August 23, 2006:

Monterey Herald

Check out this article in the Monterey Herald (thanks to DrkSlvrS for highlighting it on NAM):
The Concours d’Elegance on Sunday might have been the grand finale of Fancy Car Week, but Monday the little cars took center stage.
More than 750 Mini Coopers left from Fisherman’s Wharf on Monday morning to launch a two-week, cross-country road trip …

Dubbed “Mini Takes the States,” the caravan began pulling out around 9 a.m. Mini USA vice president Jim McDowell was the first to leave the parking lot. The last driver left an hour later.
According to Cutler, the car company is using the road trip to celebrate its standing as the featured marque of this year’s historic car races at Laguna Seca.
“Driving cross-country is one of those things everyone has on their list of things to do in life,” said Cutler. “We figured we’d go on a road trip to connect the two concours events.”
About 200 of the cars are expected to go on the whole journey. Many of them will pull out after the first stop in Santa Barbara or the second stop in Las Vegas. However, as the caravan traverses the states — from Flagstaff, Ariz., to Albuquerque, N.M., to Amarillo, Texas — Mini Coopers will join the parade for two- or three-day stretches at a time — from Dallas to Memphis and Nashville, Tenn., to St. Louis.
As of Monday, 3,347 Mini owners were registered to drive some portion of the trip. That’s a lot of passionate car owners.
“In all my experience, it is the first car company that has brought (an affordable) car to the people that has invoked so much passion,” said Scott McIntyre of Thousand Oaks, a former master technician for Porsche and Audi. “Every person who owns a Mini is every bit as passionate about their car as is the owner of a $200,000 Ferrari.”

(c) 2006 Monterey County Herald and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved