May 12th, Shine at the Shrine,- Despite the threat of snow, we only had some clouds and cool temperatures. No ROA members came out, but two brave TOA members did to attend the Cars and Coffee at the El Jebel in Denver The two Toronados pictured are a "66 & 68's along with a variety of cars from other clubs. Overall we had a good time and those Shriners are funny guys.

August 6, Saturday, Members from the Dallas area met at the North Star Dragway in Denton. Ken Robinson, and his dad Reggie, came out with their one owner 1967. Steve Smock brought his ‘72 with a Cummings Dodge diesel, and his 1964  Special convertible. Also in attendance without cars were Jason Pruitt, and Leslie Fry. The temperature was 108 at 6.00 pm, which accounted for the low turnout. We may try this again on  Oct 8 at 6.00PM, of so members will be contacted.

Southeastern Regional is a
Driving success in Central Florida

April 19-22, 2012, ROA members from throughout the Southeastern United States converged on Ocala, Florida for the Third ROA Southeastern Regional Meet. The Regional was hosted by the regional coordinators in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina. This year the event scored a hit with more than 50 participants.

The meet included scenic drives down two-lane rural roads through rolling Central Florida horse country. After our cruise on Friday, we had lunch at The Yearling, a top-ranked restaurant featuring “cracker” cuisine and such, and then a stop at the quaint town of Micanopy, located between Ocala and Gainesville. 

The big surprise was the Friday tour of Jim and Rick Schmidt’s, amazing 190-car collection. The Schmidts own National Parts Depot (NPD), which is headquartered in Ocala. Rick gave ROA members a personalized two-hour tour of the collection, including a ’67 and a ‘71 Riviera (the latter was away at a show), a showroom fresh 1987 GNX, and three 1956 Continental Mark IIs, originally driven by members of the Ford family, that have appeared on the “My Classic Car” television show. Most of the collection are low-mileage, all original cars, plus several one-offs and prototypes. It was a jaw-dropping tour!!

Some 33 Rivieras were registered, and 27 were on the show field when we toured the Don Garlits’ Museum. Big Daddy has collections of both drag racing and classic cars, which were enjoyed by many of the meet participants. Although there were no Rivieras in the museum, one of the high points for some, was the 1964 425 engine that had been modified by Smokey Yunick, advertised as “the most powerful unblown Nailhead in the world.” The sign said it was rated at 600 hp! ROA members were drooling at the idea of getting their hands on that Nailhead!

With few mechanical problems and rain that stayed away during the cruises and judging, it was an ideal spring weekend for our Rivieras and us.  We look forward to the next one being in N. Carolina in 2014.

The cars honored at the Saturday evening Awards Banquet were:

1963 – 1965

1st Place … Lyndon Milek … Arctic White 1964

2nd Place … Bob Wannall … Marlin Blue 1964

1966 – 1970

1st Place … Doug Van Kalker … Champagne 1966

2nd Place … John Cover … Arctic White 1966 GS

1971 – 1978

1st Place … Dick Morin … Firemist Red 1977

2nd Place … Bob Brumbaugh … Poly Willow Green 1973

1979 – 1985

1st Place … Chriss Mazzarella … White 1982 Conv.

1986 – 1993

1st Place … Randall Crain … Diamond White 1993

1995 – 1999

1st Place … David Messenger … Bordeaux Red Pearl 1997

Custom/Modified

1st Place … Steve Brisbois … Atomic Orange Sunburst 1968

2nd Place … Larry Lovell … Black/Cream 1965

Longest Distance

Jack Jones … 1983 Anniversary Edition … 925 miles

Judges’ Choice

Ben Dunbar … Silver Cloud 1964

Best of Show

Jim Kilroy … Green Mist Iris 1967

October 1, 2011 All-GM Oktoberfest sponsored by the National Parts Depot (NPD) was a great success. There was no sign of Tarzan, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, or even scuba pro Mike Nelson of Sea Hunt, but there were 14 ROA members and their classic Rivieras who turned out on a clear and beautiful October day for the 6th Annual Oktoberfest at Florida’s Silver Springs (where each of those productions were filmed). There were about 650 other GM cars on display, including many other Buicks.

The folks who own NPD had their own Riviera there, too, and escorted our ROA contingent to a prime display spot with lots of shade. We spent the day checking out the cars, riding the glass-bottom boats, taking the jungle cruise, and enjoying each other’s company. The overwhelming consensus: let’s do it again next year. So, mark your calendars for the first Saturday of October.

Although this was a North Central Florida Region event, ROA members from all over the state participated, including Dave Messinger’s ‘97, Nate Thomas’ ‘98, Charlie & Virginia Dilts’ ‘85, Wease Kaylor and Sue Aigiotti’s ‘63, Bruce Mack’s ‘95, Steve Brisbois’ ‘68, Artie Smith’s ‘65, Dennis Thulin’s ’84, Jeff & Bonnie Miller’s ‘71, Gary & Peggi Andrade’s ‘68, plus South Atlantic Coordinator Bob Brumbaugh, ‘73, Mid-Atlantic  Coordinator Bill Mays’ ‘64, and North Central  Coordinator Bob & Cindy Wannall’s ‘64.

The 1968 owned by Steve Brisbois, # 13359, won the “Best Buick Award” at the show.

October 15, 2011, It was a convertible day at the Georgia ROA gathering held at West Bank Park on Lake Lanier.  To say the weather was perfect would be an understatement.  Sunny, a light breeze, 75 degrees, leaves were changing colors on the trees along with a lake side view.  And because of the weather the convertibles were out in force.  We had 13 Rivieras and 22 Members plus children attend this year’s even and of the 13 Rivieras four were convertibles.  And Bill Horlock who hasn’t missed a meet yet would have been there with his convertible had not some health issues kept him away.  We all hope you get better Bill!

We grilled hamburgers and everyone brought a side dish for the group to enjoy while taking in the great views of the lake and the cars. All in all we had a great time enjoying the people, the setting and, of course, the Rivieras!

L to R – Russ Norris, Keith Felderman, Chris Miller, Don McClair, Ken Domm, Michael Clark, Christopher Brink, Debbie Jones, Tim Bryan, Craig Smith, Joe Jones, John Link, Adam Decker and Carl Fuller.

L-R Carl Fuller’s ’71,Chris Miller’s ’84, Adam Decker’s ’85, Joe & Debbie Jones’ ’83, and Christopher Brink’s ’84.

Everyone is enjoying the conversations of the day while sampling a variety of tasty food.

Craig Smith’s ’97 is behind Keith Felderman’s ’67, along with Don McClain’s ’65 and the tail end of Russ Norris’ ’72.

Michael Clark’s beautiful ’65 was on hand for the meet.

John Link’s new (to him and us) low mileage 1968.

Russ Norris’ 72 and Ken Domm’s ’73.  A special thanks goes out to Russ and his wife for grilling the burgers and helping out.

April 15th, Spring Picnic, Threatening rain and storms kept the turnout low. As it turned out we only had a few sprinkles, but lots of wind.

We had 3 Rivieras, a '69, '63, and '95. For TOA a '66. Although we had a low car turnout we did have 6 members and their family who enjoyed 12 hr smoked Texas Brisket, sweet corn on the cob, bread rolls, green bean casserole and many other sweets and garnishes. Members discussed the travel plans for the Monterey meet, upcoming events and just caught up on friendly facts. Everyone who attended received a 2012 ROA calendar compliments of the ROA. Thanks to those who came and hopefully weather will be much better for our next picnic.

March 17, Saint Patrick's Day ROA and the Cadillac LaSalle club had a joint lunch and meet starting at Vernon's Kuntry Katfish  in Conroe.  Mike Glaz and Stewart Jacobson two of the ROA members really got to experience the beautiful weather in their 83, and 84 Riviera Convertibles.  Russ Stripa of CLC also had his 1960 Eldorado convertible soaking up the grandeur. 

The  ROA cars in attendance included two’65 Gran Sports, owned by Hardy Rawls and E.J. Howe, a ’69 owned by Robert Mahnke, a ’64 owned by, Dan Neiss and the previously mentioned convertibles. For TOA my 1966 Toronado and as a guest Ron Norquist with his stunning 1963 Wildcat.  CLC also had a 1958 Eldorado, 1941 Cadillac Sedan and several late model examples.  We had wonderful chicken fried steak and hush puppies, catfish with fries for lunch.

After lunch we took a 20 minute  drive on scenic back roads  to Richard Mitchell's private collection.   We saw LaSalles, Stutz', Rolls Royce's,  Packards, Jaguars, Austin Healey and more.  Many of these cars are past Concours d'Elegance red and blue ribbon winners.  My absolute favorite was the 1929 Stutz Lancefield Coupe M Supercharged. 

November 5, 2011 The Fall Fling and season finale with the Niftee 50ees was a great success. Members munched on ROA & TOA chocolates and shared their experiencesof their cars and lives. Fifteen members and spouses brought 6 Rivieras ranging from 1963- ’72 and a 66 Toronado. Robert Mahnke brought a extremely cool framed poster of Spock with a 64 Riviera. The caption read: "You may be cool, but you'll never be Spock leaning on a Riviera Cool"

Our gathering was adorned with various Riviera banners and signage. Member’sdisplayed a2 sidedannouncement cardwith event and thank you on their windshields. The club was represented well in announcements and with the number ofspectators passing by. Member Stuart Jacobson stated "Wow, people aregiving our Rivieras quite a bit of attention. Theyrarely ever see them andenjoy seeing this many year modelsin one place." We recognized Vince Welling with a appreciation gift for his services to the club at the Fall Picnic. Hewas an absolutely fabulous DJ!

We discussed next year and plan to attend the Season opener with Niftee 50ees which is very popular with the members. We also plan to attend the Gullo Museum once again next year. Member Dan Neiss' formerly ownedToronado will be completed and added to the museum. We are also planning a weekendroad trip as well. Our Spring picnic will be in April and look forward to many show entries and awards as well. Please come out to Autorama and show member support for E.J. Howe's 65Grand Sport. Members, please let me know if you are entering your Riv's as well.

Overall it was a Riviera night! We appreciate our members and all their support in 2011 and look forward to a fantastic 2012.

July 23,  10:30 a.m. Despite temperatures over 100, eleven ROA members gathered at Ray =killman Collector Car Sales (www.rayskillmanclassiccars.com) in Greenwood, IN, (just south of Indianapolis) This was an opportunity to meet, greet and discuss everything Riviera as well as the recent heat wave covering much of the Midwest.

Members toured the classic car collection of Indianapolis auto dealer Ray Skillman housed in an immaculate state-of-the-art facility. Many vehicles in the collection, which focuses on muscle cars of the 60s and 70s, are for sale. The collection is made up primarily of cars Ray has collected and meticulously restored. The collection is popular with area car clubs as a destination for meetings. Ray's collection also includes numerous neon signs and automobile related memorabilia. Unfortunately, there are currently no Rivieras in the collection; however, he has had several over the years. After the tour, members continued their conversations at a local Steak and Shake restaurant.

Members & cars attending were: Mark Weigand, 63, Roy Berry, 64, Rick Silcox, 72 GS, Jack & Joanne Jones, 83 XX, Frank Tardy, 84 Convertible, Michael Fellenzer, 84 Convertible, Ron & Shirley Martin, 84 Convertible, Woody Combs, 99 Silver Arrow, 72, Dave Armstrong, 85, with top cut off.

May 5, 2012  ROA Members from the LA region met at Darwin’s garage in Anaheim for the scheduled  Headlight Alignment Tech session. Bad weather caused this event to be cancelled in March, so we tried again with much success.

We used headlight alignment equipment like the factory used back in the ‘60s-80s and everyone got a chance to learn how to do their own. Attending were Pete Van Der Kraan, Kenn Foster, Al Babel, Chip Wilber, Chris Iglesias, Sheryl McCabe, and potential new member "Rick". We ended up with the following Rivieras: '63, 2-65's, '66, 72, 85 and a '93.  All left with headlights working just a bit better.  The attached photos show Al Babel adjusting his '66's and Chris Iglesias doing the same for his '72.  While together we talked about Rivieras, Toronados, drank coffee and listened to 8 tracks.

January 21, Saturday, Nine members of the ROA & TOA toured the exclusive Tom Malloy Collection. This event was by appointment so we entered as a group. We met for breakfast at Carrow’s Restaurant, in Corona before going for the tour.

The collection includes modern, vintage and historical race cars, trophies and memorabilia with cars that range from a 1925 Dodge to a 2007 Saleen Mustang. These are all cars that Tom races, so the collection varies from time to time. The cars include a Lola T-70, Brabham BT-18, Ford GT 40, and many more. Of special interest is a “HOW” (Hulman-Ober-Walcot … aka “Hell on Wheels”) and the 1948 Indy car from the Clark Gable-Barbara Stanwyck movie To Please a Lady.

Tom Malloy conducted the tour personally; he's been collecting / involved in racing since father sponsored racers in the '50s. Each car is kept in racing condition; Tom races them in vintage race events throughout the country.

Even though, we had pouring rain, Robert B. drove his '65 Riviera to the event. This proves that a) it does rain in southern California (but only in the winter) and b) Rivieras neither shrink nor melt in the rain. Robert's car has been in the family since his dad purchased it new. Son Robert is now the chief mechanic. .A special thanks to member Ken Lund for making this tour possible.

November 27, 2011, Sunday breakfast at Ruby's in Anaheim was another blowout. We had 13 attendees who brought seven Rivieras, one Toronado and several came with their daily drivers. Everyone thought that Ruby's Diner, located at 1128 W. Lincoln Ave with its ideal parking and good food was perfect for our breakfast gatherings. We all agreed that we should add this place to our 2012 calendar for a return visit. More photos are on the TOA/ROA regional website at www.roasocal.org

November 13 2011, Twenty four members/guests of the ROA & TOA met at the Anaheim home of ROA Vice President/TOA President Darwin Falk for a "Garage Hang Out and Meet & Greet". A total of 17 cars (14 Rivieras and 3 Toronados) were on display. They hung out, drank coffee, had donuts, played lots of 8 tracks, admired each other's cars, and just socialized to get to know each other.

There was an overwhelming interest in having more local activity than what has occurred in the past. Be prepared for similar events to be held in the future. And with a show of hands about 10 said they were seriously considering attending the ROA National Meet this coming June in Monterey.

For many more photos go to http://www.roasocal.org/Event_Photos.php. If you click on the photos as they roll by, you can see them in full size.

July 30th, Pot Luck, Ten ROA members gathered for an enjoyable afternoon with good food and conversation. In attendance were; John & Mary Root, Gil & Pam Moorman, John & Anne Pierce, Jim & Jackie Booth, Albert & Kathie Anderson.

Sept 10th, Buick Bash, ROA members met for a good time at the Buick Bash, including new member John &Linda Valmassoi with their 69, which John bought new in 1969.

June 12, Annual ROA Tour. A total of 14 people joined us for our Summer Tour. We stopped at Crystal Cave, which goes down over 150 feet. For lunch we stopped at Lake Pepin, where we had great service. It helped that I know the owner. From there we went to the Nelson Cheese Factory for ice cream and cheese. We went across the river to Wabasha and then down a historic country road to the main highway and back home again. Overall it was a fun day with good friends.

September 18, 2011, Annual Street fair, Glendale, Queens, The weather was great. We had, a nice cool day and the people came out by the thousands. There was good music and lots of good food and the cars were not bad at all. There were two car clubs represented, of course the Riviera Owner Assoc and the East Coast Car Assoc. There were a total of 21 cars and the city of New York had two old buses one was from the Jackie Gleason show  " The Honeymooners ". The other one was the first a/c bus that was used for the Fifth Ave line in New York City. For those who had missed this year’s event we hope to see you next year for a bigger and better event. 

August 20, Saturday, ROA members met at the home of Bill Rossiter in Riverside for a “Restoration Clinic”.Bill has done a very intensive frame on restoration  of his 1965.  He's just about ready to install the engine and trans, then the front clip will go on. You can really get a hands on good look and see when a car is at this level of assembly  The clinic covered all aspects of his ongoing restoration.

 Bill is truly a " BUICK" man, with not only his Riviera, but a 39 Century Coupe, straight eight engine with dual Edelbrock quads and custom manifold/headers and a fully restored 38 Roadmaster.

Thanks to those who attended and a special thanks to Bill.

Bill Rossiter-Host Member, next to his 39 Coupe

Bill’s ’65 Nailhead on a stand

John Barnett, Riverside/San Bernardino County Coordinator in front of Bill’s 65

1964 owned by Paul Whitehead

1972 owned by Chris Ingles

1965 owned by Cheryl McCabe

April 21st, ROA members toured the San Diego Police Department Museum. Click here for details – Part 1 (PDF, 153k) | Part 2 (PDF, 180k).

February 24-26, The  Big Three Swap Meet at Qualcomm Stadium is arguably one of the largest automotive events held in Southern California. The event was blessed with sunny skies and daytime temperatures in the low 70’s. Over 2,000 vendors and an equal amount of collector car owners filled the 120 acre site with almost every sort of automobilia
you might imagine.

The Riviera Owners Association was  represented with 4 cars that covered 3 key areas of the early development of the marquee.  Lee Carroll had her one owner 1963,  Steve Bossett  had his modified 1965, Bob Starkey brought his one owner 1967 and Ken Lund drove his 1971 boat tail from Yucaipa to San Diego, a 140 mile one way trip.

During Saturday & Sunday, the 2 days that we had a hospitality tent in place, we spoke with hundreds of admirers and made people aware there is a group that can help them with their various restoration projects. People from all over Southern California & points West come to this event to find parts and or information on their vehicles and we were able to provide them with links that should help them and hopefully increase our membership rolls.

ROA member Fred Young once again provided the pop up tent, tables & chairs that were appreciated by many people who had walked up to a half mile looking over the variety of  items that were on display. We had almost a dozen people ask if we knew of a good 1965 Riviera for sale and we referred them to the ROA website.

True dedication to the Riviera

Fred Young our  guardian shepherd who brought the tent, tables & chairs ..

Steve Bossett JR. a 2nd generation ROA member and his wife Debbie, who is 6 months pregnant with the 3rd generation ROA membership.

January 28, 2012 Saturday. Several dozen Members of the ROA & BCA attended an afternoon meet at the Craftsmanship Museum located in Carlsbad. The 16 thousand square foot building houses a working machine shop & over 3 hundred functioning miniature engines along with scale model guns, ships, planes, autos, cranes, clocks tools and many other fascinating works of mechanical art.

The saying that sums up that statement is "A person who works with his hands is a laborer, a person who works with his hands & his brain is a craftsman, a person who works with his hands, his brain and his heart is an artist. The "Hands on" types in our group that do a lot of their own work were the ones most impressed with the exhibits. An example of those displays can be viewed by logging onto www.CraftsmanshipMuseum.com.

Most of the attendees arrived in their daily drivers, but James Roberts brought his newly acquired and very pristine 1965 Riviera, Roger Mc Collough drove his 1999 Riviera, Brian Palhegyi arrived in a 1973 Buick Centurion, Bob Starkey came in his one owner 1967 Riviera and Lee Carroll drove her one owner 1963 Riviera.

The pleasant afternoon ended with a late lunch at another Carlsbad gem, the Tip Top Meats delicatessen that features German food and a vast array of hard to refuse Bavarian pastries.

August 14,2011,  Nine ROA members brought six Rivieras to the Wilson County Fair in Lebanon, the largest fair in Tennessee. The weather was great.  Eddie and Donna Gray brought their ‘65, Andy Day drove his ‘66, Wayne and Barbara Pilkinton brought their ‘90 and ‘92 Rivs, Jimmy Hamilton had his ‘66, and Larry and Marie Lovell with their modified ‘65. Another member, Kent Draughon stopped by to visit but his 65 was in the shop. There were 250 cars there of every vintage to enjoy, plus the added fun of touring the fair.

The Rivieras were closely scrutinized all day by many admirers. The judges seemed to like them as well since we walked away with 3 trophies. Wayne and Barbara Pilkinton each won with their ‘90 & ‘92 and Larry’s modified ‘65 also took an award. We even had a visit from Uncle Sam. It was a fun day. Thanks go to all that attended, especially our Kentucky friends, who drove down to support the event.

Oct 29, 2011, "Fallin for the Classics" was held in Conejo Valley with over 150 cars including our Rivieras. Our  ROA Region sponsored the "Best in Buick" award which was won by  this modified Buick Century. We look forward to more Rivieras at next year’s event.

Anyone interested in getting together to convoy down to Monterey for the June ROA Nationals, please contact lee.