Happy Birthday CMMC!! July 12th 2003 was the first official event for the Chicago MINI Motoring Club.
About 30 MINIs met early morning downtown near the Adler Planetarium. We took a scenic drive up Lake Shore Drive and Sheridan Road and ended with a lunch in Lake Bluff.
Check out photos of the first event HERE
Huge thanks to Gabe Bridger of Motoringfile for starting the club, laying down the organizational framework, and initial website layout.
The very beginnings of the club started in late August 2002, with a group of 8 Chicagoland MINIs getting together and heading out as a group to a dealer sponsored drive-in event in Milwaukee. From that start, we went on to plan additional group drives in Fall and Winter of 2002, and then an epic March Spring Drive to Kenosha which started dry and clear and ended in a huge lake effect snowstorm that caught us all by surprise.
I personally have had a fantastic time over the past 14+ years of club involvement. I still get a thrill when I see a huge group of MINIs on a drive, and enjoy meeting and hanging out with enthusiastic MINI friends. I’ve traveled, and been involved in all sorts of cool events and activities that I would have never experienced on my own.
Congratulations to the 600+ club members and their Spouses/Significant Others/Friends who have been part of this club over the years, and looking forward to many more years of fun!!
Thanks, Steve, to you and all of the officers of CMMC. You’ve made quite a difference to all of us and we most appreciate your hard work and dedication.
Thanks Rus.. I’ve enjoyed doing it!!
Happy Birthday CMMC!! Also thanks Steve and to all the officers!