This year is off to a good start. Our Time Trial & DE at Chuckwalla raceway was an amazing event; and the Friday instructor training day before it was also a great success. A big thank you to the Time Trial team for all the hard work; it’s very nice that we can do something during these slow times. Which brings me back to:

COVID-19

As you know, the state has lifted the lock down on restaurants and bars, but San Diego County still remains at the Purple level because of our rate of infections. The holiday surge appears to be over and the vaccine is (slowly) being rolled out. That is all good news, but at the same time there are new variants that are more transmissible than the original. So, we are still in a wait and see mode to see if things will continue to get better or if they will get worse again. Meanwhile, we continue with our plan as you read last month:

First and foremost, we will not be hosting any indoor events, as COVID is most contagious in indoor settings. Secondly, we will not be hosting any ‘social gathering’ type events, even outdoors, for the foreseeable future (to be reevaluated when we return to orange or yellow alert status). Outdoor events will be limited to “in-car” events such as our driving tours and track events, where socializing and otherwise gathering in groups is not the purpose of the activity. Masks are REQUIRED and social distancing protocols MUST be followed.

Other Happenings

In January I had the great pleasure of informing a San Diego Region member that they were a winner in the club’s Fall Porsche raffle. The prize was a brand new 911 Targa. That was a very exciting phone call and I was very happy to be the messenger. I’m sure there will be another raffle soon, maybe next time will be your turn to win!

I also enjoyed the opportunity to represent the Club on KUSI TV with automotive journalist Dave Stall. Thanks to John Rickard, owner of Black Forest Automotive and longtime support of the club, myself and a couple other club members were invited to come and make a quick pitch for the club. You can check out the video on our Facebook page or the KUSI YouTube channel.

Upcoming Events

Coming up quickly is the opening of Parade Registration, on Wednesday, the 10th. Parade is the club’s annual national convention. This year it takes place in French Lick, Indiana, at a marvelous resort. (Just ask anybody who went to the last one at this venue.) Obviously, we are hopeful COVID will allow this event to happen. If you would like to learn more about it, see here: https://porscheparade.org/ While this is referring to last year’s (cancelled) event, it is still a good read to learn more about Parade: https://pcasdr.org/porsche-parade-2020-big-deal/

On Wednesday, February 17, we are hosting a virtual tasting with Eppig Brewing. We will be tasting four beers with the head brewer of Eppig, who is a font of brewing information and stories on these award-winning beers. A second serving of the 4 beers is also available at a nice discount. More information can be found here: https://pcasdr.org/event/virtual-porsches-and-pours-beer-tasting-with-eppig-brewery-2/ Registration closes on Thursday, February 11, so don’t delay.

March sees us hosting another Time Trial & DE, back at Chuckwalla Raceway. Registration will open later this month, currently scheduled for the 21st. https://pcasdr.motorsportreg.com/

Finally, registration for Treffen Scottsdale opens on February 24. Treffen, like Parade, is a national PCA event, but on a much smaller scale. A long weekend of drives and tourist activities, it is a terrific opportunity to exercise your Porsche on some great driving roads. It’s not often that they are this close to us, so expect registration to be competitive, they always sell out! More information can be found here: https://treffen.pca.org/

Charity

In these troubling and challenging times, members of the San Diego Region have really stepped up to assist those who are less fortunate. Our ongoing charity drive for the Food Bank continues. Always in need even in normalcy, the Food Bank has become more important and in demand than ever with the extraordinary levels of unemployment we are seeing as a result of the pandemic and the resulting economic downturn. Our goal is to raise $10,000 each quarter of 2021. We are tracking behind schedule right now, so please got to https://pcasdr.org/pca-sdr-virtual-food-drive-donation-goal-thermometer-q1-2021/ to help us reach this quarter’s target. Big or small, your donation will be appreciated by countless people in need.

Hopefully we will get to see each other soon.

Tom Brown