This year's MITP was hosted at Silverstone, celebrating
the 45th anniversary of the mini. The event was extra special as it was turned
into the official staff outing for the minimaster lads.
The first day was an arranged visit to the Motor
Heritage Centre, just up the M40. We spent a few hours looking around the
museum, taking some liberties to check up on the authenticity of certain
vehicles, and working out the proper configurations. This will help us with
the rather unique restorations that we are starting to receive, and making
sure they are authentic.
The day started with the morning prayer to the
mini, facing south to Oxford (as we are based in Cumbria!). Being at the altar
of the Mini Cooper S was a privilege and opportunity too good to miss! After
coffee, we split into two parties: one going for some shopping in nearby Bicester.
The other going to the pub, where we also congregated in the evening for a meal.
The next day, some feeling the worse for wear, we went
to the show. The morning started with a mad panic to get the Mini40 and S-Works
ready for the concourse competition. The other minis went to the Border City
Mini Stand. Then after standing around for ages waiting for the judges to
come round, we spent a few hours looking around.
There seemed to be lots going
on, and in my opinion, there was probably too much to fit into one day: it
may have been better to hold the event over two days. Still, there were
some interesting minis on show. My favourite was the BMC Competition Department
transporter.
The whole weekend was great fun, with Anne's
success (third in class) on the concourse competition against some very
stiff competition topping it off.