Let me know when you pick this car up in November, i'm in the Los Angeles area, and possibly we can get a few MINIs together and grab something to eat, would defiantly be nice to see you over here in Los Angeles!

 

I forgot to add, this is one really sweet MINI, and the story that goes along with it, makes this MINI even more special!!! Best of Luck! And Take Care!

 

Hey Alpha
I'm in LA too and would be interested in getting together.. Let me know when and where and hopefully I can get down there..

 

I will be there in LA, flying not into LAX but another airport just north of there (the damn name escapes me but I'll remember in a second) on WEDNESDAY the 7th of NOVEMBER. I'm arriving at about 8:30 AM, and I'd love to meet anyone that can get to the airport on a week day morning that early. I plan to get on the road as early as I can, but of course I'd love to meet everyone and anyone that can come out or accompany me for a spell.

Please PM me here if you think you can make it out and I'll get your cell numbers and give you mine, and we can try to arrange a meeting place.

Looking forward to seeing anyone/everyone!

 

Matt:

Great story....being a fellow "Cabbie" I have new found appreciation for the toughness of these little soft tops...My "Bullet" has 3500 miles on it now...most with the top down....its an incredible ride. Thursday we get 2.5" exhaust, 15% pulley, new intake and new shoes. Great to hear that the safety features really do work. Congrats on our new ride!

 

Ontario Airport maybe? ouch! it's in the morning, I'd love to catch a meal with you and maybe a few other MINIs but I don't know if I can make it in the morning, if by any chance your still in this area around later in the afternoon, I can definitely try my best to make it out there!

 

wow..AWESOME story, man! The new car looks great.

 

What a great story! Matt I'm so glad that you and Larry and Dawn found each other.

 

Hello All

Well tomorrow is the Day! Matt picks up Dawn and one chapter ends and another begins. I know that for my family and this car the story is just at the beginning.

Yesterday i took dawn out for our final ride. The top was down, she was sparkling and the weather was a little cold, perfect for the seat heaters. I went down to Pacific Coast Highway and went through all six. It was a blast.

The best part for me was that their was only happiness. I knew i could never really enjoy this car, it was not mine in my heart. It has sat for the last 8 months before i finally listed it. While i had received a couple of e-mail responses I never responded.

Matt was the first call that I took. You guys know the story, their are too many coincidences to be anything other than fate.

This has turned out for me and my family to be a fitting tribute to Dawn's love of her car. It has also provided for me some good closure on Dawn and how she lives on through family, friends and even complete strangers.

So yesterday was my last real ride with Dawn, tomorrow I meet Matt and she had her new home and the future feels really good right now.

Thank you all, I will follow Dawn on the boards and I hope to see some of you at some Mini event.

Larry Thacker

 

Wow...

 

PS - I'm arriving at Burbank Airport at 8:30. If anyone wants to be there, then I'd love to meet you. I plan to get on the road just as soon as I get the transfer worked out with Larry, and I'd love to drive with other MINIs on my way out of town,. After that, I'll have the next 2,000 miles to bond with my new car.

Glancing at my road atlas, it looks like I'll be headed East on Rt. 40 for many, many hours, through Flagstaff, then New Mexico and Texas, into Oklahoma. At Oaklahoma City, I'll take 44 Northeast into the midwest proper. If you are along that route and want to hook up with me, please drop me a PM TODAY (Tuesday) - after that, I'll try to get online as best I can on the road, but I don't now how easy that will be. With truckers using the web to contact home, I assume I'll be able to anywhere I stop, but we'll see.

Thanks again to Larry and everyone else that's been following this thread. I'm seriously considering documenting this whole thing in an article for MC2 magazine - all the replies and PM's I've received have been overwhelmingly positive and, quite frankly, touching.

 

Have a good trip -- I know it'll be a great experience . . . and a good introduction to dawn

 

Wow squared.

Larry - thanks for posting here with us. We really appreciate you sharing your thoughts and feelings with us. You and Dawn will ALWAYS be members of our "NAMily".

Personally, I believe there is a God above, and, even though sometimes we don't understand why certain things happen in our lives, other times things happen that are clearly part of "the plan"... we're all witnessing one of these here. No other explanation fits.

Matt - If I hadn't just driven 2000 miles in the last 10 days, and didn't need to work, I'd drive out halfway and meet you. Seriously. But sometimes work gets in the way of fun. Safe travels, my friend.

 

I have been away from NAM since 10/19 and just saw this thread, and the companion regarding the demise of NANO. Through my tears of both joy and sorrow, I cannot help but wonder if the woman in the picture above is the original Dawn? Larry, be assured that the thoughts of the NAM community will be with you and your family.

 

I think you made a wise decision, Matt. If you had gotten another orange cabrio, you'd have been constantly comparing it with the " NANO CAR replacement", and vice versa. This way, you can start "fresh" and still have a one-of-a-kind.

 

I'm on my way...

 

Fantastic shots - have a safe journey

 

Like others I am late to this thread, and my wife will be the first to tell me I'm not the emotional type, but this story touched me in a way that hasn't happpened in a long time. I've followed your mods on Nano herre on NAM with interest and look forward to what you will do with Dawn.

Matt, any chance you and (more importantly Dawn) will be at AMVIV this year?

 

Matt told me to tell you that one cross country trip per decade is enough for him (unless somone is willing to pay to have Dawn shipped round trip that is). I think he's done driving long distance for a while. LOL

Matt, any chance you and (more importantly Dawn) will be at AMVIV this year?[/quote]

 

I suspected as much...but had to ask.

 

Remarkable and very touching.