When I found out that Cars and Coffee in Irvine was shutting down four years ago, I had a crazy moment of spontaneity and decided to start a car show. It's been a highly unpaid volunteer job, that’s for sure, but I've had a lot of fun with it. We get about a hundred cars each week at the show. Sometimes it feels like they’re all part of my personal collection--it is like having a hundred cars in my garage without having to pay for the insurance!
There is something about being involved in the car community that really adds to the quality of my life as well. Cars and Coffee Corona has evolved into a real community and a social event for people who never would have met otherwise. The people at the show come from so many different walks of life. We swap stories with each other and find out how much we have in common. Complete strangers become the best of friends.
There is something about being involved in the car community that really adds to the quality of my life.
I was further entrenched into the car community when some folks in the Porsche Club got me to run an autocross program. I had a hard time saying no because I love to autocross in my Cayman. Porsches are built to do this--the handling is extraordinary. The mid-engine placement makes in this car makes it feel like a big go-kart. It's perfectly balanced, well weighted, and it runs as fast as some of the very expensive cars in the class.
When someone is trying autocross for the first time, the first hurdle is learning that your car is more capable than you are. Each time you go around the course, you find out a little bit more about what your car is able to do. It's all about learning how to drive your car to the edge of what's possible. It’s never really about the capacity to perform, rather it’s the edge of your own fear or hesitation. For any driver, when you learn to really trust the car... it changes everything.
Comments