Pan-American racers support Feed the Hungry
By Carol Sedestrom Ross, Oct 13, 2006

Classic Car Show and Food prepared by Feed the Hungry cooks November 3, 4, 5 See www.feedthehungrysma.com  for the schedule

Feed the Hungry, a local charity that operates 27 kitchens and feeds over 3,000 school children a hot meal every school day, will host a weekend of events November 3, 4 and 5 to celebrate the 2006 Pan-American Road Race. 

The weekend celebration in San Miguel precedes the famous La Carrera Panamericana by one week. There will be three days of race-related activities in San Miguel to benefit the children of Feed the Hungry. Twenty-four drivers and their vintage race cars will arrive in San Miguel late in the afternoon on Saturday, November 4. Both cars and drivers will be in the area of the Jardín on Sunday, giving residents and visitors an opportunity to see the cars up close and meet the drivers.

The 19th year of the “modern” Pan-American race begins at 8am on Friday, November 10, in Veracruz and ends thousands of mountainous miles later in Monterrey on Thursday, November 16. The race passes through Puebla and Querétaro (on Sunday, November 12) and continues through Morelia, Aquascalientes and Zacatecas before reaching the finish in Monterrey. A combination of serious racing—with speeds frequently reaching 200 miles per hour—and adventure, the Carrera is the last open, top-speed road race of its kind in the world. Even drivers who race in France’s Le Mans and Italy’s Mille Miglia say that “they don’t come any tougher than this one.”

The original La Carrera Panamericana was started by the Mexican government in 1950 as a way to celebrate the completion of the Pan-American Highway. Because of the race, the world would know Mexico had good roads, and increased commerce and tourism would develop.

The race was canceled in 1955 because too many people, both drivers and spectators, were being killed. Also, maintaining the road in racing condition was costing more than the Mexican government was willing to bear. But by the time it was canceled, the race had gained international status. 

The race was restarted in 1988 by a group of drivers, some of whom had raced in the original Pan Am and some who were sons of original drivers. The current race offers nine different classes (or categories) of cars, from Historic to Competition. The Original Pan Am Class is for cars that raced in the early years of the Carrera. This year, a 1949 Lincoln will compete, as well as a 1954 Cadillac that has been recreated by GM’s performance division. Seven or eight more cars are expected to compete in the Original class.

Over 100 cars will line up at the start in Veracruz, including a contingent of 35 cars from Europe. Any mechanically sound car built between 1940 and 1965 can be entered, subject to the approval of the organizers. The cars must be safe as well as fast, and no car is allowed to have a significant technical advantage over the other cars.

The Carrera is sponsored by the Mexican Department of Tourism, supported by the Federal Highway Patrol and sanctioned by the Mexican Federation of Auto Racing. It is organized by the Lindavista Automobile Club in Mexico City. Commercial sponsors such as Fiat and Corona help defray the expenses of the police, road closings and general supervision of the six-day race.

All Pan-Am drivers face the problems of high-altitude racing in vintage cars. The race is tough and dangerous for both the drivers and the cars. The weather can vary from a hot, humid tropical climate in the 90s to 2 degrees above freezing in less than 72 hours.

The altitude change from sea level to as high as 10,000 feet affects the mechanics of the cars, and the varying road surfaces—including city streets, topes and volcanic gravel on mountain roads—wreak havoc on their tires. The fireproof racing clothes worn by the drivers and co-pilots are necessary but very hot—imagine several layers of heavy Nomex at 95 degrees! 

Drivers compete in a time-to-distance, pro-rally format in which they run against the clock, not against one another. There are two stages—a transit stage during which they move through cities with normal traffic and special high speed stages at which the road is closed and they drive at top speed. 

There are no prizes for the winners—just bragging rights. But for certain, the winners will be those drivers who exhibit a combination of skillful driving, precise preparation and technical knowledge. And although the race is dangerous, it has come to be considered the premier event in world racing.

“This very special weekend celebrating the race will appeal to the Mexican and foreign communities plus the many visitors who will be in San Miguel,” said Feed the Hungry Executive Director Mary Murrell. “We are very grateful to the Carrera Panamericana race drivers who are stopping and exhibiting their cars. When we asked Gerie Bledsoe, who organized the convoy of race cars coming from the US to stop in San Miguel, he immediately asked the drivers to help Feed the Hungry.”

For more details about the Pan-American Road Race Weekend, visit www.feedthehungrysma.org  and look for the race car.

San Miguel gets greener
By Sarah Clancy

The Garden Club of San Miguel has completed the planting of a second street in Colonia Santa Cruz de La Paz. The street, Calle de la Cruz, leads into the empty lot reserved for the future church.

The club spent 4,600 pesos buying 13 large pirul chino trees and a quarter of a truckload of mixed dirt, along with small miscellaneous expenses. To view a seven-minute video of this day, go to: 

http://derekburrows.net/tree.html 

The homeowners dig the holes and plant and maintain the trees. The most important part of the project is locating a “point person” on the selected street to work with and organize the other neighbors. 

Working on this project, I realize it’s not just about trees. The kids are very happy to see their dads and neighbors making community improvements. During the actual planting, the kids help mix the dirt and pick up the trash from the street. Everyone is proud to be able to make a difference in the neighborhood.

The point person becomes “Don”—a person who can get things done. Everyone seems to get a heightened sense of community, pride of ownership and ability to make a difference. During the second planting, a man from another block donated his labor to help plant with the hope that his street would be selected next. Of course, it was. 

The goal of the Garden Club is to plant as many trees as possible in colonias that are unable to organize and finance tree planting on their own. These trees are necessary to increase moisture and cut down on dust and airborne bacteria, as well as to beautify the streets. We plant entire streets, and the people on the street must work together to complete the project.

As of this date the “Tree Fund” had planted a total of 24 trees on two streets in the Colonia of Santa Cruz de la Paz. Our plan for the remainder of 2006 is to plant three more streets in Colonia Santa Cruz de la Paz at a cost of 14,000 pesos.

An individual or group can make a donation of 100 pesos or more in honor of a birthday, anniversary, death or wedding, or just to celebrate life. A personalized note is sent to those being honored, or their families, letting them know trees are being planted with them in mind. Contact Sarah Clancy with donations or inquiries at 152-8671 or clancysarah@yahoo.com 

First meeting of the San Miguel Opera House and Performing Arts Centre Guild

Public meeting, San Miguel Opera House and Performing Arts Centre Guild

Tuesday, October 17, 4pm, Teatro Santa Ana, Biblioteca Pública

Insurgentes 25

All members of the San Miguel de Allende Mexican and foreign community are invited to attend the first meeting of the San Miguel Opera House and Performing Arts Centre Guild. 

Architectural drawings will be on display, and those attending will be urged to join the San Miguel Opera House and Performing Arts Centre Guild, which will support the construction of the new 900-seat, state-of-the-art San Miguel Opera House and Performing Arts Centre.

Plans for the resident companies—the Concert Opera Company of Mexico, the New Philharmonic Orchestra of Mexico—as well as the plans for the School for Theatre Arts and Orchestral Music will be presented. 

The San Miguel Opera House, A.C., will also present its plans to benefit not-for-profit organizations in the community through its cultural activities.

This meeting will afford the first chance for all residents of San Miguel to be a part of this exciting project before the national and international communities of opera and performing arts supporters have the opportunity to participate in this project.

Art show memorializes Dorothy (“Bunny”) Wilson

A retrospective exhibit of sculptures and paintings by Dorothy R. (a.k.a. “Bunny”) Wilson is showing at the Dee Ropers Gallery in the Fábrica la Aurora until October 22. A 17-year resident of San Miguel, Bunny Wilson died earlier this year. The exhibition includes work that dates back over 40 years. It is a journey through one woman’s experiences and a record of her growth as an artist over the course of a lifetime.

Wilson was born in Jamaica well before it was a country, during the dying days of the British Raj. Her father was with Barclay’s bank, and her mother was a ninth-generation landed British Jamaican woman. She attended St. George’s School for Young Ladies in Havana, Cuba, before the regime of Castro. During WWII she studied in Canada at Havergal and then went on to the Royal Victoria Hospital’s nursing college, where she received her RN degree. For a graduation gift her parents gave her a ticket to anywhere in the world, and she was on her way to Australia—but not exactly alone. A rash young suitor sold off his worldly goods to run after her. James A. Wilson caught up with her in England and proposed, and they were married in Devon. As it turned out, she never practiced nursing beyond her residency and never made it to Australia. 

By the end of their honeymoon driving tour of Europe, she was pregnant with the first of three boys that she had in quick succession. Five years into the marriage, the first blush of love and motherhood had diminished and the mind-numbing boredom that is the lot of the housewife who hates cleaning led her to reach out for more. That need for more was sated by the Famous Artists Correspondence Course, which started her career in the arts that spanned 50 years. Throughout the marriage she sketched and then sculpted and painted, honing her craft in classes she took in Toronto. She finally had to have her own studio space, and she began going to the studio regularly and producing her art.

Bunny’s work was making waves and she was recognized as one of the emerging young Canadian sculptors. Her artwork was selected for shows and exhibitions in New York, Paris and China, as well as shows all over Canada: Vancouver, Winnipeg, Montreal and Halifax. She was asked to serve on the board of the Scupture Society of Canada and help promote Toronto arts.

After the children were grown and gone, there was talk of retirement. Her husband wanted to buy a boat and sail around the world. Bunny wanted a big house with space to sculpt and paint. The differences proved irreconcilable, and they separated and finally divorced, but they remained best friends and kept in touch. Her ex-husband even made a point of coming to San Miguel on every trip across the ocean. Newly on her own, Wilson originally migrated to Houston, were she knew there was no snow and where her cousin lived with her family.

She enjoyed the clime and freedom in Texas until a fire demolished her home. She was melting wax for a sculpture on a hot plate in the garage, and the wax splattered and caught fire. When she noticed the blaze, it was too late. Quickly thinking about what she could save, she started throwing all the bronzes, soapstones and silverware into the pool. Everything else was lost except some photo albums and personal documents. The experience was so traumatic she never worked with wax or sculpted again.

While she was living in Houston she visited San Miguel with a friend. That was it. She knew she had found her home. After settling with the insurance company, she bought a piece of land on Calle des las Flores. Without speaking a word of Spanish she migrated further south and built her dream home in the mountains. That was the start of a 20-year love affair with San Miguel. Originally averse to pets, she gradually succumbed to the charms of the S.P.A. here in town and adopted four dogs and two cats. These pets, along with the strays that came by, led her boys to affectionately refer to her house as “the zoo.” Six o’clock was feeding time at the zoo, and all the animals knew it.

She was also known around town as an excellent bridge player and loved going down to play duplicate bridge each week, as well as hosting bridge parties in her home. Christmas was always a happening event in her house with or without family. She would invite friends and all the people who were unable to get to their families. In her later years, she took up croquet and quickly became an accomplished player, representing San Miguel Croquet Club at tournaments in Mexico, Canada and the United States. There now is a Bunny Wilson Memorial held each year in her honor. These are only a few of her many contributions to the life of San Miguel.

Two of her sons, Scott and Doug, are in town hosting a tribute show at the Dee Ropers Gallery. Out of friendship and kindness, Dee has graciously allotted her studio space to show what remains of Bunny’s work. They will be at the gallery from 11am to 6pm, Monday through Saturday, until October 22. Scott and Doug can be reached at Dee’s home after 7pm to answer questions. After this show, all Bunny’s artwork will be shipped to Canada, and an exhibit will be held in Toronto.