Honolulu Healeys Medal in Montrose Aloha to my Healey bruddahs and sistahs! The 24th Annual Montrose Car Show was held on Sunday, July 5th. Nestled in the Crescenta Valley of Los Angeles County between the Verdugo Mountains and the Angeles National Forest, Montrose was settled on George Washington’s birthday in 1911. The show took place in the heart of the Montrose Shopping Park on Honolulu Avenue, so named by an early developer who grew up in Hawaii. The pedestrian-friendly winding sidewalks and tree-lined streets are a cornerstone of the community, and the perfect place to show some very special cars.
It was pleasantly cool for the middle of summer, and my 1959 100-6 BN6 happily ate up the six freeways needed to get to the club meetup at the Starbucks in La Cañada Flintridge.
Waiting for me there were Peter Roses in his always ready to go 1959 100-6 BN6, Monica Lago-Kaytis, “Clay free” for the day in their 1960 BT7, Phil Caliva in his not so nasty single light 1965 BJ8, new member Matt Labyorteaux with his, new to him, 1954 100M, along with his stepson, Truman in his 1999 MB SL500, friend of the club and man of many nice cars, Sandy Bettleman with his one of a kind 1963 AC MA-200 prototype and our very own AHASC Motor News esteemed editor, Tim McNiff, in his red 1963 BJ7, sporting Old Glory for the holiday weekend! After a quick hello, and impromptu mini tech session over my yet to be resolved cooling system concerns (she’s still squirting randomly like Phil), we hulaed (island reference, ed.) down the hill in our Healeys to Honolulu Avenue! The main drag was already packed with early risers by the time ua hoʻea, so we marshalled our rides on a shady side street and headed down to far end of the show for breakfast at The Black Cow Café.
Weaving our way past friendly folks in folding chairs, we walked much of the length of the event, getting a good preview of the approximately 335 cars and 18 motorcycles in attendance. After breakfast, we swung by the registration table to get our car tags for the judging and received $10 meal coupons, good at all the venues in town. With preregistration of only $25, the meal ticket was a nice touch. Too bad we were already waddling around, full from breakfast. But there’s always ice cream later! This show boasted an impressive variety of vehicles spanning over 100 years of automotive history, including hot rods, classics, muscle cars, exotics, vintage motorcycles, trucks, and custom dragsters.
A blast from the past for me was an AMC Gremlin with a 390 cubic inch Ford big block. My buddy had a less robust Levi’s Edition Gremlin in college. Complete with denim stripes, Levi’s rivets, bright orange contrast stitching and red Levi’s tags stitched into the front seat seams, it was “the car that wears pants,” but not quite the chick magnet he was hoping for. Maybe he should have gotten a Bat Mobile instead. The one at the show seemed to have a lot of interested fans! Back at our little Healey side street lūʻau a steady stream of well- wishing ohana dropped by, including Peter's wife Alexandra, his daughter and son-in- law, and new granddaughter. Lou and Bonnie Fisher and two grandsons. Lon and Heidi Bender (Lon checking on the 100M he sold to Matt). It is always a treat to see friends and family come out to support our club members and we get to meet the extended Healey family. Throughout the day, a steady stream of admirers stopped by to take pictures, ask questions and tell stories. Our Healeys were a hit, evoking fond memories for a grateful show crowd.
When the sun finally found our Healey hideaway, we packed up the hoʻolauleʻa and chased the shade to the other side of the street. About this time, we heard some names being called out and a show official saying we should attend the upcoming awards ceremony. The excitement was palpable.
Would there be Healeys on the podium? Standing amongst the curious and hopeful as the awards were announced, it was so satisfying to see Peter and Alexandra recognized for their beautiful 100-6.
Decades of sweat and care have gone into that car.
The fact that it gets driven, HARD, makes it so much sweeter. And when my name was also called it was a 100-6 clean sweep! My first award and I never expected it. After all, I was just there to be with my Healey friends. It was a good day. Mahalo and a hui hou!