by Steve Beer
The 2013 Oregon Festival of Cars was held September 14th at the Broken Top Golf Course in Bend. It is a celebration of all things sports cars, and this year featured anniversaries for 4 major marques:
- 50thAnniversary Porsche 911
- 50thAnniversary Lamborghini
- 60thAnniversary Corvette
- 100thAnniversary Aston Martin
| 20 Club cars |
The Porsche presence was overwhelming, featuring vintage 911’s covering the first 1963 to 1989 model series at the German Master Tech’s pavilion; almost 20 High Desert PCA members brought cars of all makes and models; and the show was complimented by new Porsches displayed at the Carrera Motors tent. Porsches out-numbered every other make by a wide margin, especially the Corvettes.
| Morning setup |
| Detailing |
It was a beautiful fall day, although no one was prepared for the early morning crispness while cars were arriving, being parked and getting last minute detail attention. Out came wrap-around car blankets, jackets, and trips to the concession stand to “huddle” around a warm coffee cup. Pete Olson, being the creative type that he is, was smart enough to borrow the leather Porsche jacket from the Carrera Motors display, before anyone else thought of it!
The 911 corral featured the award winning 1967 Irish Green 911S, owned by Bill and Mary Zilk. It was fresh off a win at the Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance and is one of the most recognizable cars that have been restored by GMT, unfortunately, it now resides in the hands of a British collector. The spectrum of cars displayed ranged from a pair of 1964 356 Cabriolets through examples of the classic 911, the 964 series, the last of the air-cooled 993 series, the switch to water-cooled engines in 1998 on the 996 platform, followed by the updated 997 series in 2005, and finally the current 991platform.
Mike Simmons displayed his unique 1985 911 Turbo Look coupe, which is pictured queuing up to drive across the parade stage grounds. It was 1 of only 213 delivered to the US in 1985 and was special ordered with the Crystal Green exterior and Dark Green interior with sport seats, which was an unusual combination and not seen on many build sheets. The car had only been driven 26,500 original miles making it a very pure example of what Porsche offered for that year. The Turbo Look option in 1985 cost $11,760, which included the wide body and all of the turbo features including an upgraded suspension and bigger brakes. If it went for sale on the open market, it was highly likely the car would end up being purchased and sent back to Germany. Luckily, it will remain in Central Oregon and in the club, as part of Pete’s growing “stable” of cars. It is a nice practice to see that club members are offering each other “first chance” to purchase a desired car.
| New Club cars |
As a regional show, it was great to see a couple of our Porsche friends from the Portland area, as Steve and Colleen Scholtz brought their new Panamera GTS, and Cliff Cayer brought a yellow customized 996 from the Portland auto shop, Matrix Integrated.
| Because you can |
And finally in the category of “just because you can”, it seems that some people just can’t leave well enough alone, putting a small-block Chevy in a 911. Is nothing sacred?