GSM CAR CLUB OF SOUTH AFRICA

Newsletter No: 3
24 November 2000

Dear GSM owners and enthusiasts

From our point of view, the KFM Velodxome Motorshow was a great success! Les Johnson and Roger Haupt realised that we are a club in its infancy, and virtually sponsored our presence by being veiy kind to us and helped us to take a few shortcuts! Thanks Les and Roger! We would like to be part of the next Show aswell. This show was our very first high profile "exposure" and we were really not to sure what to do. Our very enthusiastic chairman Peanuts managed to get Johan Horn Transport to sponsor a very attractive banner with both Dart and Flamingo badges and the name of our Club and that was our starting point. Once the banner was up, we had an almost completely rebuilt Dart (Clarry Taylor), a Flamingo (Zim Geldenhuys). a new Flamingo chassis on a stand, a huge board with photos and articles of GSM all collected over many years and another Dart and Flamingo, (Bertie Bester) both runners, parked opposite the stand on the em­barkment. All this with Peanuts garden furniture, and we had a great looking stand! Clarry is rebuilding a car to original specs, and needs only to fit the motor and gearbox. Zim’s Flamingo has a V6 3.0 litre Ford and if it goes as well as it looks it will be a very enjoyable vehicle. Bertie has only just aquired his cars and I can’t wait to see them restored to his usual high standards.

Willie Meissner Jnr has presented the club with an absolute "mine" of information in the form of newspaper cuttings, adverts and letters dating back to the 1950’s which Peanuts is putting together in albums and scrapbooks. A huge job I can assure you, that makes very interesting reading! Thank you Willie and thank you Peanuts!

The cavalcade to the Velodrome had ten cars, led by Hein van der Watt’s very beautiful Flamingo. Thanks to all the drivers and owners that went to the trouble to turn up. We appreciate your efforts because without you we cannot do a thing. Our exposure at the Velodrome sparked an invitation by the Cape Multi Motor Club to The Cape Cars in the Park on the 18 November, at the Bellville High School. Here we had six cars and although it rained heavily at one stage, it was also very succesful. Hein van der Watt’s Flamingo took part in the Concourse and came close to an award. Nice work Hein! Thanks also to Jaci van Niekerk, allowing us to use her Flamingo.

Your chairman and I have taken the liberty of using some of your subs to join the Cape Multi Car Club. Thank you to Deon Oliver and your committee for accepting our membership. Membership of R40,00 per annum will allow us the use of their very comfortable clubhouse in Parow for meetings and socials. We are planning a meeting very early next year!.

Our next Show will be the Cape Street Rod Nationals on the 14th April 2001. It will be the first time that the Nationals will be held in Cape Town and it promises to be a very big show. It will be at the Tygerberg Tech, and our invitation stems form Chris Walters, one of our members who is also a Street Rod member. Peanuts plans to have a rolling and hopefully a running Dart and Flamingo chassis at the show, plus ten very neat and clean "rebuilds" that are not on the road now. So there guys, get your cars running! We need you and your cars.

This newsletter is also sent to the Gauteng branch and we would like to inform you that the "Levy Dart" replicas that were built in 1981 will be 20 years old next year and therefore also become classics. Only about six or eight of these cars were built plus a maybe six bodies. These carts although not built by GSM are virtually identical to the GSM products and neither Bob van Niekerk nor Tol van Wyk have any problems with accepting them into our club.

The Gauteng branch will also be having their "Mielie Run" on the 21st January 2001. This is a 200km run in the Johannesburg area, ending in a social. More details for Tol van Wyk whos number is on the letterhead.

Once again I would like to remind you that we are keen to have any info, photos, newpaper clippings or just stories and histories of your cars in order to make a accurate register of all cars. Anybody is welcome to visit Peanuts in his workshop in Parow to have a look at his collection of photos and stories in his album and scrapbooks. Just phone and make an appointment.

Our Chistmas Party for members and family will be held at Killarney on Sunday the 10th December. It will be a "bring and braai" from 11 : 00 hrs with a cash bar in the WPMC clubhouse.

At present we have 42 paid up members with a credit balance of R2700,00 in the bank.

All that remains is a great big thank you to everyone that has helped to make our club the success that it is, especially Peanuts and Rose!

Looking forward to chatting and having some liquid refreshment on the 10th at Killarney.

Compliments of the season, from The GSM committee to you and yours.

Piet van Niekerk