It seemed like a homecoming to be back at the Auto Museum meeting room again for our General Meeting on March 14. We had the somewhat normal attendance of 12 members, as well.

   You may recall from February’s newsletter, that the Auto Museum put out a call to the local car clubs to select some of their cars for display at the museum. Well, the SDVSA has reserved the month of October 2001, to display some of our Volvos on the main floor of the museum. Bud Hartwell has volunteered his pristine ’72 1800ES, and Alan Miller’s ’64 544 is another candidate. Anyone else?  Contact any of the characters in the box on page 3 if you can spare your car for a couple of weeks in October.     

   Mike Ruksenas would have walked off with the $36 jackpot in Bob Skoog’s 50/50 raffle, had he been at the meeting. We are starting to talk about some serious mola for some lucky member whose name is picked as a winner at one of the general meetings!

  Del Skoog’s Temecula Wine Tour on Sunday, March 25 delivered much more than promised! Of the eleven Volvos, out of 13 cars present, we had just about every model represented. From Dave Hunt’s ’56 P1900 and Marsha Hines’ ‘58 444 to a C70, there were 120s, 1800Ss, Es, ESs, and a 240 assembled at the Mobil station, getting gassed up and ready for another exciting tour. Still enveloped in the early morning marine layer, this impressive caravan set off into the heart of the Temecula valley. By the time we arrived by a devious route at Callaway Winery, our first stop, the sun was out in full force. This winery, or Thornton’s, must be the largest producer of wines in the valley. Though the quality of the wines was unquestioned, the establishment lacked that certain ambiance. After regrouping our loyal Volvo vikings, we were off to the Keyway Winery, which is as different from Callaway as night and day. Carl Key has turned his tasting room into a memorabilia fan’s delight. A working 0 scale railroad train is chugging along overhead, as entranced visitors are surrounded by a variety of Americana collectibles. 

The wines, too, are as individual in taste as Carl, - most notable, the ’98 Sauvignon Blanc and the ’99 Viognier. Then it was on to the brand new Wilson Creek winery for our picnic lunch and a chance to relax and socialize. The beautiful picnic grounds with its green grass, clear pond and tall cottonwood trees, we were told by one of the wine servers, used to be the local dump! Why don’t you leaf through to page 7 and read Lara Mia Phillips’ synopsis of this rewarding wine tour, accompanied by photographs taken by Jeff Perry.

  Sadly, for the SDVSA, Lara Mia has accepted a job in Oakland, CA., and she will be leaving San Diego shortly. We appreciate her dedication to the club, and her outstanding efforts as our representative to the Auto Museum’s Car Club Council. Good Luck from all of us in your new endeavor, Lara Mia!

  Coming up on Saturday, April 21, is Mark Jankowski’s San Diego East County Tour. This year’s trek is going to be biased towards the northern regions of the county, to reward our loyal following from the OCVSA and the Los Angeles area. Mark has a knack for finding interesting places to visit and adventuresome ways to get there. Be sure to join your club on this, always excellent tour. Just turn the page for more details.

  The 11^th Annual Westside Volvo Classic Car Show in Culver City takes place on Saturday, May 12 . This is one of the major Volvo events in Southern California. More information and an entry form are provided on page 4.

  Our SDVSA event for May is the Fallbrook Autoshow on May 28. For more information, see page 5. Plan on being there.