Citroëns Gather to Celebrate the Fourth on the Fifth!

July 6, 2009 by Denis

The fifth of July sparked a terrific gathering of Citroën owners, friends, and their cars at La Madeleine Restaurant in Rockville, Maryland, with surprise guests from as far away as Philadelphia and New York City.

Not only did we not get the rain showers about which the forecast warned us, but I managed to get a nasty sunburn after the meal was finished and we adjourned to the parking lot to chat, talk shop, and take pictures!

Citroens on display

John and Vera Beltrante braved holiday weekend traffic to make the 3 hour drive from Philadelphia to Rockville, in their meticulously restored DS-21 Pallas. For those who had not seen their DS-21 previously, they shared detailed photos of the “before” and the car itself to demonstrate the “after.” It is amazing what countless hours of hard work and dedication can produce!

Many of us, of course, know John and Vera for their fabulous graphic design work. If you are sporting a Rendezvous at Saratoga garment or cap, have admired the signage at Rendezvous, or have enjoyed the eye catching front and back covers of this year’s new Citroënthusiast magazines, you have John and Vera to thank!

Kim Walter, well known for his work with Robert Monteleone in organizing the annual Citroën Rendezvous, dealt with LHS hydraulic leaks in addition to holiday traffic to travel from his home in New York City to Rockville. Kim is the owner of what is known to many of us as “the 59,” a preserved and polished 1959 DS-19. For breakfast attendees who have never been to a major east coast Citroën event, Kim provided an opportunity to see an example of a rare car, a first generation, US spec, DS-19 with the famous sweeping art-deco style dash.

Brad Nauss drove down from Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania in his “always a crowd pleaser” burgundy and black Traction Avant 11BL. For those of you who know Brad, it will be easy for you to appreciate the significance of his willingness to give up a good portion of his Sunday morning and afternoon with his family to join us!

Judy Reiter arrived early in her adorable 2CV Truckette, and drew in the crowd with her trademark bright red and white Citroën umbrella, and welcomed out of town guests with one of her gourmet treats.

Ron, Donna, and Michael Hayes came in from western Maryland in their very original ID-19 sedan. We look forward to hearing more from them about their latest acquisition, a very tidy ID Break purchased at this year’s Rendezvous.

Bruce Edwards and Mark Dettori came from Baltimore in one of Bruce’s D models, a pristine gray DS Confort. Of course, Bruce is looking forward to sharing both of his D models with us next month, when he arrives in the DS Confort and his wife Susan arrives in “Xena,” her executive black DS-21 Pallas!

Don and Anne Rutherford drove over from Vienna, Virginia, and told us that they, too, are looking forward to being able to arrive next month in their DS-21 Pallas!

And, as I write this, I look forward to my role in seeing to it that Bruce and Susan, and Don and Anne, have the opportunity to bring their cars!

Denis Foley and Carol Hansen made the trek from Ohio by way of WV to arrive in two cars, a spotless 1971 DS-21 and an impeccable 1991 bright red Peugeot 505 Turbo SW8.

Long time Citroën owner Russ Speares dropped by to visit his “old” car, the freshly restored DS-21 now owned by John and Vera Beltrante.

Our friend Larry Long, once a field representative for Peugeot Motors of North America, entertained us by showing us what has to be opposite end of the automotive engineering spectrum from a Citroën DS, when he raised the hood on his Morris Minor Estate car!

Taking advantage of an offer to relax and be chauffeured in something not French and very fast, I arrived in my friend Zane Smith’s Audi S4. A serious Audi fan, Zane has a certain soft spot for French cars, having grown up on the back seat of his Dad’s red 5 door Renault LeCar!

At the end of the holiday weekend, I pondered the warmth and vitality of our small but growing breakfast community, where we welcome our old friends, in a French car or something else, and look forward to making new friends who are drawn to us, I suspect, by our smiles, as well as our quirky cars.

Les Woods
President/CCNA

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