GCR Oktoberfest

article by Ian Gerada, Oktoberfest 2022 chair

On Saturday October 8th, over 300 GCR members and guests arrived at the Biergarten in Boca Raton for our annual Oktoberfest event. This year’s event included a roast pig special, live music, as well as a few friendly competitions of beer holding. We all gathered to celebrate the arrival of Fall 2022, we joined arms, clinked beer steins, and celebrated in Bavarian style with our friends.

But of course, in my opinion, the highlight of the event were the magnificent Porsches parked outside. From a zebra wrapped RWB to two Carrera GT’s, a 2023 GT3 Touring as well as a fabulous Speedster, these were just some of the attractions that kept members talking Porsche pretty much all day.

I would be amiss to talk about our Oktoberfest event without thanking our presenting sponsor, Foreign Affairs Motorwerks, led by Bobby Varela. Bobby handed out Porsche giveaways to members attending, from Porsche Eau de Toilette to Insulated Steel Travel Mugs and a variety of additional giveaways. It was truly difficult to determine what the best part of the day was. Was it the people – for certain, the cars – absolutely, the roast pig - tasty, or the BIER? Perhaps with any good multiple choice question the obvious answer was ALL OF THE ABOVE.

The party officially started at 11:00 am and lasted until about 3:30 pm. The Biergarten managers, Eric and Dorian, did an incredible job to secure as many parking places as possible, even pulling a city permit to allow us to park as many cars as we could in the front section of the restaurant. While parking was tight, this is a rolling event – people come, and people leave throughout the day, and everyone managed to find a parking spot.

Once everyone stepped into the Biergarten the camaraderie, beer, and great food took over. We even had an entertaining two-person German combo (accordion and singer) to belt out “Roll Out the Barrels!”

While Southeast Florida was spared from the devastating impact of Hurricane Ian (no relation), Ruben Fuentes & Mark Johnson headed up a spectacular effort to bring in relief donations, all supplies collected at Octoberfest were delivered to International Aircraft in Miramar, from where they were delivered to the west coast where they were desperately needed.

For those who attended I am sure you will agree that it was a fun event and for those who didn’t make it I hope to see you at next year’s Oktoberfest Event.