Tour & Rally 2023 Wrap Up

2023 Tour & Rally Schedule Roundup

PCA Chesapeake’s Tour & Rally Committee had 16 events on its 2023 calendar, but two were canceled and one was rescheduled. The dates and events listed here were subject to change. Registration for most events opened 2 to 3 weeks before their scheduled dates. To sign up, PCA members had to log on to their accounts at www.motorsportreg.com . Altogether, the 14 events that were held attracted 651 attendees and 357 cars, representing about 85% of total registrations. (Ver. 23, 01/01/2024)

April 15 (1) Delmarva Tour, DE, MD and VA, tour master Aniano Arao (45 people, 26 cars)

April 29 (2) Drive to Porsche Swap Meet in Carlisle, tour master Rich Ehrlich (canceled; weather)

May 6 (3) Tour & TSD Rally School, guest rally master Bob Rassa, (11 people, 8 cars)

May 20 (4) Safeway to the Bay Tour, guest tour master Hank Lucas (60 people, 32 cars)

June 4 (5) Linganore Winecellars Tour, guest tour master Ron Farb (62 people, 35 cars)

June 25 (6) Ice Cream (#1) & Charity Tour, guest tour master Steve Graham (58 people, 29 cars)

July 9 (7) Sinai Hospital to Oregon Ridge Tour, tour master Aniano Arao (48 people, 26 cars)

July 16 (8) Air & Space Ice Cream Tour (#2), tour master Rich Ehrlich (37 people, 21 cars)

Aug. 6 (9) Bonkey’s Ice Cream Tour (#3), guest tour master Mark Miller (52 people, 31 cars)

Aug. 12 (10) Allegheny Mountains Tour in PA, guest tour master Ron Farb (33 people, 20 cars)

Sept. 23 (11) Chesapeake Challenge 54 Gimmick Rally, rally master Aniano Arao (CC postponed)

Oct. 8 (12) Off-Road Tour, guest tour master Jim Hemig (55 people, 25 cars)

Oct. 21 (13) Chesapeake Challenge Gimmick Rally, rally master Aniano Arao (42 people, 21 cars)

Oct. 29 (14) West Virginia Fall Colors Tour, tour master Aniano Arao (53 people, 31 cars)

Nov. 5 (15) Catoctin Mountains Fall Colors Tour, tour master Aniano Arao (67 people, 36 cars) (xx) Baltimore Fall Colors Tour (canceled to make room for rescheduled CC54)

Dec. 9 (16) Kindertime & Linda’s Legacy Tour, tour master Rich Ehrlich (28 people, 16 cars)

Check www.pcachs.org, Patter, www.motorsportreg.com and the events’ eBlasts for details and updates. Send questions to tour@pcachs.org. Aniano Arao & Rich Ehrlich, Co-Chairs, Tour & Rally Committee

2023 Tours: Looking Back

By: Aniano Arao

PCA Chesapeake’s Tour & Rally Committee planned 17 events last year. But one event had to be canceled because of inclement weather, another had to be postponed for the same reason, and a third had to be dropped to make room for a rescheduled 54th Chesapeake Challenge. So we actually held 14 events last year, though we numbered them up to 15 to avoid confusion.

The Delmarva Tour, shown in the photo above, was the first one. The April 15th drive was conceived, planned and led by yours truly. This morning and afternoon event took us on some of the most enjoyable back roads on the Delmarva Peninsula. A total of 45 people in 26 cars took part. We started from the Premium Outlets in Queenstown, MD, had lunch at the Clubhouse at Baywood in Millsboro, DE, and then about a third of the attendees proceeded to Chincoteague, VA, for an afternoon ice cream and some sightseeing.

Next on the schedule was the Drive to the Porsche Swap Meet in Carlisle, PA, on April 29th. But this annual drive that was to have been led by Rich Ehrlich, my fellow tour co-chair, was canceled because of bad weather.

I usually try to organize a workshop on tour planning and rally participation every year. In 2023, we held a Tour and TSD Rally School on May 6th. Rich and I handled the tour portion in the morning, while club historian Bob Rassa took care of the TSD rally portion in the afternoon. The classroom session was followed by an introductory TSD rally that gave Bob’s eight students a chance to put into practice what they had learned from him. The rally was won in their white 981 Cayman by Steve and Marsha Buss, second and third from right in the photo above. The event was attended by 11 people in 8 cars. Skip Conrey of Conrey Construction kindly hosted us at his lovely Valhalla Farm in Marriottsville, MD. Our lunch was at the nearby Facci Ristorante in Ellicott City.

The month of May also saw PCA Chesapeake members enjoying the ever popular Safeway to the Bay Tour of guest tour master Hank Lucas. This May 20th event started from an Annapolis shopping center and provided participants a delightful drive on many scenic back roads in Anne Arundel and Calvert counties. A total of 60 people in 32 cars showed up for this afternoon event, most of whom are shown in the photo above.

While the first three events of the year were chaired by yours truly, the next two were overseen by Rich. First came the June 4th Linganore Winecellars Tour, designed and led by guest tour master and PCA Chesapeake President Ron Farb. This popular event attracted 62 people in 35 cars. The tour started from Ellicott City, proceeded on wonderful back roads (shown in the photo above) and concluded with a picnic lunch at the winery in Frederick County.

Next came the June 25th Ice Cream Tour & Charity Drive designed and led by guest tour master Steve Graham. Starting from Sparks, MD, 58 participants drove in 29 cars on wonderful back roads to Keyes Creamery in Churchville, MD, shown in the photo above. The attendees of this afternoon event donated food stuff and other essential items to the Lindaben Foundation, a nonprofit organization led by PCA members Anna and James Beavan III. This event was a joint effort of the Tour & Rally Committee, represented by Rich, and by the Community Service Committee, chaired by Daniel McNally.

PCA Chesapeake’s summer of 2023 continued as a time not only for more fun but also for another charity undertaking The Sinai Children’s Hospital and Oregon Ridge Tour on July 9th drew 50

attendees in 29 cars to Porsche Hunt Valley, the main sponsor of the event. General Manager Steve Postol treated everyone to coffee and bagels. From PHV, the attendees proceeded to the Herman and Walter Samuelson Children’s Hospital at Sinai in Baltimore, where PCA Chesapeake President Ron Farb formally presented to the hospital staff a check for $11,010 and a mountain of toys donated by the attendees and other club members. Some PCA Chesapeake members went directly to Sinai in three more Porsches, raising the total to 32.

After the turnover ceremony, 48 attendees in 26 cars joined the one-hour driving tour that I designed and organized, which took us to Oregon Ridge Park in Cockeysville, MD. A few more Chesapeake members went directly to Oregon Ridge. Our picnic lunch there was catered by Mission BBQ.

Daniel McNally, as the Community Service chair, tallied the votes in the People’s Choice Concours. The Best in Show Award went to Jessie Sanchez for his GT Silver 2019 911 Targa 4S. The People’s Choice Award went to Mark and Dawn Miller for their customized Arctic Silver 2009 Cayman (which, in stock form, used to belong to me). The Exceptional Color Award went to club Treasurer Andy Powell, for his burgundy 2023 Panamera. The Longest-Time-Owned Award went to former PCA Chesapeake president Gary Martinez, for his black 2003 911 Carrera 4S. And the Newest Member Award went to Rob Carter, who owns a white Macan.

Our next four events were chaired by Rich. His Air & Space Ice Cream Tour on July 16th drew 37 people in 21 cars, shown in photo above. The 65-mile drive started from Mt. Airy, MD, and ended at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, VA. This museum near Dulles International Airport is an annex of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. The tour attendees enjoyed the museum’s Astronaut Ice Cream, as well as Shake Shack’s more traditional offerings.

Guest tour master Mark Miller’s Bonkey’s Ice Cream Tour on Aug. 6th attracted 52 people in 31 cars. The wonderful 60-mile drive started from Upperco and ended at Bonkey’s in Whiteford, MD (shown in the photo above).

Guest tour master Ron Farb’s Aug. 12th Allegheny Mountain Tour in Pennsylvania drew 33 people in 20 cars, shown in the photo above. The enjoyable drive began from Middletown, MD, passed through the Keystone State’s delightful PA-26 highway, and ended up at Jimmy Joy’s Log Cabin Inn in Hancock, MD, where the participants had a hearty lunch.

The Oct. 8th Off-Road Tour attracted 55 people and 25 SUVs from both the PCA Chesapeake and PCA Potomac regions. This 15-mile drive was held in and around Sugarloaf Mountain in Maryland’s Frederick County, shown in the photo above. This event was jointly planned and organized by guest tour master Jim Hemig and Tour Co-Chair Rich Ehrlich of PCA Chesapeake, as well as by Diane Sullenberger of PCA Potomac. The participants had lunch at the Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard.

The 54th Chesapeake Challenge had to be rescheduled because of inclement weather on the original Sept. 23rd date. So the multi-activity Challenge was held at the Elkridge and Harford Hunt Club in Monkton on Oct. 21st, the date for one of my three fall colors tours. I canceled one of the tours to make room for this most important event of our region.

The Tour & Rally Committee’s contribution to the daylong Chesapeake Challenge was a Gimmick Rally that took 42 participants in 21 cars around northern Baltimore and Harford counties. The gimmicks and route I created covered 62 miles of delightful back roads. Chad and Gabriella Wasileski won the rally, shown in the photo above, followed in second place by Jonathan Silverman and Carolyn Bernota. Chip Reichhart and Charles Gittings finished in third place.

Our 13th event of 2023 was my West Virginia Fall Colors Tour on Oct. 29th. A total of 53 people in 31 cars took part. We drove on scenic back roads from Middletown, MD, to Berkeley Springs, WV, in the morning. After lunch at Canary Grill, we drove some more in the afternoon on the delightfully twisty roads between Berkeley Springs and Paw Paw, and then back to Canary Grill, where the tour ended. Some of the participants are shown in the photo above.

Our second fall colors drive and 14th event in 2023 was my Catoctin Mountain Fall Colors Tour on Nov. 5th. With 67 people in 36 cars, this afternoon tour was our biggest event of the year, in terms of turnout, as the photo above shows. We started from Reisterstown, had a restroom break in Thurmont and concluded the tour in Middletown, MD. The 77-mile route took us on some of the most enjoyable back roads of Baltimore County, Carroll County and Frederick County.

Baltimore

was our 15th and final event of 2023. The Dec. 9th charity gathering was hosted by Porsche Hunt Valley and its general manager, Steve Postol. Steve kindly provided snacks and beverages during the morning portion of the event. Afterwards, 28 event attendees in 16 cars joined a drive planned and organized by Rich from Hunt Valley to Savage, MD, where a good lunch was enjoyed by all.

Altogether, our TSD rally, gimmick rally and 12 driving tours in 2023 attracted 651 attendees and 357 cars. These numbers represented about 85 percent of total registrations.

Our 2023 Tour & Rally Schedule is still available in this issue of Patter, for your reference and a bird’s-eye -view. We look forward to seeing you in our driving events in 2024.

PCA Chesapeake’s annual Kindertime and Linda’s Legacy Tour – in support of the charity campaigns to collect toys for disadvantaged children and winter necessities for the city’s homeless –