On July 25, 2025, my article explaining my affinity for the LGGPR was published on the Revival’s website. Below is my narrative about participation in the 2025 event.

Leaving Oklahoma City at 9:16 am, we (Mom’s TR and me) arrived at “America’s Best Value Inn,” Iola, Kansas. Even though it’s 30 miles from Garnett, Iola was chosen for our lodging because we had stayed there in our 1964 trip to LGGP. Like your the author, the motel was 51 years older and a bit frayed at the edges, but it was entirely suitable for the weekend. After checking in and unloading the suitcase and ice chest, number “1” was put on the doors, and we headed up US 169 to Garnett.

Friday night Registration in Garnett was friendly, efficient, and the BBQ was excellent, especially the potato salad and pecan pie. While LGGP Revival Board Chairman Tracy Modlin welcomed everyone, I struck up a conversation with Jeff Moore on his work restoring Bob Hindson’s Mini back to how it looked when Hindson drove it at Lake Garnett in 1968 and 1969. Jeff’s wife remarked how eating a piece of pecan pie would make one diabetic. Glad I took my metformin that day.

The drive back to Iola, I bought a tankful of 100% gasoline and breakfast for the morning: a dozen Hostess Donettes and a pint of milk. Turning off the ignition at the motel, I heard and felt the clunk-a-clunk of a TR3 exhaust system rattling against the frame; a common Triumph malady. In the dark, I checked the rear tailpipe hanger. It was intact, so I said a prayer and went to bed.

Bright and early Saturday, after a breakfast of Donettes, milk, and coffee, I drove from Iola to Garnett and found the paddock. There was an amazing variety and number of cars entered in the track sessions, everything from a Swift Formula Atlantic to a Volvo 940 Turbo wagon. According to Revival Registrar, Bo Harris, 265 different drivers had entered a total of 331 track sessions. Mom’s TR was entered in both Group A2 sessions and the Historic session.

A friendly track marshal said I could probably find a spot near other historic cars parked “by that row of cedar trees.” Sure enough, I found an open space in front of a port-a-potty, backed in, unloaded my lawn chair and all loose items in the trunk, and took off the side curtains. Driving with the side curtains on was a bit hotter in the unseasonably warm October weather, but it freed up space in the trunk, added overnight security, and kept the October morning dew off the interior. Mom’s TR was appropriately paddocked in a row that included a 1949 MG TC, 1956 Austin Healey 100-4, 1958 “Bugeye” Sprite, 1959 Turner 950 S, 1961 Corvette, and two Triumph TR4s.

Soon the loudspeakers announced the Drivers’ Meeting. Track Steward Kevin Hinckle opened the meeting with a welcome, and began explaining the flags, speed limits, and no passing zones. My co-driver, Mike Dickey made his way through registration and joined the driver’s meeting. Mike is a best friend from junior high days, a veteran of our 1964 trip to the LGGP, and an accomplished autocross and rally driver.

When the driver’s meeting concluded, we went to Mom’s TR and prepared for our first session, Group A2. I would drive this group, and Mike would ride shotgun. After several gymnastic tries, Mike finally fitted his 5’9” frame into the passenger seat. Mike explained that he had a generational condition he called “the Dickey back.” Mike showed me the pain management impulse button for the spinal cord stimulator implanted in his body, and I thought to myself, “High Tech ? I treat my back pain the old-fashioned way with drugs and hot baths.” Just then the loudspeaker called Group A2 to the grid.

The rules for Group A were simple. No passing except in two designated passing zones on the front straight and back straight. A speed limit of 60 mph would be enforced by radar guns. Towards the back of the group, we were gridded with any number of BMWs, Miatas, Toyotas, Hondas, and similar sized cars. Plus some cars not often seen, like an Alfa Romeo Milano, Saturn Sky Redline, and a Mercury Marquis four-door. Directly in front of us was a Miata with front air dam, fat tires under flared fenders, and a huge rear wing. Pulling ahead of us onto the track for the single-file pace lap, the Miata driver swerved back and forth, emulating “real race cars” heating up their tires. Mike and I enjoyed the Miata’s show, chuckling about heating tires for a “non-race” event.

The green flag fell at the top of the hill where the pits were back in the day. Thus began my first laps at speed since 1968 when I drove a Bugeye Sprite in the Lake Garnett SCCA National races. Entering the braking zone for Turn One, a down hill, off-camber hairpin, I quickly realized three things: Mom’s TR did not corner like my bugeye did, Mom’s TR was no match for contemporary cars, and my driving skills may have actually improved in 57 years. Certainly my reaction times have slowed, but my anticipation, recognition, and evaluation of braking, choosing the best line, and accelerating out of the corners felt “like old hat” to me. The aforementioned Miata with the big wing quickly disappeared, as did every other car gridded in front of us. But very few cars behind us passed us, so overall I was satisfied with my driving.

The 60 mph limit gave me time to appreciate aspects of the track I never noticed before. The water in the lake was as blue as the Kansas sky. The “Muleshoe Turn” was actually two turns, connected by a short straight; both turns were slightly uphill and could be taken faster than they looked. The 60 mph limit probably helped Mom’s TR survive for the trip back to Oklahoma as 60 mph was quickly reached in third gear, well below the “red line” of 5,000 rpm. All too quickly, the 20 minutes were over. We found our spot back by the port-a-potty, opened the hood to cool the engine, and put our helmets on the top of Mom’s TR; a traditional sign that we had finished our “race”.

We barely had time to catch our breath when the track announcer called the Historic group to the grid. I was looking forward to running with cars more the speed of Mom’s TR. Next to us was the 1949 MG T driven by Russ Sifers. He had driven every one of the 11 previous LGGP Revivals. I smiled at him and asked him to not pass us too soon on the track, and he laughed and said “I will stay back here, don’t worry.”

When the green flag fell, only two cars were behind us: Russ in the MG TC and a red and race-prepared Bugeye Sprite. The Sprite stayed behind us for a full lap and then I courteously motioned him to pass on the back straight. He was gone in a flash. The 50 mph limit imposed on the historic class was described as a “soft 50 mph” by Track Marshall Hinckle at the drivers’ meeting. Apparently, I missed that statement when greeting. Keeping up with the pack would have been easier if I had known where the radar guns; something the veterans of this event knew, but I also missed at the driver’s meeting.

In this session, I found a new, faster line at the “Corkscrew”. Back in 1968, I remember taking the left turn, right turn, left turn combination with three separate apexes. In 2025, I found keeping full throttle down, wide right of the first turn apex, then hitting the brakes hard into the second turn apex, set Mom’s TR up for full throttle exiting through the third turn apex. Using this new line driving through the Corkscrew, Mike exclaimed to me, “You’re getting kind of racey.” That was a real compliment coming from an experienced driver like Mike.

After the checkered flag, we again found our spot by the port-a-potty and prepared for Mike’s turn in the second session of group A2. Mike had mused to me and others that he had “never driven a TR3. My brother Tommy had one but he would not let me drive it!” So Mike got a little practice by driving Mom’s TR on the roads leading into the paddock area. Once again, getting Mike in the car was a challenge, especially since the driver’s side has that great big Triumph steering wheel blocking the way. Several tries and attempts later, Mike was in the driver’s seat. I suggested we might have to leave him there until his session started, but Mike just kind of shrugged. We drove around the golf course and Mike learned where the gears were, got the feel of the brakes and the steering at slow speed on dirt roads. When we parked Mom’s TR by the porta-potty, it was covered with dust from the unpaved golf course roads.

Soon we heard “Group A2 to the grid” so Mike squeezed himself back in, and off we went to the grid. I was somewhat apprehensive about Mike driving at speed in a car he’d never driven before, on a racetrack he hadn’t seen in fifty-one years. To Mike’s credit, he did very well. He only missed a couple shifts which is easy to do in Mom’s TR because the transmission has 150,000 miles on it and the lockout between reverse gear is worn to being almost nonexistent.

Mike remarked the first time we went down the long Santa Fe straight about the speedometer having a “problem” as it waves between 60 to 80 mph. When Mike mentioned the speedo, I said, “That just keeps me company on long drives.” We both laughed. Then I reminded him that 3000 rpm in fourth gear was exactly 60 mph. On one lap as we were entering the Santa Fe straight, a large clunk was heard. I checked my rear view mirror for a tail pipe or other debris behind us. Seeing nothing, we motored on down the one-mile-long, 60 mph, no passing zone. To Mike’s credit, he only had the front end wash out once on the “Snyder Turn” before the Corkscrew. Mike did exceptionally well. As in the first A2 session, we spent a lot of time all by ourselves on the track.

Pulling Mom’s TR back into the paddock, we took off our helmets and caught our breath. As we were loading all of the stuff back into the trunk, veteran (and older than me) SCCA flagman Tom Huxtable congratulated us and confirmed that the 50 mph limit for the Historic class was created to encourage participation. Leaving the paddock, we passed a water spigot by a golf course maintenance building. Washing Mom’s TR into a bit more presentable state, we proceeded to the car show.

Parked around the square of Anderson County Court House was over 130 “vehicles” of every size and description. We parked amongst the “British Pre‘72” cars, opened the hood, hid the stuff in the trunk with a plaid blanket and displayed Mom’s TR placard; itself a veteran of Concours from 1976. I have added photos of Mom and her TR, plus a timeline of the Triumph’s history. Then we found a nice spot in the shade on the courthouse lawn.

While observing the car show, Mike suggested he buy lunch from the food trucks parked nearby. He suggested he buy the sandwiches, and I countered with buying the drinks. After watching the vendor prepare hand-squeezed lemonades, I joined Mike at the sandwich truck as he was ordering a brat for me and Philly cheesesteak for him. The sandwiches and lemonade were absolutely first rate.

Lyle “Buzz” Fisher, a greybeard gearhead like Mike and me, found us in the shade and introduced Mona, his new bride. Buzz had participated at the last Lake Garnett National race in 1972. Later he went over to the “dark side” and became a race official and steward. Now living in Tonganoxie, Kansas, Lyle regularly spectates at the Revival, and he was excited to tell us he recently bought a Triumph TR3. He’s taking delivery when the seller completes upgrades to the brakes, fuel, and cooling systems. Maybe he will drive the Revival next year.

When the car show awards were announced, we found we were not winners, so we packed up Mom’s TR. Mike left for Tulsa and I headed back to Iola.

On the Southwest corner of Iola’s City Square is “El Charro Mexican Restaurant”. Pulling into a parking space by the front door, I saw four faces peeping through the Charro front window. Mom’s TR loud exhaust had alerted the entire waitstaff, and they all greeted me with smiles and “nice car” comments when I went in. Continuing a racing tradition of eating steak after racing, I ordered “Steak Ranchero”. Eating a delicious supper, I recalled post race steak dinners at several “Ghost Tracks” like Lake Garnett; “Pauline’s Supper Club” Lake Ponca, Oklahoma (1961 – 1992), “Town and Country” Lake Afton, Kansas (1964 – 1991), “Night Hawk Steakhouse” River City Road Races, Austin (1963 – 1980), and “Southern Air” Mid America Raceway, St Louis Missouri (1964 – 1992).

By seven am Sunday morning, I had eaten the last of the Donettes, packed up, and was on the road back to Oklahoma.

Stephen J. England