Escape to the Cape

Six months of planning and POOF… Escape to the Cape 2022 was a great success. For some PCA members, the weekend started early as Friday afternoon. Many of us, including Christy Spangler, Carolynn Ditrichs, Sharon Veingrad, Lisa Koller, Debra Flaherty, Mike Koller, Laura Koller, Mike and Leslie Del Pozo, Trish and Kent Gastineau, Ian Gerada, and Peter Olliviere, set up registration for check-in.

Friday evening, a group of about 30 met up at the nearby waterfront restaurant, Pinchers, for an outstanding dinner.

Early Saturday morning, about 50 Porsche owners met with their cars at Porsche West Broward, then caravanned to travel to the Boathouse Tiki Bar & Grill in Fort Myers. This year, for the first time, we had two other regions, Everglades and Gulfstream, join us in multiple rides to Escape to the Cape. Organizing the group’s sendoff at Porsche West Broward was Dale Huber, with the help of Mark Johnson, Ed Blair, Dan Doyle, and David Higgins.

While at Boathouse or during check-in, members were able to purchase tickets for the raffle that would be held at the evening’s dinner event.

Escape to the Cape took place at the beautiful Westin Cape Coral at Marina Village. After checking in on Saturday afternoon, some members enjoyed poolside drinks or relaxed in the pool.

Later that evening, many attendees enjoyed a dinner buffet in one of the venue’s ballrooms featuring prime rib, chicken, and shrimp. There were additional sales of the raffle tickets. Money raised from the raffle benefitted the Memorial Hospital Cancer Institute.

One of our sponsors of Escape to the Cape, Dr. Color Chip, gave certificates for Road Rash kits. Another sponsor, Tint Haus Customs, also provided a gift certificate for the raffle. Additional raffle prizes were provided by Griot’s Garage, Autogeek, Sonax, Seven Hotel Sebring, CanesWear! Davie, MCarCovers, Adam’s Detailing Supplies, P21S, Suncoast Region DE, and Vertex Auto Miami.

The largest prizes included two Porsche Gift Packs which each contained wine glasses, a golf bag, and balls. Plus, each gift pack also had a luxury watch provided by Fort Myers Porsche.

The grand prize was provided by Princess Cruise Lines, which was a Princess Cruise for two.

The winner of the Princess Cruise was Leslie Machado of Palmetto Bay. On a lucky streak, her husband, Jamie Machado, also was the winner of one of the two Porsche Gift Packs! You might be thinking something suspicious was going on, but there were two PCA Juniors who helped pull the tickets. Another lucky recipient was Bill O’Connor of Bonita Springs, who won the second Porsche Gift Pack.

During the dinner, Bobby Verela of Foreign Affairs gave a presentation. He even

Miki & Eti Moore line up at PWB for their Escape

brought his Porsche RWB Genki to the ballroom banquet floor. Foreign Affairs also provided two raffle certificates for merchandise. These certificates are redeemable for items such as a pillow, sandals, or even a framed picture featuring your own car.

Another sponsor of Escape to the Cape, Trish Gastineau from Trish Travel, spoke to the room about the status of the travel industry.

Then Dr. Marlene, while adorning a Wonder Woman cape, presented her spoken word poem. Her poem:

At the end of the dinner, guests were instructed to check under their seats. The lucky few who had a card taped to their chair were awarded the beautiful flower bouquet centerpiece from their table.

Sunday morning, the car show took place in the covered Westin parking garage. There were four judges, with judging headed by Peter Olliviere. A total of fourteen trophies were awarded. Also, during the car show, two tech sessions were presented, one by Dr. Color Chip and the other by Tint Haus Customs Davie.

For a special treat at the car show, Kona Ice doled out a variety of shaved ice flavors, a donation by the Gold Coast Region.

A thank you to our own Ian Gerada for creating the Escape agenda and creating the Escape to the Cape shirts. Also, thank you to Connectica for sponsoring the name badges and also to Paul Raben for making the badges. Additional thanks are owed to Andrew Moffitt, Mike Del Pozo, and Christy Spangler, who took thousands of awesome pictures at the event. Just in case anyone was forgotten, thank you to all the volunteers who gave their time this weekend to help the Gold Coast Region and the Escape to the Cape.

ESCAPE TO THE CAPE by Dr. Marlene

Escape, a word I know Houdini magic, fast not slow. Lightning speed with a show, the powerful Porsche escape. Cape, as in my superhero outfit, not an ordinary, plain drape but a magical, mystical cape fluttering in a speeding Porsche. Wonder Woman flying by, navigator in the Boxster, a well-seasoned youngster, enjoying the escape in my cape. The Porsche growling, howling, shiny, clean with a gleam, made this drive a dream, easily escaping to the Cape. Thanks, Porsche Club of America, and the volunteer connections, for this Florida destination, this great Escape to the Cape.

The Escape was Liberating