It’s that time of year when travel ideas turn toward cruising and the DeTournay family is no exception. One little difference is that ours was a test cruise and it was to Palm Springs in the desert instead of on the ocean…a round trip distance of 400 kilometers. We have kept many of you informed about our latest project of taking our antique 1954 MG apart, stripping it to the metal, repainting it and then reassembling it. We even removed the engine and transmission to install a new clutch. When finished it makes sense to give it a good road test. Why Palm Springs you ask? That is where our MG mechanic of forty years retired so if we had mechanical problems he would be only a cell phone call away.
B02 GET READY, GET SET…
In the back of my mind, for the longest time, was the idea of returning to Europe to re-do our honeymoon in the same car. It could help explain why we still have our faithful MG after 52 years… kept the last 35 under an MG Mitten in our carport. “Let’s just fix her up, fill the tank and take off in June” was my bold suggestion to Louise. Her jaw dropped and stayed open until her teeth were almost dry. Finally she said, “How are we going to pay for it?” and then, not wanting to hurt my feelings, said more tactfully, “Sounds romantic but how ARE we going to pay for it?” I could tell right away there was more to be done than getting the MG back in shape.
Lifting the car cover, I made a quick assessment. Squinting at it from a distance, the car still looked pretty good. Up close though it showed the ravages of age and little use. The paint had cracked and crazed over time and no amount of polish or spit shine could raise more than a dull luster. “The rest is OK though,” I told myself. The engine had only 20,000 miles since the last overhaul and the upholstery was like new. “We’ll just spruce up the paint and be on our way,” I said, hoping Louise would overhear.
At this point luck was with us. I‘d come to know a man who has a love affair with old MG’s, so much so that he’s restored five of them from the frame up. Even though Jerry Alban knows his stuff, working on old cars is not his chosen profession. He has a Master’s degree in piano pedagogy and makes his living as a music teacher plus giving private lessons after school. A very busy guy…at one time. Thanks to the Los Angeles Unified School District’s de-emphasis on music in schools and a similar disinterest by young parents, he was available for our project. Read more
B01 AND SO THE JOURNEY BEGAN…
On the 31st of May, Louise and I will be returning to Europe with several goals in mind. The first is to attend the 24 Hour race at Le Mans where our life together began in 1958. The next is to renew our marriage vows in Paris with much of our immediate family looking on. Following that we intend to re-do portions of our honeymoon in the same car. The final goal is to find a new home for the MG we have owned for 53 years. Here’s the back story.
1958
In 1958, when I was in the Army and stationed with the American Forces Network as a radio announcer at AFN France, my fiancée flew over with the idea of making ours a legal union. She got a taste of what her life was going to be like when I picked her up, along with my Mother, at Orly Field and whisked them off to Le Mans where I was posted to cover the 24-hour race. One week later, following that noisy, rainy and sleepless introduction to France, we were married in Orleans…twice. Once by the Mayor (required) and again by a chaplain (strongly suggested). With a double bond, our life together was on its way.
Shortly afterward I convinced her that a man must own one red MG in his lifetime and we found our 1954 MG TF directly across from my post in Orleans. For the next year we honeymooned in this car as we traveled to other European countries and Great Britain. On our rotation to the U.S. the MG came along for the drive across the country and eventually to Los Angeles. It was my daily driver for 17 years, including three trips to the hospital to deliver babies. The firm ride shakes them right out. Thirty minutes labor max. Finally my mechanic convinced me that T Series MG’s were not designed for daily high-speed freeway use and advised a retirement to weekend driving only. So it has been for the past 35 years where it languished in the carport under an MG Mitten. In 2010 our son-in-law was called to active duty in Afghanistan and our daughter moved to Paris with their son to be nearer. It seemed the right moment to activate a long-time dream. In October we took the MG apart, repainted and reassembled it and put it on a ship for Le Havre, France. We will join it there to begin the second greatest adventure of our life.
2011
After landing in Paris we will begin our searches: the first for our past and the next for the future of our beloved MG. While we have an agenda it is fairly loose allowing us to twist and turn as the opportunities arise. We do want to visit parts of Europe we missed 53 years ago and revisit parts that we enjoyed during that younger part of our life. We hope to visit the south and western regions of France and then on to England’s northern Lake District. From there we’ll travel to Belgium where I have relatives; on to Luxembourg (where we’ve never been) and into Germany where we’ll visit friends and Louise’s relatives. If time allows we’ll drive to Switzerland to spend time with long-time friends. During these travels we’ll try to connect with local MG clubs so we can take part in club events or just exchange lies about MG’s. Our primary motive is to search for a new home for our MG and clubs dedicated to the marque seem a logical place to start. We’re only hoping it doesn’t happen too soon so we can enjoy the hunt. We’ve purchased return air tickets for the 14th of August. That will mean two and a half months on the road. We don’t know which will break first…us or the MG.
Because we’ve promised so many friends that we’d stay in touch, we’ve decided to launch this blog. It will save us a fortune on postcards and stamps. Can’t promise there will be daily entries but we’ll do our best to have interesting experiences and share them with you as readily as we can. If things go as planned, on our return, we’ll have a complete memoir of our adventure suitable for print or cyber media or, even better, the silver screen. So jump aboard. You’re invited to tag along with us while we chase our dreams.
For want of a catchy title we’re calling it SECOND HONEYMOON; SAME CAR.
Louise and Ray DeTournay
to be continued…
Categories: Los Angeles
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