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Hi, I'm that 19 y/o Swiss guy who wanted to go to the US - Here is how it turned out!
Hello everyone
On January 16 I wrote a post here on this forum asking if I may stay with someone from you for a month to learn more about the US culture and how business is done in the US. I received great support from many but also criticism for my approach from one guy.
The thread was finally moved to the off-topic section (https://rennlist.com/forums/off-topi...d-explore.html) but since most of you do not have access there, I'll post the story here as well
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I'm back in Switzerland and it's time to share the story. What an adventure it has been. The journey started on January 17 when I first wrote this thread. Precisely four weeks later, I already arrived in the US, in Phoenix Arizona. I didn't know much about Arizona and heard people say that it's okay but not that special - but this was proven to be incorrect, the weather and desert alone was enough to make it outstanding, especially when coming from Switzerland.
My flight was fabulous, I chose Delta and on the first part, Zurich - New York, for whatever reason, the entire plane had no more than 20 people on board. I could choose from a variety of rows to completely lay down, much alike a bed, or choose a window seat on the whole length of the plane. The ones who booked 1st / business must have felt being fooled.
Dan and his daughter picked me up at the Phoenix airport late in the evening and brought me to their house. We immediately connected with each other and I knew right away that this is going to be amazing. I fell asleep quickly afterwards and woke up very early during the first few days (6am) which is unusual for me but jet lag takes its toll.
First time seeing the NY skyline
Shortly after I woke up and met the whole family, we were surprised by rain, a very rare occasion in Arizona. Dan and I visited an old town and we saw the desert starting to bloom and the cactuses fill up with water.
The superstitions
Superstitions and the clouds bearing rain
Old (renovated) ghost town from the cowboy age with USA flag
My first experience with these hats - I love them
By the end of the day, I knew the whole family and we all got along very well with each other.
I kept waking up early and it was still pouring rain but nevertheless, we chose to do our first hike.
Rivers emerged out of nowhere - this was a group of young fellas on their hike to the top as well. Dan started building the stone bridge where everyone is crossing over. Will they make it to the top?
Here they are again!
Weather is starting to clear up the higher up we go.
What a view!
We successfully completed our hike.
On Monday, the weather started to improve and I took a first glance at the garden. What do I see there? A springboard! I'm a (very novice) springboard diver so this was marvelous.
Dan and especially his wife suggested not to enter the pool since the water was very cold - I explained that I live next to a mountain lake and that the water in the pool was warmer than ours ever gets, even in the summer!
Have you ever heard of Flagstaff? Well, I haven't. At least not until Dan told me that we are going to do a roadtrip to Flagstaff. Flagstaff is a city a few hours away from Phoenix, there are some students there and a "smash burger" restaurant. And it's cold, very cold.
From 80+ Fahrenheit back to sub 32.. crazy!
During the first two weeks, Dan and his family acquainted me with the US culture and the landscape in Arizona. Once again, we had a great relation with each other and I felt as I was a part of the family by then. Let me say something about the desert: I was never a big fan of the desert, and during the first five days or so, I didn't think that it was that special, but all of a sudden, it made "click" and I just loved it! You start to appreciate the little details, shapes and occurings which you can only find in the desert.
We then set off to our trip to the west coast. A big goal of mine was to learn more about the US business culture. Dan contributed a lot and we discussed business matters almost every day, whether it was tech related startups or the automotive industry. I particulary learned a lot about aligning the interests of various parties from Dan. He is a master at doing so.
What does this have to do with our trip to the west coast? Well, along our way, we would meet with fellow Rennlisters! Dan had many contacts and I chimed in as well by calling / emailing others, introducing myself and asking if they wish to join as well. It was fantastic .
We drove from Phoenix to LA, the huge distances in the US struck me.
Dinosaur in the wild!
Our first stop was Greg Brown and his amazing workshop Precision Motorwerks. Greg specializes in the 928, he is a masterful crafter of the 6.5l stroker engine which brings the 928 to another level. Not only that, but also his work overall (exterior, interior, engine, drivetrain) speakes for itself: The name "Precision" Motorworks is absolutely true. Everything is flawless. Here are some impressions:
Greg's son solving a stuck part.
Thank you very much Greg.
A very friendly worker reminded me a lot of my best friend, he too likes to work on engines and has the same friendly attitude - I'll show him this.
We continued our way towards the west coast and dined at (I think) Laguna beach. Oh my, I found my place there. The weast coast beach is the real deal! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:
What an amazing day it was! I'm definitely in love with California, although living there would be quite a challenge due to the traffic. But for vacation it's fabulous. We booked a small inn on the run and slept there, wondering why the price was that low given how nice everything was. Well, it didn't take us long to find out: All of a sudden, our house starts shaking, we hear noises much similar to those of an earthquake: We were less than 5 feet away from a railroad. It was great though! We laughed at the railroad and earthquakes occuring every other hour, but would definitely go there again.
The next day sounded very promising: We were going to meet a bunch of Dan's friends, many of them masters at their craft (doctors, salesman) and very savvy business men. I must admit that I was a little nervous going into the "meeting" but all of the gentleman were very welcoming and outgoing.
One of the biggest takeaways from my stay is definitely the ability to remain calm and composed when meeting more experienced people. I've always been decent at approaching others, but most of them were at my age, so I got a little shaky at times, especially on the phone, when talking to more experienced people. I called many business man and interviewed them about their business and practises, but Dan says I did 9/10 well so I might have perceived this incorrectly. Definitely much better at it now though .
Back to our lunch. The conversation started of with a trivial talk about buying a 928 radio and it not functioning well, which was very amusing. I connected very well with the doctor (I'll leave names out of it for now, need confirmation) and we discussed study paths. What I learned from our discussion was that college is the scaffolding of your education and you build up on it as you go. The key is to build a solid foundation and then put a skyscraper on it afterwards!
Another present gentleman was a very skilled salesman, he explained how he simply started going door to door and taught me valuable skills about initiative.
Another one was a great race car driver and entrepreneur, unfortunately we only talked briefly but I sensed from his attitude and behaviour that he was a man who beats his competition by beating himself - what do I mean by this? He continously improves each and every week regardless of what the task at hand might be (racing, business, sports etc.) I hope that this assumption is correct but I integrated that into my habits.
And then there was another gentleman, one that I felt very connected with. He is an outstanding business man and I asked many questions and received magnificent replis. He thoroughly explained how he started with nothing but a skill and how he turned it into where he is now. Very valuable business advice that I eagerly aim to apply!
Now, one thing that I learned early in the stay was the definition of success - it's not necessarily about money, (although money can be a good measurement of business success), but much more about how one tackles his goals and interests in life. At that table, I witnessed an amazing display of people who are very, very successful, each in his own category. Success is also being successful in his particular craft / category without neglecting other important areas in life. Each of the gentleman, including Dan, did well socially, financially and had great life experience .
The end of lunch came quickly (I could have sit there another two hours) and Dan told me that we were going to visit another place but the gentlemen were going to accompany us. I still had many unanswered business questions in my mind and took the leap of faith and asked the business man if I may ride with him - he nodded and Dan understood it too. During our 15 minute ride, he explained in detail the importance of several business practises that one might not see at first glance. One thing I could relate to very well was what he called "the chase" - he is always chasing something like opening a new store and then he rewards each milestone with something for himself - and he stressed that I should do that too, even at the beginning where a milestone might be 100$ in sales - which keeps you going and adds even more fun to it.
We arrived at a facility much alike what I imagine heaven to be like - A warehouse filled with the finest cars, many of them Porsches, all in precious and mint condition but driven regularly. I will clarify if I may share more pictures, but here is one of them:
I've never been in a car whose interior fits me as perfectly as the CGT does - seats, steering wheel, and the best thing is the overall tiny size of the cockpit and having the engine right behind you. I like the claustrophic feel, much more involving than the new big chassis. PAG, please make a GT4 RS so I can have something that feels similar.
We said goodbye and this was one of the best days in my entire life.
We continued our journey and dined at the very first in n out in the US, right next to donut hole. I can't get the smile off my face
Through a favour done by a friend of ours, we had the chance to visit the Singer factory, yep, that is true. We are not allowed to share pictures of the factory which is a pity.
We met fellow Rennlisters Jim and Jon (refer to the replies one the page prior to this, date 3/03 - 5/03 for more information on our meeting) and it was fantastic!
The sun was very bright
Thank you once again for the great conversation and I'm glad to have met you!
Back in Phoenix. We attended a cars & coffee and visited the Scottsdale McLaren dealership where we saw this gem:
Amazed by the 4.0 what a car!
Discovered my love for McLaren
Suits me well doesn't it?
Ford GT in the wild!
Obsessed with the 4.0... Porsche, why did you limit this damn thing! I'll get one.
Grand Canyon:
Despite my love for cars, particulary Porsche, I do not yet posses a driver's license (simply not necessary in Switzerland) but I had to get driving experience regardless. We visited the husband of Dan's mother and I went for my first ride ever with him, in a golf kart
Fabulous!
Upgraded quickly though:
We were already in the last week and I had absolutely no intentions of going home but it was getting closer. We started off the last week very relaxing, eating good food and talking about life. On the second last day, we met another two Rennlisters and we had an amazing time. You may read more about it a few posts prior to this. One of the things on my "bucket list" was to experience a ride in a Porsche and Stu & Phil & his wife made this possible for me. Thank you very much They have a great taste in cars, the GT3 RS speaks for itself and the Spyder is one of my favourites too because you hardly ever see any of these in Europe due to the weather.
The last day approached and it was set to be a blast! I was slightly afraid as Dan told me that we were going into the Desert with his cousin (?) Cliff driving an ATV. That sounded scary and it was, I do not feel comfortable when I'm not in the "driver seat", this goes for cars but also things in general in life. Always gotta be in control. It was however fantastic and Cliff proved to be a great driver.
The scenery is on another level, this is why the desert is beautiful like nothing else:
Cliff and Dan!
On the way back down, Cliff called shotgun and handed over the driver's seat to me. Perfect
I had a decent flight back and my best friend and girlfriend awaited me at the airport, very grateful for having them. The first few days were somewhat weird, I missed the US and was not very happy in Switzerland. By now, I definitely appreciate the finer details of Switzerland too and am happy here. My plan was to attend the last day of the Geneva show (new gt3 is EPIC!) but I ditched it and got immediately back to work, more on that later.
I would like to say thank you very much for all the people who made this happen! Especially my host Dan and his family. Dan is an amazing human being and I am now part of the family and it does feel like family indeed.
I hope that I could give back to everyone in some way or another by sharing my thoughts on the world, having great discussions and most importantly trying to be good company. I've received many favours from people such as sharing their time with me on a phone call, meeting me for lunch, telling me about their story, preferences and cars and making special things happen for me. I truly appreciate that and please reach out to me if you ever come to Switzerland. I am always available for help if I can somehow assist anyone with his matter.
Here is a quote from someone who initially replied to the first post that made me sad at first but I made it my goal to prove this dude wrong and show that I am a pleasant human being. During my stay, I gave my best effort to give back as much as I can for the incredible favours I received - I might have not been able to do so materially, but I tried my best to be good company and adding meaningful thoughts and ideas to their lifes.
Thank you Dan & family for the lovely month. I learned a lot from you about life and treating others well. Dan, you're an amazing human being and I am very grateful for what you did for me.
Thank you Rob, Steve, Mark, Joseph, Greg & Mary, Russ, Stu, Phil & wife, Jim, John for meeting with us and sharing your knowledge with me. I will carry on what I learned and share it with younger folks.
Thank you M. for letting me call you and asking about how you built your company.
Thank you T. for replying to me when you introduced me to the business world 8 months ago, wouldn't be where I am now hadn't it been for your never ending endurance with answering my questions.
That is excellent! Glad you had such a nice visit. I certainly also had a great time in Switzerland (my first visit was in 2015 with my Cayman GT4 that I collected at the factory). All the best
Wow, this is awesome. I'm so glad it worked out for you. Dan and his family seem like great people and judging by your ambition to pull this off -- your friendly posts and pictures -- you're probably a real good dude too. If you're ever back here and find your way to Atlanta, I'd take you out to the mountains for a drive and a business chat.
A great story about your trip! I remember you telling me about this idea over dinner in Switzerland. As you showed, some will disagree, but I'd prefer a person willing to ask and go out over someone who stays hidden behind a screen. I for sure know who will progress faster.
Throuughout your trip we spoke a lot, and I can confirm that the excitement shown in your story is not even close to how truly happy and excited you were during the trip.
It's a great luck to have found a host like Dan and his family. From all that I heard and what has been shown, he is an amazing father in a family with a very kind heart. Hereby my utmost respect to you Dan (in case you are reading this). I truly admire people who have a character like yours and it sets an example for all of us to do be as kind and open to others as well.
I hope you find the time and permission to share some more photos and details within this post soon, maybe a few more Porsche garage photos might be appreciated on Rennlist
Take care and best wishes to you, Dan and his family.
I like how you described with great attention to detail your recent trip. The memories you take from the myriad characters you met will last a lifetime.
Great story and pictures! Another great example of the the quality of people on this forum.
I've also reached out to Rennlisters in the past, and have been lucky enough to meet forum members in different cities around the U.S. and even France and Canada!
This is truly awesome and special memory. Funny you visited Flagstaff, studied there for 6 months a couple of years ago as part of a Student Exchange Program. Amazing experience and landscape over there!
Stories like this shows what kind of awesome people visit these forums, really amazing gesture by Dan and his family.
Also hats off to you, TS. I think with your approach to people/situations/business you will succeed.
When I'm in Switzerland I'll hit you up for some business talk!
Spectacular trip by the sounds of it. Congrats on meeting your goal you set out to accomplish. Dan and his family sound like you struck it perfectly. Amazing pics and thank you for sharing.
04-07-2017, 12:15 PM
Hi, I'm that 19 y/o Swiss guy who wanted to go to the US - Here is how it turned out!
