Eastern Iowa MINIs - A Local Group of MINI Motoring Enthusiasts

EIM Drive and Luau at the John Ernest Vineyard – Jun 15

Gil-galad — Fri, 24 May 2013 16:38:19 +0000

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Plan for some Iowa River Valley motoring on Saturday, June 15th as we head over to the John Ernest Vineyard and Winery for their annual Hog Roast and Luau. We’ll use this opportunity to motor with and honor EIM plankowner and MINI motorist extraordinaire Daryl H. before he and spouse Shirley relocate north of the border and transform into Golden Gophers.

We’ll meet up at the Morgan Creek Park and Arboretum just west of Cedar Rapids at 1:30 pm, and will depart there at 2:00 pm. Our route takes us via the Amana Colonies on the way to the Vineyard. Our planned 3:30 pm arrival provides plenty of time for wine tasting, gift shopping, exploring, etc. prior to pork sandwiches and salads at 5:00 pm. (The food is served until it runs out so we want to be at or near the head of the line.) There is live music (“Past Masters”) starting at 7:00 pm. Everyone is welcome to stay or leave throughout the evening as desired.

The event at the Vineyard is festive so wear your hula shirts and luau apparel if you’ve got ‘em.

What to bring:
- $8 (Luau admission fee – each adult (kids are $4))
- Lawn chairs
- GMRS/FRS radios and cameras if you have them
- Your favorite motoring memories with Daryl

Links to additional information including our route map and RSVP instructions are available below (click on the Read More button from the home page).

Motor on!

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You can let us know you’ll be joining us on the 15th 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 reply here on this website using the form provided below.

Thanks!

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***Link to Detailed Google Route Map***

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Morgan Creek Park and Arboretum
7517 Worchester Rd
Palo, IA 52324
http://www.mycountyparks.com/county/…reek-Park.aspx

John Ernest Vineyard and Winery
3291 N Avenue
Tama, IA 52339-9209
http://johnernestvineyard.com//

Please note the patron rules for the J.E. Vineyard (e.g., no dogs, no carry-in alcoholic beverages, etc.)

Hog Roast and Luau at the J.E. Vineyard
http://www.cedar-rapids.com/events/view.php?id=4339

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Dubuque’s Crusin’ for a Cure Car Show — Jun 2

Gil-galad — Fri, 17 May 2013 07:00:03 +0000

The 2nd Annual Dubuque’s Crusin’ for a Cure Car Show will be held on Sunday, June 2nd at the Kennedy Mall in Dubuque.

This is a “family-friendly” event. There will be food, music, activities for kids, etc.

All proceeds benefit Dubuque’s Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society. Please consider coming out to show off you MINI, enjoy the day, socialize with your MINI friends, and support this worthy cause. There’s nothing better than having fun and giving back at the same time.

Use this link to the Dubuque Car Show website or our NAM Discussion Forum to access the show information, directions, and registration form. Advance registration fee is $15. You can also wait and register on the morning of the event for an extra $5.

MINIs should be registered for the show in Class “O” (Sports Compact/Corvair/Foreign Cars). Judging starts at noon, but it looks like you can arrive as early as 8:00 am if you want to have lots of detailing time.

Should be a relaxing and fun day. Hope you can make it.

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Recap of our EIM Expedition to Door County, Wisconsin

Gil-galad — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:53:19 +0000

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EIM continued its tradition of embarking on a multi-day MINI motoring adventure during the month of May, with this year’s destination being the scenic peninsula of northeast Wisconsin for our first ever EIM Expedition to Door County from 9-12 May.

Our time in Door County turned out to be a continuous series of new discoveries, fun times with our fellow Iowa MINI mates, and of course the great motoring roads in the area. A little bit of rain at the start of our journey on Thursday morning (and the rain and *snow* on Saturday morning!) passed quickly and did little to dampen the spirits of our group. We enjoyed “The Best Breakfast in America” at the White Gull Inn, dodging wild turkeys on the back road twisties, the Cana Island Lighthouse, the Lake Michigan surf against the cliffs at Cave Point County Park, County Roads T, Q, B, and the awesome North Point Ferry Road pictured above (all roads that must not be missed if visiting in a MINI!), searching for — and finally finding — the actual 45N latitude geographic marker, serious antique shopping, more great restaurants, celebrating Daryl H.‘s 100K odometer milestone, Cindy D.‘s nautical captainship, more gift shopping, watching the sun setting in a cloudless blue sky over Green Bay, visiting Anderson Dock in Ephraim, hanging out with our fantastic group of MINI friends back at the Scandinavian Lodge each evening…and the list goes on and on. Great times and great memories.

Many thanks to Daryl H. and Linda and Tom R. for heading up the planning for our trip and for choreographing all of the lodging arrangements. Much appreciated!

We invite you to enjoy the plethora of photos from our trip, posted in our Photo Gallery and directly accessible using the following link:

Photos from the EIM Expedition to Door County, Wisconsin, 9-12 May 2013

See you soon!

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EIM hits 100 “Likes” on Facebook

Gil-galad — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:12:52 +0000

We achieved 100 “Likes” on the EIM Facebook Page today!

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If you’d like to “Like” our Facebook Page just click on the EIM grill badge icon in the menu to the right to jump to our page. Thanks!

Another Successful Border Defense

Gil-galad — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:06:43 +0000

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Yep, those are some of our MINIs above, proudly snaking down Snake Alley in Burlington as we headed out for a day of fun at the 4th EIM Border Skirmish Drive this past Saturday. This was our first Border Skirmish in the southeastern corner of Iowa which meant new roads, new sights, and new discoveries. It was great to finally get out and motor again!

In addition to the drive, it was a day of other fun memories too — from the view along both sides of the Great River Road along the Mississippi River between Burlington and Keokuk, circling the Nauvoo Temple; our unexpected entry in the Civil War reenactment in Keokuk, lunch along the banks of the Des Moines River at the Bonaparte Retreat, shopping for goodies at the Dutchman’s Store, exercising the twisties in Lacey-Keosauqua State Park and Geode State Park, and capping it off with a great meal at Gator’s Grill and Spirits back in Burlington.

Thanks to everyone who came out and joined us. We especially want to thank first time motorists Bob and Pam C. from Cresco, Larry and Mary Ann H. from Pella, and Mark from Cedar Rapids.

Lots of pictures from the day’s activities are accessible in our Photo Gallery. You can go directly to this picture set using the following link:

Photos from the 4th EIM Border Skirmish Drive, 4-27-13

See you again soon!

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Spring Roll

Gil-galad — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 16:14:15 +0000

Taking advantage of the nicest weather in the month of March thus far, our group of MINI folk very much enjoyed the opportunity to gather together in Cedar Rapids this past Saturday at the Granite City Food and Brewery for the 6th EIM “Spring has Sprung” Meet-n-Eat. How nice it was to be able to wander among the MINIs outside without getting wet and cold (not to mention being able to go to a car wash without the water freezing). We had a great turnout. Thanks to all who came out and joined us.

Very warm greetings to all of the splendid folks who made this event their first with us — Darrel and Paula A., Brenda and Eric C., Mike and Laura R., Dakota and Sam K., Andy and Cooper M., and Tina J. Hope to see you all again soon. Oh, and welcome home from France Rebecca D.!

There are some pictures from this event for you to enjoy in our Photo Gallery and they’re directly accessible using the following link:

Photos from the 6th EIM “Spring has Sprung” Meet-n-Eat, 3-23-13

Next month, we motor. Stay tuned!

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Delightful Davenport MINIs

Gil-galad — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 17:39:48 +0000

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Thanks to everyone who came out and joined us for our EIM Meet-n-Eat in the Quad Cities this past Saturday. It turned out to be a great day weather-wise and a perfect opportunity to get together — like we like to do.

Special thanks again to Denny and Sandy B. for hosting our group once again in their home. Much appreciated! Thanks also to Steve and Juli B. for supplying the great local libations, and to everyone who brought along such a tasty and varied selection of goodies for us to enjoy. It was also great introducing ourselves to EIMer John J. and his MINI “Big Bird” for the first time — welcome! We loved Sandy’s awesome EIM slide show too!

Photos from the day’s gathering are posted in our Photo Gallery which you can access directly by using the following link:

Photos from the EIM Meet-n-Eat in Davenport, 2-23-13

Spring will be springing soon…see you in Cedar Rapids!

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MINI Paceman Launch Event at MINI of Des Moines — Feb 8th

Gil-galad — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 18:10:57 +0000

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Click HERE to see a special invitation from MINI of Des Moines (at the Willis Auto Campus in Des Moines) for this special event!

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Together Again at the Wig and Pen

Gil-galad — Sun, 27 Jan 2013 22:27:23 +0000

What a fantastic turnout for our 2013 kickoff! 22 beautiful MINIs and 39 happy motorists enjoyed the bright sun and the dry, snow-free pavement at our traditional January EIM Meet-n-Eat at the Wig and Pen Pub in Iowa City this past Saturday. It was great fun seeing everyone — thanks so much for coming out and joining us!

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**Update: See the new feature video above by Jay T. of the early arrivals!

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It was great having Steve and Peggy join us all the way from Council Bluffs, as well as having Jake M., Jeremiah, Britney, and Alaina hop over from Des Moines (along with that brand spanking new Light White Countryman off the MINI of Des Moines lot that they brought with them).

Also, it was a special pleasure to welcome new EIM motorists Jake and Jess (Dubuque), Darrel and Paula (Iowa City), and Eric and Brenda (Marion) to our group. Congrats to Jake and Jess for winning the MINI photo-themed “Where’s Waldo?” game following lunch. We hope you’ll all join us again soon!

Photos from this event are in our Photo Gallery — you can get to them directly by clicking on the following link:

Photos from the EIM Meet-n-Eat at the Wig and Pen Pub, Iowa City, 1-26-13

We’re off to the Quad Cities next month. Hope you can make it.

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Seasons Greetings!

Gil-galad — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 10:41:57 +0000

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Eastern Iowa MINIs extends its sincerest wishes to all of our friends and family for a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Motoring Year!

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