One of the low-key pleasures of the late summer is the Brighton USA Days tour, that usually happens in New Jersey. For many years, when Margaret’s health permitted, Bob Benz and Margaret Stephens were the hosts at their farm. Recently, Andy and Tricia Wallace have run the tour from Newton, NJ.
This year, there was a short 22-mile tour on Friday afternoon, followed by pizza at Casa Wallace. Three cars participated: Joyce and Jerry Chase’s Buick F, Andy and Tricia’s Buick F, and my one-lung Cadillac.
The main event was Saturday – 65 miles with a catered lunch at the Wallaces’. This part of New Jersey has excellent and very scenic back roads along streams and lakes, and over hills and into valleys, with essentially zero traffic. I pulled over ONCE to let a couple of moderns go by. There were 12 cars on the tour; my Cadillac, a REO, a Yale, a Renault, a potful of Buicks, and - oh yeah – a single cylinder Isetta from the ‘50s. (I SAID it was low-key!) While this area is blessed with great roads, it doesn’t have a lot of destinations. But lunch at the Wallaces more than makes up for that. Andy has several large garages with a wide variety of drool-worthy toys from a curved dash Olds, to classic British sports cars, to a Cord, to – well, something for pretty nearly everybody. There was also a swimming pool we were invited to use. Since the weather was perfect, what was there not to like?
Watch for this little tour next year. Rules are the same as for a 1&2: pre-’16 one-and two-cylinder cars, steam to 10 horsepower, electrics (though I doubt any electric less potent than a Tesla could have done Saturday’s run), small pre-’04 four-cylinder cars – and Isettas! If it’s in Newton again, there’s a good motel, ample trailer parking, and back roads almost to the door. Y’all come!
Gil Fitzhugh the Elder
PS – Did anyone take pictures to post?