October 2022 President’s Message

September and early October were huge for our region this year. Thanks to all of our inventive volunteers for pulling together our first nighttime rally, our annual Concours, an entire set of tours over 4 days in the Gold Country, Oktoberfest in Vacaville, and the Annual Meeting introducing next year’s leaders, outdoors in a Redwood grove for the first time ever!

October isn’t done yet, though, with several great events coming in the next few weeks. First up, our sister region GGR is co-hosting a Ladies Drive (passengers may be of any gender) through the backroads of Marin on October 16th. Registration may fill quickly. If you are looking for more experience behind the wheel in the safest driving setting ever, come out to Autocross up at Thunderhill raceway in Willows for the two-day event with SVR on the 22nd and 23rd. Registration closes soon. On the other hand, if you don’t want to drive at all and just hang out, our first “No Drive Social” evening will happen at Bear Republic Brewery in Rohnert Park on Thursday October 20th (please register by the 13th).

At the Annual Meeting, I described the State of the Club as being “in strong transition”. Although our entire Executive Council is turning over this year, the involvement of incredibly creative, dedicated, and energetic Porsche owners has left me extremely confident that the future of our Redwood Region is strong, and in excellent hands.

If you would like to be a part of this great group on a more in-depth level, we are always looking for your imaginative input! Many of the new ideas in the last two years (rallies, the long weekend at Murphys, midweek tours) came from members who brought their vision to the Board. Please email us directly or attend our monthly meeting on Tuesday October 25th at Mary’s Pizza Shack in Petaluma at 7 PM. Dinner is always on the club – you just pay for your drink (Zoom will also available if you wish to attend remotely). Please see our calendar link  for details.

I would be remiss if I didn’t deconstruct the PCA motto “It’s not just the cars, it’s the people” by acknowledging the untimely passing of Bob Schoenherr, one of the first Redwood members I ever met when I came out to Autocross back in 2011. Bob was incredibly friendly, knowledgeable, funny, and genuine. He and his wife Anita were the couple to beat out on the Autocross course (almost always brilliantly designed by Bob). Our club will identify a way to ensure Bob’s memory lives on.