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A Rocky Mountain High at the 2009 PCA Parade in Keystone, Colorado
By: Ken Koop
Never in my wildest imagination would I have thought that Robin would ever be spending seven days at a Porsche outing. She did and we are still married--she even enjoyed it! This was our first Porsche Parade and I can tell you, it was well worth the trip. The weather was typical Rocky Mountain with beautiful azure blue skies and the smell of pine in the air.
Club members attending the Parade included Scot Anderson, Ken & Robin Koop, Greg Prugh I, II &III, Mike & Nancy Faems, Brian Moore, Bill Doyle, Christian & Kara Yost, Eric Weber and Anne Fish. Everyone arrived on different days, but we still managed to get together throughout the week. Some of us stayed at the Keystone Lodge which was located on Keystone Lake where we had beautiful views of the lake and mountains in the background.
Golf was big on Robin’s list so we managed to play in the “Parade Golf Tournament” along with a few other rounds mixed in at their two beautiful courses. Monday evening was the start of festivities with the “Welcome Dinner”. It was surprising how many people I knew from past Porsche events from around the country. The “Concours d’Elegance” began on Tuesday with the cars displayed at the Ranch Golf Course. Greg Prugh had one of his 356’s entered in the event and finished 1st in his class and was also awarded the Zuffenhausen medal for points scored. Christian and Kara Yost placed 4th in their class with their beautiful Turbo. Well done! The cars couldn’t look any more gorgeous than to be staged on the green grass surrounded by the towering mountains. There was also a “Historic Display Exhibit” and a “Porsche Corral”, so if you were not showing your Porsche in the Concourse, you were still allowed to park your car in its specific group and enjoy a relaxing afternoon on the golf course. Porsche also revealed the new GT3 and Panamera at the Concours Awards Dinner. It was their first appearance in the USA. What gorgeous automobiles.
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Some of the events that our members participated in were as follows: Scot, Anne, Greg and the Faems competed in the TDS and Gimmick rallies; Robin, Kara and Anne ran the 5K race; Scot and Anne attended some guided tours to beautiful areas surrounding Keystone; Scot ran his first autocross and did a wonderful job negotiating the pylons. Way to go Scot! The art show had some fantastic original pieces and our own Mike Faems took 1st place with one of his photos. For our club, however, there was a surprise in-store. We were awarded 1st place in the newsletter contest and 2nd place in the web site contest. The Board of the Yellowstone Region snuck in a special nomination that you can read about in this newsletter. Needless to say, both Robin and I were very surprised and touched by this honor. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Last but not least, we need to congratulate Nancy Faems for becoming the “Chicken Dance” queen of the night. She was magnificent out on that dance floor! Everyone stopped by the “Goodie Store” as well as the vendor tents to bring back some special souvenirs from the week.
A group of our members attended the “Beerfest” where we were given a commemorative mug from the Parade and spent the afternoon sipping on beer and sodas. Dinners were held almost every night and provided a great opportunity to socialize with fellow PCA members. The farewell gathering of the Parade was the “Victory Banquet” and was a wonderful way to say good-bye to new and old acquaintances. The evening’s finale was a beautiful fireworks show over the lake.
The week was a splendid time spent with fellow club members and two thousand other Porsche owners from around the world. It just goes to show that it isn’t just the cars that tie us together. It is the people too!
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