SHENANDOAH REGION

The Shenandoah Region's 21st Birthday Party
2016-08-29 08:00 - 17:00 UTC | VA
By Jim Condon
The Shenandoah Region PCA turned 21 this year! To celebrate, Beverly McNeill proposed we get together on August 8 at Stevenson Ridge near Fredericksburg. She brought the two birthday cakes and organized the event with the help of Clint Shuler. The Stevenson Ridge property covers 87 acres and has a lodge with a large dining room plus a number of restored private buildings that can be rented for getaways. In the woods behind the building complex there are old earthworks remaining from the Civil War. The owners are Dan and Debbie Spears, and the managing partner is their daughter, Debbie Mackowski. Dan is also a Porschephile with several older Porsches undergoing restoration in his garage. Click here to see photos from this event.
The buffet lunch concluded with birthday cake and ice cream. When we left the lodge, we were surprised to see a genuine Bugatti Veryon in the driveway. This Volkswagen on steroids is powered by a 1200 hp 8 liter VW engine with 16 cylinders in a W-shaped (double V) configuration boosted by 4 turbos. It reaches 150 mph in 10 seconds from a standing start, and its top speed is supposedly 250+ mph, for those who can find a place to drive that fast. Needless to say, if you have to ask how much it costs, you can’t afford it.

The 2016 Zone 2 Club Race and Advanced DE at VIR
2016-05-06 08:00 - 17:00
Jim Condon
Zone 2 sponsored a combination PCA club race and advanced DE at VIR over the weekend of June 24 through 26, 2016. Nine members of the Shenandoah Region drove in the advanced DE, which is open to experienced solo drivers in the white, black, and red run groups. They were Jim Condon (2007 Cayman S), Randy Copeland (2014 991 Turbo S), David Israel (996 GT3), Erin Israel (race-prepared 993), John Kessler (1971 911), Emmett Richardson (2016 Cayman GT4), Clint Shuler (2009 Cayman S), Bill Speidell (Cayman GT4), and Sherry Westfall (2007 Cayman S). Click here to see the photo gallery of this event.
A few exotic cars usually show up in the advanced DE, and this year was no exception, with two DP cars, an “improved” Cobra, and a NASCAR-style Mustang.
There were three race groups as well: the new Cayman GT4 Clubsport class had its own separate race. All of the faster PCA classes raced together, and all of the slower PCA classes also raced together. There was a fair bit of carnage in the GT4 qualifying sessions as drivers got used to their new cars, so three GT4s failed to start the race itself.

Porsches & Pastrami: Concours Judging Clinic & Automotive Aesthetic Tech Session
2016-05-05 08:00 - 17:00
I’m what you call a Noob. I have only been in the Porsche Club for about two years. So compared to other members I’m a big time Noob. I have been around Porsches my whole life as my father always had at least one and we lived in Germany (I am an Army brat and proud of it!). One of the first events I ever attended as an official club member was Shenandoah’s Porsches & Pastrami at Dürty Nelly’s Pub in Charlottesville in 2015. I was nervous and didn’t know what to expect and got there early to learn about Concourse Judging. I learned so much that I was able to be a judge at the 2015 RPM using the knowledge that I gained. I judged engines and learned even more about Porsche engines at the meet from other judges as we discussed the different cars, an amazing experience.
Fast forward to 2016 Porsches and Pastrami. (Click here to see the photo gallery covering this event.) Again, I have to say it was another event that I’m so happy I attended because of the Porsche education that I get from all the friendly members. It opened again with the Concourse Clinic, but I mostly floated around and looked at beautiful cars and met new people like Mike Higgins, who was attending his first Porsches & Pastrami. Again I picked up so many tips from the non-noob members. For instance, I got advice on where to send my Fuchs for restoration—Harvey Weidman of Weidman’s Wheels was the recommendation. Everyone there is either in the middle of a Porsche project or has done many already and has a plethora of information to share if you just ask. It really helps you to avoid mistakes that can be expensive. Water cooled and air cooled cars were both well represented and lunch was great. This year I got the Hot Sicilian (Don’t let the college pub reputation of Dürty Nelly’s fool you; this joint makes an awesome sandwich, oh, and they have beer!) I had a fantastic time chatting with members about their cars and picking up tips about restoration from wheels to interior. Shenandoah PCA has amazing members like Sherry Westfall and her husband Jim Condon that make me look forward to every event.
The second part of Porsches & Pastrami’s activities was a detailing clinic at Automotive Aesthetic with Daniel Wendell and Daniel Offield of Clear Detail in Richmond. You think “What can I learn about washing my car? That is stupid!” You would be wrong as I learned in the first 5 seconds to use two buckets when you wash. One for soaping your Microfiber wash mit and the other for rinsing it after you have washed a panel. Another tip I learned in the first 10 seconds was DON’T “Wax on wax off Danielson!” Never make circular motions, wipe your car panels in long straight strokes. Most of the scratches, swirl marks and hazing comes from washing. Sigh, I have been messing my cars up for years. They used two product lines at the clinic—the first GTechnic, the other Swissvax—and again advising us amateurs to use longitudinal application. These products are only available on line, but I will be purchasing some for myself, especially that GTechnic wheel cleaner, Iron and General Fallout Remover. (Luckily GTechnic will not sell you the products that can really screw up your paint, you have to be a licensed detailer to get those, so order away and go crazy!) I did ask the detailers some tough questions, for instance “How much does it cost to get my paint corrected?” The Daniels were very honest and explained it in hours. It depends on how bad your paint is and how many hours they believe it would take for them to correct the issues. The other factor is the customer’s ultimate goal. A perfect looking car to you and me is not the same as a car being prepared for Pebble Beach. They demonstrated washing, drying, and paint correction. They gave us tips about products from clay bars to microfiber towels. It was extremely educational. Both Automotive Aesthetic in Charlottesville and Clear Detail in Richmond offer a wide variety of services beyond cleaning, so please go to their websites linked above and check them out.
The event was well planned and executed. Lunch and comradery at Dürty Nelly’s was great, and I have to say that I also enjoyed the refreshments and noshes at the detailing clinic. If you haven’t made it out to one of these yet you are really missing out. I’m already looking forward to next year!

Dominion Raceway Tour
2016-05-01 08:00 - 17:00
The Dominion Raceway & Entertainment complex combines a 4/10 mile banked oval, a 1/8 mile drag strip, a festival concert venue, and a 2 mile road course in a single facility just off I-95 in Thornburg, VA. The oval recently opened, and the rest is still under construction. To see the photo gallery covering this tour and the raceway complex, click here.
Randy Bell led our April 16 driving tour in his Boxster Spyder. Randy is member number one of the Dominion Raceway driving club, which is conveniently located close to his home. When we arrived at Dominion Raceway, there was a long line of racers waiting to sign up for the oval-track race scheduled for that evening. Some of us drove around the line and parked along the pit-out area of the road course, while others parked beside the entrance road and walked to the main building.
The director of the driving club, Jim Lorimer, took us to the roof for a bird’s eye view so we could easily see the oval and most of the road course. The 2700-foot front straight passes beside the main building and ends in a left turn named after the nearby Po river. As we watched, the base layer of the front straight was being patched to repair damage caused by the wet winter weather. The road course is 36 feet wide everywhere, has 12 turns, and has 70 feet of elevation change. It is driven counterclockwise and passes under the bridge in the photo above.
We ate lunch in the main building, and co-owner Steve Britt explained the planned operation of Dominion Raceway. Free passes to the evening’s oval race were offered to those who could stay, but most of us had to head home during the afternoon.
The PCA First Settlers Region (FSR) planned a DE for the weekend of April 30 and May 1, but that DE had to be canceled because the road course was not ready in time. Their next DE at Dominion Raceway is scheduled for July 9 and 10.

Euroclassics Porsche Launches the New 911
2016-04-26 08:00 - 17:00
Jim Condon
Euroclassics Porsche held their “New 911” launch event at Beecroft & Bull in Richmond on the evening of April 14. Click here to see the photo gallery covering this event. The weather was perfect, Porsches old and new filled the parking lot, and three New 911’s (a.k.a. 991.2’s) were in a tent next to the Beecroft and Bull store. Last but not least, drinks and food were served inside the tent.
Emmett Richardson’s new GT4 was parked in front of the tent. After it is broken in, it will no doubt be passing a lot of cars in upcoming DEs at VIR. Nearby were two even faster Porsches: a Carrera GT and a new 991 GT3 RS. Although it is normally aspirated, it has the turbo-like air intakes just in front of the rear wheels, and it also has conspicuous cooling vents above the front wheels.
Three 991.2’s were unveiled: a gray targa, a black coupe, and a white cab. The biggest visual cue differentiating them from the 991.1’s is the vertically striped engine grill with a red brake light bar along the top. Under the grill is a 3 liter turbo engine, but only the air intake and two cooling fans are visible.
After the unveiling, door prizes were given out inside the Beecroft and Bull store, including prepaid Porsche Driving Experiences at the new Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta. One of the two winners was a happy Sherry Westfall.
