CAPRICORN CHAPTER
Established 24 May, 2008
Capricorn Chapter MGCC country members living in the Rockhampton, Yeppoon, Biloela and Moura districts can now enjoy more social activities with the Capricorn Chapter being officially recognised following the meeting in Rockhampton.
Founding members from these existing Chapters joined club President David Miles and Assistant Treasurer Kevin Ponting in Rockhampton for the occasion. Gurney Clamp was appointed Co-ordinator of the club's newest regional Chapter, joining Wide Bay and Darling Downs. After holding that position for 10 years, he resigned at the end of 2018 and the role has been taken over by Gary Kunst.
Jim Armstrong is the Coordinator of the Capricorn Chapter.
His contact details are :
Phone: 0417 544 222
Email: james.armstrong4@bigpond.com
Click here for our Facebook page.
Check out the report on the All-Chapter Queensland Meeting held by the Capricorn Chapter here.
Hi Folks, Happy New Year, we trust you all had a very happy Christmas and may 2023 bring you all health, happiness and prosperity.
Please find attached the Capricorn Chapter’s proposed calendar for 2023. Click here
Our first official run will be 22 January, 2023 for our traditional barbeque lunch on top of Mt Archer. The run sheet will be published on the Monday prior to the event.
Several Rusty Door prizes were distributed and Laurie Chetter won the poker run with a straight.
Next, Jim and tour organiser Gordon Kelsey provided an outline of arrangements made to date for the Far North Queensland tour.As well as laying out the proposed route, Gordon had done a substantial amount of work to identify and obtain quotes from a range of motels in all the stopping points, factoring in the need for affordability, access to restaurants and secure parking. Some smaller overnight locations had, of necessity, been changed as insufficient accommodation was available.
Note: Gordon has now distributed the accommodation list and urges all participants to book quickly, as most of the motel operators cannot hold so many rooms for long.
By this stage the afternoon was starting to fade, and so all happy participants packed up and said their goodbyes, after a very successful first event of the year for the Capricorn Chapter.
(Phil Henry)
Run Committee
MGCC of Qld. Inc. Capricorn Chapter
Run Report, 2022 Christmas Party, by Jim Armstrong
Photos by Phil Henry & Clare Lynam.
Where did this year go? It seems that 2022 just flew by so quickly. On Sunday evening, 46 members gathered at the Red Lion for our annual Christmas party.
The committee and several members had arrived somewhat earlier to decorate the room and what a splendid result. The room looked absolutely inviting.
At around 4:45 our member started to arrive and right on 5:00 the staff of the Reddy were bringing in some delicious hot nibblies just to start the evening off. Everybody was standing around enjoying a cold beverage and hot finger food from the many plates.
Shortly after, the group were called upon to sit at their chosen tables as dinner was about to be served. Yours truly welcomed everybody and in particular the “new members” and gave a brief outline of the year’s events highlighting the highs and lows of all our get togethers for the year.
The main course, an alternate drop of either steak, salad and chips or roast chicken and vegetables was served. After the meal, Jo and Katie conducted the first of many “Rusty Door Prizes” and to be honest not many people would have gone home without wining anything.
Secret Santa paid us a visit and Katie, Jo and Clare soon distributed all the gifts that he had left behind.
The traditional trophies were then awarded with Sandra Armstrong being the recipient of the Janelle Thomasson Trophy for her outstanding work she did behind the scenes, organising the “2022 All Chapter meeting” - a major event hosted by Capricorn Chapter that went off virtually without a hitch during the year.
It’s fair to say that Sandra was really overwhelmed and for the first time in many years, found it hard to speak.
The Broken MG award was given to Jo Emmert after her beloved “Paddy” had a minor breakdown during the Mystery Run. It was commented on that as the years roll on, our MGs seem to become a lot more reliable with fewer and fewer breakdowns occurring on our runs. In fact, this year, the minor breakdown that Jo experienced was the only episode that anyone could recall.
Jo and Katie soon were busy conducting more “Rusty Door Prizes” while we were waiting for desert to be served which came out in a timely manner
The committee members, Clare Lynam, Jo Emmert and Phil Henry were called to the front and presented with some commemorative trophies in appreciation of their service to the chapter during the year. They, in turn, presented me with a bottle of fine Vodka thanking me for the years’ service.
Then, Henryka bought out some lovely home-made sweets which disappeared quite quickly. Nice touch Henryka.
After all this the evening just rolled on everyone enjoying each other’s company.
At this stage, the committee and myself on behalf of the Capricorn Chapter wish every body out there in MG land, a safe but happy Christmas and a prosperous 2023.
Run report; Capricorn Chapter Election of Officers Meeting 20th November 2022
By Jim Armstrong
Photos by Phil Henry
The day started off with the Rockhampton group meeting at the Government Building's car park on the corner of Norman and Yeppoon Roads for the short trip down to Yeppoon where the Yeppoon group had gathered at Jolts Café for the combined group breakfast. Jolts had cordoned off a section of their café and before long everybody had ordered their breakfast and settled down to eat it. Our 36 participants filled the area well albeit a bit noisy and stuffy due to the outside humidity.
After breakfast, the running of the rusty door prizes was drawn with Laurie Chetter winning one and Gurney Clamp winning the other. Mid-morning chocolates were the order of the day straight afterwards.
Then a short walk across the road for the yearly election of officers. As no other candidates were nominated, the current committee members and myself as coordinator were declared the officers for 2023 however with these minor changes.
Clare Lynam stepped down as assistant Coordinator due to her workload at the school where she teaches and Phil Henry was appointed Media Relations Officer for the chapter with both remaining members of our drive committee. Jo Emmert retains her position as run committee member.
With 2023 being our traditional “long drive” year, Phil and Gordon were appointed to organise and run the long drive which had been muted to be a run to Port Douglas and return over around 8-10 days yet to be determined.
It will be named the “Great Far North Queensland Run” which will take place in late August early September 2023 which fits the best weather for that part of Queensland. Look out for information as which will be coming soon as both Phil and Gordon are very eager to start organising.
The Gloria’s poker run was run and won by Gurney with three Queens which is a relatively low score when you consider the number of card packs that we play with. Jo also announced that a lot of cards are missing and that an amnesty will be held until the Christmas party for those returning cards from previous runs.
Calls were made for run suggestions for next year with a lot of suggestions coming forward. Please email myself or one of the committee members if you have a suggestion/s as the 2023 run calendar will be formulated before the Christmas party on the 4th of December.
The meeting was closed but not before Gordon Kelsey on behalf of the floor, thanked the committee and myself for last year’s work and congratulated us for taking it on once more.
The next thing was to decide on where to have lunch and Cawarrel Tree Top Tavern was selected so a much-reduced ensemble drove to Cawarrel via Emu Park for a few cold beverages and a tasty burger for lunch. It was relaxing out there in the shade of some huge trees but at about 2:00pm the march flies became quite prolific and so we all headed for home. Next and last outing for 2022 will be the Christmas Party at the Red Lion Hotel, Rockhampton, 4 December.
THE BIRTH OF THE CAPRICORN CHAPTER
by founding Chapter Coordinator, Gurney T Clamp
After purchasing my 1972 MG B in Brisbane and shipped back to Yeppoon, I started driving it on every opportunity I got in and around Yeppoon and its surrounding area.
Then, one day I came across a couple driving in their red MG B doing as I was, so I caught up to them and found that they were from Rockhampton and doing a cruise around Yeppoon. Their names were Dale & Margaret Volling. I told them that I was going to try to form a MG Car club in Central Queensland and asked them if they were interested in joining a club such as I was trying to form.
They agreed that they would be interested, gave me their contact details and I told them that they would be number 2 members. On arriving back home, one of my neighbors, Robert Hanson, called over to have a good look at my MG and told me that he knew of another MG owner, Trevor Williams, who lived in Yeppoon. He agreed to take me to meet him and this visit turned out to be very important as he tried unsuccessfully to form a MG car club several years ago. He had a list of names and contact details of people that owned an MG in Central Queensland, which he gave to me.
I returned home and started making contact with everyone on the list, asking them if they were interested in forming an MG car club in Central Queensland. The response was just what I was hoping for so then, I had to contact them all again informing them that on Sunday, 4 May 2008, a meeting of all interested MG owners was going to be held at Beaman Park Yeppoon at 9.00 a.m.
On Sunday, 4 May I was overjoyed by the number of MG’s and their owners that arrived at Beaman Park. They had come from as far away as Moura, Biloela and Rockhampton. All present indicted that an MG car club should be formed. I was elected as chairman and spoke on how we should go about forming the club.
Jim Armstrong and Gary Kunst who were current members of the MG Car Club of Queensland, suggested that we should seriously look at becoming a chapter of the MG car club of Queensland if this club had any chance of survival. The MQCC of Qld already had two chapters operating quite successfully called the Darling Downs and Wide Bay Chapters. In doing this, we would have the back up of the MGCC of Qld’s support in legal liability, financial matters etc., if successful and accepted by the MGCC of Qld. All present agreed that this was the path that we should take and indicated that I should continue as an unofficial chairman of this fledgling organization.
On Monday, 5 May 2008, I contacted the MG Car Club of Queensland’s then President, David Miles, informing him of the outcome of our meeting at Beaman Park in Yeppoon. I then asked him what steps needed to be done for the MG owners of Central Queensland to become a chapter of their club.
The response was an overwhelming “We will be glad to welcome you into our club”. He indicated that information would be forwarded to me and he asked me to call a meeting of all interested MG car owners to attend another meeting at a time and venue suitable to all concerned.
It was agreed that a meeting should be called on Saturday, 24 May, 2008 at the Rockhampton Golf Club, and the club president David Miles would attend.
He was supported by Brisbane members, Val Horgan, Kevin Ponting, Wide Bay chapter coordinator Ian Bryant and Darling Downs coordinator Trevor Watkins, all arriving in Rockhampton on Friday, 23 May in their MGs. My wife Gloria and I were invited to attend a dinner at the motel they were staying at in Rockhampton. And of course we attended.
On the day of the meeting at the Rockhampton Golf Club premises, David Miles addressed all present on functioning and policies of the MG Car Club of Queensland and what was expected of the chapters that are affiliated with them.
These discussions were well supported by the Brisbane members and the chapter coordinators, the late Ian Bryant and Trevor Watkins.
A vote was taken to accept that all Central Queensland MG owners become a chapter of the MG Car Club of Queensland, the result was unanimous. Next step was that we now need to find a name for our chapter. A few names were suggested but Capricorn Chapter was selected.
I was then elected as the coordinator for the newly formed Capricorn Chapter, the next step was to select a suitable time of each month to have a get together of members, once again a number of suggestions were put forward with the 3rd Sunday of each month be adopted, which was duly voted on and passed.
David Miles indicated that the results of this meeting would have to be approved by the MG car club of Queensland and I would be notified of the result by mail, A letter dated 28 May, 2008 was received from MG Car club that the management committee of the MG Car Club of Queensland had accepted our application to join as the Capricorn Chapter.
After a couple of years at a Christmas function, Ian Wilhelmsen and Phil White suggested that we all should find interested members to assist in the running of the chapter, to which I agreed. Ian Wilhelmsen was elected as assistant coordinator, Phil White and Terry Dwyer as event committee members. Since then I have found that this to be of a great assistance to myself, as we now prepare the following years calendar in November of each year with suggestions of places we should tour to coming from individual members.
FOUNDATION MEMBERS
ARMSTRONG Jim & Sandra - Moura / Yeppoon
BREED Peter & Tracey - Rockhampton Past members
CLAMP Gurney & Gloria - Yeppoon
CLARK Stuart & Ada - Goovigin
DWYER Terry - Rockhampton
FOX Bill - Yeppoon Past member
GUBBINS Tony (Deceased) & Merilyn WEST- Rockhampton Past members
KIRWAN Wayne - Biloela
KUNST Gary & Julie - Moura / Yeppoon
MADDEN Don -Yeppoon (Deceased)
O’DEA Tom & Kathy - Yeppoon Past members
PIDCOCK Ted & Margaret - Yeppoon Past members
RUSSELL Brian & Glenis - Biloela
SULLIVAN Pat & Stephanie - Rockhampton
VOLLING Dale & Margaret - Rockhampton Past members
WHITE Phil & Pam - Rockhampton
WILLIAMS Trevor - Rockhampton Past members
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