Copyright © 1998

Porsche Club of America The Inside Line November, 1998 Barbara Collozzo-Noonan BCNoonan914@PorscheNet.com

Now that the driving season is almost over, very soon the Porsche will be put away for the winter. There aren't anymore driving events to participate in left on the calendar. It seems like a good time to look back over the year and remember fondly all the good times spent with friends and Porsches.
 
The high point of the year was the trip to California to see the Monterey Historics at Leguna Seca. The quality and quantity of the historic Porsches on display and on the track was amazing. It's probably safe to say that there has never been so many and so varied a collection of Porsches anywhere at any other time. Add the Pebble Beach Concours and the Concours Italiano in the same vacation and you've got automobile perfection overload.
 
Then two weeks later another 50th anniversary celebration at Watkins Glen that was very similar though somewhat smaller. The special attraction there was that many local club racers got to participate. It was like a club race with all the familiar faces but much, much bigger. Imagine the thrill of being on the racetrack with the REAL factory racecars! Mike got to participate in two practice days before the engine in the 914 gave up the ghost. That abruptly concluded our track schedule for the year at the end of August. As a result we missed the annual NER trip to Mt. Tremblant in September.
 
But this is column about all the best stuff we did, so I'll get back on track.
 
Best Track Event: Watkins Glen hosted by Potamac Region July 15-17. Three days of perfect weather at the Glen without the crowds of the Zone 1 event. There were run sessions when I hardly saw another car track on the track, lap after lap. It was like having the track all to yourself. Potomac runs a nice event: low-key but organized with plenty of instructor appreciation door prizes. The fact that I had great student whom didn't scare me even once, helped a little too.
 
Best Autocross: The Rumble. The team concept made it more fun. Everyone had nine teammates to root for. Since there were only forty drivers (half of the usual turnout) we got more runs and still had time for a barbecue lunch.
 
Best Social / Non-Competitive Event: The NE Ramble. Even though it rained most of the time, we still had a good time. The scenery was beautiful and some of the roads were outstanding. We got to "discover" a beautiful resort that we will surely revisit and most of our friends were there.
 
The One We Missed: The Not Really A Rally Tour to the Yankee Candle shop and Car Museum. That one sounded interesting and reports said it was a good time.
 
I guess we can't expect to play every weekend. We did pretty well again this year. There's still more to do before this year is through. The Museum of Transportation's celebration of Porsche's 50th anniversary is coming up this month; that is sure to be an evening not to miss. Prescott Kelly is an interesting and informative speaker on the subject of Porsche. Then in December there's the Annual Dinner, always a fun evening, this year we have new location and highly recommended entertainment. See the promos in this issue and see you there.