By Joanie Bercovitch, UCR Member Photos by Tom Tanner, UCR Member (from October 2016 Provinz page 30)
Our meeting place, Champ Burger in Primrose, set us up for a great friendly start. Stan opened his restaurant at 8am, treated us to coffee, juice, muffins and pastries while we registered everyone, handed them a route map, and a name tag and water. It was really thrilling to see participants ranging from teenagers to seasoned drivers mingling before we held the safety meeting in the parking lot.
The sun was shining on us as the call to “Start your engines” could be heard at 9:15am. Isabel and Stan Schnapp offered to be in the sweep car position for Morley Bercovitch’s blue group and Ewan Main stepped up to support Tom Arndt’s red group. Walter Murray lent us walkie-talkies which made a difference keeping the cars moving as efficiently as possible through the corners and lights.
The first leg of the drive through the early morning shadows on twisting valley roads was literally quite cool. We snaked through sleepy historical towns. Horse drawn buggies clipped by at Port Law providing a peek into a slower mode of transportation and emission smells of the past. The route not only included changes in scenery but also in speed. We sped down the highway to Lake Eugenia where we stopped on the one-hundred-year Causeway to stretch our legs and let Tom Tanner snap a few pictures. The osprey, sitting in their manmade platform nests above us, kept one eye on us and the other on the fishermen. We learned that in the 1850’s Eugenia was the home of Canada’s first gold rush.
Friendly Flesherton was so excited that we were coming into their town for our first comfort break. Holgar, owner of ARTSonTEN, led us from the lower parking area through his whimsical Cookoo Valley Garden up to the main street where he provided sidewalk chalk for all budding artists to leave their mark in town. Tom Arndt jumped at this chance to chalk the message that the PCA UCR Copper Kettle Fun Run had arrived! Rev. Shawn, owner of Highland Grounds, offered us washroom facilities, fresh coffee and delicious home baking. He also arranged the parking in town for us as well. We appreciated the main street owners working together to ensure our time in town was enjoyable.
The second leg of the drive took us down County Road 30, passed the unusual twin tower Hydro water chutes, and into the Beaver Valley via CR 13. The roads and scenery were spectacular. So many people visit the area but never get off the major highways to explore the beauty of Grey-Bruce. One of our newest UCR members, Joe Hayward, told us he was going to use the map we had handed out to make this run again on his own.
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, we pulled into the Georgian Bay Golf Club for lunch. Steve Prest, Club Manager, invited us to drop the navigators at the front door where Kelly Gale, Event Manager, welcomed us to the Club. The Porsches were shown off in their own staging area and golf cart shuttle service was offered to the drivers. The Club sits on the edge of the Niagara Escarpment overlooking Georgian Bay. White tablecloths, attentive service, delicious food, and new friends to visit with made the experience memorable. Melanie Schoeneweiss summed it up when she said “lunch was fantastic!”
The third leg of the drive was jaw dropping beautiful. The hills rolled down and around Georgian Bay leaving us breathless at every turn. Some surprises Morley and Tom planned, others just happened… like the long line of roaring motorcycles that blew by us with police escorts. YES, we pulled over to the side of the road to watch the 9-1-1 fundraising event fly by. Expect the unexpected on a UCR Run!
Our final destination was Creemore, home of the Copper Kettle Festival and Classic Car Show and, of course, Creemore Brewery. Reserved parking kept us all together in the small town overrun with car enthusiasts. Street vendors, antique motorcycles and vintage cars from the 20’s and 30’s lined the main street. Every fifteen minutes the Brewery took a group on a tour which ended in beer tasting. Now that was an amazing finish to a day of driving through the purple hills of Creemore. At 4:30pm the dinner group had a spirited run to the Terra Nova Public House in Mulmur for a lovely dinner. It was a beautiful evening to unwind on the patio with friends and reminisce about the day.
Organizers Tom and Morley really appreciated the feedback from participants. John Buckingham said “It was the choice of routes and stops, as well as the organization of the groups that, for me, made the logistics work so well. Setting a pace for the group that allowed us to have a little more fun in the ‘curvy bits’ was great.” Tom and Christina Herauf commented “Everything flowed so perfectly and the route was both scenic and challenging to drive at times (or should I say FUN!!).” Betty and Dave Barclay wrote “thoroughly enjoyed the roads, lunch, and of course, meeting new people with the same interest in P-cars.” Bernie Schroder emailed “What a terrific day! Some of the best Ontario roads I have been on. It could not have been better.”
