Josh Wardell’s MINI Cooper S

The second issue of MC2 Magazine arrived in my mailbox today. It’s even better than the first, with more useful how-to information and many other improvements, due in part by all of our feedback in NAM. Unfortunately the northeast again did not get much coverage, this time a small blurb on the Care for Kieth rally. Hopefully that will pick up once we have more MINI gatherings in the warmer half of the year. It’s great to read a magazine where you know many of the contributors and each ad is of interest.

You can of course subscribe on the web site, but if not, starting with this issue Barry and Gary have managed to get MC2 in stores as well. Most Borders and Barnes and Noble should carry it. Be sure to check it out.

It’s winter. And that means a dirty car. And lack of car activities. And not much to post on the MINI blog. I hope you’re all still with me!

We’ve had a warmer than usual winter (a few days hitting 60 last week!), and that has really hurt the winter sports. I have managed a few weekends of skiing here and there, long drives resulting in an even dirtier MINI than pictured above. But I have been looking forward all year to Ice Racing, and the warmth has really hurt that as well. Yet again the race has been cancelled because the ice is not thick enough. Combined with my busy schedule, I still have been unable to go yet. I hope there is still a chance left, and if so I will certainly have some great video footage of driving around on a frozen lake!

I’m also midway through testing Aquapel vs. RainX, the results of which will be posted here in a few more weeks. I hope. That’s also very weather dependent, since I need heavy rains to hit at a time when I can drive around so I can shoot the video…and for once, new england weather has not produced much rain.

I would also like to remind you to register for MINIsOnTop. Ian previously posted that the drive to the top is already half full, and we have people coming from states as far away as Illinois! Wyoming!!! See Ian’s update.

I was at MOT Central this past weekend with no other MINI in sight–a little too early for MINIsOnTop on June 17th! But it is time for everyone to start thinking about it, as registration is now open.

MINIsOnTop is one of the biggest MINI gatherings, and an entire weekend of fun, the high point of which is ascending Mt. Washington in New Hampshire. Over 200 MINIs head up the steep and twisty Auto Road, but there are many more that participate in the day’s other activities.

Even if you do not want to participate in the mountain climb in the evening, there is plenty more to do including driving and other family related activities. It’s fun for not just the drivers but any passenger as well (including pets!). People are already planning to join us from as far as Chicago and I recommend anyone within driving distance of New England take part in any capacity.

If you are interested in participating in the Mt. Washington drive, then get your registration in as quickly as possible; because of summit capacity there is a limit of about 200 cars. Last year it filled quickly and some people may have been left out of that portion.

But even if you do not want to participate in the Mt. Washington ascent, I highly encourage you to join in for the other events or even part of the day. There will be plenty of driving during the day including the curvy Kangamangus highway. You do still have to mail in a registration and pay the $6 shipping charge for the goodie bag; if for no other reason this is for liability purposes.

Please head over to minisontop.com as well as Ian’s blog for more details and the registration form. (If you are staying the night, although the T&C will be MOT central, it is already booked and you may only be able to get in on a cancellation. The backup Royalty Inn may also be full, refer to the MOT site for more alternatives)

On Friday morning, a car in front of me kicked up a big piece of plywood off the road, which came spinning at me and hit my windshield.

Aside from the sudden shock of a smashed windshield, I was also disappointed because I was in the running for the longest lasting original MINI windshield. Everyone else I know has had several replaced because they cracked on their own. I did have hundreds of tiny chips that made it look dirty even after a good polishing, but I never had a crack.

So after a quick call to insurance I called MINI of Peabody, and spent most of Friday afternoon up at everyone’s favorite MINI dealer. Chris took me right away as usual, but to my surprise this is the first time I had seen their service bays almost empty. It’s also the first time I’ve seen them with a lot of inventory; sales is certainly slower this month while everyone’s wallets try to recover from Christmas. I spent the next few hours chatting with all the MOP employees and watching rushes of sales business come and go. Before I knew it, my MINI was back in one piece again, nice and clean, and a brand new windshield. I forgot what it was like to have a clear windshield, just like the first time I tried on a pair of glasses.

Perfect timing actually, because I have Aquapel coming in next week, which I had planned to face off with RainX, and now I don’t have to wait till the spring for a clean windshield. Stay tuned for the results in several weeks.