This year we chose to try a new area! The KOA East in Gatlinburg, TN will be the base for our 3 day driving adventure. It's located near some amazing mountains and rivers, setting the scene for some breathtaking drives. As with all of our CMU events, we like to drive, and that's what we'll be doing. We will have drives each of the three days with plenty of stops and things to see. We will also have the swap meet, epic silent auction, beer tasting, and Hot Wheels racing!

If you haven't been to a CMU event before, we do it differently; we like to drive/cruise a lot and see all around the beautiful area we're visiting. With this being a CMU event, you must be a member to attend. Membership is free! If you are one of the few that hasn't already joined, go to the join page and become one of the over 1,500 North American classic Mini owning members! As with all of our events, this is for all members, but all of the drives/cruises/anything is only for classic Minis, variants, and Mini based kit cars produced from 1959-2000, no exceptions. (The period following "exceptions" is to end the sentence and to also say "period".) There's always room to ride in someone’s Mini if you come in something else. We don't leave anybody behind!

For those of you that don't know someone that has been to a CMU event to hear how amazing it is, the following should help you with your decision. But, beware, when you come to one you'll be counting down the days until the next one, and we only do it every year and a half!

MiniWorld Magazine - The Mini 60 - Here's the full printable story.
"While the Mini is what brings us together, the campground parties are all about the people. Everybody shared stories while making new friends."

MiniWorld Magazine - The Mini 53 - Here's the full printable story.
"Imagine a two-hour twisty cruise with 70-plus Minis, followed by white water rafting, then another unique twisty cruise... memories to last a lifetime. "

MiniWorld Magazine - The Mini 51 - Here's the full printable story.
"As a follow-up to the landmark Mini 50, CMU surpassed themselves with the Mini 51 "
"Everyone witnessed the truly unforgettable sight of the endless line of Classic Minis twisting through the mountain curves."

MiniWorld Magazine comments on our Mini 50 event.
"Many people who went said it was the best Mini event they'd ever attended."
"The event set a new standard for USA Mini meetings..."

Mini Magazine also comments on our Mini 50 event.
"... it raised the bar of what should be expected of a show in North America."
"... can't wait for the next CMU event!!"

If that's not enough, see our Mini 50 and Mini 51 stories!

Typical view at a CMU event, but you can't see the other 75 Minis in front of the Moke!

We always base our events at a campground with a hotel nearby. This year the hotels aren't as close as usual, so look around the KOA area for other campground cottage options. There is nothing like the campground atmosphere for our nighttime activities and to start our drives. So far it has been KOA all the way. Great locations and great people.

Host Campground Gatlinburg East KOA, TN website This is once again a beautiful KOA with a very friendly and helpful staff. They are looking forward to seeing gaggles of Minis and making our event a success! Please note to be respectful to the property and KOA staff. That also means NO speeding.  Mention Classic Minis United to get their great discount. Call 423-532-7183 to make a reservation. As they have only a few cabins, they are booked by the CMU staff, as we have to work. Google the KOA address and you'll see that there are other campgrounds in the area that have cabins. 4874 Hooper Highway Cosby, TN

Drives, drives, drives...
This year we will be going back to the Tail of the Dragon. This drive will be Thursday morning in the hopes that it won't be too busy because it then becomes the Tale of the Drag-on. Then of course there will be fun drives on Friday and Saturday!

Friday night party
The theme this year is Fancy Dress. That is a UK term that basically means to dress in any creative or crazy way you want. It's like Halloween costumes minus the scary part. Be creative and you can win the $150 Mini Sport USA gift certificate! The contest is for 18 and older. We will have a catered dinner along with the following fun activities.

Friday night Silent Auction
One way we keep the entry fees the cheapest in North America is through the money raised at the silent auction. CMU is lucky to have so many amazing members that bring so many great items for the auction. We can auction just about anything that members will bid on, so please show your CMU support and please keep doing what you're doing and bring some cool items to the Mini 66. Special thanks to Malcolm and Linda for organizing the many items and running the auction. It's a lot of work for them! When you see them after the drives at the end of the day, they like beer. Please bring your items to registration so they can start organizing everything before the drives and parties start.

Friday night Swap Meet
What's the best way to sell some of you Mini parts? The Friday night swap meet! There will be a section for the swap meet next to the party area. If you have something to sell, bring it! If you want some great deals, come see what's there. Note, please do not display or sell any items at the event until the swap meet. That way everybody has an equal chance to see and buy the items. It also makes for a good sized swap meet!

Friday night Beer tasting
Yes, you read it right! As people will be coming from many miles away in many directions, we invite you to bring some of your local favorite beer or other tasty beverages. Trish and Vaughn Hook will have an area set up for everyone to meet and exchange brews (cups will be supplied). Thanks Trish and Vaughn!!!

Friday night Hot Wheels Racing
at the Toe Joe Raceway!
Seriously?!? Yes! Have some fun and win some money! There's two ways to race, a fun race class where we supply the car, and the Pro Series where you modify and bring a Hot Wheels classic Mini to compete. Yes, you read that correctly. There will be some exciting racing and happy cash winners! Special thanks to Justin and Wilver for all of their time to run this fun event like a professional race! When you see them after the drives at the end of the day, they like beer.
Go HERE for the information/rules of each class.
Get your Hot Wheels ready to race!

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Important: New to CMU events!
As many of you can imagine, when you get 75+ Minis in a long line/cruise, things could happen. Due to the growing size of the event, we took a close look at safety. We concluded, to keep everybody informed at all times regarding road/traffic/Mini problems during the drives, 2-way radios are now mandatory. Below is an example of what we ran into the last time in Cherokee. It went from clear to this fog around a blind corner.

If you don't have a radio with sub channels, you can rent one.  The rental of a club radio/charger is $15 for the event. The registration form will have a place to order the rental or to let us know that you have one. The club uses channel 7 sub 9. If you don't already have a radio and want to purchase one, we'll save you some research and give you the magic answer away from all of the misleading promises on the packages! It's all about power and all of the "affordable" radios have the same amount. So, here's the main difference to look for... You want a radio with GMRS channels as they are about twice as powerful as the basic FRS channels. Power is distance! Go to Amazon or Google and search for "GMRS Radio" and start shopping. The club radios are the Midland Gxt1000vp4 - 50 Channel GMRS Two-way Radio. We have found them the cheapest on Ebay. Most come in a set, so split it with a Mini friend (Make sure it has 2 chargers or one radio can use standard batteries.). It's a safety issue and the cost of a radio is nothing compared to what could happen if you don't have one....... Please note that the radios are for this purpose only, no chatter, no "Oh look a chicken"!

Cruise groups!
We tried something new at the Mini 56, two drive groups, and perfected it at the following events . It was a HUGE success each time!!! Being at the rear of a 75 Mini line means you're almost always trying to catch up. But you put yourself back there so you could go slow... What to do?!?! We'll have two drive groups that do the exact route, the "Spirited" and the "Touring" groups. There will be a Cruise Master to lead each group. The Spirited group will leave first and the Cruise Master of the Touring group will start directly behind the last Mini of the front group. The difference will be that the Touring Cruise Master will re-start the pace, a little slower. This has worked GREAT and solved so many problems, but you still have to pay attention and keep up with the Mini in front of you! Stay together! Note, if this is your first CMU event, you need to start in the Touring class. You can then move up to Spirited at any stop if you feel you can safely keep up.  DRIVERS MEETING!

Schedule
The schedule will be out ASAP. Just note that registration is Wednesday at 5:30pm-7:00pm at the KOA. Be in line by 6:30. We will have music and hang out that night seeing old and making new friends.

Shirts

Registration is open!
Be one of the first 40 to register and receive this cool 3" x 3" embroidered patch. Thank you Roy Hess for donating these! CMU members are the best!

NOTE, whether you pay with PayPal or send in a check, you still need to open the pdf registration form, type in your information, save it, and email it to Rob at robcmu1@gmail.com We don't want hand written forms. This pdf can be opened on your computer and the information can be typed in. NOTE 2, if you are paying with a check, we don't care when you put the check and printed form in the mail (after you email the form in), we only care when we receive it. If we don't receive it on or before February 26th, you will be charged the normal registration fee, not the pre-registration fee. NOTE 3, the form must be filled out completely. NOTE 4, everyone must register if they are participating in any drives or participates at any of the KOA gatherings. Go HERE to register. If you don't know your CMU member number, go HERE.

Supporters and Sponsors
If you would like to help make the Mini 66 the biggest and best event to date, we could use your support. Simply put, the more money we raise, the more money we can spend on the event. We keep the entry costs down so everybody can afford it. We have a title sponsor (Mini Sport USA) to help make the event happen to our standards, but we always like to embellish and add to it. If you would like to support the Mini 66 please contact Mike Guido. If you are coming and have something for the silent auction, no need to contact Mike, just bring it to registration. Thank you!

Thank you sponsors!
Their logos are links, visit them and see some great Mini stuff!.

Special thanks to:
Rhonnie Guido XOXO
Rob and Gail Woelfle
Cruise Masters Chuck Gaines and John Szweda
Scavenger Hunt Masters Justin Handy and Cole Gentry
Silent Auction Masters Malcolm and Linda
Hot Wheels Masters Justin and Wilver
Beer Tasting Masters Trish and Vaughn Hook
Jim Watson leaves no broken Mini behind!!
... and everybody else that's making this the BIGGEST and BEST North American, 3 day Mini adventure!