Eastern Iowa MINIs - A Local Group of MINI Motoring Enthusiast » Annoucements

EIM Meet-n-Eat in the Quad Cities — Feb 18th

Gil-galad — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:58:45 +0000

Our February Meet-n-Eat will be back in the Quad Cities area on Saturday, February 18th. EIM enthusiasts extraordinaire Denny and Sandy B. have graciously offered to host us in their home in Davenport. Plan on arriving at their residence sometime between 10:30 am – 11:00 am. The neighbor’s driveway immediately to the east is open and available for MINI parking. You may also part on the street. We’ll be ordering out for pizza for lunch. There will be plenty of other yummy things to eat and an intriguing selection of libations. Games will be in order, and I understand one involves operation of some sort of “virtual” MINI. That should get your curiosity percolating…

Please let our hosts know you’re coming by clicking on the **Read More** button below and following the sign-up instructions. You’ll also find the address and a link to an online map to the location.

See you on the 18th!

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Please let us know you’ll be joining us on the 18th by doing one or more of the following:

(1) click on the attendance link in the NAM Event Calendar Entry;
(2) leave a post in the associated NAM Discussion Thread; or
(3) leave a comment on this website posting using the form below.

Thanks!

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2710 West 46th St
Davenport, IA 41806

Map: http://g.co/maps/knydj

Kicking Off a Great 2012 of MINI Fun

Gil-galad — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 19:39:29 +0000

It was fantastic seeing the blue skies and the amazing turnout at the Eastern Iowa MINIs January Meet-n-Eat on Saturday at The Wig and Pen Pub in Iowa City. Congratulations to all of the winners of the MINI Cooper Color Bingo Game (especially to Rebecca D. for the blackout grand prize, and to Gary S. for earning his “mini” Cabrio!).

Sincere EIM gratitude to Bill and Alyce S. for hosting us at their house afterward for a great spread of treats and for organizing the alternative lodging plans for the May HPMS event near Branson. Thanks to their generosity with their timeshare points, we’ll have our own special fun location at a fraction of the cost.

It was also a special pleasure to welcome new EIM enthusiasts Jay T., Ryo, Alex and Gen, and Craig and Rose. Glad you were able to join us!

Pictures from this event are in our Photo Gallery, and are directly accessible using the following link:

Photos from the EIM Meet-n-Eat at the Wig and Pen Pub, Iowa City, 1-28-12

Hope to see many of you in Davenport next month!

EIM on Facebook

Gil-galad — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 17:02:43 +0000

Facebook fans, make sure you head on over to the Eastern Iowa MINIs page and click to indicate that you “Like” the page. It’ll make it super easy to stay apprised of all of our latest updates in your News Feed!

Eastern Iowa MINIs on Facebook

Meet-n-Eat at the Wig and Pen Pub, Iowa City — Jan 28th

Gil-galad — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 15:27:30 +0000

Our traditional first-of-the-year Meet-n-Eat will be held at the Wig and Pen Pub on the Coralville Strip in Iowa City on Saturday, January 28th. We’ll congregate between 10:30 – 10:45 am at the restaurant (in the larger parking lot to the west of the building) with lunch planned for 11:00 am. Looking forward to kicking off the 2012 MINI motoring year!

Following lunch, Bill and Alyce S. have invited everyone over to their place for cookies and to discuss alternative lodging plans for the HPMS “MINIs Occupy Branson” event in May. Directions to be provided at the meet.

All interested MINI enthusiasts are welcome to join us! In order to give the restaurant a proper count, we’d appreciate your RSVP. Instructions are available by clicking on the **Read More** button below.

Think you’re familiar with the variety of paint colors marketed by MINI since 2002? That knowledge could prove fruitful on the 28th.

Hope to see you there!

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Please let us know you’ll be joining us on the 28th by doing one or more of the following:

(1) click on the attendance link in the NAM Event Calendar Entry;
(2) leave a post in the associated NAM Discussion Thread; or
(3) leave a comment on this website posting using the form below.

We’ll likely be splitting a single check among the group so plan on bringing cash to help facilitate that process. Thanks!

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Wig and Pen Pub
1220 Hwy 6 West
Iowa City, IA 52246
319-354-2767

(Note: This is the Wig and Pen located next to the Vine on the Coralville Strip, NOT the one across from Regina HS)

Merry MINI Holidays from EIM!

Gil-galad — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 15:32:18 +0000

Your MINI neighbors in Eastern Iowa MINIs send along our sincere wishes to everyone for a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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See more Ryan Connors Cat Folk Art at KilkennycatArt

Meet-n-Eat at the Country Junction, Dyersville — Saturday, Nov 19th

Gil-galad — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 03:19:05 +0000

Our final event for the 2011 season is the EIM Meet-n-Eat at the Country Junction in Dyersville on Saturday, November 19th. Plan on arriving around 11:15 am in the parking lot. Lunch will be at 11:30 am. We’ll have our own banquet room and will be ordering off of the regular menu; separate checks with 15% gratuity added.

This will be a great opportunity to reminisce about the fun times we’ve had together over the past year. We’ll present the now-traditional 2011 EIM Recognition Awards, a chance to recognize folks who deserve our sincere thanks (or a bit of friendly jesting).

After lunch, we’ve scheduled a visit to the National Farm Toy Museum for those interested in checking out some “mini” farm implements and the like. Admission for adults is $5.

We’re collecting an advance headcount for the restaurant, so please RSVP. Instructions for doing so are available by clicking on the Read More button below. There are also links to the restaurant and the museum after the jump.

Hope you can join us.

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To RSVP, let us know you plan on coming (and how many) by completing any one of the following steps using the links provided:

(1) Clicking on the RSVP link in our NAM Event Calendar Entry; and/or
(2) leave us a reply in our associated NAM Discussion Thread; or
(3) contact us using the “Leave a Reply” form below.

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Ad hoc departure rendezvous with other MINIs near your home for companion motoring to Dyersville is encouraged. There are lots of good roads in the area!

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Country Junction Restaurant
913 15th Avenue SE
Dyersville, IA 52040
(563) 875-7055
http://www.countryjunctionrestaurant.com/index.php

National Farm Toy Museum
1110 16th Ave Ct SE
Dyersville, Iowa 52040
(563) 875-2727
http://www.nationalfarmtoymuseum.com/

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GRR SCCA 2011 Soloist of the Year

Gil-galad — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:01:53 +0000

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Congratulations to EIM’s very own Steve S. for winning the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) Great River Region (GRR) 2011 Soloist of the Year competition in his 2009 MINI Cooper S. Point totals for the year and for each of the contributing events can be viewed here:

http://www.sccagrr.com/results/2011/season/grr2011pax_yep.html

Chalk up another dominating MINI performance. Well done Steve!

9th Annual MINICooperIowa Fall Tour

Gil-galad — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 18:15:45 +0000

Seems like just yesterday when the first sprinkling of local MINI Cooper enthusiasts assembled to enjoy each other’s company and the fall colors — yet here we are in the ninth year of this event! It’s the 9th Annual MINICooperIowa Fall Tour which will be conducted on Saturday, October 29th. Organized this year by our friends to the west in the Des Moines -based Central Iowa MINI Club (CIMC) the drive begins with a lunch stop in Pella at 11:00 am and finishes at the Willis Auto Campus MINI of Des Moines dealership around 4:30 pm, with lots of fun and interesting stops along the way. Specific details of the itinerary are available after the jump below. This is typically the largest gathering of Iowa MINI Coopers throughout the year and we’re always looking for expanded participation by anyone with an interest — and a MINI!

Please let us know you’re coming by one of the listed options using the Read More button below. The CIMC folks need an accurate head count to pass on to the MINI dealership so they can plan for refreshments. More details on the day’s events are also available there. Hope you can join us!

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Please sign up for the Fall Tour by completing any one of the following steps using the links provided:

(1) Clicking on the RSVP link in our NAM Event Calendar Entry; and/or
(2) leave us a reply in our associated NAM Discussion Thread; or
(3) contact us using the “Leave a Reply” form below.

If you sign up using one of these three options, we’ll make sure your attendance is passed on to CIMC.

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HISTORY:
Beginning in 2003, MINI owners state-wide have been invited to join the annual Fall Colors Drive – this year will be the ninth consecutive year we’ve enjoyed motoring amidst the glories of an Iowa fall.

ROUTE:
The starting point is Pella, where everyone will assemble for lunch. Following lunch, we’ll meander by way of several twisty and curvy back roads west to St. Charles to view the Imes Covered Bridge (with time for photos), then head over to Winterset to visit the John Wayne home (optional; alternative stop is the Cutler-Donohoe Covered Bridge instead), and finally end our drive at MINI of Des Moines (MODM) for refreshmants and some entertaining MINI-related challenges as part of MODM’s participation in the national MINI “Motor-tober” promotion. The total distance we’ll cover between Pella and MODM will be about 150 miles.

CARAVAN:
MINIs from eastern Iowa will have the opportunity to caravan from the Iowa City area to Pella on Saturday morning. Keep an eye out for instructions in our NAM Discussion Thread. *UPDATE* MINIs coming to Pella from the east plan to meet up at the rest stop along I-80 just west of Iowa City, west of Exit 237, at 9:45 am. Come join the caravan!

MINIs coming from from the Des Moines area are welcome to caravan together to Pella from the McDonalds at 1055 Sherrylynn Blvd in Pleasant Hill. The MINIs will depart from this spot at 10:00 am.

If you’d rather drive to Pella on your own, you’ll probably find most of our cars parked around the central square in Pella prior to 11:00 am. We plan to be on the road after lunch about 12:30 p.m.

CAN’T MAKE THE DRIVE? JOIN US AFTERWARD AT MINI OF DES MOINES:
Those of you who can’t make it to the drive are invited to join the rest of us at MINI of Des Moines for refreshments and socializing with MINI friends – we expect to arrive there around 4:30 p.m.

MINIs in the Ozarks 2011

Gil-galad — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 14:37:17 +0000

Several of our EIM enthusiasts will participate in this year’s MINIs in the Ozarks (MITO) 2011. This regional event takes place in the beautiful Ozark Mountains in and around Eureka Springs, AR from 20-23 October. The national MINI magazine MC2 is one of the MITO 2011 principal sponsors. The fall colors in the Ozarks should be spectacular at this event.

Everything you need to know regarding this event is available via the official MITO 2011 website: http://www.ozarkmini.com

You can follow along with EIM-specific coordination and planning in our NAM Discussion Thread, including our planned caravan route from Iowa to the Ozarks, through the following link:

MITO 2011 NAM Discussion Thread

Fun and beautiful mountain motoring ahead!

Apple Capital Motoring

Gil-galad — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 13:34:41 +0000

We were blessed with a beautiful autumn day for our motoring adventure to the Gays Mills Apple Festival in Gays Mills, Wisconsin this past Saturday, September 24th. There is nothing much finer than wonderfully twisty country roads tailor made for a MINI surrounded by majestic bluffs blossoming with a vivid mix of early season color. The Festival was a celebratory cacophony of apples and apple revelers…and that slice of apple pizza a la mode was a little bit of heaven on earth! Thanks to all who came out and shared a most enjoyable day together. Thanks also to Denny and Sandy B. who revealed and led us along their favorite local biker routes for our MINI motoring pleasure.

Feel free to browse the fun pictures from the day in our Photo Gallery, directly accessible using the following link:

Photos from the EIM Gays Mills Apple Festival Drive, 8-13-11

Hope to see many MINIs at the Fall Tour on Oct 29th!