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San Gregorio/Pescadero Tour with the Safety Fast Club

Talk about a perfect day for a perfect drive! On Saturday, March 29th the Safety Fast Club met at Stanford University for a half-day drive to the Pacific coast and back. We gathered eight fine examples of Abingdon's creations, ranging from a late-50's MGA to an early-70's MGB (see the list of cars and owners). A series of spectacular roads took us about 75 miles start to finish. It was an unusually warm spring day with barely a cloud in the sky... perfect MG weather.

 Attendees:
Chuck Harvie, 1958 MGA Coupe
Timothy Kirby, 1962 MGA
Doug and Nancy Alsop, 1966 MGB
Troy Witzel, 1967 MGB
Jay Shotwell, 1969 MGB
Skip and Verna Kelsey, 1969 MGB GT
Dennis and Sue Byron, 1970 MGB
Bob Wall, 1970 MGB GT
After a bit of confusion due to an unexpected Stanford sporting event that restricted our access to our planned meeting spot, we gathered the group and headed out through the Stanford Campus. From there we traveled up Sand Hill Road past 280 and into the hills. A short while later, the pack of Britcars snaked through the twists of La Honda Road before taking a short break at Skyline Boulevard (near Alice's Restaurant). Pulling into the parking lot with eight brightly colored MGs turned several heads and attracted many gawkers. It seemed that even the wildest sport bikes and a Ferrari couldn't compete with the group of MGs.
It was time again to hit the road so we crossed Skyline Boulevard and continued on La Honda Road all the way out to San Gregorio. It was almost as if we owned the road because of minimal traffic. For a sunny day, there really weren't many riders or drivers out. San Gregorio's General Store offered a fun rest stop with live music and all sorts of trinkets for sale. It also offered us a chance to swap some more MG stories. From San Gregorio we took Stage Road to Pescadero. Stage Road may not provide the smoothest pavement, but it sure provides amazing scenery. It's roads like these that make the Bay Area a perfect place to own an MG.
The hour-long lunch stop in Pescadero gave us all a chance to tell MG tales and check out each other's cars in greater detail. Mechanical advice was exchanged among drivers on all sorts of topics. It's always good to see MG owners helping others keep their cars running. Our line of cars parked right off the main strip of Pescadero didn't fail to attract a few more gawkers.
A good meal got us ready for more driving so we fired up the cars again and headed back inland. We took Pescadero Creek Road to Alpine Road, enjoying a very well paved downhill twisty section in the process. If it weren't for the blind corners it would be a real blast at 40 mph! But remember, we're Safety Fast (in name only, right?). Alpine Road slowed our pace a bit with its many one-lane sections and bumpy pavement, but offered up some great shade under the redwoods. After another brief stop we crossed Skyline Boulevard again and followed Page Mill Road back to Palo Alto. Page Mill didn't disappoint with several clear views of the Silicon Valley and the bay.
Thanks to all who attended for making this day such a success. For those who could not make it, we look forward to seeing you at our next meet. Thanks to Dennis Byron for taking some of these photos.

As a member, you have a great deal of input into what events the Safety Fast Club holds. We're always open to interesting drives or destinations. If there are other events with which you'd like to schedule a Safety Fast Club drive, feel free to suggest them. What is most important is that these Bay Area events and drives are laid back and fun.

Got something to say? Send it to info@safetyfastclub.com