In the Zone by Liz Shaw
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2016 Reports
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2015 Reports
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2014 Reports
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2013 Reports
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
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Zone Rep Report December 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
Last Zone Report of the year but still over a month to go for 2016. During the middle of October, I traveled to Spokane, WA, for Parade 2017 planning. The host hotel is the Davenport and it includes 3 properties in downtown Spokane. Most everyone will probably stay in the Davenport Grand, which is across the street from the Convention Center, where most of the banquets will be held. The area around Spokane is beautiful, with pine trees and the Columbia River running right through town. I teamed up with Leeds Gulick, the Parade Autocross Chair, and two guys from Michelin and Jackson Motor Group, to inspect possible sites for the autocross and the Drive & Compare. We’re hoping a large parking lot at an event center will work out because there’s enough space to run the autocross and the Drive & Compare at the same venue.
The following weekend, I joined many PCA members from Roadrunner, Southern Arizona, and Hill Country, to help Carrera Region celebrate 50 years with PCA. This year’s OktoberFiesta was another one for the books – fun social on Friday, well-organized drive-out to White Sands, Cloudcroft, and Ruidoso. I had the honor of having PCA President, Caren Cooper, as the passenger in my car and we both enjoyed the scenery and the camaraderie of our fellow tourers. After everyone got back to the Hotel Encanto, including the track drivers, we enjoyed a sumptuous dinner and were given a history of Carrera Region by President Dan Thomas. A special touch for the evening was when Caren presented Carrera Region with a PCA banner that was signed by everyone.
During the last weekend of October, I traveled to Atlanta, GA, for my driving session at the Porsche Experience Center. I had been to the Center earlier in the year, for the PCA Board of Directors meeting, and I looked forward to being able to drive at the Center. “My” car was a new Carrera S and I was signed up for a 1.5 hour “Sport Driving” experience. The first exercise was with a kick-plate, which was at the beginning of a slippery section. When the car was driven over the kick-plate (slowly), it moved the car left or right and the driver needed to immediately respond and try to keep the car from sliding sideways. Needless to say, this was MUCH harder than it looked!
The next exercise was with a low-friction circle, which had little jets at the edges of the circle to keep the surface wet. Again, MUCH harder than it looked! My instructor demonstrated how it should be done and then I proceeded to do just about everything wrong. I had done one of these exercises before, at an autocross school in California, but that with my (lower-horse-powered) 964, which has a clutch. I think with this PDK 911 and 400 hp, it was much harder to do. That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it.
After a few more exercises on the track, which included a launch-control exercise, I spent 30 minutes on one of the simulators in a training room. This was a lot more fun than I expected and I was pleased at how much better I got. I spent 15 minutes with a Cayman GT4 at Laguna Seca and then 15 minutes with a 911 RSR on the same track. I’ve driven at Laguna Seca before but it was fun doing it on a simulator where driving into a wall or onto the gravel didn’t hurt or cause any expensive damage! I got much better by the time my session was over and if I have the chance to get back to the PEC, I will definitely get back on a simulator!
Coming up for me to finish the year will be the LA Auto Show and PCA Tech Tactics in November, then a few Region holiday parties in December.
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Zone Rep Report November 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
Even though this is the November report, I’m reporting on September activities because of the due date of the report. So September means Club Racing for Zone 9! Rocky Mountain Region moved their Club Race and HPDE to early September because it was just too hot to have the event in mid-August. Saturday was breezy all day but Sunday wasn’t too bad. At least it didn’t rain or get unbearably hot. The racing was great, although I didn’t have too difficult of a job handing out Pirelli hats to the Class winners because the Cup classes were pretty small. I helped out with Timing & Scoring and tried to learn a few things and not make any mistakes! As usual, Rocky Mountain Region hosted a great event all weekend – good food, fun racing, good music, fun HPDE – what could be better??
The following weekend, I headed to Salt Lake City for Intermountain Region’s HPDE and Club Race at Utah Motorsports Campus (AKA Miller). The event was somewhat lightly attended but everyone there had lots of track time and the racing was great to watch.
A few weeks after SLC, I got up at oh-dark-hundred and headed to Albuquerque to join my fellow Roadrunners for breakfast at Porsche of Albuquerque. The dealership is situated perfectly for viewing the hot air balloons and although we were not treated to balloons flying directly over the dealership, we still had some great views of the hundreds of balloons in the west. There were some new special shapes this year and I would have loved to have been closer to the dragon balloon. I always like seeing Darth Vader and this year, Yoda was right next to him.
My PCA schedule will be a little busy for the next month or so – Parade planning in Spokane, Carrera Region’s OktoberFiesta, and Porsche Experience Center (driving a new Carrera S) to round out October. Then in mid-November, I’m headed to Ontario, CA, for the PCA Tech Tactics and possibly the LA Auto Show.
Hope to see you around the Zone! And if you’re vying for the coveted Zone 9 Challenge Trophy, please let me know which Zone 9 Region and PCA National events you’ve attended. I already know of a few serious contenders.
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Zone Rep Report October 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
August in the Monterey Bay area means CAR WEEK!! There’s so much to see and experience in Monterey, Carmel, and Laguna Seca and I focused on the third annual PCA Werks Reunion and the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. Werks was an amazing display of hundreds of Porsches, beautifully displayed at the Rancho Canada Golf Club. It was overwhelming and I know I didn’t see many of the cars. The Blood Orange 1965 356 below was restored by a friend of mine, Martin Steger, of Carolina Coachworks in North Carolina. I love the color and it’s obvious that Martin worked very hard to accomplish such a beautiful restoration.
Before and after Werks, I went to Laguna Seca to watch the practice and qualifying race groups. This year’s featured marque was BMW and they were celebrating their 100th Anniversary. I’ve attended the Reunion on several occasions and it’s always a thrill to watch race cars from the 1920’s all the way up to the early 1990’s. My two favorite viewing areas are in the stands at Start/Finish and at the Corkscrew. This year, I joined my fellow PCA members at the PCA tent, with a perfect view of the track at Turn 4.
The next Sunday after the Monterey trip, I went to the 46th Annual Corrales Round-up and parked my 911 among 70+ other Porsches. For the past 40-some years, the Round-up has been held outside the beautiful home of Dave & Ann Stinchcomb, but this year, they decided to relocate, due to the potential of large branches or trees falling onto the cars. The G.O. Farm turned out to be a great location and there was plenty of room for all of the cars. The featured models this year were the Caymans and the Turbos. Also new this year was Mexican food and birthday cake – yum!
On Labor Day weekend, I traveled to Durango, CO, to join many other car enthusiasts at the home of Alpine Mountain Region members, Chris and Pam Vivolo. Chris has been hosting a big car show & BBQ in a grassy field at his house, for the past few years and it was amazing to see the variety of cars that showed up. One couple brought a Model T and a Packard, and several people showed up in 911’s and Caymans. Chris staged the cars in 2 groups: European and American. I missed seeing Chris’s Cayman GT4 Clubsport, but it was in Sonoma, CA, waiting for Chris to compete in the next Pirelli Cup race.
Still to come in September are the Club Races in Colorado and Utah.
Hope to see you around the Zone!
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Zone Rep Report September 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
During the last few days of July, I attended Alpine Mountain Region’s “Rocky Mountain High Way” and had a great time. Chris and Kathleen Lennon organized a spectacular long weekend of events and they were rewarded with participation from 18 different states. In many ways, it felt like a mini-Parade, as many people knew each other from Parades that they had attended, and the feeling of camaraderie was strong.
On Friday morning, PCA Vice-president, Tom Gorsuch, and I headed to a driver training center (Master Drive) where the Gimmickhana was being held. I’ve always wanted to do one of these events and I was glad to pair up with Tom. There were 9 cars and the event was divided into 3 exercises. The first one had us on a couple of short roads with a connecting piece of pavement. There was a slalom on each of the roads and then a couple of gates on the connecting road. Easy, huh. Well, the challenge was to have the driver only be in control of the gas, brake and clutch (unless the car didn’t have one) and the passenger was in control of the steering. We got a practice lap and then 2 timed laps and Tom and I had the fastest time. All my years of autocrossing paid off!
The next exercise had the driver steer the car around in a circle, which was marked off in quadrants. The passenger had to hold onto the end of a thin rope, which was connected to a tall cone in the middle of the circle. Halfway down the length of the rope was a carabiner. The idea was for the passenger to hold the rope and carabiner off the ground and every quadrant that was cleared counted as one point. Tom and I came in 3rd overall.
The last exercise was the most challenging, as it had the driver wearing an eye mask and the passenger had to give directions on the course. We were back at the parallel road course and this time, we had to drive a short distance, then turn 90o onto a concrete pad. Then we had to back up and proceed backwards down the road and into an open box, marked by plastic poles. After stopping, we had to head toward the sweeper and then into the slalom. Tom and I did well, except for having to fix a navigator mistake when we exited the concrete pad. Yes, Tom fully acknowledged that the “blind” driver had to correct him on this!
All in all, a very fun event and we were rewarded with a trophy for placing Second overall.
After washing my car (with Tom’s help), I took it to the Show & Shine.
On Saturday, I joined about 20 other cars for a day-long tour to the ghost town of St. Elmo, off County Rd. 162. We had a lunch stop in Salida and then made our way to the town full of tourists (I didn’t see any ghosts). The trip back was memorable for one thing – a contact encounter with a young deer, which resulted in a dented front fender and a scratched hood. The animal came out of nowhere and the second I hit the brakes, he hit my car. I saw him hop away, not putting weight on his right hind leg so hopefully, he wasn’t hurt too badly.
The Final Banquet that night included the MC (Chris Lennon) and a few others poking fun at me: Liz has provided some fresh venison for us, Liz won the John Deere award, etc. All in fun! My Cayman is in the shop as of this writing and hopefully it’ll be fixed soon.
Coming up for me in the next several weeks are Werks Reunion, Monterey Motorsports Reunion, and Club Races at High Plains Raceway and Utah Motorsports Park (Miller).
See you around the Zone!
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Zone Rep Report August 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
Parade 2016 was a fun week in northern Vermont. I flew to this one and really missed having my Cayman with me, but I couldn’t take enough time off from work to drive to Parade. I had meetings all day on Saturday and Sunday, before Parade officially got off the ground, and it was great to see all of my friends from all over the country. I hosted a Zone Party in my condo on Sunday afternoon and it was great to have the support of Rocky Mountain and Alpine Mountain Regions to help with picking up the food and getting things ready for everyone, since I was still in the Summer Board of Directors meeting.
The first competitive event was on Monday with the Concours d’ Elegance on at the Jay Peak Resort golf course and I got there early in the morning to help with running the judges’ score sheets to the scoring tent. There were only 7 cars in the class that I was helping with so my volunteer shift was over before noon. This was good because I had to get back to the condo to get some work done (for my paying job).
Day Two of Parade was another volunteer shift for me – helping out with the TSD Rally start and it was fun to see all the smiling faces, knowing that many people would not be smiling too much by the end of the rally! I like doing TSD rallies and this would have been a fun one to do, but I’ll just have to plan on it for the next Parade.
Days Three and Four were to run the Michelin Drive & Compare event at a local airport. I’ve helped out with this event for the past several years and I thoroughly enjoy working with the Michelin and Jackson Motor Group teams. This is a popular event for Parade attendees, as they get to drive a new Porsche, supplied by Porsche Cars North America. This year’s comparison involved two different tires on two different 911’s. One car had Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2’s on all 4 wheels and the other car had Michelins on the front and Dunlop Maxx Race tires on the rear. A simple autocross-style course was set up on part of a runway and there were over 100 drivers on Wednesday who got to drive the cars and see if they could tell the difference in performance. The number of participants was notable because the weather was cold, windy and rainy almost all day. I was very thankful to have dedicated volunteers who didn’t wimp out from the miserable weather.
On Friday, I started the morning by participating in the Tech Quiz and I managed to guess enough correct answers to win my division! My studying consisted of reviewing the Owner’s Manual for my 964 – about 10 minutes before taking the quiz. Later in the morning, I attended one of the sessions at the Tech Academy and then I helped with handing out shirts and printing the certificates. If you have on your bucket list to earn an advanced degree, be sure to go to the Tech Academy at the next Parade. All you have to do is to attend 4 sessions and you can earn a Ph.D.!
Saturday morning is always reserved for the Parade Committee to meet and discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly for Parade. Overall, this was another very successful Parade and even though many of us discussed ways to improve things for next time, we had more good things to say than bad things.
I had to leave the Final Banquet early to get to Burlington for an early flight the next morning, but it was fun to see everyone one more time.
I’ve listed the many awards earned in Zone 9 and I hope when you see some of these people that you’ll congratulate them.
Ferry Porsche Region of the Year
Alpine Mountain Region, 2nd Runner-up
Autocross
S09M – Michael Ahnemann, 5th Place
S12M – Jeff Estein, 2nd Place
S12L – Justine Estein, 1st Place
Concours
Class PP06T – Rick Stillman, 2nd Place
Tech Quiz
964’s & 993’s – Liz Shaw, 1st Place
Cayenne, Macan, Panamera – Jim Sorensen, 1st Place
Website
Class I – Carrera Region, 1st Place
Class III – Alpine Mountain Region, 2nd Place
Newsletter
Class III – Roadrunner Region, 1st Place
Class V – Rocky Mountain Region, 3rd Place
Membership Factored Growth – Overall winner, Intermountain Region
RC Cars Concours
Classic 911 Street Car – Jim Osgood, 1st Place; Randy Osgood, 3rd Place
1/10th Race Car – Jim Osgood, 1st Place; Jim Osgood, 2nd Place
RC Car Racing
Randy Osgood, 2nd Place
Jim Osgood, 3rd Place
Art Show
Jayla Binek, 1st Place
Photography B&W, Randy Osgood, 2nd Place
Artisan Craft
Dona Sorensen, 2nd Place
Randy Osgood, 3rd Place
Adult Textiles
Dona Sorensen, 2nd PlaceSee you around the Zone!
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Zone Rep Report July 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
As promised, I attended Intermountain Region’s Amazing Rally in Salt Lake City. Rich Sanders and his team did another amazing job with the rally. I was the navigator in the Boxster of Intermountain Region’s Newsletter Editor, Jeremy Rosenberger. We were assigned to be the sweeper car and our job was pretty easy. We managed to answer all of the questions (and most of them correctly!) but we did a mediocre job with the challenges. How was anyone able to catch a plastic liter bottle launched into the next county?? The weather was windy but at least the rain stopped before the rally began, which was at the Shriner’s Hospital for Children (and the designated charity for the rally). Dinner afterward was at the Porsche of Salt Lake dealership and the food was excellent. My trip was short but a lot of fun packed into one day.
I didn’t make it to Lubbock to join West Texas Region for their drive to Sweetwater, TX, for the events at the WASP Museum (airshow, guest speakers at the luncheon and dinner, etc.) but judging from the photos that WTR President, Wil Carter, sent to me, it looks like the PCA members had a great time. Memorial Day weekend just got too busy for me.
The first Saturday in June, I joined several Llano Estacado Region members for their monthly breakfast at Furr’s Cafeteria in Amarillo. We were pleased that Larry G. from WTR made the drive from Lubbock to have breakfast with us. And it’s always great to catch up with the LLE members.
By the time you read this article, Parade @ Jay Peak, VT, will be history. I’ll have a full report and photos for the August article.
Before I sign off, I want to remind everyone to get out and travel around Zone 9 to participate in any of the events hosted by our 7 Regions and vie for the coveted Zone 9 Challenge trophy. I’ve listed some upcoming events in July and August and be sure to check the Region websites for details and updates.
See you around the Zone!
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Zone Rep Report June 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
Early May for me meant PCA Club Racing at Circuit Of The Americas track, outside of Austin, TX. I couldn’t get there until Friday night, but early the next morning, I headed to the track. I had been to the track twice before – once for the inaugural Formula 1 races and then a year later to run a marathon in and around the track. So I can honestly say that I’ve “run” at COTA! This time around, I wanted to help out with Timing & Scoring so I spent nearly the entire weekend in the T&S suite, which overlooks the start/finish. Michael Wingfield, head of PCA Club Racing Timing & Scoring, and Franklin Kalk were there to take care of the T&S duties for the sprint races and the enduros on Sunday. There were also some volunteers from Hill Country Region to help run the results to the grid master and to keep an eye on the drivers taking their mandatory pit stop.
Michael had mentioned that the facilities and equipment were very fancy at COTA and he did not exaggerate! We had huge monitors to view the results from the timing software, plus there were 3 TV monitors on the back wall so that we could keep up with everything else going on, during breaks in the schedule. The Control Room was also very fancy, with several large monitors, showing the track at every corner and at some other areas.
After the races and HPDE on Saturday, many of the volunteers and corner workers met for beer and pizza at a local microbrewery. I turned in for an early evening since I had only gotten about 5 hours of sleep the night before.
On Sunday, I got more involved with helping out Michael and Franklin, especially for the hour-long enduros. The rain mostly held off but there was enough rain to cause most of the drivers to put rain tires on their cars. I was thrilled to be able to ride in the Panamera pace car, although sitting in the backseat, I wasn’t able to take very good pictures.
Fortunately, both enduros were mostly incident-free and there were some spin-outs but the drivers were able to get back on the track. Zone 9/Rocky Mountain Region member, Joe Bank, had an excellent race and came in second overall. Congratulations, Joe!!
I left the track soon after the second enduro was done, as I needed to get to the airport for my flight back to NM.
Coming up for me later in May is Intermountain Region’s Amazing Rally and I’ll possibly join West Texas Region for their drive to Sweetwater and to attend the Memorial Day events going on that weekend.
Then in June, it’s Parade at Jay Peak! Hope to see several of you around the Zone.
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Zone Rep Report May 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
Hard to believe we’re already well into the second quarter of 2016. As far as PCA is concerned, it’s business as usual – lots of activity going on with all of the Zone 9 Regions. I attended the RMR New Member Social in March and I was very impressed with the organization and level of participation by the Region leadership. The party was held at the Man Cave in Westminster, CO, and there were several tables set up with printed material and pictures of the various events. There was also a food drive, where non-perishables and cash were collected. Everyone enjoyed pizza and drinks for lunch and throughout the event, ticket numbers were drawn for door prizes. It was great to see lots of seasoned RMR members, as well as to meet several new members. I’m sure RMR will see many of the new members at their upcoming events.
During the first Saturday in April, Roadrunner Region’s local dealership, Porsche of Albuquerque, hosted an unveiling of the new 911 Carrera S. It was quite the fancy party and one of the treats outside (besides the chocolate truffles) was a line-up of historical 911’s, including a 50th PCA Anniversary Club Coupe. Inside the showroom, we saw a 60th PCA Anniversary edition 911 GTS Club Coupe belonging to Roadrunner member, Tom Linton. The evening’s guest speaker was Bruce Phillips, “a 911 resident expert”. Bruce gave an interesting talk, describing the featured historical 911’s, and then he pointed out the design features of the new 911. I’ve attended some of Bruce’s tech sessions in the past and I always learn a lot from him.
A couple of days after the event at Porsche of Albuquerque, event registration opened up for this year’s Parade in Jay Peak, VT. I know that the majority of Zone 9 members will not be attending Parade this year, but I hope they’ll visit the PCA website and Facebook for regular updates.
And speaking of event registration, be sure to watch for an announcement from PCA for when Treffen Lake Tahoe will open up for registration. That should happen sometime in May.
Hope to see several Zone 9 members soon!
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Zone Rep Report April 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
February in Roadrunner Region means Frostbite Series! The first autocross of the year was held in early February and then the second one was held on February 27th at a parking lot adjacent to the Route 66 Casino, west of Albuquerque. Vance Bass and his team set up a challenging technical course, which is typical of this venue because of the small lot size. I wasn’t able to drive my car in the autocross because of prior commitments but I did get to see the two groups go through their laps. Everyone seemed to be having a good time and I expect the afternoon sessions went well. Thanks to RR photographer, Phil Ganderton, for the excellent photos.
The following weekend, I joined some PCA members and several other sports car aficionados for a Cars & Coffee at the Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado, northwest of Santa Fe. This was a casual gathering at the resort on the first Saturday of each month and it was great to see some old friends and meet some new ones. When I got to the resort, there were several cars parked near the front doors, including three Acura NSXes, some Corvettes, a beautifully restored red MG, and an old Range Rover. Hopefully, I’ll be able to attend this Cars & Coffee more often since it’s just outside of Santa Fe.
This was a short write-up for April and by the time I write May’s report, I should have more Region events to report. I’m still planning to go to the RMR New Member Social and I’ll probably head to Intermountain Region in April.
Hope to see several Zone 9 members soon!
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Zone Rep Report March 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
The PCA Winter Board of Directors meeting was held in Atlanta during the next-to-the-last weekend in January. The Zone Reps started things early by meeting at 8am on Friday. We had several guest speakers throughout the day and we had some good Zone Rep-only discussions. It’s always great to get together and talk about what’s going on in our Zones, plus we welcomed 4 new Zone Reps into our special group.
On Saturday, our meetings started early again and we continued with speakers from the National staff. Even though we were stuck in the hotel meeting rooms all day, we did check on the weather from time to time. This was the weekend of the massive snow storms that hit the south and traveled up to Washington, DC, Pennsylvania, and New York. Some people found out that their flights were going to be cancelled so they reserved rental cars for the trip home.
The Board of Directors meeting was held in the afternoon and after a presentation from PCNA’s Paul Gregor, members from the PCA Executive Council presented quite a bit of information. Much of it centered around comparisons from what was going on in the club in 2005, to 10 years later. The EC also discussed their strategic vision for the next 10 years: providing value to the members, embracing and supporting new technologies as they relate to member communication and interaction, and remaining fiscally responsible.
After the BOD meeting, everyone piled into big buses and headed to the Porsche Experience Center, on the Atlanta airport property. In case you’ve been living in a cave, I’ll quote the description from PCNA: “The Porsche Experience Center, which features a module-based 1.6 mile driver development track, includes a Driving Simulator Lab, Porsche Driver’s Selection Store, Carrera Café, and Restaurant 356 for the ultimate fine-dining experience. The venue is also home to Human Performance Center, Business Center, Classic Car Gallery and Restoration Center and the Porsche Exclusive – Personal Design Studio.” I was surprised at how HUGE the entire facility is! We were divided into a few groups and Porsche staff members led us on tours to the major features of the building. My group was the first one to get “spirited” rides around the track and that was great because there was still some daylight left. When we went outside, there was a line of red 911’s waiting for us. Fun, fun, fun! I definitely need to look into returning to the Experience Center to drive on that track.
After the tours, we enjoyed a delicious dinner at Restaurant 356 and then got back into the buses for the trip back to the hotel.
A few weeks later, I held the Zone 9 Presidents’ meeting at the Homewood Suites near the Denver International Airport. I was pleased to have presidents and vice-presidents from all 7 Regions, plus our guest speaker this year was PCA Vice-President, Tom Gorsuch. There were also webmasters and newsletter editors from most of the Regions. Several of us met for dinner at the Urban Sombrero on Friday night and then on Saturday, we had a full day of meetings and discussions. Tom showed the slides from the EC’s presentation at the Winter BOD meeting and it was nice for the meeting attendees to get that information.
After the meetings were finished, we met for dinner in downtown Denver at the Rock Bottom Brewery. This was Super Bowl weekend so much of the crowds in the restaurants and the streets were dressed in Broncos orange and blue. There was a big group of Rocky Mountain Region members who joined us for dinner and it was a great get-together. Plus, we were treated to a beer tasting and short tour of the brewery. Thanks very much to RMR member, Holly Jackson, for arranging everything.
Coming up for me in March will probably be the RMR New Member Social and maybe a couple of other Region events. Hope to see you around the Zone!
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Zone Rep Report February 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
We’re already into the second month of the new year and I’m looking forward to Zone 9 gathering momentum for another great year of PCA activities. Some of the Regions already have their calendars filled out with details for each month and some Regions are still setting dates, etc. The best way to check on things is to go to the Region website or to contact the Region president. For me, when I write the Zone Report for March, I’ll have attended the PCA Board of Directors meeting in Atlanta and I’ll have conducted the Zone 9 Presidents’ meeting in Denver.
Here are a few highlights for the Zone 9 Regions:Alpine Mountain -AMR’s key event of the year: Rocky Mountain High Way, July 27th – 31st
Socials, tours, autocrosses, charity events, etc. throughout the year. http://amrporsche.com
Carrera – 2016 is Carrera Region’s 50th PCA anniversary so check their website regularly so see what they have planned.
OktoberFiesta, tours, socials, etc. http://carreraregionpca.org
Intermountain – The Amazing Rally in May, plus Drivers’ Education, Club Race, autocrosses, tours, rallies, socials, etc. throughout the year. www.irpca.org
Llano Estacado – LLE will be celebrating their 50th PCA anniversary this year. Their regular meeting is to have breakfast on the first Saturday of each month at Furr’s Cafeteria, 8:30am CST, in Amarillo.
Roadrunner – Autocross school and autocrosses, tech sessions, tours, socials, etc. (Check out their new website!) www.rrrpca.com
Rocky Mountain – Concours d’Elegance in Littleton, autocrosses, Drivers’ Education, tours, Club Race, socials, tech sessions, etc. http://rmr.pca.org
West Texas – WTR will be running another successful autocross series, starting in May. They’re also planning socials, tours and tech sessions throughout the year. http://wtx.pca.org
Nationally, Parade 2016 in Jay Peak, VT in June (19th to the 26th). //2016parade.pca.org
“Treffen Lake Tahoe”, September 7th to the 11th. “PCA Escape” has been re-branded to be known as “PCA Treffen North America”. Check www.pca.org for more information.
Start working on your bid to win this year’s Zone 9 Challenge and I hope to see you at a Porsche event soon!
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Zone Rep Report January 2016
Hello Zone 9ers,
Welcome to 2016! Even though this is the January 2016 report, I still have to tell you about the end of the year in Zone 9. In November, I attended a fun Ladies’ Luncheon at the home of Paula Sears and Mike Suttle. It was great to visit with everyone and get caught up on their news. One of the creative ideas that Paula had was to “rotate” the women among the seating areas so that they were able to chat with different people throughout the luncheon.
A couple of weeks later, I traveled to Ontario, CA, for PCA Tech Tactics West, which was held at the Porsche Training facility. This was my third Tech Tactics and I thoroughly enjoyed all of the presentations. The highlight of the day was the presentation on the Cayman GT4 Clubsport. The car was unveiled at the LA Auto Show the day before so it was unavailable to us at Tech Tactics, but we got to hear about the project from beginning to end. I also attended some excellent sessions on brakes, Porsche diagnostics, and tire technology. You gotta put Tech Tactics West on your “to do” list for 2016!
After Thanksgiving, I drove to Amarillo to attend Llano Estacado Region’s Holiday Party. This year, it was held at Vintage Auto Haus and it was a treat to be able to walk among all the pretty cars, before and after dinner.
And then a few days later, I drove to Colorado Springs to attend Alpine Mountain Region’s Holiday Party, held at The Pinery. The AMR members always put on a fun party and it was great to visit with everyone and to be a part of their celebration. I think it’s admirable that the Region leadership recognizes all of the hard work from the members and the sponsorship and support they get from Porsche of Colorado Springs.
As is usual during the holiday season, more than one Zone 9 Region held their holiday party on the same day – December 5th. I was unable to attend Roadrunner Region’s party but I do want to congratulate Bob and Patricia Blackwell on winning the Zone 9 Challenge for 2015! They were presented the trophies at the Roadrunner party and you can see from their picture that they were thrilled to win the challenge. They were tied with another couple for the award and their attendance at Escape 2015 gave them the win. Way to go, Bob and Patricia!
Coming up for me in January is the PCA Winter Board meeting in Atlanta. We’re going to get a tour of the Porsche Experience Center and I hope we get to “experience” the track, up close and personal!
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Zone Rep Report December 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
Hard to believe I’m already writing the December Zone Report! It’s still November since I have to provide the report to the newsletter editors and webmasters early enough for publication in December, but I don’t remember what happened to October! The only Zone 9 Region event I was able to attend in October was Carrera Region’s OktoberFiesta. Like the last few years, the weekend’s events were centered in Las Cruces and Deming and the fun got started on Friday evening. Things were a little low-key, which was good so that everyone could get some rest before the next day.
We had planned to have PCA President Caren Cooper join us but unfortunately, her sinuses had other ideas and she was not able to make the trip from Austin. As it was, Hurricane Patricia was wreaking havoc in Austin, so she might not have been able to fly out anyway. On Saturday, about 22 cars headed out on a day-long tour, led by Andy Medley. If you’ve never gone on a tour from this excellent leader, you’re really missing out! We headed north on I-25 and then got on backroads, which led us through the little towns northwest of Las Cruces. We were able to see lots of pecan groves, chile fields and cotton fields. The road through the Gila National Forest was twisty and hilly – perfect for Porsches! Lunch was in Silver City and then we made our way back to Las Cruces through more forested roads and then through the flatter areas outside of Deming. Some people opted to head straight to Las Cruces and some of us stopped at Arroyo Seco track to meet up with the drivers who had spent their day with the High Speed Drivers’ Education event. As you can see in the picture below, Brian Leduc saw a gopher snake on the track, crossing behind a 911.
On Saturday night, we enjoyed a delicious buffet dinner at the Hotel Encanto, complete with door prizes and free posters. Then on Sunday, Carrera Region hosted an autocross and most yummy barbecue lunch at Arroyo Seco. Big thanks to President Dan Thomas, Lenny Loftin, and Andy Medley for putting on another successful OktoberFiesta!
Still to come in November is Roadrunner Region’s Ladies Luncheon and PCA’s Tech Tactics West and then in December, let the partying begin!
Hope to see many of you before the end of the year!
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Zone Rep Report November 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
September in Zone 9 means Club Racing and HPDE at Miller Motorsports near Salt Lake City. Unlike last year, the weather cooperated and both days were sunny and rain-free. The HPDE started things off on Friday and then on Saturday morning, there were practice sessions and a (non-points) sprint race. I helped a little with Timing, after getting the sponsor banners placed in a few areas. On Sunday, the 1-hour Enduro started at 10am and then the Sprint race started at 1pm. Rocky Mountain Region members, Tommy Dean and Joe Bank, won in GTC4 and GTC5, respectively, and Intermountain Region member Darrell Troester won in GTC3. In the Sprint race, the winners were: GTC5, Joe Bank; GTC3, 1st place – Darrell Troester; 2nd place – Chris Vivolo; and 3rd place – Mark Kemp. And during the awards presentation in the afternoon, Joe Bank was presented with the “Workers Choice” award. Congratulations, Joe!
Just a few days after returning from Salt Lake City, I headed to Monterey for Rennsport Reunion V and had a wonderful time! I’ve attended the last 2 Rennsports and this one was by far the largest and most spectacular. I volunteered at the PCA Hospitality Tent on Friday and it was a great place to be to see many PCA friends. During the day on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, PCA and PCNA featured several speakers and I got to listen to the talk on the new 991.2 Turbo, witness the winning of the 60th Anniversary Club Coupe, and to listen to (former and current) Porsche racers.
There was so much going on all over the track that it was impossible to see and experience everything but I did watch a lot of racing from my two favorite spots: the stands at Start/Finish, and the Corkscrew. If you were not one of the 57,000+ attendees this year, be sure to plan on attending the next Rennsport. Even if you were at RRV this year, do plan on attending the next one!
The weekend after Rennsport, I joined many Roadrunners (and a couple of Alpine Mountain Region members) for the Balloon Launch Party at Porsche of Albuquerque. The dealership is perfectly situated for viewing the balloons and this year, we were treated to lots of balloons moving above the dealership. PofA has been hosting breakfast and coffee for us for several years and it’s well-appreciated.
Coming up for me in late October is Carrera Region’s OktoberFiesta and then in November, I’ll head to Ontario, CA, for PCA’s Tech Tactics West. And in between those events, I hope to attend a few other Zone 9 Region events.
Hope to see many of you somewhere in the Zone!
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Zone Rep Report October 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
The second half of August was a busy one for me. I went to the Club Races and DE at High Plains Raceway in the middle of the month and had a blast. I got into Denver on Thursday night and headed to the track on Friday morning. I didn’t have a lot of work to do until the banner box showed up so I helped set up tables, etc., for later in the day. On Saturday, I helped out with Timing and it was interesting to learn the software and how to get the equipment set up. Another advantage to helping with Timing is that I got to stay inside the air-conditioned room the whole time! And that was appreciated on Saturday, as the temperature got into the high 90’s, and maybe hit 100. That night, just when we were finishing dinner, a couple of thunderstorms rolled in and when I got to my motel, the electricity was out and stayed out for a few hours. Mother Nature sure did her part in supporting this year’s theme: Rocky Mountain Thunder!
On Sunday, I helped again with Timing and it was a busy day with the DE groups and the Sprint races (the Enduro was on Saturday). Overall, it was a very fun weekend. Thanks to Brian Leary, Vicki Earnshaw, and Kathy Fricke – and the rest of the volunteers.
The next weekend, I headed southeast to Lubbock for West Texas Region’s 35th PCA anniversary party. We were honored to have PCA President Caren Cooper join us for the events on Friday and Saturday and there were also a couple of founding members at the dinner on Friday night. After breakfast on Saturday morning, Caren and I headed to the autocross site and checked in. Although Caren had to go to the airport before she was able to get some timed laps, she was able to drive my car in a couple of practice sessions. Thanks to Brian Harnish and his crew for putting on such a well-run event.
Dinner that night was at Cagle Steaks & BBQ and some people headed to Chances R Night Club, afterward. After a full day of autocrossing and being in the sun, I needed to call it an early evening.
The next day, many of us met for breakfast at the Overton Hotel and then gathered in the parking lot of the Buddy Holly Center for pictures and then a private tour of the museum. It’s an impressive little museum and if you’re ever in Lubbock, check it out. The manager described the many displays and there was also a small theater that had a short documentary on Buddy Holly. Big thanks to WTR President, Wil Carter, and his team of hard-working volunteers for putting on a fabulous weekend of celebration. Here’s to the next 35 years, West Texas Region!
Still to come in September is the Club Race and DE at Miller Motorsports and then RENNSPORT a week later! I’ve been waiting 3 years for RRV and really looking forward to it.
Hope to see many of you in the next few weeks.
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Zone Rep Report September 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
As I’m writing this, it’s still the middle of summer, even though this is the September report. Still lots of Porsche-friendly summer weather for us! Toward the end of July, I joined the Rocky Mountain Region for their annual “Peak to Peak” tour and it was one of the best tours I’ve been on! Seventy-three Porsches (and one MINI Cooper) gathered at The Man Cave in Westminster for check-in and the drivers’ meeting, then we headed out in 3 run groups to the mountains. It was great to drive through the Rockies and I reminisced about all the time I spent in the mountains when I was going to college at CSU and then when I worked and lived in Littleton. When we got into Estes Park, we were led to the Stanley Hotel by the local police department and it was nice to get the special treatment. Once we were parked, all of us gathered for a delicious breakfast buffet and then those who were signed up for the “Ghost Tour” got started while everyone else explored the hotel on their own. Although the Stanley Hotel is more popularly known for its part in Stephen King’s thriller, “The Shining”, the history of the hotel is very fascinating.
Next up for me are two Club Races in Zone 9, at High Plains Raceway and Miller Motorsports, respectively. We’re all keeping our fingers crossed that whoever takes over the management of Miller will continue to allow Club Racing and DE’s at the track.
Here are the Zone 9 events for the next two months and I highly encourage you to attend many of them! The Zone 9 Challenge trophy is still up for grabs and there are plenty of events for you to put yourself in contention for the trophy. Remember, you get extra points if you attended Parade and if you’re going to attend a big event outside of Zone 9, like Escape. Be sure to check the Zone 9 Calendar and/or the Region website for most-current info.
| September 3 – RMR Membership Social 5 – LLE Breakfast 5 – RMR Autocross 12,13 – RMR HPDE 13 – Carrera Cars & Coffee 13 – IR Autocross 18-20 – IR Club Race & HPDE 19,20 – AMR Fall Mystery Tour 19 – RR Ladies Luncheon 19,20 – RR Autocross 19 – RMR Picnic 26 – IR Porsches & Pancakes 26 – WTR Autocross |
October 3 – RMR Membership Social 3 – LLE Breakfast 3 – RR Balloon Fiesta Breakfast 3,4 – AMR HPDE at La Junta 4 – IR Autocross 4 – RMR Tour 10,11 – IR Tour to Moab/Gateway 17 – RR Chili Cook-off 17,18 – RMR HPDE 23-25 – Carrera OktoberFiesta 24 – IR Fall Social 24 – RMR Autocross 24 – WTR BBQ |
Hope to see many of you soon!
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Zone Rep Report August 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
Well, Parade 2015 is behind us and if you missed it, you missed a good one! The weather was not concours-friendly and some other events had to be brought inside, but the entire week was a ton of fun. I got into French Lick on Friday afternoon and met with other Zone Reps for dinner on Friday night. After 2 full days of meetings, the “real” Parade got started on Sunday night with the Welcome Party. The theme this year was the “60’s” and as you’ll see in the picture below, some cars showed up in costume!
Later in the week, I went to the concours, the Presidents’ Reception, participated in the TSD Rally, co-chaired the Michelin Drive & Experience, and went on a bus tour to Maker’s Mark and Jim Beam distilleries. For the Concours Banquet, one of the highlights of the evening was when a shiny new Cayman GT4 was driven up to the stage! The Parade of Porsches was fun on Saturday and there were lots of people waving to us as we made our way to the little town of Paoli. Definitely a very fun week and we’re already looking forward to next year’s Parade in Jay Peak, Vermont.
Here are the results from the various Parade competitions and I’d like to extend a special congratulations to the Rocky Mountain Region winners – and their big haul on prizes!
- Region of the Year: 2nd runner-up, West Texas Region
- National Newsletter Contest, Class III Regions: 3rd place, Ramblings, Roadrunner Region
- Autocross: S02M, 3rd place, Ken Provasi (RMR); S09M, 1st place, Greg Curtiss (RMR); S12L, 1st place, Justine Estein (RMR); P10M, 2nd place, Kim Wardle (IR)
- Concours: Group – Preparation, Class PP06T, 2nd place, Paula Sears (RR); 3rd place, Jim Osgood (RMR). Group Preparation, Class PP08T, 3rd place, Paul Orkild (RMR). Walt & Kathy Fricke (RMR) displayed their 2007 997 Turbo in the “60 4 60” collection.
- Tech Quiz: Q03M, 3rd place, Walt Fricke (RMR); Q05M, 1st place, Greg Curtiss (RMR)
- TSD Rally: Unequipped Nav, 1st place, Jim & Dona Sorensen (AMR); Unequipped, 6th place, David & Bette Seeland (RMR)
- RC Concours: Cayenne Class, 1st place, Jim Osgood (RMR); 10th Scale Class, 2nd place, Randy Osgood (RMR); Race Class, 2nd place, Jim Osgood
- Art Show: Porsche Family Choice, 2nd place, Randy Osgood; Photography Elements of Design, 2nd place, Randy Osgood; Artisan/Functional Class, 3rd place, Randy Osgood; Studio Art, 3rd place, Jim Sorensen (AMR); Functional Art, 2nd place, Dona Sorensen (AMR)
Hope to see many of you later this summer!
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Zone Rep Report July 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
During the last 2 weekends in May, I was able to attend Roadrunner Region’s Fiesta New Mexico and Intermountain Region’s Amazing Rally. The socializing with Fiesta started on Thursday night at The Lodge, north of Santa Fe, and it was great to see old friends and meet new Fiesta attendees. Then the next morning, many of the attendees met for a drive-out to the Santa Fe Ski Basin. I couldn’t go because I had to work, but I joined everyone for the gimmick rally/drive-out to Taos. We took the High Road and with all the recent rains, the countryside was green and beautiful. Live mariachi music and special “Porsche Margaritas” – what could be better for a Welcome Reception?
The next morning, everyone cleaned their cars and got them ready for the concours at the Taos Country Club. I had never been to that area outside of Taos and the homes and views were spectacular. Fiesta Chairs, Bill and Suzy Kaltenbach, arranged for live music and the food was delicious. Joe Almers and his team did a great job of placing the cars, which made for perfect pictures every time.
On Sunday, there was a drive-out to Angel Fire and we got the chance to see more of the beautiful forests and meadows. Lunch was at Zebs and they did an outstanding job of feeding about 40 hungry tourists! After getting back to Taos from that drive-out, many Fiesta attendees joined Bob Blackwell on a tour to the Earthship Community, which is a collection of homes that were built with recycled materials. The goal of this community is to “live without polluting and without depleting our resources…”
That night, we had the Awards Banquet and the special guest speaker was Leonard Turnbeaugh, an accomplished 356 racer from northern Nevada. Leonard regaled us with stories of the big tracks that he’s raced at and he described some of the parts that his company, Neutekcams, designs and builds: pistons and cams.
Hats off to Bill and Suzy Kaltenbach and their team for creating and running a very fun Fiesta and for raising a lot of money for the Watermelon Ranch.
The weekend after Fiesta, I participated in Intermountain Region’s 6th Annual Amazing Rally and it was a lot of fun. My mom was my navigator and although we had some challenges, we appreciated the areas where the rally took us. We met at a 356 restoration shop south of Salt Lake City, Morris Brothers Motorsports, and then officially started the rally at Ken Garff Porsche in Lehi, UT. After the rally, we were joined by many other Intermountain Region members for a social at the dealership. There was a silent auction and lots of door prizes were handed out. Also as part of this rally, there was a fundraiser for Shriner’s Hospital for Children. Good job, Intermountain Region!
Parade is just around the corner so I’ll see lots of you in French Lick, Indiana!
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Zone Rep Report June 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
In mid-April, I attended the California Festival of Speed in Fontana, CA, and had a great time! I got there on Thursday afternoon, picked up lunch at In-N-Out, and then helped Zone 8 Representative, Tom Brown, set up sponsor banners and cones for the car displays on Friday. Auto Club Speedway is HUGE! The track itself has a low-banked D-shaped oval with an infield and there are acres and acres of parking lots all over. The Festival of Speed consisted of PCA Club Racing, Time Trials, track tours, food court Porsche Driving Experience, driving simulators, Vendor Row, Porsche concours, Porsche corral, Porsche swap meet, Euro club corrals, and super car paddocks. It’s a good thing the event is 3 days because there’s so much to see and experience!
Friday’s drivers’ schedule consisted of practice sessions and then on Saturday, there were qualifying sessions, sprint races, and time trials. Before the end of the day, there was a 60-minute enduro race. Many of the volunteers and some of the drivers got together for a buffet dinner on Saturday night and it was nice to talk about the day’s activities. And since the dinner was early, some of us got together for a late-night snack at In-N-Out!
I was only able to see some of the practice sessions on Sunday because I had to head to the airport to fly home, but I did manage to get a little more shopping in at Vendor Row! All in all, I had a great time at the Festival of Speed and I’d like to attend it again next year. Big thanks to all of the PCA volunteers for putting on a fun event.
During the second weekend of May, I attended West Texas Region’s first autocross in a series of five autocrosses this year. The weather leading up to the weekend was dicey at best, with wind, rain, hail, snow, tornadoes, etc. – all over the southwest. But the morning of the autocross, Mother Nature gave us a break and the clouds held onto their raindrops. I was very impressed with the organization and running of the autocross since this is only the second year that West Texas Region has been running autocrosses in a long time. All of us drivers got 12 practice runs and then 4 timed runs. Park Place Porsche was also there with 5 new models and they were giving demo rides to people. WTR is very fortunate to have their sponsorship and support. After the day was done, many of us gathered at Fox & Hound for bench racing and food!
Still to come in May is Roadrunner Region’s Fiesta New Mexico and Intermountain Region’s Amazing Rally. I have my trips planned for both events and I’m really looking forward to being busy in Zone 9, right up to the end of the month.
We’re already heading into the second half of 2015 so please try to attend Zone 9 Region events as often as possible!
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Zone Rep Report May 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
I hope that many of you are part of the 900+ registrants for this year’s Parade! It’s going to be a good one, especially with all of the 60th anniversary celebrations going on. One of the highlights is the “60 4 60” display, which will consist of car representation from each of the 60 years of PCA. The cars will not necessarily be the best concours examples, but will have ties to the Club’s history. This year’s Parade will also feature a “PCA Museum”, where memorabilia and Club artifacts will be on display. I’ll contact Parade registrants soon to see if we want to gather for a Zone 9 party.
Last month, I attended the 12 Hours of Sebring and it was lots of fun. If you’ve never been to that track, I suggest adding it to your race or spectator calendar! The weather was very warm and humid, so I tended to stay in the Porscheplatz tent most of the time. PCNA was very generous in sponsoring this tent and there were 2 big-screen TV’s, tables, chairs, and plenty of water. Lots of door prizes were handed out and I got lucky, winning a set of Porsche Design wine glasses. Thanks to PCNA and Zone 12 for all their hard work at the Porscheplatz.
I saw some qualifying sessions and races on Friday and at noon, I was able to ride in David O’Neal’s Cayman GTS for track parade laps. David is the former Zone 12 Rep and he’s driven at Sebring numerous times. I also met up with Dede Rogers from Carrera Region and she introduced me to some of the drivers and team members. The whole weekend was lots of fun and I’d like to go there again next year.
Next on my PCA calendar was to attend Alpine Mountain Region’s 40th Anniversary Celebration Brunch at the Broadmoor “Cheyenne Lodge” in Colorado Springs. I left Santa Fe well before sun-up and got to the party right on-time. It was wonderful to see many of my AMR friends and to meet more AMR members. Kathleen Lennon and her crew put on a great party and it was nice to hear from past presidents. Founding member, Fred Veitch, also spoke for a few minutes, describing how AMR got started. Here’s to the next 40 years, AMR!
As of this writing, I’m a few days away from going to Fontana, CA, for the California Festival of Speed. Should be lots of fun, plus on the way to the track, I’ll be able to eat at my favorite place, In-N-Out Burger!!
Next month, I still have on my calendar to attend West Texas Region’s autocross in Lubbock and I hope to get into town in time to socialize with some West Texans. And later in the month will be Roadrunner Region’s Fiesta New Mexico and then Intermountain Region’s Amazing Rally, at the end of the month.
Please check the Zone 9 Region calendars for events to attend so that you can shoot to win the Zone 9 Challenge!
Hope to see you at a Porsche event soon!
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Zone Rep Report April 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
The Zone 9 Presidents’ meeting was held in El Paso at the end of February and it was a huge success. We were honored to have PCA National President Caren Cooper, National Secretary Cindy Jacisin, and National Safety Chair Jo Martin as our guest speakers. We got things started on Friday at the home of Dan and Pam Thomas. Dan is the Carrera Region president and he and Pam have put in LOTS of time to keep Carrera Region active. Their home overlooks the city lights of El Paso and we enjoyed delicious food and the chance to visit with each other.
On Saturday, we met all day at the Radisson hotel and we had excellent discussions on club topics. It was great to hear from both Caren and Cindy and all of us learned some things about the club. In the afternoon, the webmasters and newsletter editors had their own break-out session to discuss the work with their respective Regions and the rest of us discussed the Region Procedure Manual, among other topics. Jo Martin gave an excellent talk on safety and focused on empowerment – for both safety stewards and PCA participants at events. We also picked the location for next year’s Zone 9 Presidents’ meeting and it’s going to be somewhere in the Rocky Mountain Region.
That night, we gathered for a most delicious dinner at the El Paso Club in downtown El Paso. It was nice to see the city lights from the 18th floor and everyone had a great time. Carrera Region member and Past-President, Dede Rogers, was our generous host, and everyone enjoyed talking to her about cars, cats, dogs, cars, travel, cars. J
I’m slowly adding more events to my PCA calendar and still to come is the California Festival of Speed, Alpine Mountain Region’s 40th PCA Anniversary party in Colorado Springs, an autocross in Lubbock, the Amazing Rally in Utah and Fiesta New Mexico! But there are still several “open” weekends for the next few months so I’m sure I can find something else to add to my calendar!
As of this writing, we are about a week and a half away from Parade Registration and I hope there will be LOTS of Zone 9 members who are planning to attend Parade. It’s going to be a good one, with lots of 60th anniversary celebrations, and you don’t want to miss out on staying at the spectacular French Lick Resort.
Hope to see you at a Porsche event soon!
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Zone Rep Report March 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
Welcome to Spring 2015! Although this column is the March edition, I’m really writing it in February, just back a few days from the Winter Board of Directors meeting in Baltimore. The Executive Council and National Staff were busy for 2 solid days of meetings and we accomplished quite a bit. The Zone Reps met all day on Friday, with guest speakers from Jo Martin – National Safety Chair, Monarch and Damon Lowney – PCA Website, David O’Neal – National Escape Chair and Alex Bell – new HPDE Chair. On Saturday, we heard from Vicki Earnshaw – new Club Racing Chair, Jennifer Webb – National Awards Chair, Dan Cole – Region Focus Editor, and then we met for the Board of Directors meeting in the afternoon. Then that night after dinner, we got on a bus to the National Headquarters. It was a real treat to meet many of the people that we’ve only known by email or phone – and to see lots of the Club memorabilia, which has been collected through the years. The highlight of the evening was the unveiling of the new 911 GTS Club Coupe. PCA Executive Director, Vu Nguyen, and PCA Past President, Manny Alban, described the history of the development of the car. The car was first unveiled at last month’s Rolex 24 in Daytona, but it was still exciting to see the car, just a few feet away. Porsche will build 60 GTS Club Coupes and all but one will be available to PCA members only. One car will be given away to a lucky Club member. The car is definitely an eye-catcher and the two big distinctive features are the unique color (Club Blau) and the ducktail rear spoiler. You can get more info about the car, including links to some videos, on the PCA website.
I’m still formulating my plans for Region visits this year but so far, I’m planning to attend events inside and outside of Zone 9 in March, April and May. I’ll finally get to attend The 12 Hours of Sebring in March and I’m really looking forward to it. Roadrunner Region will start their autocross Die Serie in March and West Texas Region has a long tour planned for the middle of the month.
In April, I’m planning to attend Alpine Mountain Region’s 40th PCA Anniversary and then the following week, I’m going to the California Festival of Speed at Fontana. I’m also hoping to attend the HPDE at High Plains Raceway, on the last weekend of April.
Coming up in May, possibly a visit to West Texas Region for an autocross or a social event. Then there’s Roadrunner Region’s Fiesta New Mexico over Memorial Day weekend and following that set of events will be Intermountain Region’s Amazing Rally (on my bucket list!).
Hope to see you at a Porsche event soon!
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Zone Rep Report February 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
The PCA Club Race series results are in and there were several Zone 9 members who had podium finishes: Paul Gutowski, GT3, 3rd place; Andy Wilzoch, GTA2, 1st place; Alan Benjamin, GTC1, 1st place; Andre Nieuwenhuizen, GTC2, 2nd place; and Joe Bank, GTC5, 1st place. Congratulations, all!
And we have another winner from Zone 9: Raleigh Fehr from Intermountain Region, won one of the Germany trips that was raffled off last fall.
Now that we’re into the second month of the year, I hope everyone is getting their PCA event calendars together. I know that many of the Zone 9 Regions have lots of events planned for this year. Here are a few highlights:
AMR’s 40th anniversary party in April. Get details for this and other events at: http://amrporsche.com
OktoberFiesta, tours, socials, etc. http://carreraregionpca.org
Drivers’ Education, Club Race, autocrosses, tours, rallies, socials, etc.
Fiesta New Mexico (www.fiestanewmexico.com), autocrosses, tours, socials, tech sessions. www.roadrunner-region-pca.org
Autocrosses, Drivers’ Education, tours, Club Race, socials, tech sessions, etc. http://rmr.pca.org
Liz Shaw
Zone 9 Rep
Region’s 35th anniversary party, autocrosses, tours, socials, etc. http://wtx.pca.org
Llano Estacado Region hosts its monthly breakfasts in Amarillo, TX. Meet them on the first Saturday of each month at Furr’s Cafeteria, 8:30am CST.
Nationally, Parade 2015 in French Lick, Indiana in June. //parade2015.pca.org
“Escape to Rushmore” in late September – early October. Check www.pca.org for updates.
Rennsport Reunion V – Laguna Seca, CA – October 9 – 11, 2015 www.mazdaraceway.com/porsche-rennsport-reunion-v
Hope to see you at a Porsche event soon!
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Zone Rep Report January 2015
Hello Zone 9ers,
Can you believe we’re already starting a new year? Many of the Zone 9 Regions already have their calendars filled with many events so be sure to take a look at them and start your planning! We will have the Zone 9 Challenge again this year and now is the time to set your strategy to win the big trophy.
The last of 2014 was busy for me but I had lots of fun in the process. I attended the LA Auto Show and PCA Tech Tactics West around the 3rd part of November and both events were great. I had never been to such a large auto show and it was overwhelming. PCNA had their own show room and they welcomed PCA members with a launch party for the 911 GTS. I walked around the convention center and marveled at the fancy displays and representation from all of the major car manufacturers. It was also interesting to see some concept cars.
After the show, I headed to Ontario with Pete Tremper (National DE Chair) and Tom Brown (Zone 8 Rep) to start setting up things for Tech Tactics. The PCNA Training facility is huge, with several lifts and classrooms. This is also where all of the Porsche parts are shipped and then distributed around the country. There were 3 “tracks” of presentations, which included a tech talk on the 918 Spyder, the new Andial program, and new tire technologies from Michelin. In addition, Rusnak Pasadena Porsche had lots of Porsche stuff for sale.
Moving into December, I attended parties at most of the Zone 9 Regions, starting with Llano Estacado on the 1st. Their annual party is held at the Amarillo Club in the Chase bank building and it’s always great to see the club members. Then later in the week, I attended the Carrera Region party in El Paso, joined up with the West Texas Region members in Santa Fe, and then headed to Colorado Springs for the Alpine Mountain Region party at the Air Force Academy. Not to be missed, I want to congratulate West Texas Region’s Rick Garlock on winning the Zone 9 Challenge for 2014! Rick attended events at 3 Regions outside of WTR: Rocky Mountain’s DE in April, Roadrunner’s Fiesta in May, and a monthly breakfast with the Llano Estacado members. He also visited the PCA headquarters in Columbia, MD, and attended the PCA Palooza in Arkansas. Good job, Rick, and thanks for supporting the Zone 9 Regions!
I would also like to congratulate 2 other Zone 9 members for winning Toyo tires. There were 2 contests this year – for Zone Instructor of the Year and for Rookie Driver of the Year. Intermountain Region’s Mike Clarke is the Instructor of the Year from Zone 9 and Rocky Mountain Region’s Art Van Dyck is the PCA Rookie Driver of the Year. It’s particularly exciting that Art won because that was among entries from nearly all of the 140 PCA Regions. All of the instructors and rookie drivers received very nice commemorative medals from Toyo.
And finally, we’re still waiting to hear the results for the 2014 PCA Club Race series, but we already know that several Zone 9 racers will finish high in the standings. Good job, everyone!
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All the best for 2015!
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Zone Rep Report December 2014
Hello Zone 9ers,
As promised, Carrera Region’s OktoberFiesta was held in Deming and Las Cruces, NM, in late October. They always put on a great weekend full of events and this year they did not disappoint. Most of us arrived in Las Cruces by Friday evening and after getting out packets, we enjoyed adult drinks with PCA members from Carrera, Roadrunner, and Southern Arizona Regions. On Saturday morning, several people went on a very interesting drive-out, led by Andy Medley. Unfortunately, I was not able to go on the tour because of some work that I had to do in the hotel, but I heard very positive feedback from everyone. Andy is the consummate tour leader and if you ever want to participate in a fabulous multi-day rally, check out the Dustball Rally, which is organized by Andy.
People who didn’t go on the tour got their day started at the Arroyo Seco Motorplex, which is about 35 miles north of Las Cruces. The weather was perfect and the drivers had more than their fill of practice laps around the track. They were joined for lunch by the people who had gone on the driving tour and the rest of the day was casual but fun.
That night, all of us enjoyed a delicious buffet at Hotel Encanto (our host hotel) and a special treat that night was a performance by a local folk dancing group. After dinner, Carrera Region President Dan Thomas handed out door prizes to several lucky people.
On Sunday, we had an autocross at the track and the highlight of the day was the delicious barbecue. Many of us remembered the barbecue from last year and we were very pleased that the same company was there this year. After the autocross results were announced, everyone hit the road to get back home and it was nice to reflect on another successful OktoberFiesta.
There’s not much left on the event calendars for the Zone 9 Regions but still to come is the last autocross of the season for Roadrunner, some socials in November for a few of the Regions, and then everyone will have some sort of holiday party in December. I’m planning to attend the parties for Alpine Mountain, Intermountain, Llano Estacado, and Carrera Regions. I just hope that the weather is more cooperative this year than it was last year and I don’t have to cancel plans because of ice and snow. It’s too bad that I won’t be able to attend the parties for Roadrunner, Rocky Mountain, or West Texas Region, but the scheduling just won’t work.
Hope to see many of you for the last days of 2014!
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Zone Rep Report November 2014
Hello Zone 9ers,
Miller Motorsport in September means PCA Club Racing and the weekend was lots of fun! I got to the track on Friday, after getting some work done at the hotel and everything was well underway. The schedule for Friday included PCA Test & Tune Group and 2 DE groups. It was nice to see some friends from Colorado and to meet up with the friendly folks from Intermountain Region. There were also drivers from Nevada, California, and Arizona.
Saturday’s schedule consisted of more practice and DE groups, plus a sprint race and enduro. The weather cooperated and it was a great day for track driving. If you’ve never been to Miller, you gotta go! It’s a huge track and you can see just about the entire track from the shaded outdoor seating area, above the garages. I was in the control room and able to hear the communication between PCA, the track officials, and the corner workers.
For the enduro, I handed Pirelli hats to the class winners: GTC3, 1) Darrell Troester; 2) Chris Vivolo; 3) Karsten Nossack; GTC4: Russ Timmons; GTC5: 1) Joe Bank; 2) Annand Sharma.
On Sunday, the weather was not nearly as cooperative as the day before and it rained off and on almost all day. By the time the Super Sprint got started, the track was very wet and there was standing water in several areas. The GT classes started out with 7 cars but by the end of the race, there were only 2 drivers left. Everyone was driving fairly slowly and the drivers who didn’t change to rain tires had to go even slower. In GTC5, Annand Sharma finished ahead of Joe Bank.
The next weekend after the Club Races, I traveled to French Lick, Indiana, for Parade planning. I’d never been to that area of the country before and the drive from Louisville, KY, to French Lick, gave me a sense of the countryside: miles of green meadows and leafy trees! The resort in French Lick consists of two hotels, the French Lick Springs Hotel and the West Baden Springs Hotel, and PCA will take over both hotels next year. The managers were extremely welcoming to us and they’re very excited to host Parade in June. I went to the regional airport where the autocross, Drive & Compare, and Street Survival School will be held and it was very exciting to see all the space we’ll have! We’ll be able to use the runway and the taxiway for our events.
On Saturday, we were taken on a tour of the entire property and we were very impressed with the elegance and beauty of both hotels. There’s a little pizza counter, 6-lane bowling alley, and bar in the lower level, next to the spa and fitness center. Concours prep will be accommodated in the indoor tennis courts and the concours will be held in the nearby golf course. The Time/Speed/Distance and Gimmick Rally Chairs spent time on Friday and Saturday, getting ideas for their respective events.
I came back home on Sunday but several PCA members stayed in French Lick for other Parade planning. The resort is going to be a wonderful location for Parade 2015.
And then the NEXT weekend, I joined lots of Roadrunners at oh-dark-hundred for the Balloon Fiesta launch party at Porsche of Albuquerque. The dealership has been very generous and supportive of our Region for many years and they had coffee, juice, muffins, and breakfast burritos for us on Saturday morning. The weather was perfect and we saw hundreds of balloons rise into the sky for the Mass Ascension. It was great to visit with fellow Roadrunners and get caught up on how they spent their summer.
Still to come in October is Carrera Region’s OktoberFiesta in Deming and Las Cruces, NM, and then in November, Roadrunner Region will host their Die Serie Finale at Motiva Speedway, west of Albuquerque.
Last year, I thoroughly enjoyed PCA Tech Tactics West in Ontario, CA, and I plan to attend again this year. The tech sessions were very informative and it was great to see old friends and meet new PCA members. Registration should open in October so watch e-Brake News for more info.
Hope to see you in the remaining months of 2014!
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Zone Rep Report October 2014
Hello Zone 9ers,
Mid-August in Colorado and you know what that means – PCA Club Racing and HPDE at High Plains Raceway! This year’s event was spectacular and went off without a hitch, thanks to the dedication of RMR/PCA Club Race Co-Chairs Brian Leary and Vicki Earnshaw and their hard-working team. I arrived at the track on Friday morning, August 15th, and started hanging the sponsor banners, with the help of fellow Zone Rep, Kim Fritze, from Zone 10. There was a buzz in the air as everyone was preparing for a fun weekend.
Friday’s schedule consisted of Registration, “Track Chalk-talk” and practice. That evening, everyone was treated to a “Brats, Brews and Blues” party, featuring Austin Young.
On Saturday, things got started early with more practice, including Race Group practice. Then in the afternoon, the 1-Hour Enduro Race got started and the competition was fierce. My job as the Zone Rep was to present Pirelli hats to the GTC4 and GTC5 winners and to take their pictures. High Plains Raceway doesn’t have a “winners circle” area and it was a hot day, so I had to run after the drivers as they headed to their trailers and get their pictures before they changed out of their race suits. The good thing was that I was able to keep track of the winners with the Race Monitor app on my iPad so I knew who to “target”. In the GTC4 class, co-drivers M. Vess and J. Hart came in first, followed by Tommy Dean and Pat Laughlin. In the GTC5 class, Joe Bank came in first, followed by Pierce Marshall and Ken Finch. One of the biggest classes in the Enduro Race was with Boxsters and it was great to see the competition.
Everyone enjoyed socializing and sharing a delicious dinner in the track Pavilion that night. Big hats off to Kathy Fricke and her team of workers who made sure that there was enough water during the day and that everything was ready for the dinner. A classy touch was to have fresh flowers on every table.
Sunday’s schedule consisted of Drivers’ Education sessions, practice sessions, and Race Group qualifying sessions. Then in afternoon, there were two races. In GTC4, Race #1, Tommy Dean came in first, followed by Pat Laughlin and Mike Vess. In GTC5, Race #1, Joe Bank came in first, followed by Ken Finch and Pierce Marshall. For Race #2, GTC4, Mike Vess came in first, followed by Pat Laughlin. Joe Bank finished again in first place in the GTC5 Race #2, followed by Ken Finch.
After the last Drivers’ Education group finished their session, there was an awards ceremony in the Pavilion. Fun, fun, fun! Everyone worked hard to create a great experience for the drivers and we look forward to next year’s Club Race. For more information and pictures of the weekend, go to http://www.rmrclubrace.com/.
For me, the next PCA Club Race I’ll attend is during the 3rd weekend in September at Miller Motorsport, outside of Salt Lake City. I’m sure it’ll be another fun weekend and I’m looking forward to it.
Coming up in October, I’ll attend Carrera Region’s OktoberFiesta in Deming and Las Cruces, NM. This is the Region’s biggest event of the year and they put on a great event, full of socializing and driving. It’s always fun to see fellow Zone 9 members and there are usually some PCA members from Tucson at the event.
There are still plenty of events going on in Zone 9 so don’t forget about the Zone 9 Challenge! You can get to the Region websites from the Zone 9 website, plus the Zone 9 calendar has much of the Region event information in it. Speaking of the Zone 9 website, Sean Cridland has done a superb job with the website (and winning the top prize for Zone websites at Parade 2013) but his schedule is getting too full to continue as the webmaster. If you’re interested in taking over as the Zone 9 webmaster, please get in touch with me.
Cheers!
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Zone Rep Report September 2014
Here we are in September! I hope everyone’s had a great summer and that you’re making plans for more PCA involvement for the rest of the year. During the third weekend of July, I went to Farmington, NM, to join my fellow Roadrunners for a weekend of autocrossing at the Sunray Casino parking lot. This is always a treat because the parking lot is HUGE and the drivers always get a lot of seat time. I would have taken some pictures but I was busy either driving or helping out as a corner worker.
Then in early August, I drove to Amarillo to join the Llano Estacado Region members for their monthly breakfast at Furr’s Cafeteria. For such a small Region, they always get great participation and I was pleased to hear that some of their members have been participating in West Texas Region’s events.
As of this writing, I’m planning to attend and help out at Rocky Mountain Region’s PCA Club Race in mid-August. I attended the Club Race and HPDE at High Plains Raceway last year and I’m really looking forward to going over there again. If you’ve never been to High Plains, I highly encourage traveling to Byers, CO, for the Club Races. Once you take a look at that spectacular track, you’ll want to drive on it!
To continue on the topic of PCA Club Races, Intermountain Region will host their Club Race and HPDE on the weekend of September 20th and 21st. I wasn’t able to attend the event last year so it’ll be fun to join everyone this year. Intermountain Region has HPDE’s earlier in the summer where the drivers get to use about half of the track each time. So for the HPDE in September, the full track is used.
Before the month of September is over, I’ll travel to French Lick, IN, with the Parade Committee. Michelin will be on-hand and we’ll go to the site for the Parade 2015 Autocross and Drive & Compare.
I’d like to extend a big thank-you to the Regions that have submitted articles for the Panorama’s “From The Regions” column. It’s great to read about their events so keep contributing those articles! If your article doesn’t make it into one issue of Pano, it will probably make it into the next issue.
Finally, be sure to check the calendars for Zone 9 and all 7 of our Regions and sign up for the events! Here’s a snapshot of what’s happening in the next couple of months:
August
15 – 17 – Rocky Mountain Region PCA Club Race, High Plains Raceway, CO
16 – West Texas Region Autocross, Lubbock, TX
17 – Roadrunner Region 44th Annual Corrales Round-up, NM
23 – Rocky Mountain Region Autocross, Front Range Airport, CO
31 – Sept. 1 – Intermountain Region Tour to Jackson Hole, WY
September
5 – Roadrunner Region Tour to Cloudcroft, NM
6 – Alpine Mountain Region Car Show, Rally, and Social, Colorado Springs, CO
6 – Llano Estacado Region Monthly Breakfast Social, Amarillo, TX
13, 14 – Roadrunner Region Autocross, Sunray Casino, NM
19 – 21 – Intermountain Region PCA Club Race, Miller Motorsports, UT
20, 21 – Alpine Mountain Region Fall Mystery Tour, Colorado Springs, CO
28 – Carrera Region Autocross, Arroyo Seco Raceway, NM
October
4 – Roadrunner Region Balloon Launch Party, Porsche of Albuquerque, NM
4 – Llano Estacado Region Monthly Breakfast Social, Amarillo, TX
4,5 – Alpine Mountain Region HPDE, La Junta, CO
18 – Roadrunner Region Drive-out, NM
24 – 26 – Carrera Region OktoberFiesta, NM
25 – Intermountain Region Fall Social, UT
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Zone Rep Report August 2014
Parade 2014 is history and I’m proud to say that Zone 9 made an impact and several of the members brought home awards and trophies! For me, the road to Monterey was not exactly a direct route, as I chose to drive through Zion National Park and Yosemite National Park. Driving through the desert was boring but the two National parks made up for it.
When I got to the Hyatt in Monterey, I immediately saw friends from all over the country and then later in the week, I saw my old friends from Loma Prieta and Monterey Bay Regions. This is one of the most fun things about Parade – being able to connect with people I’ve met at previous Parades and making new friends at the current Parade.
The other fun thing about Parade is participating in the many events and volunteering. Unfortunately, we were not able to host the Michelin Drive & Compare this year, but that opened up the schedules for Jo Martin and me and we got to participate in more events. On Monday, I helped Display Chair Sean Cridland with the Concours Historic Display, then I helped out for the rest of the day with the Timing & Scoring Committee. I found a navigator to help me with the Time Speed Distance Rally, and my friend, Linda Hayes, was the navigator for the Gimmick Rally. I also autocrossed and went on the driving tour to Hearst Castle. And to cap off the week, I joined hundreds of Porsches at Laguna Seca Racetrack for pictures and a couple of laps around the track.
Here is a summary of the awards that were presented at Parade.
National Awards
Public Service – Rocky Mountain Region. They raised over $100,000 for over 14 charities! There were two large on-going charity events, seven HPDE’s, and an annual board charity allocation.
Website Competition
Class III – 1st place, Ann Mulhern, Roadrunner Region. Good job, Ann, and thanks for continuing the history of award-winning websites.
Parade Awards
Concours
Group Preparation, Class PP06S, Street 996/997, Model Years 1999-2012
2nd Place, Walt & Kathy Fricke, Rocky Mountain Region
Group Preparation, Class PP10S, Street Boxster/Cayman, Model Years 2013 – on
2nd Place, Andy & Marion Simon, Roadrunner Region
Group Restoration, Class RS014F, Full Factory Racecar, 1975 RSR
2nd Place, Tom Lutz, Rocky Mountain Region
Restoration Group Level of Achievement
Weissach Award:
Tom Lutz, Rocky Mountain Region, 1975 RSR
Melvyn Shapiro, Rocky Mountain Region, 1956 356
TSD Rally
Unequipped Navigation
8th Place, Mike Suttle & Paula Sears, Roadrunner Region
Unequipped Plus
1st Place, Doug & Cindy Saxen, Alpine Mountain Region
Unequipped
7th Place, Ken Provasi & Kevin Burke, Rocky Mountain Region
(Hooray for 41st Place – Liz Shaw & John Mueller)
Autocross
S01M, 1st Place, Ken Provasi, Rocky Mountain Region
S03M, 1st Place, Greg Curtiss, Rocky Mountain Region
S05M, 4th Place, Brian Leduc; 7th Place, Willard MenNe, Roadrunner Region
S05L, 2nd Place, Liz Shaw, Roadrunner Region
S10M, 4th Place, Barry Bartee, West Texas Region
P10M, 1st Place, Brandon Bowen, Intermountain Region
Tech Quiz
Q05M, Mid 911/930, 1978 – 1989
4th Place, Tommy Thompson, Roadrunner Region
Q05M, 911 (996 & 997)
1st Place, Greg Curtiss, Rocky Mountain Region
Q09M, Cayenne/Panamera
1st Place, Jim Sorensen, Alpine Mountain Region
Art Show
Classic Photography – Amateur
Honorable Mention, Kourtney Miles, Intermountain Region
Sculpture – Amateur
3rd Place, Randy Osgood, Rocky Mountain Region
Fiber Art – Amateur
Honorable Mention, Dona Sorensen, Alpine Mountain Region
5k Race
1st Place, Age Group 50-59, Linda Hayes, (Guest) Roadrunner Region
Golf Tournament
1s Place Team, Marc Martin, Roadrunner Region
R/C Cars
1st in Class; 3rd overall, Randy Osgood, Rocky Mountain Region
Gimmick Rally
No trophy winners from Zone 9 but lots of participation!
Other notes: Jean Stubbs from the West Texas Region won a Limited Edition 356 watch and Liz Shaw & Tommy Thompson each won a Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro tablet.
Moving past Parade and into July and August, I’m planning to get to some of the Zone 9 Regions: Intermountain’s “SLC to Midway” tour on July 26th, Llano Estacado Region’s monthly breakfast on August 2nd, and Rocky Mountain Region’s HPDE and Club Race the weekend of August 15th thru the 17th. Unfortunately, this means that I’ll miss Roadrunner Region’s 44th Annual Corrales Round-up on August 17th, and West Texas Region’s autocross on August 16th. But I hope to join WTR for their Founders dinner on August 23rd. Drumming the “Zone 9 Challenge” again: everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend Region events all over Zone 9!
See y’all this summer!
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Zone Rep Report July 2014
Hello Zone 9 members,
Happy summer, Zone 9 members!
The month of May and early June were busy for me and I hope all of you were busy, also, with PCA activities! Around the middle of May, I traveled to Lubbock, TX, and joined the West Texas Region members for a Show ‘N Shine and fun luncheon at the Cattle Baron. Park Place Porsche from Dallas brought a car transporter full of Porsches for sale 
and people signed up for test drives. This was a long way from Dallas and everyone appreciated the support and efforts from the dealership. There were over 51 Porsches in attendance and most of them were entered into the Show ‘N Shine. My car wasn’t really a contender – forgot to wash the bugs off the headlights – but the winners were rewarded for their fine efforts. Another great accomplishment from this event was the attraction of new members to PCA.
A couple of weeks later, I accompanied PCA National Safety Chair, Jo Martin, on a trip to central New York for the “Clash at the Glen”, PCA Club Race at Watkins Glen. It took us all day to fly from Albuquerque to Elmira, NY, but it was well worth the trip. When we got to Montour Falls, just a few miles from the track, we joined everyone for a delicious buffet and got the game-plan for the next day. Jo planned to shadow PCA Club Racing Chair, Bryan Henderson, and my plan was to watch the racing action and help out wherever needed.
There were 285 drivers signed up for the weekend and things got started early, with a worker meeting at 7:15. After the drivers meeting, the first group started out on the track at 8:30. From there, everything worked like clockwork and the various groups got out for their race sessions. Zone 1 Rep, Jennifer Webb and Zone 11 Rep, Aaron Ambrosino, along with about 60 volunteers, worked very hard with this event and it went off flawlessly.
Saturday consisted of practice sessions and sprint races and then on Sunday, there were enduro practice sessions and 3 enduro races. Unfortunately, we were only able to see a couple of the enduro practice sessions because we had to get to the airport to fly back to ABQ. The track is HUGE and on Saturday afternoon, we jumped on a golf cart and got a guided tour from one of the volunteers.
The weekend after the PCA Club Race, I attended the New Members Social at the home of Roadrunners Yvonne and Paul Teske. They’ve hosted the social at their house the last couple of years and they did an outstanding job of providing a delicious barbecue lunch for about 45 people. It was great to meet the new members and to see some seasoned members who are getting back into the Roadrunner Region action. Several hands were raised when the question came up about who will be attending Parade.
And speaking of Parade – as I’m writing this, I’m getting my list together of what to take to Monterey. I’ll have pictures and stories for my August report.
For those of you who aren’t going to be able to get to Monterey for Parade, you have another chance to get over to the area for a great car event. In mid-August, PCA will host the inaugural Werks Reunion in Carmel Valley. The event takes place on Friday, August 15, and from what I’ve heard, this will be a spectacular event, with over 500 Porsches showing up. For more information, go to www.werksreunion.com.
On a sad note, friends and family are mourning the passing of long-time Rocky Mountain Region member, Grady Clay. Grady was a very active member of PCA and had the honor of winning the Parade Tech Quiz 4 times! He was well-respected by everyone and his technical knowledge of Porsches was legendary. Among his many accomplishments, he was also a mechanic, racer and concours judge. Grady will be missed by everyone.
Liz Shaw
Zone 9 Rep
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Zone Rep Report June 2014
Hello Zone 9 members,
Another April is on the books and it was another successful PCA month for everyone. I traveled to Colorado Springs in mid-April for Alpine Mountain Region’s Déjà Vu Drivers’ Education at Pikes Peak International Raceway. Dwight and Dana Kasten went out of their way to provide a wonderful track experience for new and seasoned drivers. Many of the new drivers were due to their “AMR DE 101” in early March. After a full day of driving, we were treated to a technical presentation from Drew Dayton of Toyo Tires. Drew described the different types of tires that Toyo offers, plus he reviewed some techniques like measuring tire temperature. Drew also joined us for a delicious catered dinner and answered questions from everyone.
On Sunday, I had to hit the road to Santa Fe before the driving began because of a scary-looking storm that came into the area early. Many drivers didn’t show up but for those that were there, I heard that they were able to get in lots of laps. Good job, Dwight & Dana – we’ll see you next year at PPIR!
Unfortunately, I was not able to join Llano Estacado Region for their monthly breakfast in Amarillo but I promise I will get there this summer!
Further south in Texas, West Texas Region reported on some successful events in April and early May. And they have a new website! Be sure to check it out: wtx.pca.org. In mid-May they’ll have a Porsche Car Selection seminar with involvement from Park Place Porsche. And then on June 7th, they’ll have an autocross at a parking lot at South Plains Mall. WTR has already received a lot of sponsorship money and this will help to get their equipment together for their autocross series. With the new website and President Wil Carter’s regular updates, the Region is well on their way to attracting new members and providing value for existing members.
I won’t be able to attend Intermountain Region’s Amazing Rally in mid-May but I’ll be looking for some reports on how it went.
At the end of May, Jo Martin (National Safety Chair) and I will travel to New York for the “Clash at the Glen – Club Race”. We’re both looking forward to seeing the Watkins Glen racetrack and meeting everyone there.
And then there’s Parade, just two weeks later! I’m looking forward to seeing everyone from Zone 9 and around the country. For first-time Parade attendees, you’re in for a real treat!
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Zone Rep Report May 2014
Hello Zone 9 members,
Spring is upon us and in full swing! Just about all the Zone 9 Regions are busy with outdoor events like tours, autocrosses and DE’s. And when they’re not outside, they’re inside – getting together for socials or tech sessions. Here are some pictures from recent tours that Intermountain, Roadrunner, and West Texas Region had in March.
As I write this, I’ll be packing my bags to head to Pikes Peak International Raceway for the Déjà Vu DE, hosted by Alpine Mountain Region. This is a fun track and if you’ve never driven on it, make your plans for whenever AMR has another event there. This year, we are pleased to have Toyo Tires on-hand to give a presentation of tire set-up, camber settings, etc. Toyo plans to give these presentations at various DE’s around the country and we’re happy to be the first Region to hear their presentation!
Next on the calendar for me is the monthly Llano Estacado Region breakfast in Amarillo and then in mid-May, Intermountain’s “5th Annual Amazing Rally”, sponsored by Strong Porsche. It’s been awhile since I’ve been on a rally and I’m really looking forward to driving around the Salt Lake City area (if that’s where the rally takes us!).
And speaking of driving around, I hope many of you are making plans to attend Zone 9 Region events and vie for the coveted Zone 9 Challenge trophy! Roadrunner Region will host their annual Fiesta New Mexico in Albuquerque during Memorial Day weekend and the other Zone 9 Regions will also be busy in May. Check the Zone 9 Calendar, the Region calendars, and MotorsportReg for more info.
Finally, many of you have signed up for Parade and from the looks of things, it seems to be on track to set an attendance record! The last I looked at the Parade Registration site, there were about 1100 registrants! When I get some statistics on the Zone 9 registrants, I’ll send an email to everyone to see if there’s interest in caravanning to Parade and/or some kind of get-together in Monterey.
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Zone Rep Report April 2014
Hello Zone 9 Members!
For the PCA Executive Council, National Staff, and Zone Reps – the first quarter of the year means the PCA Winter Board meeting. This year, it was held in sunny San Diego, but for several people, it wasn’t sunny in their part of the country and with thousands of flights canceled, those people didn’t make it to the meeting. There are advantages to living and traveling west of the Rockies! The Zone Rep meetings included guest speakers and here are some points from my notes:
Pete Stout, Panorama Editor
- For 2013, Pano came in $408k under budget
- Ad sales are up; operating expenses are down
- Pete and his staff are looking into ways to get more people to view the digital version of Pano
Jo Martin, National Safety Chairperson
- Forming a Safety Committee, to be comprised of Safety Chairs from each Zone
- Pointed out that many safety issues involve non-racing events, like tours
Bryan Henderson, PCA Club Racing Chairperson
- Club Racing is up – 2000 licensed racers
- Re-negotiated contract with primary sponsor (Michelin and Jackson Motor Group)
- GTC 3, 4, 5, 6 classes
Doug Pierce, National Escape Coordinator
- Plans for the 2014 Escape to Magical Orlando include trips to the Kennedy Space Center and the Collier Car Collection
- Plans are on-track for Escape 2015 to Rushmore
- Escape 2016 will be voted upon by the Zone Reps at this year’s Parade; after that, a national committee will be formed
Pete Tremper, National Drivers’ Education Chairperson
- Pete’s replacement is Alex Bell from First Settler’s Region and will be shadowing Pete for 2014; will take over completely in 2015
- Instructor training at various Regions
- DE’s will now be referred to as HPDE’s
Meeting with the Executive Council
- Will be advertising for a Registry Chairperson
- RegionFocus needs a new chairperson. Want to get more info out, in smaller quantities. Want RegionFocus to contain a forum.
- Membership rebates will be sent to the Regions in the first quarter of 2014
- New PCA website to be rolled out in March
In other (Zone 9) news, several members of the West Texas Region combined a tour with a charity donation to the Lynn Co. Animal Shelter in Tahoka, TX. This shelter suffered a major fire in early February and the PCA members were able to make a sizeable donation of $1875, which will help toward the rebuilding of the shelter. Good for you, WTR!
I’m still working on my plans to visit a most of the Zone 9 Regions in the next few months. As you can see from the Zone 9 calendar, everyone’s getting very busy with autocrosses, HPDE’s, tours, socials, tech sessions – events galore!
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Zone Rep Report March 2014
Hello Zone 9 members,
I hope 2014 has been good for you, so far. Hard to believe we’re already into the third month of the new year, but spring weather means more driving opportunities! On the other hand, most of us don’t wait for perfect weather to get our cars out and either go on a tour or participate in an autocross. Some members from the Carrera Region invited members from the Mustang club in El Paso for an impromptu drive to Cloudcroft and Sunspot, NM. As it turned out, the Mustangs outnumbered the Porsches and everyone enjoyed the winter scenery and the chance to build some camaraderie between the two clubs.
I missed the first Roadrunner Region autocross of the year (Frostbite #1) but I heard that it was well-attended and everyone got the chance to work on their technical driving skills. Rocky Mountain Region also had an autocross in January – their annual Eiskhana on Georgetown Lake. I hope my schedule allows me to attend that event next year.
Getting back to March and to some planning, registration will open on March 1st for the Roadrunner Region’s 40th edition of Fiesta New Mexico. This year’s Fiesta will be centered in Albuquerque and some exciting new events are being planned, in addition to the traditional events. Check the event website, www.fiestanewmexico.com, for details.
Later in March, the 11th to be exact, Parade registration will open. As most everyone knows, this year’s Parade will be held in Monterey, CA, June 15th thru the 21st. Several Zone 9 members are involved in this year’s Parade as part of the staff or helping in another capacity. Rocky Mountain Region’s John Mackin is the Banquet Chairman; Jo Martin and I are the Michelin Drive & Compare Chairs; Sean Cridland is the Parade Webmaster and Historical Display Chairman, and fellow Roadrunner Region member, Riley Kelley, is designing the Parade trophies. As National Safety Chairperson, Jo Martin will also be busy checking on the various activities for safety. Parade is definitely the must-do event of the year and volunteering at Parade makes the whole experience that much better. Plus, by volunteering for 2 shifts, you’ll be able to attend the worker party at the end of the week where tons-o-prizes are handed out!
In mid-March (15th – 17th), West Texas Region will have a tour to Monument Valley, starting in Lubbock. I don’t have all the details right now, but if anyone’s interested in going on this tour, please contact Wil Carter, WTR President, and he’ll relay the info to the tour leaders.
Here’s another reminder to check the Region calendars frequently and get your plans together to win the Zone 9 Challenge trophy! With the various activities going on all over Zone 9, there’s something for everyone! And if you attend Parade and Escape, you get extra points!
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Zone Rep Report February 2014
I was glad to be able to join RMR for their holiday party at the Glenmoor Country Club and it was a fun evening for everyone. I flew into Denver from Austin so I wasn’t able to get to the party at the beginning but thankfully Kathy Fricke saved me a spot at one of the tables! Awards were handed out and all of the volunteers and leads for the events of 2013 were recognized and applauded. I was happy to present the Zone 9 Challenge trophy to repeat-winners, Nancy and Joe Warren and recognize their achievement of participating in the events at 5 of the 7 Zone 9 Regions (they also attended Parade in Traverse City, MI). It was also fun to swear in the 2014 RMR officers.
About a month after the RMR party, I had my first Zone event of the year: the Presidents’ Meeting in Colorado Springs. Fred Veitch was extremely helpful in setting up things for the weekend – the restaurant for the Friday night social, the meeting location (Marriott), lunch at Porsche of Colorado Springs, and then dinner at a private car collection. Fred even had a small car-wash station set up at the hotel and it was too bad that we didn’t get a chance to wash our cars (I avoided washing my car since it’s common for that exercise to induce a rain or snow shower!).
We had great participation for the Presidents’ meeting and there was much collaboration among everyone. These were the meeting attendees:
Alpine Mountain Region – President Tom Kautz (and wife, Patty), Vice-president Joel Godfredson, Newsletter Editor Phyllis Godfredson (and husband, Hank), and Webmaster Kathleen Lennon.
Carrera Region – President Dan Thomas (and his walking cast)
Intermountain Region -Vice-president Rich Sanders and Newsletter Editor Jeremy Rosenberger.
Llano Estacado Region – President Joseph Papp and Vice-president Alex Hallerberg.
Roadrunner Region – President Bill Kaltenbach, Webmaster Ann Mulhern, and Newsletter Editor Steve Waller.
Rocky Mountain Region – President Jim Widrig, 1st Vice-president John Mackin, 2nd Vice-president Joe Warren, Newsletter Editor David Schmidt, and Webmaster Scott Rogers.
West Texas Region – President Wil Carter
The agenda for the day consisted of discussing Zone 9 business (and Zone info, in general), PCA resources, PCA National events – Parade and Escape, Region calendars, and the Region Procedure Manual. Lunch at Porsche of Colorado Springs was a real treat – and it was not just the food! There were several race cars in the showroom and Porsches, Porsches, Porsches everywhere! Thanks very much to the PofCS team for having us over for lunch: Don Hicks (owner), Joe Brenner, Robert Prilika, and Fred Veitch.
After lunch, Roadrunner member, Sean Cridland, spoke to us on some PCA RegionFocus topics, the importance of preserving a Region’s history, and some of the car-related things he’s currently involved in. Sean has a vast experience with PCA and was able to answer questions from the meeting attendees.
Sean’s talk was followed by a break-out session for the webmasters and newsletter editors and the feedback I received was that they were able to collaborate and share information among each other.
The rest of us had further discussion related to the Region Procedure Manual and then when all of us were together, we discussed a few topics like attracting and retaining members, recruiting new officers and board members, and different types of events.
It was a long day but I was pleased with how the meeting went and I think everyone came away with some things they learned, reconnection with their friends from other Regions, and new connections with other people.
Please check the Region calendars on their respective websites and/or newsletters, and start your plan to win the Zone 9 Challenge trophy this year! I’m a little late in updating the Zone 9 Calendar but I’ll get to it as soon as I can. If you have any questions about events in some of the smaller Regions, just contact the Region president (email addresses are listed on the Zone 9 website, http://zone9.pca.org ).
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Zone Rep Report January 2014
It feels a little strange to be writing this for January 2014 but here goes. I thought the last two months of the year were going to be very busy for your humble Zone Rep but Mother Nature changed some of that! I was able to attend the PCA Tech Tactics in Ontario, CA, in November, but as of this writing, I was only able to attend two of the four Region holiday parties in December.
The PCA National Tech Tactics were held on November 23rd at the Porsche Training Facility. I arrived the day before and helped PCA VP Caren Cooper set up the reception areas for the next day’s attendees. The facility is HUGE! Behind the offices and training rooms is a gigantic warehouse of parts, which are 
eventually shipped to Porsche dealerships and independent shops all over the country.
This year’s Tech Tactics had a waiting list and there were over 130 PCA members in attendance! The day consisted of several sessions and we were divided into four groups. I listened to talks on Porsche maintenance, the GT3 America, tuning a 911, Porsche fuel injection, the 991 Turbo (the real thing was in the back of the room!), the Macan, and car detailing. Everything was first-class and I learned a lot.
At the end of the day, door prizes were given out and everyone received a goody bag with a t-shirt, Porsche lanyard, bottle of Griot’s Speed Shine, and USB key with a copy of all of the presentations, plus a PDF of the Porsche press information from the L.A. Auto Show. Oh, there were two other events where prizes were awarded: a scale-model “concours” and a radio-controlled car competition. All in all, a very fun day! I highly recommend attending the Tech Tactics and for next year, I’m going to plan my trip so that I can attend the L.A. Auto Show the same weekend.
November also proved to be a lucky month for Carrera Region’s Bill Walker, as he won a set of Toyo tires! In early November, all of the Zone Reps provided a name from each of their respective regions for the Top Instructor contest, sponsored by Toyo. Then National DE Chairman, Pete Tremper, drew a name for each Zone and Bill Walker was the winner from Zone 9! Congratulations, Bill, and thanks very much for instructing and helping drivers for many years.
I had scheduled trips to Amarillo, Abilene, and Colorado Springs for holiday parties, but as of this writing, I was only able to attend Llano Estacado’s party at the Amarillo Club on December 2nd. I always enjoy visiting with the friendly members from that region.
My trip to Abilene was canceled because of icy conditions and American Airlines conveniently canceled my flights into and out of Dallas. Given that I would have had a difficult, if not impossible time, getting to Colorado Springs by Sunday night, I canceled that trip, also. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate in my favor for the RMR party on December 14th.
I’ll get another chance to travel to Colorado Springs for the Zone 9 Presidents’ meeting in January. I’m really looking forward to meeting some of the new officers and reconnecting with some of the incumbent officers. Fred Veitch and his crew are helping tremendously and it’s going to be a fun weekend!
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Zone Rep Report December 2013
Hello Zone 9 members,
Here we are at the last month of 2013, winding down a little but also planning for 2014! For me, I plan to attend many of the same Region events that I attended this year, but I also want to get to some new (to me) events in Utah and Texas next year.
Prior to attending Carrera Region’s OktoberFiesta in Las Cruces and Deming, I attended one of the events of the 356 Registry’s West Coast Holiday in Santa Fe. The concours on the plaza was outstanding and it was quite a sight to see over 200 356’s parked on the plaza’s surrounding streets, and some of the streets that lead into the plaza. The cars ranged from 1952 to 1966 (I think) and they came from all over the country – and in some cases, some were shipped from overseas. It was great to walk among all of the cars and talk to the owners and spectators. Jim Puckett and his team outdid themselves in organizing and running such an excellent event.
A week after the West Coast Holiday, I was in Colorado for the Denver Marathon and I was able to attend the services for the Pools, in Colorado Springs. I still find it hard to believe that they’re both gone from us, but it was nice to talk with some of their family members and PCA members on Saturday.
Later in October, I joined Carrera Region for their OktoberFiesta, centered in Las Cruces. Several of us went on a driving tour on Saturday morning to Rockhound State Park and Spring Canyon State Park, with the first stop at Arroyo Seco Raceway. It was nice to see that Joe and Nancy Warren made the long trip from Colorado to join us! The tour ended back at Arroyo Seco, where we joined everyone else for lunch. Afterward, some of the tour people drove some sessions of the DE at the track.
Dinner that night was at Hotel Encanto (event host hotel) and, as always, lots of valuable door prizes were handed out! I won a nice black hat with the Porsche crest on it.
On Sunday morning, we had autocross practice sessions at the track, lunch, and then the timed runs were in the afternoon. Definitely a fun weekend for everyone and next year’s OktoberFiesta is already on my calendar!
Barely a week later, I flew to Salt Lake City on November 2nd and joined InterMountain Region for a dinner at the Bohemian Brewery and Grill in Midvale (about 15 miles from downtown Salt Lake). Another fine dinner with Club members and more door prizes! I wasn’t lucky this time but several people walked away with nice Porsche Design stuff, courtesy of Ken Garff Porsche in Utah.
For next month’s report, I’ll have info about the Tech Tactics at the PCNA Training facility in Ontario, CA. I’m really looking forward to this event, as I’ve never been to a Tech Tactics. I’ll also have info on the many events I’ll be attending in December: holiday parties at 4 of Zone 9’s regions!
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Zone Rep Report November 2013
Closing in on the last couple of months of the year – can you believe it? There are still several events going on in the Zone and once we hit December, there will be parties galore.
Before I get to more of the report and some of the upcoming Region plans, I need to report some sad news from Colorado. AMR members, Diana and Alec Pool, were involved in a tragic car accident on September 22nd and they both lost their lives. All who knew the Pools are still getting over the shock and they will be greatly missed. I first met Diana when she registered to attend the Roadrunner Region’s Fiesta del Porsche (as it was known at the time), and I got to know Diana better and better, throughout the years.
She was always the first one to “raise her hand” to volunteer for Fiesta and she was the type of person who truly wanted to help as much as she could. Of course, the volunteering had to be scheduled among her strong participation in Fiesta. She loved to show her Boxster, and then compete in the autocross and rally. I’ve lost count of how many Ashley Carroll awards she’s won but I’m pretty sure she had to start wearing the Bulova watches on her ankles. Alec, always with a book in hand, accompanied Diana on rallies and to the social events. The Pools will definitely be missed at Fiesta but we will always remember them. Services are scheduled for October 19th at 11am in Colorado Springs. Check the AMR website for details. In addition, cards can be mailed to their daughter: Toni Porter, 4050 Harbor Place, Colorado Springs, CO 80917.
Although not a PCA event, I attended the Santa Fe Concorso in late September and what a treat! I think this year’s show was the best ever. The concours was actually the cap to 
the end of “Concorso Week”, which included a tribute to Denise McCluggage, a social on Friday night at the Santa Fe Air Center, and a tour on Saturday. The cars on Sunday ranged from a 1907 Renault racing roadster to a 2013 Shelby Mustang GT350. But there were also motorcycles, bicycles, and even a set of pedal cars! It was difficult to pick a favorite and my choice kept changing. For more info and pictures of the show winners, check out the concorso website: www.santafeconcorso.com
On the same weekend in September, Carrera Region was the prime sponsor for the annual “Walk to End Alzheimer’s” at La Vina Winery. There were 2 Porsches displayed at either side of the stage, and the car owners allowed guests to take pictures inside the cars. Several Carrera Region members also displayed their cars outside, near the winery gardens. Carrera Region President, Dan Thomas, reported that 
this year’s charity event attracted a record-number of participants and raised the highest amount of money in the 6-year history of the event. Kudos to Carrera Region!
Speaking of Carrera Region, I’m registered to attend their annual OktoberFiesta at the end of October and if you haven’t signed up yet, go to motorsportreg and do it! There will be a Meet & Greet Friday night, driving tour and DE at Arroyo Seco track on Saturday, banquet on Saturday night, and then the autocross on Sunday.
Elsewhere in the Zone for early November: LLE’s monthly breakfast at Furr’s Cafeteria in Amarillo; IMR’s Fall Social at the Bohemian Brewery & Grill in Salt Lake City; WTR’s driving tour to Ft. Davis, TX; RRR’s Charity Autocross at the Airport Parking Lot in Albuquerque, NM. I won’t be able to attend everyone’s events but I’m looking into the early November events for IMR and WTR.
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Zone Rep Report October 2013
Happy Oktoberfest, Zone 9ers! I hope all of you will adhere to tradition and begin your celebrations in late September! For me, I will continue my Oktoberfest celebrations by attending Carrera Region’s OktoberFiesta in Deming and Las Cruces, NM. (More about that later.)
In mid-August, I attended the DE and PCA Club Races at High Plains Raceway in Colorado. I volunteered to help with Grid and I was busy all weekend. I like being in the middle of the action and, other than being a corner worker, helping in Grid certainly afforded me that opportunity. Eric Elliff did an excellent job of organizing and managing all of us grid workers and I enjoyed working with everyone. It was fun to see the drivers prepare for their DE sessions and race sessions, and once they were on the track, we were able to see part of the course from the grid area. On Saturday, the Enduro race had to be cancelled not long after it began because of a serious accident. It saddens me to report that Jerry Schouten succumbed to his injuries on September 7, 2013. Our condolences go out to Jerry’s family and friends.
Sunday’s races went well and several drivers from Zone 9 placed in the top spots. For a full listing of the race results, go to www.pca.org/Activities/ClubRacing/RaceResults.aspx. Hats off to all involved in organizing and running the DE and Club Races – it was a very enjoyable weekend!
The next Region event I attended was Llano Estacado’s monthly breakfast gathering at Furr’s Cafeteria in Amarillo. The Region may be small, but the level of participation is high and everyone enjoys getting together. I met a potential new member, Charles, and I think LLE can count him in with their membership.
As I mentioned in last month’s column, there is still plenty of time to attend Zone 9 Region events and shoot for the Zone 9 Challenge trophy! The details are available in the various Region websites and calendars, but here’s a quick run-down for the fall:
September 21, 22
RMR Caribbean Summer III DE at High Plains Raceway
IMR Full Track DE and PCA Club Races at Miller Motorsports
October 5
LLE monthly breakfast in Amarillo
RRR Balloon Fiesta Breakfast at Porsche of Albuquerque
RRR Chile Cook-off at Bruce Phillips’ house
October 5, 6
AMR Fall DE at La Junta
October 12
RMR Season End Drive to Edelweiss
October 19-20
RMR OktoberFAST DE at HPR
October 26
RMR Autocross, Front Range Airport
October 25-27
Carrera Region OktoberFiesta, Arroyo Seco Raceway and Las Cruces, NM
November 2
AMR Tech Session (details TBD)
LLE monthly breakfast in Amarillo
November 9
WTR drive to Ft. Davis, TX
RRR Charity Autocross
December 7
RRR Christmas Party
LLE monthly breakfast in Amarillo
December 14
RMR Holiday Party
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Zone Rep Report September 2013
Hello, Zone 9ers! My report for July and early August is a bit on the lite side. The months leading up to July were very busy for me on a local and national level, but then after Parade, things slowed down with my involvement. I attended the Die Serie #7 autocross hosted by the Roadrunner Region, at NAPA Speedway, west of Albuquerque. There are only 2 tracks in New Mexico and it’s always a treat to be able to get out on those tracks at least once a year. The participation was somewhat light, so the corner workers got a workout picking up cones!
Elsewhere in Zone 9, the Regions were busy with socials, tours, autocrosses, tech sessions and DE’s. Alpine Mountain Region’s tour specialists, Chris and Kathleen Lennon, led an interesting tour to Saratoga, Wyoming. Unfortunately, I could not join them, but Chris reported that it was highly successful and everyone had a great time. The group had breakfast in Monument, lunch in Laramie (WY) and after a scenic drive, dinner at the Platte River Community Center. After a night in Saratoga at a resort with natural hot springs, the group headed to Steamboat Springs for lunch and then back home!
On a sad note, the Roadrunner Region lost one of their long-time members and contributors. Bill Agnew passed away on July 28 at his home in Pojoaque and will be missed by all. From 2008 to 2010, Bill was the Technical Editor for the Roadrunner Region Ramblings. He was also a contributor to the newsletter in other years, and he served as a Director with the Santa Fe Concorso. Our condolences go out to Bill’s family and his many friends.
Coming up for August and September – PCA Club Racing in both Colorado and Utah, long-standing club events (Roadrunner Region’s 43rd Annual Corrales Round-up), tours, socials, and autocrosses. There are lots of opportunities to attend regional events and vie for the coveted Zone 9 Challenge Cup! I’m going to volunteer for the Club Race at High Plains and I’m really looking forward to it, as it’s been several years since I’ve attended a Club Race.
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Zone Rep Report August 2013
Ah, where do I begin?! The month of June was jam-packed with Porsche activity and it was a GREAT way to start the summer! After just a couple of weeks of rest from co-chairing Fiesta New Mexico 2013, I headed to Colorado for the “Hell on Heels”, ladies only DE at a police track in Golden. Everyone had a lot of fun and I was impressed to see 2 Novice groups of drivers – part of the 60 drivers that day. The weather cooperated and a notable event was when a fawn was born right near the track. The EMT’s carefully wrapped the fawn in a blanket and moved it well away from the track. After the event, everyone gathered at a local watering hole for Beer-thirty.
The next day, I went to another annual RMR event – the Cerebral Palsy Concours d’Elegance, held at Arapahoe Community College. The 30th anniversary of this event (founded by RMR members, Tom Scott and Stimson Kennedy) also celebrated 65 years of Porsche AG, the 60th anniversary of the very first Porsche owners club, and the 50th anniversary of the 911. I got there early and that was a good thing, as the day warmed up quickly. Talk about car-candy-overload! There were rows and rows of beautiful cars, representing several marques. I was pleased and surprised to see fellow Roadrunner, Dave Stinchcomb, showing his beautiful Gulf Blue 911.
The following weekend, I flew to Salt Lake City to be the PCA Observer at Miller Motorsports Park for Intermountain Region’s DE. There were about 70 drivers and the event was well-run and safe. I enjoyed watching the run groups get out on the track, plus I had a chance to get to know more of the IMR members.
Just a few days after returning from SLC, I hit the road to Traverse City, MI, for Parade 2013. The drive was nice and I only encountered some rain about 50 miles southwest of Chicago. I had a Zone Rep meeting on Saturday afternoon, then more meetings on Sunday. Big thanks to Joe and Nancy Warren, who helped with the sign-ups for the Michelin Drive & Compare event that Jo Martin and I were co-chairing. United Airlines had insisted that Jo stay in Chicago Saturday night and that made it impossible for her to be at Registration/Check-in first thing in the morning.
All day Monday and Tuesday, Jo and I were very busy with our event, as hundreds of people wanted to drive the new 911’s that PCNA had provided to us! But we did get to sneak over to the concours, which was held at one of the Grand Traverse Resort’s golf courses. I never get tired of looking at the results of people spending hours and hours cleaning their cars.
On Wednesday, I got to the autocross course in time to walk around it and develop a strategy. I visited with lots of friends and watched the first group, then got in my car and ran 5 laps. Half-way through our session, Hans Peter Porsche and some other people from Porsche AG showed up and impressed everyone with their racing skills. I finished in 2nd place in my class and I mostly pleased. It’s the usual thing – you wish you could have gotten just one more lap!
Thursday was tour day and I joined about 40 other cars for a driving tour to Mackinac Island. We boarded a ferry to the island and had a wonderful lunch at the Grand Hotel. The landscaping around town and the surrounding streets was absolutely beautiful with all of the flowers and greenery.
I took the Tech Quiz on Friday and then attended some tech sessions in the afternoon. Although I did better in this Tech Quiz than I’ve done in the past few Parades, the competition was tough and I finished near the bottom of my group!
Saturday was the Parade Committee after-meeting, then the Volunteer Luncheon, then the Final Banquet. I had signed up for the Parade of Cars but by this day, I was too tired and opted to watch the action from the side of the road, instead. The Final Banquet is always a nice time to see friends one more time, and it was exciting to see 2 new Caymans being awarded to the raffle winners. And Darwin Binek from IMR won the trip to Germany!
My drive back home was uneventful (thankfully) and I listened to 3 books on CD for the 2 days that it took me to drive 1620 miles!
Here are the results from Parade and I want to congratulate everyone from Zone 9 who participated in the competitions. Even if you didn’t win an award, you made Zone 9 proud by participating!
Germany trip: Darwin Binek, IMR
T-shirt contest: Carrera Region, 1st Place
Region Website, Class III, 1st Place, Roadrunner Region, Tony Richey
Zone Website, 1st Place, Roadrunner Region, Sean Cridland
Art Show
Classic Photography, Honorable Mention, RMR, Daniel Sembroski
Enhanced Photography, Honorable Mention, RMR, Randy Osgood
Enhanced Photography, 3rd Place, AMR, Jim Sorensen
Sculpture, Professional, 1st Place, RMR, Thomas Sembroski
Fiber Arts, Amateur, 1st Place, AMR, Dona Sorensen
Newsletter, Class V, 3rd Place, RMR, David Schmidt
RC Cars Track Race, 2nd Place, RMR, Randy Osgood
RC Cars Concours, Peoples’ Choice, RMR, Randy Osgood
Autocross
S05L – 2nd Place, RR, Liz Shaw
S07M – 3rd Place, RMR, John Mackin
S09M – 1st Place, AMR, Karl Schaeffer
S10M – 3rd Place, RMR, Walt Fricke
S10L – 1st Place, RMR, Kathy Fricke
P13M – 3rd Place, RMR, Ken Provasi
P13L – 1st Place, RMR, Lynne Zucker
Tech Quiz
Q03L – 1st Place, RMR, Kathy Fricke
Q05M – 1st Place, RMR, Richard Stillman
Q07L – 2nd Place, IMR, Jayla Binek
Gimmick Rally
Daniel Semborski and Tom Semborski II, RMR, 3rd Place
TSD – Navigational
Jim & Dona Sorensen, RMR, 8th Place
TSD – Unequipped Plus
Ken Provasi & Lynne Zucker, 7th Place
Concours
Preparation Group
Class PP02T – 2nd Place, RMR, Jim Osgood
Class PP09T – 1st Place, RMR, Richard & Carolyn Stillman
Class PP11T – 1st Place, RMR, Paul & Barbara Orkild
Class PP02S – 6th Place, RMR, Walt & Kathy Fricke
Concours
Preservation Group
PS06T – 1st Place, RMR, Daniel & Thomas Semborski
Concours
Performance Group
PF02T – 1st Place, RMR, Mel Shapiro
PF03T – 3rd Place, IMR, Eric Shea
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Zone Rep Report July 2013
Hi all! Even though this report is for July, I’m writing it in early June. Just a week has passed since Fiesta New Mexico 2013 concluded a fun, long weekend. The whole weekend was spectacular and the Roadrunner Region was thrilled to welcome everyone to Santa Fe. Things got started on Thursday afternoon, with Registration/Check-in, and then nearly everyone gathered in La Terraza for appetizers and drinks.
Bright and early Friday morning, we began staging cars around the downtown plaza for the upcoming Concours. It sure was beautiful to see all of the Porsches parked around the plaza. The downtown merchants and tourists appreciated the sight, also! We had 6 classes for judging, and lots of other cars for display-only. I was busy running back and forth to La Fonda, getting registration packets for those who were not able to pick up their stuff the day before.
Saturday, as per tradition, we had an autocross and, like last year, we were able to hold the event in Santa Fe. The Chevy dealership in Santa Fe has been very good to us and they allow us to use an extra lot of theirs, at no cost (although we make a donation to their favorite charity). We had 20 drivers and the dynamic duo, Melanie and Paul Dodd, achieved Top Time of the Day in their respective divisions.
I capped the late afternoon with a docent-led tour of ghostly locations in downtown Santa Fe. I’m not kidding – we learned of the best spots to see ghosts! Having grown up in Santa Fe, I was aware that there were ghosts in La Fonda and some other locations, but I had no idea that there was a whole population of them!
On Sunday morning, lots of teams queued up to leave for the Time Speed Distance Rally and everyone looked like they were ready for an adventure! Jo Martin (Fiesta Co-Chair) and I got some much-needed coffee and then began preparing things for that evening’s Awards Banquet.
Mark Shevitz, Parade MC extraordinaire, gave an interesting talk on his experiences and the people he’s met during his years with Parade. Jo and I handed out lots of door prizes, which included several items from Porsche Design, art work from club members, and other donations. And not to forget since it’s one of the main reasons for the banquet, trophies were also handed out, with Marc Martin and Diana Pool winning the Ashley Carroll award for top combined score in the concours, autocross, and rally.
Needless to say, by Monday afternoon, I could not stay awake any longer and I took a well-deserved 4-hour nap!
Zone 9 Regions were also busy in May, with tech sessions, autocrosses, DE’s, and a poker rally. And there’s more to come all summer! By this time next month, I’ll have a Parade report, and I’ll be able to report on some Region events.
Happy summer driving!
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Zone Rep Report June 2013
Hi all! As promised, I’m including a write-up and pictures from two Drivers’ Education events in Zone 9. In mid-April, AMR held their DE-Luxe Drivers’ Ed at Pikes Peak International Raceway in Fountain, Colorado (about 15 miles south of Colorado Springs). I got to the track on Friday in plenty of time to attend the novice meeting. Even though I’ve driven on tracks several times in the past, I’d never driven on this track; plus, I wanted to listen to the presentation. After the meeting, we were all invited to drive a few “parade” laps around the track and it was nice to get a feel for the track, at a moderate pace.
The next day, things got started early and everyone got their packets and cars ready for the track. There were 81 drivers and they were placed in different run groups, based on track experience. I was in the purple group, and most, if not all of us, were not going to drive on the track on Sunday. I had volunteered to fill out the Observer’s Report for both days and since I’d be driving back to Santa Fe on Sunday, I decided that I didn’t want to wear myself out too much before the long drive back. Fellow Roadrunners, Bill and Betty Guyre there were and it was nice to visit with them throughout the weekend.
I was very fortunate to be paired up with Ronn Langford and his instruction was superb. I was nervous starting out; a little intimated by the banked oval and infield, but Ronn was very encouraging and provided positive feedback throughout the sessions.
One car had a mishap with a busted oil line and since the clean-up took awhile, we ended up cutting out one session. Dinner on Saturday night was fun, with a catered meal served upstairs in a big meeting area.
On Sunday, there were about 60 drivers and everyone was busy all day. It got very windy but it was sunny so it wasn’t too cold. There always seemed to be an empty spot for corner workers and I ended up working most of the sessions throughout the day. I didn’t mind, as I got to see the cars on the track, plus I was always paired with someone new so I got to know the other drivers.
All in all, a very fun weekend – catching up with old friends, making new friends, experiencing a new track – Porsche cupcakes – what could be better??
Two weekends later, I was back in Colorado but this time I flew out there. I hadn’t planned to drive at RMR’s Speed Fever IV DE at High Plains Raceway and the airfare with Frontier was pretty cheap, so I got there the easy way. I stayed at my brother’s house in Littleton and then early Saturday morning, we set out for HPR. I’d been to the track before, but hadn’t driven on it and after a weekend of seeing everyone have such a good time, the next time I’m at HPR, I’m driving!
There were 125 drivers on Saturday and talk about Track Candy – wow! Fun to see everyone there and to see all of the very cool cars. The morning was a bit nippy but once things got going and everyone had a session or two completed, I don’t think anyone felt the cool weather. RMR was also conducting instructor training and I sat in on one of the instruction sessions.
As with the AMR DE, this one was well-organized and things proceeded very smoothly. Dinner was served after the Saturday sessions were done and there were even some door prizes handed out.
Sunday was a little breezier but sunnier and there were about 93 drivers in attendance. Another good day of driving for everyone. I stayed in Denver one more night, then flew back to Albuquerque on Monday.
Looking at the Zone 9 calendar for May, all of the Regions are busy – and in the case of Roadrunner Region – very busy! For the July Zone 9 Report, I’ll be able to tell you all about Fiesta New Mexico, and maybe I’ll be able to squeeze in a report on the June 8th RMR Ladies’ DE in Golden, CO, and the RMR Cerebral Palsy Concours d’ Elegance on June 9th.
Happy driving!
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Zone Rep Report May 2013
Hello fellow Zone 9’ers! For my April report, even though I submitted it late, I still wasn’t able to write about a couple of earlier events that had occurred. So now I’ll catch you up in this report. Near the end of February, West Texas Region held a fun poker run that started in Lamesa, TX. Six drivers from Lubbock joined six or seven drivers from Midland/Odessa. As Stan Cribbs reported, Lamesa is a small, non-descript town, but the enthusiasm of the poker people made up for that! There were 7 stops, where drivers picked up playing cards to make their 
poker hand. At the lunch stop (Pedroza’s Mexican Restaurant), prizes were awarded to the Best and Worst Poker Hands. Afterward, everyone made their way home and some people extended their drivers to put in a few more fun miles on their cars.
About a month later and further southwest in Texas, the Carrera Region held their monthly meeting at fellow PCA member, Lenny Loftin’s shop – Redline Racing. There were 15 cars in attendance, including David Gerli’s beautiful red 991 – and the line-up made quite the scene! During the meeting, El Paso Motorplex owner, Lyle Byrum, described some possible expansions to the Motorplex. A 1.4-mile road racing course is being 
proposed, and parking lot areas will be expanded. Keep your fingers crossed that funding is acquired and approved so that the new course could open as soon as Fall of 2014. Carrera Region President, Dan Thomas, will provide info on track membership buy-in options, etc. – as the info becomes available.
Speaking of new venues, Roadrunner Region will hold the Die Serie #4 autocross at a gargantuan parking lot near the Albuquerque international airport on May 11. Check the Roadrunner Region website for details.
Llano Estacado continues to have their monthly breakfast/membership meeting at Furr’s Cafeteria in Amarillo and I hope to get out there soon for one of the meetings. Even though the Region is very small, the members are like all of us from larger Regions – we love to talk cars as often as we can!
As reported earlier, Alpine Mountain, InterMountain, and Rocky Mountain Regions will have DE’s in April and the June Zone 9 report will have lots of details and pictures from 2 of the events (I will not be able to attend the IMR DE because I’ll be at the RMR DE that same weekend).
Zone Rep Report April 2013
It’s hard to believe that we’re already into April! But you know what that means – autocrossing has begun and DE’s will be in full swing by the end of the month! And in the case of several of the Zone 9 Regions, socials and tech sessions occurred in February and March, with continued activity throughout the rest of the year.
Alpine Mountain Region had a Pikes Peak Tour on February 9th and from the looks of some of the pictures, it was quite the winter scene! You can read all about the tour in the March AMR and RMR newsletters.
West Texas Region held a Poker Rally on February 23rd and they invited the Audi club to join them. Unfortunately, I didn’t request details and pictures in time for this report but I promise to have all of that next month.
Roadrunner Region had their Frostbite #2 autocross on February 16th and then they conducted an autocross school on March 9th. This was a great way to get new students started with the Die Serie autocross series, which began the next day. The students received some classroom instruction from Pat Ferrell and then they headed out to the parking lot at Route 66 Casino for some practice with a skid pad, slalom, and a box. On Sunday, nearly every student showed up for the autocross and from the results of many of them – you’d never know they were rookies!
Llano Estacado Region still had their monthly breakfast at Furr’s on the first Saturday in March. I think by that time, they had dug themselves out of the hundreds of inches of snow. Ok, maybe it wasn’t that much snow, but it was sure a lot for Amarillo (even Durango was envious!). I-40 in Albuquerque had turned into a parking lot because it was closed from the Duke City all the way into Texas.
I’m looking forward to attending DE’s organized by both AMR and RMR in April, so for the May Zone Report, I’ll have info and pictures from those events. Before those DE’s, both Regions will have training and a Driver/Instructor clinic.
Intermountain Region will also have a DE (at Miller Motorsport) in April and this will be preceded by a social in March.
If you haven’t seen it already, Carrera Region has a beautiful, creative, new website! I was a webmaster in a previous life so I know how much work it takes and these days, a club website is vital. So kudos to Carrera Region!
Parade Registration has begun and it’s going to be another super-fun one in Traverse City, Michigan. Plus, there is lots of other PCA activity going on in and around Zone 9 so fill up your P-car and take off!
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Zone Rep Report March 2013
Hello, Zone 9! As promised, I’ve got a report for you that’s heavy on the pictures and light on the verbiage. In late January, my friend, Linda, and I volunteered for The Racers Group at the Rolex 24 in Daytona. This was our second year and we have a fantastic time. TRG had 3 cars in the GT Class but had some problems with each of them throughout the race and was not able to finish the race with any of 
them. But Linda and I were able to help out for most of the race and of course, we stayed in the pits for the entire race and that was a lot of fun. It was amazing that for the last 5 minutes of the race, things were very close with the DP class and the GT class. I’m sure Linda and I will make the trip next year and volunteer again with the team.
In early February (as in February 1st), many of the Zone 9 Region representatives descended upon Amarillo for the Presidents Meeting. We gathered at Napoli’s on Friday night and got a head-start on meeting everyone (or .jpg)
renewing friendships). Then on Saturday morning, we met at Vintage Autohaus for the day-long meeting. I was pleased that nearly every president was in attendance (vice-president in the case of RMR), plus we had a couple of PCA award-winning webmasters and the newsletter editor from IMR. In addition, Steve Krysil from PCNA joined us, plus RJ Wilmoth and his wife, Linda Bosko, were there. Steve gave a great presentation on info from the Porsche factory, and RJ educated us on some early history of PCA. Also, as part of the presentations, Chris Lennon explained how to plan and organize a tour. I’ve been on a tour organized by Chris and Kathleen Lennon and they are definitely the experts in that area!
Saturday night dinner was at the Big Texan Steakhouse – Home of the 72 Ounce Free Steak! (As long as you eat it in within an hour). Several of us tried (well, not really), and we had a very enjoyable dinner, as several of the Llano Estacado Region members joined us. Then after dinner, Chris Lennon showed some pictures and an in-car video of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. A fun weekend, to be sure.
A week later, I attended the PCA Winter meeting in Orlando. Two days of meetings with the PCA Executive Council, National Staff, and several chair-people. It was great to meet with the other Zone Reps and go through “Zone College”. There were several new Zone Reps and some new National staff members and we learned more about PCA and the club governance. Unfortunately, most of us didn’t have time to enjoy Disney World, but we did get to see the fireworks on Friday night and us newbies got our mouse ears.
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The Zone 9 Regions have their calendars filling up so check them out and sign up for something! Hope to see you soon.
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Zone Rep Report February 2013
Hello, Zone 9! All of the Regions are getting their year started and things are already busy! The Roadrunner Region Fiesta Chairs (Jo Martin and moi), had a planning meeting on January 5th and were able to get more tour leaders and other volunteers signed up. This year’s Fiesta will be centered in downtown Santa Fe, with the historic La Fonda hotel as its headquarters. The Fiesta website is currently undergoing major renovation and should be up and running before the end of January (www.fiestanewmexico.com). The theme this year is “Fiesta 2013 – Santa Fe Style!”
Roadrunner Region gets their autocross season going early, with the Frostbite Series in January and February. Interestingly, racing in NM in early winter usually means cold, dry weather but often in March, we’ve encountered true, “damnable weather” – hence, the Die Serie opener, “Weather Be Damned”.
On other fronts, the schedules are being updated for most of the Zone 9 Regions so please check their websites often. I haven’t planned my entire year, yet, but I’m really looking forward to attending some DE’s in Colorado this year. When I lived in northern California, I became the registrar for “Coastal Driving School” – a joint venture between the Loma Prieta Region and the Monterey Bay Region. The two years that I was involved with that organization were so fun and I really miss driving on the big tracks! Our first event was at Thunderhill Raceway, northeast of Sacramento, and I had not even ridden in a car on a big track before getting my first DE under my belt! That’s a challenging, fun track and I’d like to go back there someday. Coastal Driving also had DE’s at Laguna Seca (my favorite track!), Buttonwillow (near Bakersfield), and Fernley (outside of Reno). Since I left California, they’ve continued to have events at many of the tracks in central and northern California. Although some of the principals have changed over the years, CDS still exists and if you’re ever in northern California and need a big track fix, check them out!
I had wanted to attend the Eiskhana in Colorado in January, but work got in the way! I’ve heard lots about that event and one of the veteran Roadrunners, Doug Brosveen, used to do quite a bit of ice racing when he lived in Minnesota. I think this type of racing is a bit different from when my brother and I used to spin donuts in our VW bug in the snow!
Rocky Mountain Region also has some interesting training sessions from January to March. These are excellent opportunities for you to learn how to be a control person, chair an event, or do tech inspections. And you could also get started on checking off Region events for the Zone 9 Challenge!
Speaking of attending events, I’ll have some exciting things to tell you about in next month’s report – the Rolex 24 at Daytona, the Zone 9 Presidents (and webmasters and newsletter editors) meeting in Amarillo, Texas and the PCA Winter meeting in Orlando.
See you soon!
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Zone Rep Report January 2013
From Liz Shaw, Incoming Zone 9 Rep
Happy New Year, Zone 9! I’m pleased to be your new Zone rep and I will do my best to fill the role responsibly. Sean certainly took the job seriously and raised the bar for future Zone Reps! A little bit about me. I’m a native Santa Fean, although I went to college in Colorado (go Rams!) and lived in Washington state and California for many years. I joined PCA in 2002 when I bought a 1993 964. As a member of the Loma Prieta Region, I was very involved in the club – Membership Chair, DE Registrar, autocrosser, etc.
I moved back to Santa Fe in 2005 and was fortunate to attend my first Fiesta (del Porsche at the time) about a week after unloading the moving truck! Over the years as a Roadrunner, I’ve been Vice-President, President, Webmaster, Goodie Store Chair, Fiesta Chair and Co-Chair, and PCA Escape Registrar. On a PCA National level, I’ve been involved with the Parade Committee as Co-Chair of the Michelin Drive and Compare.
My first love with Porsches is anything race-related and to that end, I’ve attended several races at the major tracks around the country. More recently, I attended the inaugural Formula 1 races in Austin in November. That was sure a special weekend and I’d love to get back to that track (and drive on it!).
Later in January, I’m going to attend the Rolex 24 at Daytona and volunteer with The Racers Group. I volunteered with the team last year and it was a lot of fun! I was assigned to car #68 to handle the Dead Man fuel valve, and that meant staying in the hot pits for the entire race. I don’t know what my assignment will be this year but I know that I’ll be in the hot pits again and that’s the best place to watch the race! I’ve already put my name in the hat to volunteer for the 12 Hours of Sebring, when TRG will be running their newly added marque, Aston Martin!
Ok, back to the Zone! As of this printing, the Zone 9 meeting is being planned for February 2nd in Amarillo. I hope to see lots of Region officials and members at the meeting. In the works right now is a small get-together on Friday night, meeting on Saturday (including a guest speaker), then large get-together on Saturday night. Since the following day is Super Bowl Sunday, several members may be hitting the road early so that they don’t miss out on any Super Bowl parties.
The following weekend in February, I’ll be attending the PCA Winter Meeting in Orlando (I’m going to Disney World!). Part of this meeting will be some training for the new Zone Reps. It’ll be great to get this training and to interact with the Executive Council and other Zone Reps.
That’s all for now. The next report will have much more Zone 9 stuff, as all of the Regions will have their calendars out .
From Sean Cridland, Retiring Zone 9 Rep
The time is here; I must say my good-byes and thank yous. It’s often said that the Zone Rep position is the best job in PCA and I can add my name to the list of those who’ve said it. In the past four years I’ve had the honor and pleasure to serve all of you in Zone 9 as your liaison with PCA National. But I’ve also seen it as my opportunity to contribute to the well-being of the Regions of Zone 9, as have my predecessors. That’s meant a lot of travelling, working at various events, late nights working on the website and, of course writing this column. Far from being a burden, it’s been such a pleasure to meet and work — and play — with so many of you.
As I write this, I’m in the midst of doing my final rounds to various Regions for year-ending Christmas parties. Sure there’s an obvious tone of bitter-sweet, but more-so there’s a feeling of accomplishment and reward for seeing our Zone 9 doing so well at so many different things. Let’s face it, we’re not the wealthiest or most populous Zone. In fact, we are far behind the coastal Zones of 1,2, 3, 11, 7, and 8 in those areas. But we more than make up for our deficiencies with pure enthusiasm, hard work, and unbridled joy. It’s been that way since the very beginnings of PCA and I’m so fortunate to add my name to the list of strong, adventurous, and forward-thinking individuals who have served Zone 9. Thank you for having me!
But that doesn’t mean that I’m going to disappear entirely. I’ll be working on the Parade staff as webmaster, publicity chair, and in training for presentations. I’ve also volunteered to be the Roadrunner Region historian. No doubt I’ll still write the occasional Pano article and I’ve signed on to be a contributing editor for 9 Magazine, which is growing by leaps and bounds. So I hope you’ll look for my articles and photography there.
And for those who have been asking me for the past couple of years “do you ever drive your Porsche anymore?,” I can honestly say that one of my main goals for this year is to work on getting the 964 back where it belongs at autocrosses, DE events, and of course my beloved Bonneville.
For the future, I am confident that Zone 9 is in very capable hands with the appointement of Liz Shaw as the new Zone 9 Rep. As you ‘ll see in her self-introduction, and by working with her in the coming months and years, she is a force to be reckoned with and, in my opinion, is exactly the right person to represent Zone 9. She is hitting the ground running and has already contacted all of the Region Presidents to start making plans for the 2013 Zone 9 meeting in Amarillo, hosted by the Llano Estacado Region. I know you’ll enjoy meeting and working with her.
And so I bid you adieu. I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you all and I look forward to seeing you at an event soon…as just a normal PCA member. Best wishes to you all, thank you for making my experience such a pleasant one, and happy driving in the coming months and years!