June 1, 2015

Summer will be here soon I hope.

First off, I owe Dan Cole an apology.  I have not acknowledged his appointment as Region Focus Coordinator in any of these letters.  We are very proud of you Dan.  I know how hard you work for our club and now you have a National position to fill your spare time.  We would be lost without you and I look forward to the next Webinar.

As you may have heard.  We had to postpone the Gimmick rally due to weather.  It is re-scheduled for June 13^th.  Let’s hope for better weather.  Maybe the Corvette club will be able to join us as they are done with their event they held over Memorial Day weekend.  It’s on Rain or Shine.  This will be instead of our monthly Breakfast meeting.  Please RSVP so I can make lunch reservations in Red Lodge.

Our other event for this month is our overnight trip to Thermopolis Hot Springs, Wy on June 27^th and 28^th.  Please make your own room reservations.  We have a block under the Porsche club at the Days Inn.  Their number is 307-864-3131. This will be a fun trip.  The complete details were in the last Presidents message.  If you need further information please call me at  406-672-4815.  See you there.

The Zone 6 Grand Tour is finalized.  This has been quite an arduous undertaking by all 17 Regions to put together a 4700 mile trip.  It will begin on July 25 leaving from Seattle, connect with all Regions, ending on August 8^th outside Portland, Or at the World of Speed.  This sounds like an amazing trip.  I wished I had the time to join them for the full trip.  It is going to be going thru some of the most beautiful parts of our Northwest. Those that are making the trip will arrive in Billings on August 1^st for an overnight stay.  Herb Stoick has graciously offered to host a BBQ at his place in Laurel along the river for the group as well as any of our members that would like to attend.  Hopefully we can have a great turnout for the BBQ and join them on their next segment of the tour, which is over the Beartooth Highway, Chief Joseph Highway and onto Cody.  Tim Hagner, our Zone rep says he will have the details of the Zone tour on the Zone 6 website which is Zone6-pca.org. I will continue to keep everyone updated as I have more information.

Would anyone be interested in going to the Museum of the Rockies for our July event?

See you at the Rally.

Stephanie

The annual Absaroka Region’s season kick off meeting is just around the corner. Come and meet up with friends, old and new.

Join us on Saturday, April 25 for a beautiful drive through Montana’s Paradise Valley to Chico Hot Springs Resort. East River Road provides a twisting, turning road that is perfect for real sports cars like ours. The natural beauty of the Paradise Valley, our namesake Absaroka Mountains, and the Yellowstone River accompany you along your drive. Lunch for the group will be in Persie’s Poolside Café at Chico Hot Springs.

After lunch you can go on a drive, enjoy an adult beverage and shuffleboard in the saloon, or retreat to the famed hot waters of Chico’s Pool.

We will again be having an overnight and dinner option for those that want to stay overnight. This activity is always a hit and sells out. (SOLD OUT)

Eight (8) rooms have been reserved and booked in Chico’s Lower Lodge with an accompanying dinner reservation in the Chico Wine Cellar. There is a $7.00 surcharge per person to cover the cost of the Wine Cellar rental. Dinner will be on separate checks and can be billed to your room.

After dinner you can retreat to the pool, play games in the lobby, kick up your heals in the saloon to live music, or enjoy a nice cigar under the stars.

Chico Hot Springs Resort: 406.333.4933

For more details call: Dan Cole: 208.859.4608

Billings: Holiday Station on Gable Rd at 9:00 AM with a 9:30 AM departure.

Bozeman: Rest Area at I-90 and N 19th Ave at 10:00 AM with a 10:30 AM departure.

Both Groups Meet: Albertson’s parking lot in Livingston, MT at around 11:00 AM

Well who knew the weather could be so terrible in August that is would cause us to cancel the All Euro Car Show.  We had all worked extremely hard to promote this show and make it the best one yet.  Unfortunately there is not time to reschedule this year so we will just have to wait until next year.  The good news is that there is enough money in our treasury that we can still give to our Scholarship and charity. I want to thank Greg, Dan and Fred for all their hard work as well as anyone else who helped promote the show.

Greg Kohn has stated that he would like to resign as AECS chairman as he is involved in other endeavors. We are looking for someone from our membership who could step up and take over this project.  Greg has done an excellent job over the years and will be willing to pass on all his contact information.

Our next drive we have planned is for this coming Sunday, September 7th. It is the Hay Bale Tour from Hobson to Utica to Windham. We will lave from the Conoco Station in the Heights on the corner of Main St and Pemberton Ln. Meeting time is 9:00 am with a 9:30 departure. Those that attended last year said it was worth the drive. We look forward to seeing you.  This is our last official drive of the season.

Also, coming up on September 27th is our New Member party. This is an excellent opportunity for our new members to meet and greet the rest of the club. We will be going to Bill Windham’s Prancing Horse Ranch in Greycliff. The club buys the steaks and we ask that you bring a side or dessert as well as your beverage of choice. We will meet at the Holiday Station on Gabel Rd at 12:00 pm. Please R.S.V.P. to me by Wednesday September 24th so we know how many steaks to buy. You can contact me at 406-672-4815 or at snowgse@bresnan.net. We look forward to meeting our new members.  This has always been a great time and Bill has an incredible place for this type of party. We have five $25 car wash gift cards from Master Lube to raffle off so you can have your car washed before winter sets in.

I was very pleased with the turnout at our August 9th breakfast meeting that our Zone 6 Rep Tim Hagner came to town for.  I think it was a very informative meeting.  After breakfast I drove Tim up to Vista Point on the Beartooth Highway.  It was a beautiful day for a drive and I think he enjoyed the scenery and the switchbacks.  Thank you Tim for coming to visit and we look forward to you trip out next April to Chico.

The Lewistown Drivers Education date has changed to September 13th & 14th.

Also, on a sad note, our long time Treasurer, Fred Magers has indicated he wants to retire from the position at the end of his term is not sooner.  If anyone is interested in taking over this post you can call Fred for the details of the duties.  He would be more than happy to talk with you.  He has done an excellent job over the years.

Well there is not much else for now.  I hope to see you at Breakfast on September 13th if not sooner.

Sincerely,

Stephanie Haider

President

August saw a small 3-car group of Absaroka members head off to Virginia City, Montana to take in the legendary Brewery Follies at the H.S. Gilbert Brewery. Unfortunately the trip had some unfortunate setbacks as several who planned to go had unexpected changes to their plans. Most notably, Absaroka President Stephanie Haider and her husband Daryl couldn’t make it due to the loss of Daryl’s mother on Friday morning. Our thoughts and prayers go out to them and their family.

Absaroka members Neil and Kathy Hansen from Powell were able to join Dan Cole and Jo Pintz-Cole for the drive to Virginia City. It had been several years since we had seen them and was great to have them along for the journey and get to know them both better.

From Billings a caravan of two blue 2001 Boxster Ss looked great travelling the highway together and really showed the color difference between Lapis Blue and Midnight Blue. Lapis Blue is definitely blue, whereas Midnight Blue is dark and can look purple depending upon the light. In Bozeman we connected with Steve Homec in his silver Carrera. Unfortunately, Susan couldn’t make it because of a work commitment.

Steve led the way as we rolled over the grain-covered hills towards the Madison River. There we followed the Madison, which was full of rafters and tubers, on a fun twisty road as we headed towards Ennis.
In Ennis you turn right and leave the flat open spaces and head over the mountains to Virginia City. Virginia City is a “ghost town” and a nice example of the life in early Montana. It is still the county seat of Madison County and the original court house is still the seat of county business.

The first order of business was to grab some lunch at the Outlaw Café. Afterwards, Steve suggested we take the tour on the old fire engine to learn about the city and see the sights. It was a good call. The driver and tour guide sounded like Slim Pickens and gave us all a nice history lesson. While we waited for the tour to begin we noticed two other Porsches in town; a new silver Carrera Cabriolet and a silver Cayman. Unfortunately, we were never able to meet up with them and find out where they were from. They certainly couldn’t have missed us as we were parked along Wallace Street in front of the former Territorial Governor’s Mansion from 1864.

Have you ever seen the number sequence 3-7-77 anywhere? At the Boot Hill cemetery our tour guide revealed 3-7-77 as the motto of the Montana Vigilantes. The infamous Montana Vigilantes were the law of the land in 1860’s Montana Territory. If you awoke to find 3-7-77 written on your tent, cabin, etc. it meant get out of the territory, or you would be hanged in short order. Justice was swift in Virginia City. The graves of the 5 “road agents” that were all hanged in the Hangman’s Building on January 14, 1864, are proof of their efficiency. Where does one currently see 3-7-77 in Montana? It’s proudly displayed on the side of the cars of the Montana Highway patrol! Lucky, none of us got to learn that bit of trivia on the side of the road.

We then learned about Jack and Virginia Slade. Slade was a local operator of the toll road who decided to get drunk and go on a rampage in downtown by shooting up stuff and breaking windows. He was hanged by the vigilantes for this egregious misdemeanor. Mrs. Slade, feared by the locals more than her husband was, didn’t want her husband buried next to the road agents in Boot Hill so she took him home and pickled him for the winter in her bath tub. The next spring she shipped him to Salt Lake City for burial. Only in Montana!

HS Gilbert Brewery, Virginia City, MT
L-R Neil Hansen, Kathy Hansen, Jo Pintz-Cole, Dan Cole, Steve Homec

Next stop was the H.S. Gilbert Brewery and home to The Follies. The brewery brewed beer in Virginia City from the 1860s until prohibition shut it down in 1919. Now the Brewery is home to the Brewery Follies, a raunchy, funny vaudeville type show that is not for the timid. We were warned more than once before the show began offering plenty of time to rethink the situation. Steve, a veteran of the Follies advised us all not to sit in the front row which was advice that we all heeded. Sitting in front would surely have opened up one of us to being a “volunteer” prop for their antics. Four talented actors/musicians put on a two hour show that at times had us all in stitches. The skit of Johnny Cason’s “Carnac the Magnificent” was spot-on for all those that remembers seeing Johnny on TV. During the intermission we enjoyed the new H.S. Gilbert Beer resurrected and brewed in Helena exclusively for the Brewery and one other bar in Virginia City. It was good beer and we’re glad we took in the Follies as we all had a blast!
After the show we headed back over the hill to Ennis. During the Follies a joke was made about heading over the Ennis hill and having to swerve into oncoming traffic to miss a bicyclist. The joke was spot-on. There were numerous cyclists (aka Moving Chicanes) tackling the steep grade, but we all made it through at a fun clip and without incident.

The Sportsman Lodge was our overnight location in Ennis. From the website it appeared to be a nice place. Long story short, it was a roof over our heads, but a bit too rustic for some. The tour planner’s research was a bit off and his scores on TripAdviser Tour Planner have been duly marked! The bright side was the Coldsmoke Scottish Ale one of Montana’s most popular beers from Missoula was cold and plentiful and the conversation was good.

It was another fun trip in the Absaroka Region.

IT’S SHOW TIME!!!!

It is time to shine up your cars and bring them to the All Euro Car Show on August 23^rd.  It is at Veterans Park if you haven’t heard.  Registration begins at 9:00 a.m. and awards will be at 2:00 p.m.  The entry fee is $10 and it goes to our scholarship fund at City College and Juvenile Diabetes. So, please tell all your friends that might own a European car to join us for a fun day.  We are hoping to have 100 cars this year.

Unfortunately our Virginia City trip did not have many attendees but it sounds like those that went had a great time.  One of the members said it is worth going back as there is lots to see and do.

Our next trip will again be What the Hay, the Hay Bale Trail.  It is between Hobson and Utica and you judge the cleverly decorated hay bales on a 22 mile route.  There are over 50 sculptures to see along the way.  It is in it’s 21^st year.  It will be on September 7^th.  Look for details in the newsletter.

Also for the month of September will be our New Member party.  We moved it up a few weeks as Bill will be out of town for part of October.  It will be on September 27^th.  We will leave Billings around noon.  We ask that everyone bring a side dish or dessert and the club provides the steaks.  It is always a good time.

We have a new member, Anthony Wain.  He drives a 1984 928S. We hope to see him and another new members at the party on September 27^th.

I hope you are enjoying your summer and I look forward to seeing you all at the car show.

Stephanie

New Member Party & BBQ !!!!!  –  at the Prancing Horse Ranch

September 27, 2014

Big Timber, MT

On Saturday, September 27, the Absaroka Region will have a special welcome party for our new members this year.  If you are a new member this is your day!!  This will be an excellent opportunity to get out to your first Absaroka event and see what we are all about.

We will be meeting Bozeman and Billings and then rendezvousing in Big Timber, Montana at the fabulous “Prancing Horse Ranch” where the prancing horses of Stuttgart and Maranello meet.

The Absaroka Region will provide the grilling essentials.   Everyone should bring a side dish to share and beverage of your choice.

It will be a fun drive and a relaxing afternoon.  This is also be our last “official” driving activity for the year.

Please RSVP to Stephanie by Wednesday, September 24, for this event so we can make the proper food arrangements.

Billings:

The Billings group will meet at the Holiday Gas Station on Gabel and will head off to Big Timber at 12:00 PM.

Bozeman:

The Bozeman group will meet at the Rest Area at 19th Street and I-90 and will depart at 12:00 PM

For More Information:

Stephanie Haider

Phone: 406.672.4815

Email: snowgse@bresnan.net

Dan Cole

Phone: 208.859.4608

Email:  Daniel_g_cole@hotmail.com

Well it appears that Summer has finally arrived and given us an opportunity to drive our cars.

We had a perfect weather day for our trip to the Castle Museum in White Sulphur Springs.  Joining the trip were Greg Kohn, Herb Stoick, Ernie and Chrissy Bunn from Wyoming, Susan Finn and her Dad Bob Voight and myself.  Jere Walters and his sister-in law Cheryl from Wilsall and Dennis Franks from Bozeman in his Pantera met us at the Truck Stop Café in White Sulphur for lunch before our tour.  Everyone seemed to enjoy the tour minus the mosquitoes that appeared only the day before, quite hungry.

Our trip for July will be the overnighter to Virginia City and the Brewery Follies show.  We will depart Billings at 8:30 am from the Holiday station on Gable Road and continue on the interstate until Whitehall then head south towards Twin Bridges and onto Virginia City.  We will stop in Nevada City and have lunch at the Nevada City Classic Café. We can wander around there and then head on to Virginia City.  We have reservations for the 4:00 show of the Brewery Follies.  This is not a G rated show.  It does not have any foul language just some risqué fun.  To make your reservation call 800-829-2969 ext. 3 and  mention the Porsche  Club so they can seat us together.  We have a block of 8 rooms at the Sportsman’s Lodge in Ennis.  The rooms are singles & queens and are $85.00 + tax per night.  Also mention Absaroka Porsche Club.  There are other options in the area if you choose otherwise.  For those you are on your own.  If anyone from the Bozeman area would like to join us please let me know so we can make arrangements to meet along the way. For the trip home we can head north on Hwy 287 towards Norris and onto Bozeman.  This is a beautiful drive.  This trip should be great fun.

Next we get to shine up our cars for the All Euro Car Show on August 23 at Veteran’s Park.  Registration is $10 and begins at 9:00 am.  I hope all of you will attend and please pass the word onto your friends that drive a European car.  We are shooting for 100 cars this year.  Our charities are the scholarship to City College and Juvenile Diabetes.  We have posters to pass around if anyone is interested.  Please contact me.

A big shout out to our Newsletter Editor Joanne Pintz-Cole.  We received second place for our region size again at Parade.  We appreciate all her hard work and maybe some day we will take First place.  Also thanks to Dan Cole for his wonderful contributions and pictures.

Have a great summer.

Stephanie Haider

Saturday, August 23rd is the Porsche Club of America Absaroka Region’s biggest club event, the 7^th All Euro Car Show (AECS).

The AECS will be held at beautiful Veteran’s Park located on the corner of Poly and 13th in Billings, Montana.  The featured marque this year is Mercedes Benz.

The AECS is our region’s biggest membership drive of the year and more importantly our biggest fund raiser to support local charities.  So we hope you are able to come out and support the event.

An entry fee of $10.00 will be charged per vehicle with all net proceeds being donated to charity.

Set-up and registration will begin at 9:00 AM. The show will open at 10:00 AM and will go through 3:00 PM with awards presented at 2:30 PM.

So come on out to Veteran’s Park and show off your Porsche.  We will also need your help with registration, staging of vehicles and as overall “Goodwill Ambassadors” for the Absaroka Region.

Don’t forget to bring sunscreen, a lawn chair, and a picnic lunch.

It will be another great show for the community.  Our goal this year is 100 cars!

Contact:            Greg Kohn, Chairman, PCA Absaroka Region

Phone:              406-697-8787

Email:               kohn_greg@yahoo.com

June 1, 2014

Welcome – Spring;

Finally we are seeing some beautiful weather.

Well our May Picnic at Pompey’s Pillar did not have a very large turnout, but those that came enjoyed the beautiful day and tour of the new Visitors center.  Then a brisk drive back to Billings via Custer and Hardin.

Our next trip will be to White Sulphur Springs to tour the Castle Museum and have lunch at the Montana Roadhouse.  For those that are interested the drive north on Hwy 89 thru Kings Hill Pass past Neihart and Monarch toward Belt is quite beautiful.  We can stop at the Harvest Moon Brewing Company for a cold one before making our way back home on Hwy 3.  We will meet at 8:00 am on June 21^st at the Cenex station on Airport Rd and Main Street for an 8:30 am departure.

The month of July will find us heading to Virginia City for an overnight stay, wander the town and enjoy a Vaudville style show at the Brewery Follies.  Please see the newsletter for complete details.   Please make sure to R.S.V.P. for any of these events so we can make the proper reservations.

I would like to welcome our new members Ken Balster who drives a 2014 red Cayman S, and Jared Jackson who drives a 1999 silver Boxter.  Also, thanks for the renewed membership of Nicholas Heesy, Jerry Jones, Jesse Kloberdanz, Fred Magers, Robert Stockdale and Dennis Zeiler.  We hope you will join us on one of our trips.

We only have four members from our region attending the Parade at Monteray, Ca. this year.  Enjoy yourselves and bring back lots of pictures to share.

Well enjoy the summer and I hope to see you at our next Breakfast Club meeting on June 14^th.

Stephanie Haider