Images thanks to Les Proctor
Head back to what has to be the last motoring event of 2017 to recap the December Classic Cars & Coffee thanks to this report by Les Proctor.
Sunday 31 December 2017 – Classic Cars and Coffee
By Les Proctor
The last Classic Cars and Coffee for 2017, held on the morning of New Year’s Eve, promised to be the biggest yet and did not disappoint. Club Lotus WA has traditionally not attended these events in numbers but there was just something about the day that promised to change that.
Using our Facebook group, a few decided to get there earlier for quarter to eight in the morning to ensure that we had parking in a prime spot. I met Steve M. in his highly modified supercharged S2 Elise at our local service station and we were soon on our way on the freeway and then the picturesque Mounts Bay Road that hugs the Swan River to our destination; the Reid Library carpark at the University of Western Australia.
After donating a small fee for a local charity as an entry fee, I was surprised to see several cars already there and by the time the official start time of 8:30AM arrived, not only was the car park completely full (and overflowing) but we had eleven Lotus cars turn up comprising Elise S1s, S2s and S3s, three S3 Exige S V6s and even a gorgeous yellow Lotus Elan Sprint!
Steve and I were rewarded for our early bird routine as we avoided the queues and got our coffees quickly. The rest of the time was spent catching up with other Club Lotus WA members and lots of other people in the Perth car community, all the while having to remind ourselves to wonder around to catch a glimpse of all the wonderful machinery that had come out that morning.
In fact, I was reminded why Classic Cars and Coffee works so well as it is meant for classic, prestige performance and exotic cars. There is also Customs Cars and Coffee which caters to the muscle and customised car fans. This difference caters to different car enthusiasts and helps to cultivate a positive and family-friendly atmosphere which was sorely missing in the other event.
As such, there were hordes of families out on a Sunday walk and many of the attendees were reconnecting with people that they may not have seen for a long time. Alex Forrest from The West Australian covered the event and his article not only encapsulated what Classic Cars and Coffee was about but detailed how car enthusiast John M. reconnected with 93-year-old Laurie G. after not seeing each other for 20 years! Heart-warming stories like these are what make such events great and I hope that the organisers continue to keep up the great work.
I have never been prouder to be part of our little Perth car community as more than 500 cars turned up and to be among a record turnout for such an event with our Club Lotus WA members was just the icing on top! See you at the next one on the 28th of January!
