Southern Arizona Wine Country Cruise 21 November 2015 - Photos

The Fun Italian Automobiles of Tucson and Southern Arizona Pantera Club held their 2015 Southern Arizona Wine Country Cruise on Saturday 21 November 2015.  This year's theme was dubbed "El Tour de Wine Cruise" in honor of the El Tour de Tucson annual bicycle event.  The weather was clear and balmy - a perfect day for a top-down cruise and wine tasting tour!

We met up for breakfast at The Vail Steak House Cafe & Diner and then headed south on the first leg of our tour down AZ-83 to Sonoita where we met up with another member at Dos Cabezas Wineworks.  After sampling a few nice wines we began the second leg of the tour by heading east on AZ-82 to Lower Elgin Road and towards the hamlet of Elgin, Arizona. At Elgin we headed west on Elgin Road back to AZ-83 where we headed south to Lightning Ridge Cellars.  At this winery we sampled some truly Italian-style wines and had lunch at one of the outdoor tables they provide.  After lunch and taking a few more photos we jumped back onto AZ-83 on the third leg of the tour by continuing south to the intersection of AZ-83 and Elgin-Canelo Road.  On Elgin-Canelo Road we headed north back to Elgin and re-traced part of our earlier track onto Elgin Road to Kief-Joshua Vineyards.  This winery had a nice variety of wines to sample and also had some meats and cheeses and other "snacks" to purchase.  We had a nice surprise when an early 60's Chrysler-powered Cunningham - a Cobra-type car with 8 Weber carbs growled up to the winery. This car is one of 7 in existence!

Kief-Joshua Vineyards was to have been the last winery on our tour but we managed to squeeze in another winery after one of the members talked about an orange-chocolate port they sampled at another winery we visited on last year's wine country cruise.  So off we went to Wilhelm Family Vineyards. At Wilhelm we sampled a few more wines and ports (of course!) and pet their resident Weimaraner dogs and Pug.  With the sunlight turning everything golden as late afternoon approached we headed back towards Sonoita where a couple of members opted to stop for dinner at The Steak Out while the rest of us headed back towards Tucson on AZ-83.

There were no accidents, no break-downs, and no tickets.  Everyone seemed to have a great time while touring a few of the wonderful wineries southern Arizona has to offer along with great views and open roads.

There are a lot more pictures of the event available from the following links:

• Fun Italian Automobiles of Tucson event photos > select here.<
• Southern Arizona Pantera Club event photos > select here.<

Mammoth / Oracle Run - Photos

We met up at Tucson's Cars & Coffee on Saturday 12 September.  Cars & Coffee had a nice turn out.  There were a handful of Italian cars present (see photos > here.<).  The Fun Italian Automobiles of Tucson and Southern Arizona Pantera Club members departed at about 8:30 AM embarking on our road trip up the road to Mammoth, AZ.  We had a stop-over at the Tucson Hilton El Conquistador in Oro Valley until about 9:15 AM to see if there were any other members joining up after which we headed up AZ-77 to Mammoth.

In Mammoth we stopped for lunch at La Casita and watched as a lot of people stopped to take a look at the cars.  We headed back home around 1:00 PM in time to watch UoA's Wildcats take on Nevada (and win! Go Cats!).

All in all, it was a nice run to get the cars out.  With one exception we had a pretty good time and we're looking forward to our next event.

More photos of the Mammoth / Oracle Run event can be seen by selecting > here.<
Photos of the event from the Southern Arizona Pantera Club can be seen > here.<

Photo Shoot at Pima Air & Space Museum - Photos

Photo: John Bezosky

The photo shoot at Pima Air & Space Museum was a great success.  The weather cooperated and we had a nice turn out for the event.  We had participants from as far away as San Diego, CA (the president of the Pantera Owners Club of America - POCA) and Phoenix, AZ join us here in Tucson.

A special "thank you" to John Bezosky at Pima Air and Space Museum for hosting the event and coordinating access for us!  He made the event seem effortless which lets us know he did a lot of work behind the scenes to make sure it came off without any problems.

A link to a FIAT club album that gives a representative sample of the event can be seen > here.<

The Arizona chapter of the Pantera Owners Club of America (AZPOCA) has an event album that can be seen by selecting > here.<

UPDATE:
Check out these pictures from Threshold Photography of the event by selecting > here.<
(NOTE: You will need to enter your email address on the photographer's site to see the pictures.  Also - be advised that the pictures are watermarked.)

Links to more pictures will be added as they are made available from the participants.

2015 Mt. Lemmon "Hill Climb" - Photos

Photo: Chuck Huber

 The 2015 Mt. Lemmon "Hill Climb" was a great time!  The Fun Italian Automobiles of Tucson along with the Southern Arizona Panteras Club had a quick meet-up at Cars & Coffee and another rendezvous at the intersection of Catalina Highway and Snyder before ascending Catalina Highway with a stop at the Geology Point Vista pull-out to soak in the view.   After the stop at the pull-out we headed up to Ski Valley for lunch at the Iron Door.  We even had a classic Corvette, a late model Pontiac GTO, a late model Mustang, and a couple of former Pantera owners on their sport bike join in the fun!

A video of the cars departing the Ski Valley parking lot is available > here.<

After the coming down the mountain a few of the drivers took advantage of an opportunity to visit the University of Arizona's College of Engineering where final preparations were being made for this year's Wildcat Formula Racing entry in the Formula SAE Series competition held in Nebraska June 17-20, 2015.  These students took a break from doing their final preparations and packing for the competition to check out (and drive!) one of the member's Panteras!

Wildcat Formula Racing:  Bear Down and Go Cats!

These students do a lot of work from design to fabrication, coordination with vendors, assembly, test, and repair.  All this coupled with having to do stress analysis with cost analysis and presenting the results to a panel at the competition. A big "Thank You" from the clubs for allowing us to drop by and check out what you are doing!

Check out the rest of the pictures from the event > here. <  And there's more!  Here's a link to the event album from the Southern Arizona Panteras Club > here.<

Local Pantera "Shake Down" Run in Preparation for 2015 Lone Star Fun Rally

In preparation for the Pantera Owners Club of America’s (POCA) 2015 Lone Star Fun Rally, to be held Friday May 15th through Tuesday May 19th, 2015 in Houston, Texas, Chuck has been busy with some upgrades and maintenance on his '73 Pantera "L."  He took his Pantera out for a "shake down" run to make sure everything is in top shape for the trip and some track time.

To see a couple of pictures from his 120 mile round-trip "shake down" click > here. <

Safe Travels & Good Luck to all the POCA members throughout the nation making their trek to Houston for the rally!

2015 Bisbee Run & Overnight - Photos

Hey!  That Jag isn't Italian!  Nope - it's a cat of a different color.  You just never know what you will find (or find you) in Bisbee!

The 2015 Bisbee Run & Overnight was a great experience.  Although attendees were not running their Italian cars for one reason or another, there was plenty to see and do.  We started out with a meet-up and breakfast at the Vail Steakhouse Cafe & Diner.  We headed east on I-10 to see The Thing.  It's just one of those things you gotta do to say you did it.  After The Thing, we backtracked through Texas Canyon to the Amerind Museum.  The Amerind is a wonderful museum of the American Indian.  They also have a wonderful art gallery in an adjacent building.  Upon leaving we headed back towards Benson where we caught AZ-80 south from Benson and through St. David to Tombstone.  In Tombstone we stopped at the Courthouse Museum for a tour.  There is always something going on in Tombstone when the weather is great and this weekend was no exception.  If had 2 wheels and said "Harley Davidson" it was there. 

After Tombstone we headed into Bisbee and directly to the Jonquil Motel.  It's a quaint motor court motel.  We noshed on wine, cheese, and fruit and got a bit refreshed before heading into Old Bisbee to check out the sites.  There is plenty to see in Bisbee.  There is art EVERYWHERE.  Of course, we had to stop for some "refreshments" in Brewery Gulch. We worked up an appetite climbing stairs and walking through neighborhoods up to Castle Rock.  The only problem with hiking up is coming down!  We had a nice Mexican dinner at Contessa's Cantina.

Sunday was just about as perfect as it gets.  The cool morning gave way to a balmy afternoon.  The breeze was scented with roses and wildflowers common in Bisbee this time of year. We spent the time doing a little bit of window browsing, looking at art and gawking at all kinds of classic and just cool cars that were rolling through town.  We stopped for a lite lunch at Ana's Seasonal Kitchen.  We heard a "purr" in the street and were treated to a Jaguar D-Type that pulled up and parked at the curb.  It is a post-production replica built by the same craftsman who built the originals. It is all aluminum and built to exacting standards and using the same "bucks" that were employed to shape the original D-Type bodies.  Check out the builder's signature!  Straight six with Weber carbs mated to a 5-speed transmission and brought to a stop with vented disk brakes.  When you look at the pictures you will note that this cat gets driven - A LOT.  That doesn't mean it is beat up by any means.  Rather, it is kept in top shape to do what it is designed to do - RUN and run fast.  It participates in a lot of rallies in the Southwest and California.  The cool thing is that this particular Jaguar is local to Bisbee. Apparently this Jaguar has spent some notable time in the triple-digits of the speedometer.  (Rob - if you are reading this please correct me if any of these statements about your Jaguar are incorrect!)  After checking out the Jaguar we headed back to Tucson with a leisurely drive back through Tombstone and over to Sonoita and then up AZ-83.  This trip was great incentive for some of us to finish up mods and maintenance and get our Italians back on the road where they belong!

Thanks to everyone who made it out for this event!  Everyone had a great time.  Those who couldn't make it were missed.  Hope to see you at the next event!


A photo album of the event is available > here.<

Here's another album of the event from the Southern Arizona Pantera Club available > here.<

2015 St. Patrick's Day Run - Photos

We had a great time on our 2015 St. Patrick's Day Run through southern Arizona.  The roads were dry and the temperature was mild.  Things were a bit windy in Vail and on I-19 in Green Valley, but generally speaking it was a great day for a drive!

We met up at the Vail Steak House Cafe & Diner for a bite of breakfast and then had a spirited drive south down AZ-83 to the junction with AZ-82 in Sonoita.  At the junction we headed west to Patagonia where we stopped for coffee at Gathering Grounds just in time to see a bunch of classic hot rods gather.  It turned out that a local car club was having their annual picnic today.

A quick drive-by video of most of the cars in Patagonia is available > here. <

We left Patagonia and continued west to Rio Rico.  At Rio Rico we headed north taking South River Road to Ruby Road and then merged onto I-19 where we made sure the speedometers were working correctly (ahem!).  Things worked out so that the Panteras cued up together at the Tubac check point where they took off together "Pinks" style - it was great to see and hear!  It gave everyone a really big grin.

A photo album of the event is available > here.<

Here's another album of the event from the Southern Arizona Pantera Club available > here.<

We collected in Green Valley at Mac's Pub & Patio for lunch - Irish style (OK, Americanized "Irish Style") but still pretty good!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2015 Arivaca Run - Photos

The 2015 Arivaca Run was great.  Even though we only had a couple of Italian cars we did have a nice turn out as folks brought some other vehicles to enjoy the day with.  We met up not far from the Valencia and I-19 interchange and headed to Green Valley to Duval Body and Paint to check out the owner's (Rick Pacinda) Pantera that is currently getting restored and modified.  A big thanks to Rick for taking time out of his busy schedule to host the group and give us a tour of his facility!

After the visit to Duval Body and Paint we headed down to Amado for a photo opportunity at the Longhorn Grill in Amado.  The Longhorn is currently closed and for sale.  It was being attended to by a remodeling crew who allowed us to come in and take a look around.  It is an interesting place with a great view of the Santa Rita range.  Folks were getting hungry so we opted for lunch across the street at the Cow Palace instead of waiting to get to Arivaca. After lunch we had a couple of people peel off to attend to other obligations back in Tucson and Wilcox since we already nearing the middle of the afternoon.  Meanwhile, the Panteras and a "support vehicle" continued to Arivaca with a spirited drive.  We stopped in Arivaca to look around and grab a drink.  The cars got a lot of looks and thumbs-up from folks.  The roads were pretty good with the exception of the last straight stretch between Arivaca and AZ-286 which had a few craters that desperately need repair. The remainder of the run was pleasant and spirited.  Folks headed their separate ways to points north and east at Three Points and the day finished up with a classic Tucson sunset.

View the rest of the photo album > here. <

We are looking forward to our next event coming up in March - Hope you can join us!

Life is too short to drive a boring car

One of our Fun Italian Automobiles of Tucson members has just received the distinction of having the story and photos of his 1972 Lancia Fulvia Sport posted on Petrolicious.  Check out the article on the Petrolicious site > here. <

As we Italian car owners know very well - life it too short to drive a boring car.

Congratulations, Frank!

A Few Pictures from Track Day

Special thanks to Robert for the work organizing the AZRides Track Day Event and inviting the Fun Italian Automobiles of Tucson and Southern Arizona Panteras Club!

Southern Arizona was having record rains on for past few days and some participants elected to forgo the event.  However, a few intrepid and dedicated souls still trekked out to Deming, New Mexico for fun day at the track.  At least there was no oil on the tarmac!

Thanks to Chuck from the Southern Arizona Panteras Club for the pictures - > select here. <

Pictures from 10 January 2015 Franklin Museum Event

Chuck from the Southern Arizona Panteras club arranged for their club and the FIAT group to tour the Franklin Museum in Tucson, AZ.  It was a chilly morning but the day was beautiful.  Everyone met up at 9:00 AM and then had a somewhat personal tour from the museum's curators.  There is some amazing craftsmanship in the Franklin automobiles.  After touring the museum several of us headed over to Roma Imports for lunch (HIGHLY recommended!).

Event Pictures
Select > here < to view the FIAT album.  Select > here < to view the So. AZ Panteras album.


PS
Check out Roma Imports' Facebook page!