John D.

Can you tell me exactly what "events" that Region has run in the past - and what events you would like to run in the future as a "Region" - affiliated with PCA or any other organization?

(Yes - I have a reason for asking)...

Thanks!

John

Brian Wilson

We had AutoX's every month from April until September, because that's about all the weather permits over here!!! There were also normal drive weekends where we would meet up and cruise on some nice roads and maybe stay in a hotel and have dinner together. Some lucky people got to go to Leipzig last year and see the track, factory and sit in (and rev up) a new GT!!! There is also the normal factory tour that is awesome and also the RUF tour in podunk germany. There was also christmas parties for the off season and just normal parties throughout the year. The PCA here, when we're having events at least, participate as much as they can. Everyone was always willing to find a way to make things work and everything usually went smoothly. I had a lot of fun with them the past 3 years and I would hate to see the club go away.

You're not starting a John D. Porsche Club of John D. are you??? That would be sweet, dude, sweet.

BTW, little jumbled above. I just wrote it as it came to me.

*Michael.*

More info about our club..... First region outside of the US, est. 1963..

www.pca-gr.de

How it all began...
The Germany region started life with Frank Beckett's idea for a Porsche Club in the Kaiserslautern area and Don Barlett's letter in the November 1962 Panorama asking to get in touch with any displaced PCA member in Germany. Frank wrote Don and they got together and so began talk of Porsche and clubs.

On April 5, 1963, 14 Porsche owners met at the Gasthaus Barborossehof, which is near Kaiserslautern in (then) West Germany, for the purpose of investigating the possibility of forming a Porsche club. Since a large number of Porsches were to be seen in and around the Kaiserslautern area (which is the largest American community outside the United States), the idea of forming a club was one that had been in the minds of many Porsche owners for some time. Although several sports car clubs already existed in the area, a single marque club had yet to be established.

With delivery of a new Porsche, Frank Beckett, one of the founding fathers of PCA, got the ball rolling in a very short time. During that spring of 1963, PCA had established its first region outside the Unites States. The boundaries of the Club were established to include all countries of the continent, Great Britian, and Scandinavia, undoubtly making it PCA's largest region.

The Club grew and was quite active until late 1969. Records aren't quite clear as to what happened to the club, but apathy seemed to have caused the club to quietly disappear from the scene. The Greshams kept a spark of Porsche alive in Germany through the next couple of years even though there were only about 8 or so people getting together occasionally to talk Porsche. In 1973, Dave Mills, Jim Rutledge, Mike Gresham, Colleen Booth, Sylvia Johnson, Ginny Ireland, and J.J. Jones assembled to revitalize interest in PCA-GR and reactivate the region. Through the work and dedication of countless numbers of members, the PCA-Germany Region has grown and been restored to a worthwhile and viable club.

PCA-GR is currently around 250 members strong. Our members primarily live throughout Europe (with the majority right here in Germany), but we also boast membership in such far away places as Australia and Hong Kong. While we are a bit isolated from the rest of PCA and have to wait longer for our Panoramas, we do enjoy the advantages of living closer to the home of our favorite marque and driving our cars legally at Porsche speeds.

Brian Wilson

Early 80's, 60's.... same thing.

*Michael.*

John,

Have you ever thought of starting Rennlist regional clubs?

Swedeboy

Why not consider joining Porsche club Germany?

If the mentality and focus (not to mention the language) of that club might be different than PCA - but if you're living abroad why not make the most of it?

*Michael.*

According to the Germans that are in our club that used to be in the German club, the PCA-GR is a lot more fun with much better enviroment. Of course we could join the German Porsche club but our club had a great mix of people, that is what made it really interesting.

Chris_924s

Michael- this is happening independently in several locations in the US, grassroots style, being formed by the members (and non members as it were) without the intervention of Rennlist.

However, Rennlist is the catalyt for these regional organizations.
KC, Texas, SoCal and SoOhio are strong and active. There may be more, but these come to my mind as I'm writing this.

Maybe this is a statement PCA should be looking at.

My .02 worth.

John D.

Ummm - more then just thought about it...

There will be the first official "Rennlist Region" announced very shortly as we finish up the by-laws, the Region Charter, etc.. I made a pre-announcement during the Rennlist Banquet at Hershey.

I will tell you now - that there are some differences to other organizations. For example - any event is "open" to Rennlist Members and non-members alike. Proof of Porsche ownership is NOT required. What is required is an enthusiasm about Porsches. There are not any "pecking" orders based on Porsche models - so a GT3 owner will have the same regard for a 914 owner as they would another GT3 - and all events are "inclusive" of all models. We respect the "people", not the Porsche model they happen to drive or be able to afford, etc.

And yes - there are some "ad hoc Regions" as Chris mentions - and in total, there are already about 20 of those - and many have expressed a similiar interest to formalize as a "Rennlist Region". As well, for some of the Rennlist Sponsors who are in the developing Region's local area - we've already arrange quite a few events, so there will be an event calendar upon announcement.

And yes - Rennlist is worldwide. So, I would expect that "Rennlist Regions" would be worldwide as well. In short - I wasn't aware that ethusiasm for a Porsche was a North American attribute only. Rather - it's worldwide as well...

Best to you,

John

Peckster

Not gonna happen.

mcavour

John D.

That's not jumbled at all..! In fact - it sounds exactly in line with what I suspect any Region would do for events, social gatherings, etc.??

Maybe I'm missing something - but - I don't think so.

In reference to my post above - let's see what unfolds in the next few weeks, OK?

Brian Wilson

John, you're awesome. There needs to be more people with the power to make something good happen actually use the power. Yes, you do have it. I think it would be great to really be able to be part of a club and still talk to other regions all on the same board.... watch the bandwidth skyrocket!!! It's kinda like cable tv, internet and phone all across the same line... maybe not.

Anyway, great idea, and I'd sure like to help you out any way that I can.

Jay Wellwood

Well, as usual, I like to 'look into' things to get a better understanding of the issue(s) at hand.

Based on my 'investigation' last night I would like to share the following information with all that have and will read this thread. Further, it might bear moving this topic into the OT forum so that all of the PCar owners who are members of PCA can benefit from this.

While the history of the German chapter is a unique one, the challenges faced by the Germany Chapter are no small feat. Bottom line is that the Mother Organziation (PCA) cannot endorse club events - and has stated so with great reluctance. The issue is not personal, but rather a legal issue. Specifically, the liablity presented to PCA and its' members.

We all know the effects that 9-11 had on the finanical community - well this impact was felt in the Insurance world as well. As a result of the financial impact, many Insurance Companies have taken a serious blow and are striving to recover. As such, many Insurers have taken a much longer & harder look to what they are exposing themselves to in the risk area. Bottom line is that the Insurers do not feel comfortable in underwriting policies such as those requested by PCA. The market share of the Insurers has also been shrinking over than last few years which translates to fewer Insurers to choose from when requesting coverage. This combined with the uncertainty of litigation costs associated with claims from overseas (in particular Europe) has made it impossible for PCA to obtain insurance coverage for the Germany Chapter for its' events such as AutoCrossing.

As the case may be, the bottom line is that PCA has not been able to procure Insurance Coverage for its members in the Germany Chapter based on risk and exposure alone. Nothing more. Although the Germany Chapter could obtain its own insurance, there is no mechanism to provide an Umbrella to shield PCA from a claim in the event of an accident. Therefore, in an effort to protect all of the PCA memebrs - and PCA itself as a whole - the result is no official sponsored events can be held by the Germany Chapter.

I realize that this has been longwinded, but I felt that the information had to be discovered and shared. Bottom line is that the events described are not as a result of any dis-like or by-laws, but rather a result of the Insurance Industry and the liability associated with the inablity to procure Insurance for the Germany Chapter Activities.

Best Regards-

Luis de Prat

Jay, you may be aware that auto insurance policy premiums in the United States are considerably more expensive than in much of Europe. As an example, my European insurer offered me liability coverage for my 951 for about $350 per year while I was paying well over $1,000 for liability on a similar car in the U.S.

Something could be worked out for the Germany PCA Chapter to take out its own insurance policy in Europe, holding harmless the parent organization. Furthermore, just like horseback riding stables that rent out horses in the litiginous U.S. now ask renters to sign disclaimer agreements before riding, the PCA Germany Chapter could ask event participants to waive their right to any claims.

It just needs to be spelled out and put into effect by someone who wants the Chapter to continue. I think that's the underlying issue at hand.