Thankfully Dr.Mini is on the case here, being a young gent caught up in modern social media apps and whatnot I keep forgetting about you lovely souls. Not used to forums really.

Essentially we were to pay all expenses ourselves to ensure all money donated went directly to Jack. Since this whirlwind of logistics terror , where we had planned to stay with people who had kindly offered dinner and lodgings making the trip as cheap as possible , we ended up starting out with some monumental hotel bills etc that once found out , the mini community on Facebook (which I know not everyone is on from here) has gone above and beyond to support us , including some financial help but kept separate from the donations still coming in for Jack. From unknown mini loving strangers in the US to close family friends and colleagues from home. To my knowledge the fees for all the legal stuff, containers , storage charges etc are expected from all angles , including the wonderful lady Karen at John S James to come from , and only from the original shipping agent / company that got us into this mess in the first instance.

 

As Dr mini says through some very hard and impressive work from him the paper work is tracked down, printed filled signed and sent to where it needs to go. The slow part continues as its physical paper documents having to be seen and checked in person to my knowledge and this of coarse takes longer than anything electronic. there has been so much information today that I hope I'm accurate there. But rest assured Dr mini hasn't set a foot wrong and is making some admirable progress on our part. 

 

Many thanks 

 

Alex , Pete and Shaggy (Dudleys New name) 

Thanks Bill Cox, All paperwork is currently in at Customs and they are awaiting release. They still need the container trucked out of the port and unloaded which will be scheduled in asap upon the customs release. I've got your number and I will call you if we have any more hiccups today. All the problems were caused by the UK shipping company failing to submit paperwork that needed to be filed weeks ago. All that is now in so as long as it's all in order they're good to go.

To the Other Bill in Canada (marvalussbody). If your mini is legal in Canada you can legally drive it across the border for a visit just like any other car that's legal in Canada.

forgive my ignorance........I can cross the border in my car from Canada, not being a US citizen, and drive coast to coast. My car doesnt need to clear EPA.

Isnt this all they are doing?  Their cars just arrived by ship, thats the only difference. I cant understand the hitch in this very cool adventure.

Cheers from still waiting for spring small town Ontario.

Bill

Well it's not really the EPA's fault, it's the CMX shipping company that failed to file the appropriate paperwork 48 hours before the cars actually left the UK as they were supposed to do. It only just got filed today with a lot of push from myself and a wonderful woman Karen at John S James customs brokers in Jacksonville Fla. of all places. It seems that CMX is a bunch of amateurs when it comes to shipping cars over the pond and as their representative in Florida told me they were informed not to attempt the shipment over a month ago. The agent told them don't worry all you have to do is show up and collect your cars. Not half that easy. I helped out the best I could on this end, but I can't clear customs for them. So the wait continues and the clock ticks down on whether this trip will actually happen. I sent a letter off to the head of CMX explaining how his agent in the UK single handedly dis-railed this charity event. Still waiting for a reply. Hoping someone will man up and offer them some help, but doubtful. Thanks again for your continued support. I will update if we hear good news later on their release.

 What a great moment these lads have made for the US mini community to shine through as we see here.

 

Scargo So far there is no progress. It seems the shipping company never filed any of the required customs documents before they shipped the cars. So currently they are just sitting at the port in the container waiting for waivers and release forms. If the cars ever get out and they get underway they will post their progress, route and updates here for you all to see, offer suggestions and probably parts, help etc.......Thanks for all the kind offers so far and keep your fingers crossed they get underway soon.

Is there a way for a non-Facebook user such as me to track the route and the progress of this adventure?

just joined your Facebook group, and shared it with all of my friends too

It is wonderful what you are doing.

If you guys are going to be passing by SE Michigan, I am in Ann Arbor and have lots of space and a fully equipped workshop for repairs and couches and places to sleep.

Norm

Hi everyone, can't believe how I didn't know of this forum! 

I'm Alex , and the white beauty is mine, if/when I get her back! 

Can't believe how supportive all you guys are , we were hoping for mini love when we got here but everyone has blown expectations out of the water ! 

We consider Larry and his wife extended family now, they have been unbelievable in generosity and kindness! He's been lovely enough to show us things that I would probably never have seen if things hadn't gone wrong. His collection is a dream come true, like a mini museum almost ! 

please take our greatest gratitude in all your offers of kindness and I/we hope to meet as many of you as we can along the way so we can thank you in person. 

Please join on the Facebook group if your able as its currently our main connection to everyone. 

Many thanks again 

The American Job 

Alex,Pete and Dudley

 

Thanks All for your support, the boys will be glad to know they have the support of all of us in the mini community. We finally connected late yesterday afternoon with the actual customs clearing broker on this side of the pond. Their agent in the UK has apparently never shipped a vehicle here to the US before. He forgot to apply for an EPA waiver to allow the vehicle to be driven here. Now, without his help I having tracked down the actual company doing the clearance things are actually moving along. She is applying for a hardship waiver and we have managed to plug in most of the documentation that the UK broker never supplied her. I accomplished more in 15 mins that their UK agent hasn't been able to do in 4 days. Now it looks as though they might actually have cars by mid-week so they can get under way. Being they have lost so much time they will be posting their modified route cross country and would love to have you all chime in and plug in way points for hosting or for "repairs and any mishaps that may crop up". We all have taken trips with our fun little cars and can only imagine the many possible scenarios that may lay ahead of the brave lads. I'll let the boys chime in on this and personally thank you for all your good wishes and support. Thanks Larry

I used to deliver the Portsmouth Evening News, but I'm in Kansas City now, half way across if they want to stay. I sent a message to their phone.  I hope they get clearance soon!!

I have space if they get to the San Francisco Bay area.  Would love to host  them.

Smarts just a little to see them apparently held up at the port on the east coast...but even with my shipping all set up, the Mini arrived on a Tuesday night and I drove it off the docks on Friday afternoon, which was fast according to others who have waited up to 2 weeks.

Have just connected on the FB page.  Assuming they get away from NY/NJ next week, we might see them out here in Vancouver after mid-month.  Yes, we will help them, put them up.

The boys are on a grand adventure for a super worthy cause!

 

Here's their charity page: https://www.justgiving.com/theamericanjob/

And in the UK media: //www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/jack-inspires-the-american-job-1-6593678

 

Where at in NJ are they anchored? There isnt,much around here i dont tthink..i rarely have ever seen a mini in my area.

Maybe if they need random parts in travels they could post on here and get some help.I have a few small things like front brake hoses and clutch cover plunger lever,clutch master cylinder and slave and maybe a starter If its any help

 

Thanks for that Dr. Mini - I've been following this story, and these guys have a lot to thank you for, along with the rest of the mini community

This is a terrific opportunity for folks here to spread the word with their local clubs and give these lads a right proper welcome.

Glad to see that Norm Nelson of Mini Thunder/Shasta Minis has connected with them, meaning things will happen for these guys on the West coast.

 

Sounds like a worthy cause!  Perhaps we can give them destinations to hopscotch across the country for places to stay, and for people who might have Mini parts on hand.... with 3 Minis, they're going to need three times as many parts!  Point them to this post so they can let us know their route or their needs!