From the President Jan 2013

New Year Greetings to all!  Hopefully you’ve navigated the holiday autocross with grace and come away without issue.  Have to tell you that I received a gift this year that is not only true but incredibly funny.  It’s a refrigerator magnet that states, “Happiness is a warm and loving family – several hundred miles away…”  Being from a large family (I’m the youngest of 8 children] is wonderful, in small doses.  That said, let’s get on to what will be an incredible 2013 for the ARPCA.

As I’m sure you know [because you check out arpca.com every day – thanks for the great work on the site Dale!], I am your newly elected President.  The competition was tough and worthy and I am humbled that I was able to win your trust to guide our club.  There is no better way to start the year than to thank our outgoing President and his singular partner in crime, Ken and Louise Jeremiah.  They have guided us for the past 8 years.  I feel like a comic who gets to follow Jerry Seinfeld…  Ken and Louise have made this club one to be admired.  The most beneficial aspect of their tenure at the top has and will continue to be inclusiveness.  There is nobody who is not welcome to participate in any aspect of the club.  Never feel as though you are too new or too anything to participate.  Come to an event you never considered attending.  Write an article about the first time you drank the Porsche Kool-Aid.  Try a performance driving event to understand the genius of Dr. Porsche.  Bring up a great charity to support.  These are but a few of the ways you can enjoy the club and enhance its reason for being.

As is often said, it’s not the cars, it’s the people.  A credible maxim for sure.  The easiest way to ensure you experience the pulse of our club is to come to our monthly meeting.  We discuss club events, club charities, and welcome any new ideas to make our club better.  There is no secret lair accessible only to those with the secret handshake, code and key…  We have our meetings on the second Thursday of each month at 7:30p [unless there is a conflict with another event].  This month’s meeting took place on January 10 at the Sewickley Car store’s conference room in the BMW building.  K.C. Kowalyk continues to be a most generous host.  We also like to bring our meetings out to the region, so if you’d ever like to host a meeting, just say so!

The most noticeable change to our new year is the format of our fine publication, Rundschau.  We’ve chosen a smaller format primarily because the USPS seems to deliver this format far more quickly than they did our previous larger, magazine format.  There is nothing more frustrating than getting our exceptional publication that mentions events which had already occurred…  But the same quality, layout and editorial expertise will remain!  Kudos to Jack, Ish, Rob and Paul for your continued fine work.  And if you’re a business owner, the ARPCA has 1000+ members in a demographic you certainly would find beneficial.

Another change for this year is that the President’s column name has changed.  Ken’s ‘From the Driver’s Seat’ could hardly be followed.  Thus I pulled out ‘Gute Fahrt’ which is German for ‘Good Travels.’  Seriously, google it!  It embodies what I want for our club – good travels in all we do, with fun, humor and companionship.  We had this phrase on one of our driving event t-shirts a few years back and it was a hit, so why not recycle something fun?

So what else is in store this month?  We have a contingent of ARPCAers heading down to Daytona for the Rolex 24 hour race over the last weekend in January [26th -27th].  This race is the kickoff to the sports car racing year and is always a terrific event to watch.  Porsche racers from around the world show up and make their cars do impossible things for 24 hours.  The SunCoast region has a Porsche Club tent and are always gracious hosts.  There are also several members who bring RV’s and set up shop in the lot out by the infield lake.  It’s a great way to watch a race, wander around and see familiar faces.  Many of us stay at the Ocean Walk resort on the beach which is a 15 minute drive away.  You can learn more at http://www.daytonabeachoceanwalk.com/.  If you’ve never been to a major sports car race, this is a great way to start.  And if you’ve been there before, you know how fun it can be.  Access to garages, racers and lots of amenities close by make it a unique experience.  It’s been rumored that an ARPCA dinner could happen on Saturday night…

There is also a Zone 4 event [ARPCA is in Zone 4] happening at the Detroit Auto Show.  The show opens to the public on Saturday, January 19th, 2013. Porsche AG has announced that it will be providing a private presentation of their 2013 models for PCA Members and guests from 7:00 AM until 9:00 AM before the show opens to the public, which will make it a very special event to attend for all of the Porschephiles in our Club.
The official announcement states:

Porsche Cars North America is pleased to be able to extend an invitation for you and a guest to be a part of an exclusive Porsche club preview event at the 2013 North American International Auto Show where Porsche will uncover its latest breakthrough in race-bred performance. As an attendee, you will have early access to the entire Porsche display before it’s shown to the general public. Be among the first to get up close and personal with all the latest Porsche models.

Date: Saturday, January 19th, 2013, Time: 7.00 AM – 9.00 AM, Place: Wayne Hall, Porsche Booth, Cobo Center.

Registration is limited to the first 80 people (max. two tickets per registrant) to register at motorsportreg.com <http://motorsportreg.com/> . Tickets will be deposited at a will call desk at the Oakland Hall entrance to the exhibition. A light breakfast and refreshments will be provided. This is an invitation only event, and you must be pre-registered to attend. There will be no registrations on site. Following the event your ticket will allow you regular access to the NAIAS.

Finally, please mark February 2nd on your calendar.  That is the date of our mid-winter party which will take place at the Sewickley Car Store and is one of our biggest events.  Live music, food and drink provided.  Lots of great ARPCA swag available for purchase.  Door prizes donated by our members and affiliate businesses.  And a great rundown of the year before us.  There may even be a very famous special guest attending…  Please plan to attend.  You’ll meet people who are eager for Spring [i.e. Driving Season] to come!  You’ll meet people in the midst of winter car repair and / or upgrade projects.  You’ll meet people who just like their Porsches…  I sincerely hope to see you there.  And if you need anything from me, just email me at pres@arpca.com.  I’d love to hear from you and learn how you feel we can continue to enhance this great club of ours.  Many thanks and GUTE FAHRT!  ~ George