A Christmas Treat

A big thank you to my wife the Norwegian state, Statoil and all other petrochemical companies for buggering up the global environment.

Living in the middle of Norway we usually have some considerable snow each year. This year though we had +8C and completely bare roads devoid of even a hint of snow or ice and blue skys as Christmas day broke.

After the kids had demolished the stockings, breakfast had been eaten and the vegetables prepped for lunch i stuck out to the man cave and unpacked the mog.

Ensuring i was wrapped up warm with the new ''old mans'' cap id received for Christmas i edged out on the road. After not being driven for several weeks all manner of clunks, squeaks, tapping sounds and rattles assaulted my ears but i was on the road in the middle of Norway on Christmas day in the best car in the world.

I eased down the hill checking the brakes and road surface several times to ensure that there weren'tt any hidden poor road conditions but it was perfect. Coming to the bottom of the hill i was greeted with the usual magnificent site of the ford and mountains.

At he bottom of the road i did a right turn and headed to Hommelvik. The road is just a few meters from the fjord is nice and twisty with the rail track running beside it. The trip to Hommelvik is only 4 km and after returning i decided to head out further to Hundhammeren about a 10 km trip passing through country side. Its not every winter you get the opportunity to drive a Morgan on Christmas day in Norway so it was time to take full advantage!



At Hundhammeren i had to turn back for home. Although i could easily have spent the entire day pottering around in the mog there was a bird eagerly awaiting my tender touches (not my wife) at home and soon to be hungry children.

Passing a number of motorists on the way home as usual was most entertaining as both drivers, passengers and children all pointed at the crazy Englishman out driving topless in the middle of winter.

However there was time for a quick stop to take a couple of snapshots of the mog, fjord and mountains in some spectacular winter light before returning home to create the christmas lunch masterpiece.

A final snapshot as i returned to commemorate the first Christmas trip'out in the mog. It occurred to me that i really should have put the fall Santa outfit on before starting the trip. I'm sure that would have brought even more smiles to the passing motorists.

Then it was time to pack up the mog once more for winter. However looking at the whether forecast for tomorrow i notice i barmy 8C forecast. Surely a boxing day trip is a must .......

Trouble in Hell

Over the last couple of weeks id been noticing a stronger and stronger petrol small from the garage. Always a worrying occurrence but since i'm in preparation mode for winter and the opportunity to drive the car is going down i wasn't to worried. I was thinking id fix it in Spring time

However yesterday there was nice weather so i drove to work. Arriving the smell of petrol was really bad. Peering under the car i was met with a worrying site petrol dripping rapidly from near to the back axle, a big puddle was rapidly appearing. Now i am somewhat paranoid when it comes to fire in the last year i've managed to set the car on fire when i changed the battery and the heater switch just recently melted while on a weekend trip so you can imagine my worry. The nearest really good morgan garadge in 500km away so i was somewhat in a tizzy.

However after a little search on the internet i found a local garage that said yes they could actually work on morgans. Apparently they have a guy with 25 years of experience on old vehicles, not the best i could have hoped for but at least someone that new there way around a spanner and didn't need to plug in a computer to find out what is wrong with your car. The garage was only 5 minutes away and after a short examination it was found the petrol pump was squirting petrol from the outer casing and the small rubber tube connecting the petrol pump to the metal fuel line was also split. I was allowed to stand and observe the investigation and get under the car and 3 other mechanics also just happened to come and have a look. Its amazing how the car just draws attention.

The garage will keep the car indoors over the weekend and fix on monday. The petrol pump costs 300 euro and they will take just 100 euro for the job so i'm pretty satisfied with the support and help i got there. It will also mean my wooden car will be somewhat less of a fire risk!!

Autumn Mog of Hell Trip

Autumn in Norway is coming to a close and soon snow and ice will cover the land, really cant say i'm looking forward to another Norwegian winter. In such times the Morgans are packed away in garages and we get to tinker and fix them for the next season. To round the 2013 season off the Mog of Hell group of Morgan owners decided to take one last trip.

On Friday evening i drove the children and my wife to the airport. While i would be off gallivanting around Norway and Sweden my family would be visiting Granny for the weekend. I therefore had the entire evening alone at home. Silence is golden and even better when enjoyed with a fine bottle of red wine. The next morning came all to quickly and although the entire week had been blue skys and sunshine this Saturday morning was cold cloudy and wet. I spent 20 minutes struggling to get the shrunken roof on and then drove to stjordal where i met up with Karl/Berit and new members Johanne and Einar who had purchased a 1998 4/4 just a couple of months ago. Our membership had just increased 25% that's impressive growth!!

After introductions we headed North up the E6 to Vradal circa 70km away where we met with Hans Kristian and Randi driving down from Namsos. The group was together, we where missing our last member but he was collecting his new roadster from the Morgan dealer in Oslo so could be forgiven for missing this event.

After coffee and a couple of waffles had been consumed we decided to take down the roofs and headed east towards Sweden. Although Autumn is short in Norway the country side and colors can be astoundingly beautiful at this time of the year. The drive to Sweden was great if somewhat wet and soggy. The road was good and twisty through country side and small villages with the occasional gigantic pot hole to test the famous sliding pillars some work. But we where Morgan owners from Hell so the roofs stayed off and we pushed on.

After  about another 80km we finally arrived at the Swedish boarder. Another opportunity for a small break to stretch the legs and take a few photos.

Apparently there is some discussion of where the actual boarder is. It is only marked with a small sign which basically tells you your in Sweden. The only difference really is the colors on the signs change and the speeding fines are lower. Students have been known to move this sign further east every few years and the Swedish police eventually have to go and put it in the right place every few years. Not sure if the story is true but it beats having wars to settle boarder disputes.

We continued into Sweden but a short time later we pulled over at a suitable spot and whipped out coffee and sausages.  At this point we realized we had forgotten to bring a small table and some chairs so we had to stand and eat, very uncivilized, we have learnt for next time though. It started to rain again and since we where now on the Swedish side of the boarder we mounted the roofs, anyone seeing us would naturally think we where Swedish Morgan owners so we figured having the roof on wouldn't harm the Mog of Hell reputation!!

The drive continued and the weather only got more miserable, however this didn't concern me as much as the very strong burning smell emanating from my car. I was used to this smell as i have managed to set the car on fire before, i really need to buy a fire extinguisher! I pulled over and popped the hood but couldn't track down anything there. Returning to the drivers seat i investigated further and found that the the switch that controls the heater had had a major melt down, checking behind the dash resulted in burnt fingers and finding out the switch on the front of the dash no longer had any mechanical function, it just sort of wobbles up and down but doesn't actually switch anything. What ever had burnt out had done such a thorough job that the mechanics were completely gone. As far as i could ascertain i was in no danger of immediate fire, it seemed to be cooling down so we continued on our way.

Another hours drive through Sweden took as back to the boarder. Here there is a supermarket specifically for Norwegians to go to for cheap beer and meat. We parked up which drew quite a lot of attention and then loaded up on some beer, goodies and meat. Upon returning to the car i found out that the rain had done a good job of going horizontal and the passenger seat was making an impression of being a swimming pool The only thing i had to mop up water was my woolly Morgan hat. After a few minutes of trying to mop up as much water as possible i gave up accepted that this trip was just going to be an exceedingly wet one and go with the flow.

We continued on our way in worsening weather, crossed the boarder and headed towards Meraker.

At Meraker we took a dirt track into the mountains. This road was more pot hole than road so we crept ever so slowly up into the mountains to our overnight accommodation at Kirkeby fjell hotel. Even driving really really slowly was still a bone jarring and teeth shattering experience.

As soon as we arrived Berit produced a few cups and we all had a dram of something which tasted slightly aniseedy and sweet and extremely alcoholic. We toasted the drive packed up the cars to be as water proof as possible, which is not very and checked into our cabins. The cabins where of very high quality with electricity, running water stocked kitchen and electric/wood heating. We all met up for a beer to discuss the days events and enjoy being dry. However once the beers where drunk it was decided that being dry really wasn't all that great so we retired to the outside hot tub for some hot bubble massage, beer, wine, and more shots. A table was placed next to us with a big brass bell so when ever we wanted something we just had to lean out and ring and our every desire was catered for. I'm considering trying the same at home but i'm somewhat in doubt my wife and children will be as service minded!! It could also be dangerous for my health.

A quick sauna and shower later left a short time to prepare for dinner. We where greeted with white wine and relaxed in a lounge area before entering the restaurant.

Dinner was delicious with fish as a starter, and various home made deserts. However for me the highlight was the main course with local lamb, wild mushroom souffle and local vegetables that had been marinated and caramelized. The food was superb! With dinner was a wine menu which accompanied each course to perfection. We retired to the lounge to rest our very full stomachs have coffee and spirits. A fantastic end to a fantastic day. Unfortunately lack of sleep, great food, lots of alcohol, the long drive and mountain air had rendered me to a virtually unconscious state and i had to retire to bed before midnight otherwise there was a danger of me turning into a pumpkin.

Morning dawned and proved to be another wet and soggy day. Breakfast started at 9.30 and despite the hugh dinner the night before we still managed to sit for close to 2 hours eating, drinking coffee and relaxing. Eventually however it was time to pack up the cars and make our ways back towards Trondheim, just a 90 minute drive in yet more rain bought me back home. The car was soaking both inside and out, the roof has been removed and is drying indoors. The entire car is filthy and will need a thorough clean inside and out as well as the switch repaired at some time. However that is for another day when its not so wet and miserable, now its time for a cold beer and to reminisce on yet another great trip this year in 2013. Roll on season 2014 !!!

Wooden Car Festival

Life is what you make of it, always has been, always will be. Therefore after an entire summer of waiting the time had come for the Norwegian Morgan Society Wooden Car Festival and i was as happy as Larry. The festival was being held in Vradal in Telemark southern Norway. The entire trip would be in excess of 1750km and at least 1250km of that total would be with working breaks !


View Wooden Car Festival in a larger map

Early Thursday morning i attached the suitcase to the back of the Morgan ensured i had a trusty tool kit, although what i would do with it was another matter as i'm completely mechanically incompetent, and made my way to work. At 1pm sharp i made a quick exit climbed into the the Morgan and started my epic journey south. 

The journey would be in a number of stages. On Thursday i started from Malvik east of trondheim and traveled south. After a couple of hours i left the E6 and took the R3. The traffic as can be expected in Middle Norway was non existent. Only 3% of Norway is actually populated and in-between the major population centers are long twisty roads covered in bumps, potholes and policeman waiting to spring on the unwary traveler that exceeds the pitiful speed limit of 80kmp with massive fines. (Im not bitter im really not)

My first break was at Tyneset, roughly two and a half hours south of Trondheim and famous was having the worlds largest spark in the middle of the town square. Such an opportunity could not be missed. How many Morgan owners can claim to have there Morgan photographed with the worlds largest spark.

In the background a large sledge looking object is visible. This is the worlds largest spark and probably the first photo ever captured with a Morgan. I suspect Morgan owners the world over are currently seething in righteous jealousy at missing such an amazing photo shoot !




Time was pressing so leaving this marvel of marvels i continued south opting for an even bumpier and potholed road which tested the suspension to new levels of abuse. Much of the trip was through forest areas with a backdrop of mountains. Little villages dotted the landscape and eventually the road passed by a beautiful lake. Another photo opportunity presented itself so a quick hop out of the car for a couple of snap shots.

Another hour brought me to my first hotel in Koppang. A brief bite to eat, a cold beer after driving 300km and then an early night. At 3.30am i was up and ready to go. After packing and getting the car ready it was 4am. I had on my warmest clothes including the new leather sheepskin jacket, hat and goggles. Being a bit of a mog nut i decided roof down despite the cold damp weather.

I have never driven the Morgan in the dead of night. It was just a few degrees above freezing, pitch black and after about 30 min the rain started. In the true spirit of the slightly retarded i pushed on ignoring the cold, the rain and the fact i couldn't actually see the road. This was an adventure and the proof was the smile plastered from ear to ear.




At 8am sharp i rolled into Lillestrom, both ankles where locked my right hip was in agonizing pain, my ears where ringing from the roar of the engine and my right contact lense had slipped. I fell out of the car and hobbled around trying to restore motor function, hearing and eyesight There are only 2 garages that service Morgans, one is the main dealer in Oslo and the second is a small specialist garage in Lillestrom called Brathens Bil. I was welcomed by Trond and Anders. Id arranged for a general check up, 5 new tires, and the timing belt to be changed. Anders got stuck into the work while Trond went off to have the tires changed at a local specialist.

 I grabbed a coffee from the kitchen and was allowed to watch Anders work. Since my mechanical knowledge is somewhat limited i took the opportunity to pepper Anders with as many questions as i could. He was fantastic and extremely patient as i asked alot of questions. I was somewhat shocked to find out after a short while that neither of my back brakes actually worked. These where stripped down to nuts and bolts and repaired manually. It is somewhat disconcerting to realize you have just driven 520km with non functioning back brake!!

In addition to the brakes being repaired the radiator hose was found to be leaking and the engine block leaking oil. Anders fixed the hose opened up the engine removed the flood of oil siting under the mounting and fixed the head gasket. By this time Trond had fixed the brakes so they where remounted. However when bleeding the system break fluid poured out of both brakes so they where dismantled again and reconstructed. I was also shown where the various grease nipples where and what i needed to do for some basic maintenance. Looks like i need a quick trip to the auto shop soon !

During all this work various Morgan owners popped in for a chat and a coffee some with there Morgans and some without. All where welcomed and sausages, coffee and coke where freely available in the kitchen The whole experience was great and i learnt more about the car just watching Anders work and asking questions than i have in the last 12 months by reading various manuals etc. Thank-you Anders and Trond, great work, i really appreciated this opportunity to learn more. Not quite so sure im looking forward to receiving the bill though.....

Anders

Finally the car was back in one piece and it was time to go pick up my wife and 2 kids at Oslo airport. We then drove to Jessheim where we stayed the night at my mother-in-law. She would be looking after the kids for the rest of the weekend while my wife and i continued our journey. Another very early start the next morning (5pm) saw us in the Morgan speeding down the E6 towards Oslo. The weather was pretty poor and had intermittent rain showers. However we where now on our way to Vraldal in Telemark to join the other Morgan owners.

At Drammen we turned off the main highway and started taking smaller roads that led into twisty mountain roads.

A couple of rest stops let us enjoy the scenery and natural beauty of the area but we where both in a hurry to get Vradal, so we pushed on. The aim was to get there by 9am. The entire journey was 250km from Jessheim to Vradal but with twisty mountain roads it was expected to take a good deal of time.

Eventually we arrived at Vradal, exactly at 9am. I had very little info on the hotel apart from it was in Vradal and my wife was concerned as to if we would easily find it. Luckily Vradal only has one street and it was fairly easy to see the hotel with 40 Morgans parked outside of it. What a beautiful sight to behold.

 Row after....

 Row after .....

 Row of beautiful Morgans. All immaculately kept with passionate drivers.

It seemed we had arrived just in time, they where all about to leave on the days outing. As soon as i stepped out of the car i was immediately greeted by Trond from the garage as well as Hans Kristian a fellow Mog of Hell member and a few other well wishers who i had never met before. The arrival and greeting was astounding. Luckily the sky was clearing up and was looking to be a beautiful clear day!

At 9.30 we climbed into our cars and headed off. It is the first time i have every been in a Morgan traffic jam but getting 41 Morgans out of a car park can be quite hectic. Our first stop was 50 km away but to get there we drove by the side of a pristine lake, towering cliffs on the other side, twisty roads with 41 Morgans in a row. Magical !!

We arrived at our destination after approximately an hour, a small museum dedicated to very old buildings. Some of these buildings where several centuries old.

The next part of the journey was by far the best drive of the trip. It was on very twisty roads up the side of a mountain. The views where spectacular, the clouds cleared and blue sky and sun shone down on us.

Reaching the top of the mountain pass resulted in a slight traffic jam as about 15 Morgans pulled over to look at the view. If your going to cause a traffic jam then causing it with Morgans is the way to do it in style

After the short stop to appreciate the view we continued down the other side of the mountain pass and stopped at a restaurant for lunch. The food was great, the sun still shining and 80 Morganeers tucked into a healthy lunch before proceeding on towards the Z museum, our next port of call.

We arrived at the Z museum which housed a wide range of different bits and bobs. They did have a number of cars on exhibit but this flat rad outside the building caught my attention.








Once we had finished in the museum it was time for the rally part. This took place in a field. It involved driving around cones then into made up garages, reverse parking, up a ramp on 2 wheels and then repeating in reverse. My wife as co-driver gave helpful instructions, such as that garage looks awfully small we are used to a double ! I on the other hand found out i cant hit a plank of wood when reversing down a hill with 2 wheels. Its not that im not smart, its just that i stay with problems longer and after the 6th try the judges took pity on me and waved me on.

After the driving test we returned to the hotel, another 60km drive through beautiful country side. A well sort rest was needed after such an early start and driving all day. At 7pm we joined the other club members in the lobby for a glass of bubbly followed by a truly remarkable club dinner. Marinated venison was the main course and all ingredients for all courses where obtained within a 2 hour drive. The hotel seemed very proud of there cuisine and rightly so.

We retired to our room and enjoyed a full night without any children waking us up for toilet or wanting cuddles, or checking for monsters at 1am in the morning. A blissful 8 hours uninterrupted sleep is something that only a parent with young children can truly appreciate the beauty of. The next morning we left early but had to have one final photo of my mog in front of a range of others

The ride back to Jessheim to pick up the kids was smooth. We passed a stav church which is made out of wood and is of the time when vikings where turning to Christianity, usually by the sword. My wife proceeded to the airport with the kids and i started the 500km drive north to home.

 After 2 hours i stopped a little north of Lillehammer at Hundefossen. A lovely little hotel was to be my accommodation for the night. I rang my wife only to find her flight had been cancelled and she had a 4 hour delay with 2 very tired young children stuck at departure. This was dire news for the end of a super weekend. I commiserated with her by having a couple of beers in front of a roaring fire before retiring for the night.


My final drive was from Lilliehammer to home, approximately 350km, taking 6 hours. I got up early packed hopped in the car and tried to start it. It seemed luck was not with me it was cold and wet and the car just wouldn't start. I retired to the breakfast room to consider my options and had a cup of coffee. After 20 minutes i thought id give it another go before contacting road rescue and to my delight on the second go the mog roared to life. I was off. The initial part of the journey was great but then i hit Otta which seemed to be only a couple of degrees and freezing fog. Even with my giant sheepskin jacket, hat, gloves and jumper it was freezing.

 An hour later i hit Dombass which is the start of the drive over Dovre mountain. This road is often closed in the winter but today it was blue skies, empty roads and beautiful views

Another 2 hours after coming down from the mountain saw me back in Trondheim and safely parked up in the garage. 1757km in total with only minor issues such as no breaks and not starting. A fantastic trip with a remarkable machine. If i could do it all again i would in an instance.

The journey was amazing and i found out you're never to old to set another goal or dream a new dream so come spring we will be off to meet the club in Molde the west of Norway.

MOG of Hell

Another day at work but today was the day that the new Morgan group MOG of Hell would be established. Finally meeting all the Morgan owners in the local area that had the same passion as i had, i was excited as a really excited person who had a special reason to be excited. 

I had set up an initial website www.mogofhell.com which still needs a lot of work but is a starting point. Never having set up a web site before it was surprisingly easy to get up and running. The aim is to record various events and have a central photo gallery. We also considered a technical page with any mechanical fixes we may do but since most of us seemed to be completely technically incompetent at fixing anything this page will probably be relatively empty. A Mechanical Genius provides ample proof of my amazing mechanical skills but hopefully someone in the MOG of Hell club has some skills. 

Living in central Norway we are fortunate enough to live right next to a small area called Hell. This gave us ample opportunity to come up with the cracking name MOG of Hell and be an offshoot to the Norwegian Morgan Club (FjordMog). Is it coincidence i drive on the road to Hell every day to and from work ?  

As can be imagined there aren't that many Morgans in the middle of Norway but there are 4 all with very keen drivers. On Wednesday evening at 6pm we met at the Statoil garage in Stjordal, probably the second largest gathering of Morgans in Stjordal since the Driven at Heart team drove through. The 4 MOGs immediately drew appreciative looks and i finally met all the future members of the MOG of Hell club.

The cars included a 1996 Plus 4, (mine), a 1985 Plus 8 with a rather splendid immaculate paint job and 2 modern 4/4s. 

The founding members included (left to right) Berit, Karl, Steiner and Hans whom i found out ran a car paint specialist workshop which explained the rather fine paint job on the plus 8.  Lastly there was me (taking the picture)!

Once intros had been concluded we drove to Hell station to get some pictures for the new web site. Hell is famous for the station and the famous sign that directly translates into a great saying. We drove onto the station platform for some quick shots of our cars in front of the station before the station master came out and threatened us with imprisonment for violating some law, a quick bit of bluffing by Berit saw us safely on our way.

We managed a few more photos of the cars and members at the side of the station before driving into Stjordal for coffee

As we arrived in Stjordal we where greeted by a group of girls twirling sticks and throwing them up in the air. A natural assumption was they had heard of the formation of MOG of Hell and had decided to welcome us!

However strangely this was not the case as they where shortly followed by some other cars, not my cup of tea but good to see. This group of cars where members of Hell Cruisers which seemed to be a range of American cars.

These corvettes where parked near the cafe. The right one seemed to be reasonable but the left one made me think the owner must have really small private parts as that was some serious engine over compensation.

The event ended with coffee and discussing future events to do in the near future. The next event is the Wooden Car Festival. Hans and myself will drive the 1500km round trip in the last weekend of August to meet with many of the other members of the Norwegian Morgan Club. Four days of blissful driving over the Norwegian mountains into southern Norway and back. I think ill finish as i started  i am excited as a really excited person who has a special reason to be excited..........