Slipstream - December 2014

Personal Journey: Visiting the Midwest in a Porsche Roadster
By Jim Hirsch
I
became a
first-time
Porsche owner
at age 61 to fulfill
a commitment
upon retirement:
that my wife and
I would travel
this country by road rather than
air as much as possible from now
on. Why the Porsche part of the
requirement? Forty years ago,
newly married, I moved past muscle
cars and bought my first roadster,
a 1966 MG Midget (it had to be
British, right?), as two seats were
all my wife Sharon and I needed.
I had toyed with the idea many
years prior to this while driving
an early MGB, but being 16 at the
time, the pull of the muscle cars
of that era was too compelling.
Living in Minnesota meant that
the driving season was relatively
short. The Midget pretty quickly
made room for another roadster
– a 1968 Triumph TR250 – which
made quite a few road trips. That
led to a 1973 MGB a couple of
years later, which made even more
and longer road trips. Roadsterowning
came to a quick halt for us
in 1981 with the birth of the first
of our four children, due to the
need for more seats for travel as
well as a shrinking home budget.
Forward to the mid-2000s: our
children were growing up and getting
their own addresses, so a 2005
The Hirsches’ 2014 Boxster S
Honda S2000 entered the stable
as the affair with roadsters began
anew. That fling only lasted a short
time as the retirement plan began
to take higher priority and we
consolidated the vehicle ownership.
The idea of returning to a roadster
was high on the list as the retirement
date finally arrived. Researching
and driving a wide variety of
“roadsters” brought the final list
down to one – the Porsche Boxster
S. We ordered our 2014 981S with
Agate Grey/Amber Orange interior
on January 9, took delivery on
April 17, and haven’t looked back!
The first long road trip was
planned to coincide with the
TUDOR Championship Racing
series at Road America in August
(more on that later). We scheduled
14 days for the trip, and the route
looked to be around 3,500 miles
(actual shown). Driving on all types
of roads – interstate, US highway,
state highway, county, city, and even
gravel – and in all types of weather
– cool and rainy to hot and windy
(30 mph headwind) – the Boxster
S simply performed flawlessly!
I tracked
each segment
using the trip
computer and
continued to be
amazed by the
combination of
performance
and efficiency
the Boxster
provided (up to 33.9 mpg on one
400-mile day). The first day was
a nine-hour drive up to Omaha,
NE. Taking a little different route
rather than simply Interstates
brought us to some two-lane highways
that gave ample opportunity
to sample the passing capabilities
of the Porsche. Suffice it to say
Photos by the Author
Jim and Sharon in the
pits at Road America
that it takes almost no time to
reach triple digits while passing!
The next leg took us to the hometown
of Le Mars, IA and then on
to Minneapolis, MN – our home
for 26 years and the birthplace of
our four children, along with many
longtime friends whom we see
very infrequently any longer. After
a few days visiting friends (and a
Twins game at Target Field!), the
next stop was Elkhart Lake, WI for
the races at Road America. As you
might expect, lots of beautiful roads
to travel and nice temperatures
compared to home here in Texas.
Porscheplatz parking
The experience at Road America
was fantastic! The Chicago Region
of PCA hosted the Porscheplatz,
and Porsche Cars North America
provided us with their only two pit
passes during the TUDOR race
on Sunday – we had traveled the
furthest distance for the race!
16 December