M.A.D.M.E.N Odometer-Where we went in January
MADMEN started 2014 with MINIs and Munchkins at MINI of Tucson on the first Saturday of the month and year. The coffee was hot, the doughnuts and fruit were fresh and the company was fantastic. We mingled with friends, discussed upcoming events, sat in new cars and saw the new MOT t-shirt. And since sometimes a free doughnut isn’t always free, Ian has a new little brother, a 2013 Coupe. Yes, the MADMEN grew by another car.
Beyond Bread for dinner was a new experience for My MINI Has the Munchies and it was a hit. Being centrally located in addition to really good food means we will be coming back.
Our first weekend adventure for the year was also in January as we hit the highway for Alamogordo. We enjoyed favorable weather as we toured the White Sands Missile Range Museum and made sure to only take pictures towards the mountains, as directed. Some of the attractions in town that we visited were the zoo (two baby Joey kangaroos!), the toy train museum (including a ride on the rails) and a visit to the Giant Pistachio. We made sure to be at White Sands National Monument for sunset on the dunes then it was back into town for a nice dinner at Memories Restaurant. Sunday morning was a run up to Cloudcroft for breakfast at Big Daddy’s and a fun run around the mountain. The trip back to Tucson included a stop for a little wine tasting at Luna Rossa Winery in Deming. We had several newer members joining us for their first overnighter and they said it was a wonderful time and they wouldn’t have changed a thing.
Last Saturday Breakfast was at Sunny Daze Cafe then we took the scenic back roads for most of the way down to Tubac for the annual Santa Cruz Valley Car Nuts Show. After inspecting and drooling over some really nice cars we ate, shopped and/or strolled around Tubac then it was down the road for some history at Tumacacori National Monument.Our next stop was at Tumacacori Mesquite Sawmill for shopping and a tour of the sawmill and the furniture making process. Our last stop of the day was at the Cow Palace in Amado for a little snack and liquid refreshment to get us back to Tucson.
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DRP – Late Dec/Jan Cliffs
A tad bit late posting the monthly summary, it’s been a busy kick-off to the year!
December was pretty awesome.
We kicked it off with out usual Sunday Cars & Coffee at MINI of Tempe which is always a great turn out – always nice to see some new faces there too 
Ms Katie Blaker was kind enough to get us a sweet deal at Papa Murphy’s in Peoria for their grand opening – MINIs at Murphys. We brought out the MINI crew and they supplied us with many pizzas which we baked up at Mark Ryan/Teresa Flores’ home after mingling with Santa for a while. Sunday Sweets was at Rita’s and we pretty much took over their entire inside area. Even in the December cold, their gelato is delicious. The Holiday Lights Run was great, not too many people got lost haha. There were some very festive homes and the end point was a MINI owner who eats, drinks and sleeps Christmas apparently. George Rocheleau, Tate Lickfeldt and William Solan won prizes for the best decorated cars and a good time was had by all. The month ended with our usual Pavilions Car Show, had some Dee and Larry popped in from Vegas and there were some new folks as well. It was a pretty legit month.
Pictures by George Rocheleau, Desert Magazine, me
January also kicked off with Cars & Coffee at the dealership, some of us were a little ruined from Rocky Horror the night before but it was a wonderful morning. Sunday Sweets turned into a crock pot exchange at Krispy Kreme, we were mildly overtaken by Mustangs but it was a nice evening. The Pavilions got a little crazy because Barrett Jackson was in town so the MINI crew was somewhat over-shadowed. Some very cool cars were there and cruising around all week though, very good scenery. The January Pajama Jam was pretty fun, most everyone was rocking their PJs and we went on a very nice drive to Fountain Hills, the weather was perfect and we ended it with bagels and the DRP serious business meeting at the Fountain Park. Karting night at Octane had a small but effective turn out and there was some good racing going on out there. Sean Grimes and Richard Newby always rock it.
Pictures by Robert Rohr, Tom Puleo, William Solan and George Rocheleau – not in that order
Upcoming events in Feb:
Pavilions car show this Saturday 2/15
Cars & Coffee @ MINI N Scottsdale 2/15
White Roof Radio Episode 500@ EuroTechs 2/22
AZ History Run 2/23
IFN @ Rigatony’s 2/26
Cars & Coffee @ MINI of Tempe 3/2