Canberra Chapter Christmas Lunch & Presentations

14 December 2023 / Words by Rod Nicholas. Photos by Maryanne Nicholas and Lili Chi

A great turnout of 52 members and guests were on hand to experience an extravagance of company, food, entertainment, and excitement.

Kicking off proceedings, Convenor Rod Nicholas exhorted the members present to take up the challenge to convince any MX-5 owner/driver they meet to become a member of the club. With some possibly unreliable sources suggesting there were several hundred MX-5s in our city environs that were not in some way associated with the Club, Rod said there was plenty of opportunity to rope in the stragglers and boost our membership!

On the subject of membership, congratulations go to the following members who have achieved a milestone with their love of MX-5s and membership of our Club:

20 years membership

• Barbara and Ian Leyton-Grant

10 years membership

• Kerry and Rhonda Evans
• Janet Long

5 years membership

• Holly Battisson
• Stephen Davis
• Rod Nicholas and Maryanne Nicholas
• Greg Pointing
• Rochelle Prattley

Rod offered a brief recap of the 2023 year, noting that we had scheduled 47 events and held all but one. One last ‘Wrap up the Year’ run would be held on 19 December, just because.

We have had 895 attendees at our events, mostly our Chapter members. That was all shared by 97 persons, which is pretty darn good, given there are about 150 club members in our region.

Our events are a mix of social events and runs—the social events attracted 488 attendances at an average of 29 per event (44 being the maximum). The runs scored 407 attendances at an average of 14 per event, but a few grabbed over 20, which makes for a lively affair.

Planning and holding so many events didn’t happen by magic. There is a good deal of effort involved in concocting an event, especially a run, and even more if it is a multi-day run. That they work out so well is a credit to the planners, organisers and leaders, and a testament to their interest in having a good time in their cars and with their friends.

With that in mind, a few people were singled out for particular thanks.

Firstly, thanks go to our event/run leaders:

• Norm Barker
• Peter and Annemie Wilson
• Bob Judd & Bricet Kloren
• Steve & Cecelia Wakeling
• Mike Lawless & Jo Blackburn
• James & Giulia Schiemer
• Brett Goyne
• Barry Matson
• John Chapuis
• Rod Nicholas.

Thanks were also due to those who have taken on ‘administrative’ roles in the Chapter like regalia coordinator, runs committee members and website and social media coordinator. Help from these members goes a long way to reducing the stress on the convenor.

It was time then to discuss the much-anticipated awards. Rod outlined the way in which these were determined, with points allocated as members participated in our events, depending on the level of involvement (further details are on the website). All this is tallied by the membership secretary based on information we supply.

First off was the 2023 MXV Award

A member gets two points for organising or participating in an event, and a few more for taking some photos or writing a report and so on. So, to accumulate 1015 points (M=1000, X= 10, V=5) normally takes a while. These two are the only MXV awards to Canberra Chapter members to date.

• Norm Barker – who has been in our club now for 16 years
• Rod Nicholas – a young whipper-snapper who managed it in only 5 years

Then the Member of the Year

Tony & Iris McDonald were, in some ways surprise winners of this year’s award, the surprise being that they had not received it before in their 18 years of membership.

Our members of the Year, Tony & Iris McDonald

And New Member of the Year

Allan Caldwell was not able to be with us on the day, but expressed surprise, saying later ‘I have been thoroughly enjoying the events with a great bunch of welcoming people’.

But no Motorsport Member of the Year

We couldn’t award it this year – there just wasn't enough participation from local members to make it happen.

A surprise Convenor’s Award

Convenor Rod had decided that this year warranted something a little different. The surprise award went to a member who is delightfully enthusiastic about MX-5s, who has gone out of his way, without question, to help fellow members because he loves doing it. The award recognised his ‘clubmanship’, his happiness to ‘be involved’, his efforts at ‘going above and beyond’. And it clearly recognises that he is just ‘A Really Nice Human’. Recipient of this special Convenor’s Award was the King of Bling, Rhys Howse.

Convenor's Award winner Rhys Howse (R) with Convenor Rod

Clapping, whooping, and foot stomping ensued as Tony and Iris were handed the stunningly attractive perpetual trophy and an individual trophy commemorating their achievement. Alan didn’t say much because he wasn’t there, and Rhys was almost speechless with surprise but thoroughly delighted.

Raffles galore

The odds were good with the raffles, at a little better than a one in two chance of taking home a prize. The raffle draw was filled with anticipation, and many members went home with a little extra to remind themselves of a great day. Steve Wakeling presented a new MX-5 trophy featuring a model MX-5 donated by a member, and handsomely mounted and prepared by Steve, which some lucky member would get to keep for a year.  Maryanne Nicholas took temporary possession of the prize.

The lunch pretty much wrapped up a full year, that saw many members out and about in their fun machines. It will be hard to top it, but we already have great plans for 2024.

Rod finished the day with a heartfelt thanks to all and best wishes to all our members for a safe and happy festive period and new year. See you in 2024!

There are more photos by Lili Chi on our Facebook page.