We’ve just finished the Model A Touring Club’s (MATC) most recent tour where we visited the US Northwest, and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta over a19 day period. Model A Touring Club tours are planned and organized by volunteer members of the club who start the process with an idea for a tour destination that would be of interest to club participants. Tour organizers work tirelessly to create the route, plan the destinations, and organize logistical details like hotels and group activities.

The tour was named the USCAN tour. It was announced 10 months before its scheduled dates of September 8 to 26 2024 by tour organizers Bob and Marcus. This was the 25th tour since the club began in 2001. We have a few members who have been around since the beginning. They attend tours often. Others members dip their toes in the touring process, while others pick and choose tours based on interest, cost, and time availability. All participants pay a tour fee which includes general expenses, group activities, some meals, and some hotel stays. For overseas tours, like next year’s Ireland tour, the cost also includes car transport fees and other fees required by the destination’s government.

The MATC has had some bad luck in recent years with planned tours being canceled. This was the case in 2020 when the Route 66 tour was canceled due to COVID, and last year’s New England tour was canceled due to flooding in the region.

Unfortunately, bad luck can also happen while on the tour. Break downs are part of the hobby. Most issues can be resolved at roadside.

Randy discovered a leak in his 1929 Model A coupe’s radiator on day 16 of the USCAN tour. He managed to keep an eye on the water level while driving by watching the temperature gauge. He stopped several times before our destination to put water in the radiator. The solution was to apply a product called J-B Weld to the radiator crack. This stopped the leak and allowed us to finish the tour leak-free.

Sometimes problems can’t be resolved at roadside. That is why each tour has a rescue trailer that assists with a tow when necessary. For the USCAN tour, the rescue trailer hero, Tim kept busy towing cars here and there throughout the tour.

The beautiful 1931 Model A Cabriolet you see below was stopped at roadside due to some mechanical problems early in the tour.

Owners Gareth and Debra had trailered the Model A all the way from Florida. They were heartbroken to learn that the problems were not solvable away from home. The rescue trailer towed the Cabriolet to a local Model A enthusiast who kept the car safe until the end of the tour. Meanwhile, Gareth and Debra demonstrated a skill necessary for successful travelers: adaptability. Their good nature allowed them to enjoy the tour even without their cherished Model A. Instead, they completed the tour while traveling with one of the tour organizers, Marcus.

Here is a Model A sitting on the rescue trailer at the parking lot of a group luncheon. Also that day, James and Dorothea’s look-alike 1931 Model A Cabriolet required a rescue. It was dropped off in the parking lot of the hotel at 100 Mile House where assistance was given. The problem? A blown head gasket. More about this in an earlier post.

The theme of these tours is to expect the worst, but hope for the best. These tours can be hard work for our vintage vehicles. Before a tour, the Model A’s are tuned to perfection. Typically tools and spare parts are packed in case they are needed.

Such was the case on a beautiful Saturday morning in Jasper when a spare part came to the rescue and allowed the Cabriolet to move to the next beautiful USCAN tour destination.

As you can see by this great photo, the lovely Cabriolet traveled onward. Doesn’t it look great with the other cars in the parking lot of a glacier outlook along the Icefields Parkway in Alberta?

There is one more breakdown story that I mentioned in an earlier post. It is the story of the Radio Flyer and its extraordinary rescue and fix. The 1929 Sedan Delivery Model A needed more than a rescue trailer tow. It was not running and needed a push from fellow Model A owners who managed to wheel Terri’s Model A onto the rescue trailer. Here is a video that shows the process.

The Model A was secured to the rescue trailer and taken to a team of heroes from the Calgary Stampede Model A club where it was fixed. More about that here: https://modelatouring.club/2024/09/26/model-a-clubs-generosity-a-tour-to-remember/