Not attended a monthly meeting before?
There are several hundred PCGB members in the Dorset Region but only a small percentage of those attend the monthly meetings. If you’ve considered coming along but been reluctant because you think you won’t know anybody and might feel out of place (we’ve all been there, I promise) with nothing specific planned for the November meeting, we thought we’d extend a special invite to those people who are in two minds about attending a meeting. You are, of course, most welcome to join us at any time but If you’d rather come along when there are other newcomers expected, join us in November and you will be made most welcome and hopefully you’ll enloy the unrivalled friendliness that is R26.
Luftgekuhlt
The brainchild of ex-works Porsche driver and two times Le Mans class winner, Patrick Long, and creative director Howie Idelson, Luftgekuhlt is an annual event held in California that has always sounded like air-cooled Porsche heaven. With the venue changing annually and the location announced at short notice, it can be likened to a ‘pop-up’ event for Porsche enthusiasts with museum cars, invited cars and cars arriving on the day ensuring an eclectic mix. A relaxed atmosphere and the California sunshine make Luftgekuhlt one of those events that I’d love to attend but realistically assumed I’d never get the opportunity. Then in June, social media started buzzing with news that Luftgekuhlt was coming to Britain and true to form, we had a month’s notice that it would be held at Bicester Heritage in July. With those museum cars, invited cars and dozens of cars arriving on the day, it would be a true reflection of the American event and as we were basking in the middle of the best summer for decades, it even looked like we’d be able to supply our own California-style sunshine. Unfortunately, come the day of the event, I was disappointed to wake-up to something we hadn’t seen for many weeks, rain, lots of it, so to my shame I decided to take the wassergekuhlt Boxster rather than the luftgekuhlt 911 and the conditions on the way to Bicester were so bad that I knew it was the right decision, right up to the point that I started mixing it with air-cooled Porsches only to be split up from them as they entered the main site while I parked outside.
Located at Bicester airfield, a WW2 bomber base, Bicester Heritage is a business campus housing over thirty specialist companies, working out of the airfield buildings, who are dedicated to the preservation and upkeep of historic motor vehicles. Upon entering the site, being used to displays where cars are parked by the dozen in regimented rows, my initial thought was ‘where are all the cars?’ The answer was that they were scattered around the 350 acre site, some in groups, some individually, but all displayed with a view to maximising the effect such that we could see them in all their glory. Wending my way around the buildings, there were surprises around every corner, be it a 356 Speedster, a 904, a 934, an ‘outlaw’ 911 or even a tractor. Some highlights? Here are a few examples - a Jagermeister 934, a 911 that looked like an unfinished backdate but turned out to be the prototype Singer DLS, two 904’s, Michael May’s 550 Spyder ‘wing car’, the Paul Smith 911, at least one 911T/R, GVB 911D, the first 911 to race in the UK. All in all it was everything I’d hoped it would be, a truly memorable event that even the rain couldn’t spoil and the smiles on the faces of everybody present suggested that it didn’t spoil it for them either. And what did the Californian contingent (which included Patrick Long) think of it? They were impressed with the location, the turn-out, the cars, the enthusiasm and were even heard to comment that the rain added a certain ‘Britishness’ to the event. Here’s hoping they choose to return to Blighty soon, but leave the rain at home next time!
Poole Accident Repair
Porsche Approved repairer and Restoracing Boxster collaborator, Poole Accident Repair, held an open morning on the same day as Luftgekuhlt and as I couldn’t be in two places at once, it’s over to Nick Snook for a brief report on the event:-
Several Porsche owners enjoyed a warm welcome on a damp day hosted by Poole Accident Repair. They certainly made us very welcome and were happy to discuss all aspects of the complex business of vehicle repair. We were handed goody bags as we tucked into perfect bacon rolls and coffee so thank you Leon, Louise and the team.
Photographic Session with Rich Pearce
Rich Pearce, who many of you will know from Porsche Centre Bournemouth, generously offered a photographic shoot as a prize in last year’s Christmas raffle and the lucky winner was Alastair Durham, so one sunny day in July they set off along the Jurassic coast road, Alistair at the wheel of his guards red Carrera 3.2 and Rich with his camera. The results speak for themselves and serve to illustrate Rich’s talent behind the lens, so if you are interested in having your own car photographed by someone who is regularly published in mainstream Porsche magazines, you could do a lot worse than to get in touch with Rich. If you need his contact details or perhaps want to see more photos from the day, please speak to a member of the committee.
Monthly meeting, AGM and Quiz
Our ‘alternative car night’, there were still plenty of Porsches in the car park as some of us had to dip out, because we only own Porsches. Star of the evening was Peter Hellyer who borrowed a Jaguar XJS convertible but I can’t help thinking he’ll recruit a new PCGB member as a result of leaving his 944 with the owner of the Jag. In the AGM our members unanimously re-elected the RO’s and committee and voted to keep the same venue monthly meeting venue. Geoff’s finances were accepted without question!
Geoff’s quiz was car manufacturers logos and badges. With pictures ranging from the obvious one that everyone in this club should get, to some very obscure, it ended with a tie for first place and remained so after the tie-break question Geoff had in reserve. Craig Phillpot took home the pot this year but modesty prevents me from naming the other winner. Congratulations Craig, 25 out 30 is no mean score on one of Geoff’s quizzes!
Canford Classics Pull-In
Canford Classics again threw open the doors of their workshops, inviting Porsche owners and enthusiasts to see for themselves what goes on at this Dorset company and producer of some of the finest early 911 restorations. The Pull-In is open to everybody and is an informal gathering of enthusiasts who take the opportunity to catch-up with old friends, chat with the staff of Canford Classics and get to see a varied mix of Porsches arriving throughout the morning. With complimentary breakfast baps and coffee, we got to scrutinise some stunning restorations and we had wall to wall sunshine which encouraged many owners to bring their Porsches out who might have otherwise thought better of it. By 10am the yard was full to bursting with the overflow car-park being utilised to accommodate the last of the arrivals.
In addition to the displays (with Neil Plumpton’s 991 GT2 RS standing guard at the entrance), Canford Classics’ subsidiary brand Motoratus were selling garments and accessories while Porsche Bournemouth brought along a 991 and a Cayman for those who might like newer to join their classic 911 in the garage. This year supporting the Lewis Ross Foundation, the charity raffled a signed AFC Bournemouth shirt and raised £650 – thanks to everyone who contributed. In all, there were 150 Porsches and 250 visitors and I’m sure I speak for everybody in thanking Alan, Dominique and the team for putting on another brilliant event.
Portland Lighthouse and Coast Watch
We congregated at The Pulpit near the lighthouse at Portland Bill – or should I say, one of the lighthouses? There were not one, but three structures remaining there, but only the one we were visiting is in active service.
We split into two groups with me in the lighthouse group. The 150 steps were broken by the ‘flat’ (light-house parlance for a platform supporting equipment or accommodation) where talk was of fog-horn testing and methods used in the past, present and future, to ensure safe navigation through hazardous waters. How hazardous? We were soon to find out!
Facts and figures were shared, from the seven-foot thick walls of the base, to the £13000 build cost – at the time when a house in Mayfair cost £400! Then there are the main and spare lamps with beautifully crafted Fresnel lenses, floating on mercury – all three tons of them. The method and reasons for keeping it moving were explained, as well as how the beam pattern changed according to the position of a vessel viewing the light. The air cylinders for the Foghorn and its power plant held the attention of the engineers present, for others the day to day life of a light-house keeper was interesting – winding a clock every 70 minutes for example!
On to the Coast Watch station. Manned by volunteers on shifts, it surveys an impressive area of coastline and sea using time-time tested methods alongside modern technology. We heard about the two radios in service, the cameras and the weather centre, the distances observed and some of the shipping in the area was identified, including French trawlers sailing nearby – very topical! The obvious question regarded the frequency of problems and we learned trouble had struck three times this year. This can be anything from divers suffering the bends to a yacht losing its rudder. There are often problems identifying boats, with most yachts being white with a white sail, so details such as a red tender on board can identify a specific vessel and with perhaps 40 vessels in the area doing this is very important – something our mariners should bear in mind, should they ever need rescue by helicopter!
From our vantage point under the conditions of the day, the dangerous areas of water with their white horses were obvious and with a potential for waves as high as the lighthouse it explained why there are a thousand wrecks in this area when I would have expected a handful.
Lunch at the Pulpit followed with Porsche related chat and a discussion of the film Mamma Mia 2 proving our diversity, the happy smiling faces suggest it was the perfect ending to a wonderful day!