November 2012 - Sacramento Valley Region

September New Member Tour
by Lee Deter, New Member Group
Saturday, September 8 dawned clear and balmy. Arriving at the gathering location in El Dorado Hills 15 minutes before the appointed
time of 8 a.m., I was surprised and pleased to find 3 New Member cars with their drivers and partners waiting for me. A good omen
for an enjoyable tour up through the lower foothills to Georgetown and beyond to Camino.
I had planned to conduct the drivers meeting and get the first group out by 8:30 am. Soon all 27 registered New Members with 18
cars arrived for the tour, a new record. During the last 5 years that I have been organizing the new Member Tours, some New Members
have not been able to go after registering and were unable to notify me. Three old members, including three Board Members also
joined Tour Co-Chair Rich Walker and me for a tour total of 23 cars and 32 members and associates.
By 8:25 a.m. two tour groups had been formed and Group 1 departed, followed a few minutes later by Group 2. The route was up
Salmon Falls Road, south via State Route (SR) 49 to Marshall Grade Road, to a planned rest stop in Georgetown. Some of you may
recall that the 2nd half of Marshall Grade Road is also the route of the Georgetown Hill Climb of the 1950s.
Arriving in Georgetown we discovered the village streets and parking spaces were closed for a foothills car show. No rest stop, so
after regrouping Group 1, led by yours truly, we left Georgetown with all prudent haste to the 2nd planned rest stop at Stumpy
Meadows Reservoir. All good, or so I thought, until I discovered the group was short 7 cars. For whatever reason, the 5th car in
line had forgotten to wait for the car behind and Group 1 had split to become 2 groups for the rest of the tour. Radio and cell phone
communication in the central foothills is ZIP. In a few minutes the original Group 2 arrived and was merged with the Group 1 cars
that had stopped at Stumpy Meadows. Thinking one of the missing 7 cars had encountered mechanical trouble, or worse, I went back
toward Georgetown to find a ridge with enough cell reception to contact the back door of Group 1, now the leader of the 3rd group.
Upon doing so, I learned what had happened.
By now everyone was going south on Ice House road toward US-50 and Camino. Our destination was Jack Russell Brewery and
Winery on Larsen Road just outside Camino. I arrived there at 11:45 a.m. to find the so called lost Group 3 had also just arrived
there. The original Group 2 with the first 5 cars of group 1 was not there! They were expected to be immediately behind the 7 cars
that had separated from Group 1. Turned out they had taken Cable Road out of Camino, not Larsen Road. Not sure how they found
Jack Russell, but they did about noon. The Tour was officially over.
Rich Walker, assisted by Jim Kinnicutt, set up a deli lunch with chips and soda for the Tour members. Our attending SVR Board
Members, Steve Barker, Vice President; Matt Deter, Secretary; and Eduardo Ortega, Social Director; were introduced. Their remarks
were appropriate (read brief). Matt Deter, pinch hitting for Bob Peake, Competition Director, discussed the Auto Cross and Drivers
Education Programs. The weather was wonderful, the group attentive, and the first tour for several of the New Members. Everyone
seemed to enjoy themselves, I know I did. Kudos to Rich Walker for catering the lunch at cost.
Join the Porsche Club of America
The Sacramento Valley Region of the Porsche Club of America (SVRPCA) brings together
Porsche owners by hosting a wide variety of activities. Social, technical or competitive - no matter your interest,
PCA has something to offer for every Porsche owner
• Driving tours to wineries, exotic car collections, train museums, flower farms and Porsche maintenance shops plus multiday
tours to Mendocino, Pacific Grove and San Simeon are just a few places to go.
• Monthly dinners, breakfast, poker runs, BBQs, concours, charity auctions and the Christmas party.
• Technical sessions, discussing Porsche care, maintenance and concours preparation.
• Track days at Laguna Seca, Thunderhill, Infineon Raceways and others.
• Autocross, great fun while improcing car handling skills.
• Exclusive events for New Members!
Ready to Join the FUN?
Contact: Mike Willis, Membership Director at membership@svr-pca.org or 916.363.8313
Page 14 the drifter - Sacramento Valley Region - Porsche Club of America - www.svr-pca.org