Morning at the PCA Parade Concours D’Elegance

The sun has been shining all weekend at Pheasant Run, which is good news for Porsche lovers of all ages. Today is Concours Day — the day when Porsches old, new, driven and towed are gently driven onto the Pheasant Run golf course grounds and positioned for the Concours D’Elegance, where they are rigorously judged by teams of detail-oriented judges.

On our way there, we spot the antithesis of a show car. Mike, who drove his 1985 911 all the way from Alaska to attend the Parade, is parked in front of the hotel lobby. His guards red Porsche is covered with protective tape, bugs, and dirt, and Mike plans to keep it that way for the duration of the Parade weekend. He loves to tell people about his drive, and doesn’t really worry about cleaning the car in one of the many “car wash stations” set up throughout the resort. “I just want folks to come out to PCA events and enjoy their cars,” he enthused to onlookers.

By 9 am, the Porsche Purist team is ambling around the few hundred Porsches, admiring examples of cars of all vintages and varied uses. While some Concours entrants own their cars exclusively to show them, there are many “daily drivers” and “track warriors” being shown, too. The result looks like an open-air art exhibit.

We amble among some great cars, among them an incredible display of 3.6L 964 Turbo S coupes. This car is very rare, and commonly thought of as one of the most desirable turbos. The last of the rear wheel drive cars, these larger displacement, higher horsepower turbos were the first to combine the coil-over suspension while still being air-cooled and hand built. The very last one built shown here

A long line of “duck tail” Porsches — the first “spoiler” ever on a Porsche — lead us to the a wonderful collection of the Heritage Historic cars, including a stunning 356 C and GT, a ’67 Targa and a 1980 Porsche Indy car.

Aside from historic examples, Porsche had the 2010 GT3R Hybrid race car on display. This was a crowd favorite; onlookers were amazed by its enormous wing, wide fender flares and innovative hybrid power system adding around 70 extra horsepower. The other new star was the Boxster Spyder, and three different 2011 3.8L GT3 RS street cars.

We witness the rigorousness of PCA Concours judging when five judges approach a gentleman’s 2010 GT3 RS. The owner rushes to open the doors, engine compartment and trunk for them. A judge says, “ready?” and starts the four other judges off on their inspection of the GT3. We watch in amazement as the inspectors check the car down to the most minute details, awarding points as they go. The owner waits, crossed fingers, for his score…but we won’t find how he fared until tomorrow.

Although many of the cars are in the pristine condition that winning a Concours demands, the majority of Porsches are clean and waxed, but show signs of loving use by their owners.

One such car is the “Bathtub,” a 1957 356 Speedster in beautiful shape, driven to all events by its first and only owner, Mike of Indiana. We met Mike at the ice machine last night (it has been in the high 80s all weekend), and he was happy to tell us about his beloved Porsche. “It has been driven over 500,000 miles,” he said, “from the West to the East Coast, down south and back home. I drive her to wherever I show her.” Although Mike has been the one and only owner of this 356, they nearly parted ways one year after he bought the car. “I ordered another one and agreed to sell the Speedster to a buyer. He had the check all written out and I changed my mind!” Lucky for us, as Mike has enjoyed his life’s journey with this car. “I’ll tell you, the whole Porsche experience has been fantastic!” he enthused before we said goodbye.

Another fun example, Karl and Nancy Shultz’s 1974 914 was driven to the Parade with both pride and passion. Their car is all original and they joke that it is the “1st Boxster.”

We wrap up our morning at the Concours and head off to Rally School, where we hope to learn how the Mobil 1 TSD (time-speed-distance) rally will work tomorrow. Continue to check back to learn more about this event and don’t forget to check out our album on the PorschePurist FB Group page for even more pics

[FlatSixes.com is attending and reporting on the PCA Parade Courtesy of Mobil 1 Oil]