The article below is reprinted with permission from the latest issue of the New England Triumphs club newsletter. While there's certainly no Alfa content, its message applies equally to all of us drivers of older sports cars.

June 4th ’06 Poker Run

Most submissions about club events cover the highlights and fun had by those in attendance. This story on the Poker Run last Sunday has none of the above. Oh sure, Bill Lepere, his wife Evelyn, Frank Frett and I carried on even though we only had two Triumphs between us. I rode with Frank as Bill and Evelyn led us on their route. While we all made the best of the low turn out and questionable weather, none of us could have imagined how wrong the day would turn.

As we ended the last leg of the tour, we were in Middletown heading to the Covington Brewery for lunch. Bill and Evelyn were in front of Frank and I, waiting for oncoming traffic to clear, to make a left into the restaurant parking lot. A Buick sedan came up behind Frank’s TR6 and the driver never saw us. He hit us hard. We were pushed into Bill’s TR6 and then careened to our right across the other lane, over the sidewalk, and into a fence. Bill and Evelyn were shaken up. Frank and I were taken by ambulance to the hospital. The CAT scans were negative and we only had some bumps and bruises. Sadly, Frank’s beautiful and fast TR6 is totaled.

I wasn’t going to submit anything about this event because it was such a horrible day, but I thought I would be wasting an opportunity to raise club awareness about safety and the inherent danger we face in our little cars. Triumph sports cars were always considered dangerous cars to drive here on American roads and in the nightmare of modern traffic conditions they are more so. Driving defensively and keeping our cars mechanically safe sometime isn’t enough. As this car came barreling up behind Frank and me, there was no time to react and nowhere to go. I’m convinced that Frank’s roll bar saved us both from very serious head and neck injuries or worse.

We all need to make sure our cars are retrofitted with as many modern safety features as possible. Unless your car is trailered to concours events, you should have shoulder seat belts, a trunk mounted center brake light, and a roll bar if a convertible. I have clear driving lights wired independently of the headlights for use as daytime running lights. You may have other safety suggestions club members should know about. If so, submit them to use for publication or posting on the site. You’ll sacrifice some originality or storage space but if you even end up in a situation similar to what happened to Frank and me, you’ll be glad you did. I know I’ll never consider those rubber bumpers on a late TR6 “ugly” again.

Please drive carefully in your Triumph this summer!