up at the parking lot of the Admiral Hotel on the Sunday evening of the weekend at approximately 6:00 PM. Why counter-clockwise, because most of the other traffic will be going in the other direction from us as was witnessed in 2009 Leaf Peeping Rally.

The rally is open to all makes, models and years of British Sports Cars. This rally is NOT affiliated with any single marquee but only with other like minded British Sports Car owners wanting to drive their cars plus in some small way, provide some payback to their respective 'better halves' for the hours of fixing, detailing, polishing and putting up with endless hours of 'car talk' that they, our "better halves', have had to endure for an entire driving season.

The rally does require that your British Sports Car is fit and capable of the approximate 600 kilometer trip held over the two days and the speed limit of all of highways that we will be traveling is 80 kilometers per hour and which we attempt to maintain but not exceed, safety is our number one concern and number two is wanting everyone to stick together as a group.

It should be noted that on the section of the 2010 route map marked in RED and labeled as 'EXHILARATING DRIVING SECTION' is full of twists and turns and the recommended speed limit is often reduced to 70, or 60 and sometimes 50 kilometers per hour on the many corners, your rate of speed is up to you but we do ask that you don't exceed the 80 kilometer hour limit, but we are driving British Sports Cars after all.

Speeding tickets are the responsibility of the registered owner of the vehicle and it was observed in 2009 that there were a number of OPP cruisers with radar patrolling, especially through Algonquin Park itself.

Service stations are dotted throughout the route but please note as we move farther north do not expect to pay the same gasoline prices as around Toronto. In 2009 we discovered that we only needed to fill up once, at the half way point of Bancroft but gasoline was approximately 7 cents more per liter.

We hope not to disappoint but there will NOT be a 'Show and Shine' nor 'Awards', this is a sightseeing and driving rally, so your British Sports Cars can come as they are! They will revel in the camaraderie, re-live their youth and they will go home happy, tired and dirty with road grime, but that is what they were originally built for.

There will be a commemorative 2010 Leaf Peeping Rally participants car plaque presented to each British Sports Car attending the rally.

All the roads that we travelled as of October 2009, which will be repeated in 2010 were in great condition with no construction nor lack of repair. Are there a few bumps or two, yes, but nothing our cars British Sports Cars can't handle unless they are loaded down with 'Bling'. Bling might fall off during the rally.

(Note, organizers are not responsible for bling, chrome, awards nor any other part of your car that falls off because it shouldn't be there)

Accommodation for the 2010 Leaf Peeping Rally has been selected and the winner is the Best Western - Sword Motor Inn in Bancroft. This was really not much of a contest as it is the only place in the area that can accommodate us all in one location. Trust us on this one, we checked everywhere in Bancroft and all the way up to Barry's Bay for alternative, there were no other establishments that could house us all except the Sword Motor Inn.

Mr. David (Tush) Tushingham, the new President of the Toronto Triumph Club as graciously blocked thirty (30) rooms on behalf of us Leaf Peepers at the Sword Motor Inn in Bancroft, seventeen (17) single standard Queen bed and thirteen (13) double standard Queen bed rooms are available for us for this event.

Mr. Tushingham has also negotiated a special rate of $129.99 a night for either type of room and advised that if members of the Leaf Peeping Rally happen to also be members of the CAA there is a further reduction in the room rate. Allison and I were able to guarantee our room at the Sword Inn including our CAA discount for $116.99. The Sword Inn also advised us that our credit card would not be charged for guarantee until September 2010.

On behalf of us all, I would like to express our deepest appreciation to Mr. Tushingham for all the time, effort and expense that he has put forth for us Leaf Peepers, thank you David.

To guarantee your accommodation, please contact the Sword Motor Inn directly at (613) 332-2474. When you call, advise them that the block of rooms is under the Toronto Triumph Club and give them the date of October 2nd, 2010 to ensure you receive the special rate, provide them with your credit card number and a telephone number that you may be reached at to complete the process. Don't forget, if you are a member of CAA, inform them of that fact so that you may receive a further discount on the room rate.

Finally, please take a moment to advise me that your room is booked and guaranteed by email at rpolutnik@technolutionsci.com so we make sure that everyone has a place to rest their head for the night.

The Best Western - Sword Motor Inn affords free high speed internet, an indoor heated pool, exercise facilities, games room, excellent parking and a dining room on site. There are

numerous room types available, all at varying rates to suit any budget if you would prefer something other than what has been blocked.

For complete information concerning the Best Western - Sword Motor Inn please access the Best Western web site by clicking here.

Ample time has been allotted throughout the route for both sightseeing and shopping but it really would be appreciated if we would be able to maintain our schedule as to avoid any night driving what so ever. Listed below are the major scheduled stops for sightseeing and shopping along with their respective web sites for browsing and pre-planning.

The duration at each stop man be extended or altered depending on the participants wishes but please remember we want to avoid driving at night.

Lindsay, Ontario - Press here for a map of the downtown core show all the HOT spots!

This is a crap shoot, but no matter the conditions we are off. Hopefully as we journey northward the leaves will begin to show their brilliance and if the Gods are truly British after all, then the conditions and temperatures will even allow us to have our tops in their proper position, down. Don't forget to bring your camera!

There is no pre-funding required for this event. All participants are responsible for their own funding the costs that each person incurs. Meals, accommodation and gasoline are each person's responsibility. The purchase of an Algonquin Park pass is not required as all scheduled stops are will be at locations that Algonquin Park exempts.

The approximate total cost for four people and two cars for the 2009 Leaf Peeping Rally for the two days was $460.00 or only $57.50 per person, per day and we will do everything we can to keep it around that.

Please, to ensure that everyone gets a bed with a pillow we need to reverse the accommodation early, so if you want to share this type of adventure then please advise me as soon as possible, by the end of January 2010 at the very, very latest.

Please, when you pre-register, include your first and last name, your passenger's first and last name, plus the make and model of your British Sport Car.

#	Participants	British Sports Car Make and Model	Room Guaranteed
1	Steven and Anita Craib	Triumph TR6	YES
2	Robert and Allison Polutnik	Triumph TR6	YES
3	David Tushingham	Triumph TR3A or Triumph TR6	YES
4	David and Gloria Fidler	Triumph TR6	YES
5	Ian and Kay Parkhill	Triumph TR6	HAD TO CANCEL
6	Chris and Catherine Lindsay	Triumph TR6	YES
7	Clive and Jacquelynne Huizinga	Triumph TR6	YES
8	Cam and Sylvia Theroux	Triumph TR6	YES
9	Marg and Phil Dunjko	Austin Healy Sprite MK1	YES
10	Wayne and Debbie McGill	Triumph TR6	YES
11	Alex and Sharon McLeod	Triumph TR3A or Triumph TR8	YES
12	Colin and Chris Pillar	Triumph TR6	YES
13	Peter and Bernadette May	Triumph TR6	YES
14	Andrew Grace & Rachael Evans	Triumph TR6	YES
15	Gwyer Moore and Diane Arsenault	Triumph TR 250	HAD TO CANCEL
16	Patrick and Alexis Caria	Triumph TR6	YES
17	Peter and Laura Payette	Triumph Spitfire	YES
18	Jamie and Diane Broad	Triumph Spitfire	YES
19	Scott and Dawn Douglas	Triumph TR6	YES
20	Bruce and Caroline Pinch	Triumph TR6	YES
Support	John and Nancy Morton	Rally Support Vehicle	YES

Any suggestions, questions and comments are all welcome and appreciated. This event is for all the participants and the majority will rule.

Also, please return to this site often as it is being constantly updated with new information as it is gathered.

Should you wish to read about and see some images of the 2009 - Leaf Peeping Rally press here.