GT-18 found us back in Niagara Falls, a favorite vacation spot for the entire world, it seems. This time we actually were able to see the Falls at night, which is a little joke between us.

When we were much younger and in college, we left East Lansing at midnight, thinking we'd make it in time to see the colorful lights. When we arrived in Niagara Falls at sunrise, we found out they turn the lights off at 24:00 hrs. We had breakfast and decided to head for Hersey, Pennsylvania.

At GT-4 we didn't get to see the Falls at night either because, after being in the Hospitality Suite for so long, we didn't know where to find them.

This GT was a mid-week event which made for a full week of holiday for us, with enough meandering time to and fro. We drove the SAAB again from Chicago, stopping in Stratford along the way. We spend four or five days here every year, attending the theatre. We didn't see a play during this sojourn, just had lunch and did some shopping (Diane's favorite sport). We arrived at the Falls in time for the official welcome by our hosts around the motel pool. The motel was located right on the main drag at the Falls, so it was easy to do the touristy things without jeopardizing our car to the local traffic.

On Thursday evening we drove over to the Barbecue at St. George's Pavilion. After the meal we enjoyed watching the antics of the fun-khana in the parking lot and catching up with the Newmans, the Beattys and Howard Goldman. Unfortunately, rain cut the festivities short. Back at the registration table Diane spent time catching up with Stew Beatty and Pat and Dick Newman.

Thankfully, the car show was held away from the hotel, in a tree lined grassy field. There was a nice vendor and flea market area set aside. Diane had been looking for the book, The Red Car, which she had heard about from RB Hart many years previous. Well, lo and behold, there was a hard cover copy. Diane left for a few moments to find Steve and ask for an advance on her allowance. (Diane's a "book-a-holic" and deeply in debt on the book budget.) When we returned, the book was gone. Someone suggested to Diane that she should have told Steve she wanted cash for some slinky lingerie - he would probably have given her his whole wallet. It wasn't until GT-19 that she found a paperback copy at the flea market for $20.00. Someone there offered her $40.00 for that book minutes after she bought it, but noooooo, she had to read it first. She still owns it.

The local Niagara Falls Review newspaper had a half page ad in their Sports section welcoming NAMGAR to Niagara Falls. Over the years the media has found our meets to be good human interest stories (except for Charles Kuralt). Steve also took a number of good shots that have been used in MGA!. Diane thinks that Steve and Frank Tarpley were playing dueling cameras for a few meets.

Again, there were many good tech sessions and tours to chose from.

At the banquet Joyce Hart announced that her tenure as Chairman had come to an end, gave her farewell address, and handed over the baton to Len Bonnay. After another sumptuous dinner and suspenseful awards presentations, we retired to the nearest watering hole to congratulate Joyce and Len. Also joining in were Dave and Glenna Ream, Rick Green, Mac and Billie Ann Spears, Mary Tennity, and many others.