First,
I have a few housekeeping items to get out of the way. Due to conflicts
with a Club Race and Drivers' Ed Event the Spring Brunch Ramble has been
moved to June 10, hopefully its last move. I'd appreciate any suggestions
you may have of a location at which to have brunch in the southeastern
part of CT, the Foxwoods/Mystic area.
There are several imminent
club happenings to keep in mind. On Feb. 17 at Peabody BMW we have the
opportunity to meet pro race driver David Murry and listen to his track
experiences and get some ideas for setting up our track Porsches. Park
Porsche is sponsoring the evening and for $5 it's an event not to be missed.
March 25 will see our annual
"New Comers' Meeting" at IRA Porsche. Don't let the "new comers" scare
off you longer-term members. There are very few people in the NER who have
sampled everything the club has to offer. You never now when you may stumble
across something you haven't experienced that you'll enjoy: "Try it, you'll
like it!"
April 1 will be our Drivers'
Education Novice Seminar at a Framingham hotel. I sat in on the meeting
last year and and can vouch for the excellent presentation made by our
Track Committee. I can still remember my first day at a DE event and it
can be a bit overwhelming. Had I gone to a seminar such as this, that first
time would have been less stressful.
I was reading an article
in the NY Times last week about "sand mining" at Fort McMurray, Alberta.
Left behind by a vast inland sea, northern Alberta's oil sands contain
about 12% oil, which is separated from the sand with hot water. This sand
is hauled from the open pit mine to the production area by giant dump trucks
that hold 500 tons of sand, have a 3,400 hp diesel and 12' high tires that
weigh 6 tons and cost $140,000 per set of six. Sort of helps put our track
tire cost in perspective.
Member Profile of the
Month
Howie Finn is one of our
New Member Mentors who bought his first Porsche thirty-one years ago. As
seems to be the case with many long time Porsche owners it was a used 914
that stayed with him for several years. Then came a succession of German
and British marques including Mercedes, MGA, Triumph, Austin Healy and
Jaguar before Howie got back to the real thing.
A '66 911S that had been
tracked by the original owner was next. While it was mechanically sound,
Howie had to replace the floor pans, a not too surprising situation in
that era. The 911 served him well for several years until Lois, Howie's
future bride entered the picture followed by children Laura (now 17), Dan
(16) and Patrick (11). Not only did the Porsche go but the sailboat as
well to make room for a succession of family type VWs and mini-vans.
Finally in '93 Howie was
able to return to the Porsche owners' group with another 911 S, this time
a 1977 that his friendly Providence German car garage let him know about.
With only 35K miles on the odometer it was in fine condition and even better
condition once he corrected the glitches for which the '77 was known. That
car has been joined by yet another 914, this time a '79 that had also been
track prepared and has become Howie and Dan's project car. While mechanically
sound, the wood shop has been turned into a sheet metal shop for Howie
while Dan works on things important to a teenager; stereo and wheels, all
preparatory to using it as their Autocross car.
Listening to Howie relate
his and Lois's activities reinforces the fact that busy people always have
time to take on additional projects. Howie has always been athletically
inclined as his five bicycles will attest, including mountain, and road
racing models ridden in long distance fundraisers. He's a Martial Artist
with three Black Belts, a long distance runner and still does an occasional
Triathlon though not the 3-4 per year that he did when younger. In his
spare time Howie serves as either Scout Master or Ass't. Scout Master for
Dan's and Patrick's Cub Scout and Boy Scout organizations.
Howie and Lois both worked
at Wang for fifteen years before it went under and Howie still works in
the same Crosspoint building, now as a Network Specialist for Chase Manhattan.
Lois is the only Leslie graduate with a 4.0 cum where she had a joint major
in Music & Technology. These days when she's not teaching either flute
or piano at home she can be found conducting her church's choir, playing
for private parties with a jazz quartet, or teaching a music or computer
course at a private school.
We've all heard stories of
the diamond or vacation that a member's wife got when he got a new trailer
or upgraded his track car. Well here's the switch, when Lois got herself
a gold flute Howie got a Porsche.
Our best to all the Finns.
Cats & Physics
Law of Cat Magnetism
All blue blazers and black
sweaters attract cat hair in direct proportion to the darkness of the fabric.
Law of Cat Acceleration
A cat will accelerate at
a constant rate, until he gets good and ready to stop.
First Law of Energy Conservation
Cats know that energy can
neither be created nor destroyed and will, therefore, use as little energy
as possible.
Second Law of Energy Conservation
Cats also know that energy
can only be stored by a lot of napping.
Law of Cat Disinterest
A cat's interest level will
vary in inverse proportion to the amount of effort a human expends in trying
to interest him.
Law of Pill Rejection
Any pill given to a cat has
the potential energy to reach gravitational escape velocity.
|
