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Flatwater Newsletter Archive
1998 to 2002

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NOVEMBER EVENTS

Ice cream Nov. 12 at 70th and Van Dorn, Lincoln. 7:30 P.M.
Breakfast at Mahoney State Park, 9:00 A.M. Nov. 14.
Fish will be Friday, December 4 at 6:30. There is no fish the last Friday in November because of Thanksgiving.

THE LAZARUS MINI

by Frank Grover

Editor's note: During our annual car show Frank Grover approached me and said "I just bought a Mini. The only problem is it is in a basement." I offered Frank any help he needed, and asked him to keep me informed on his progress. A few weeks later a letter arrived which contained a letter and photos of the project. Thanks to Frank for this fine article.

A fellow came by the building several weeks ago to ask if I was interested in buying a Mini

Cooper. The price was very reasonable; the catch was that he had it mostly apart with wheels and suspension removed. Additionally the car had been stored in his mother"s basement garage for many years and would be very difficult to access.

If I were to buy the car, it would my task to clear a path and devise a scheme to get the car out to the street. Naturally I bought it!

After some thought, I felt a skid/sled would work best to get the car out of the garage, down a slight grade, and then up a gravel path to the street. But first I had to remove many years of growth from the not-used-in-many-years lane.

With chin saw, weed whacker, lawn mower, and large pruner; the clearing work proceeded without a hitch. After three trips to the trash hauler, the debris had been removed and I was ready for Phase II.

I built the skid from two sheets of plywood and seven two-by fours. I was sure glad to have my Makita power drill! The plan was to raise the Mini, slip the skid under, and pull it out with my Jeep Wrangler.

The Mini gave no resistance to extraction and saw its first sunlight in many years after just a few minutes of tugging. I made the sharp turn OK, and stopped by the end of the lane to winch the Mini up onto the trailer.First stop was the car wash to remove the layers of dust and dirt; then on to the building to fully enjoy a true ³out-of-the-barn² moment.

A check of the serial number proved it to be correct for a Mini Cooper. However, the motor I got out of the basement was from a Morris 850; so I had doubts.