As a resident of Florida, I have regretted not making it to nearby Savannah, Georgia for the Porsche Parade in 2011 for four years now — especially since the following ones in Utah, Michigan and California were too far away.
So when my wife Cyndie and I saw French Lick, Indiana, as the location of the 2015 Parade, we figured this was our next best chance to go. Here is a quick recap of what we did, along with a few lessons we learned during our time there.
Lesson 1: Register as early as you can
By the time we decided to go, there were no rooms in all of French Lick (forget about the resort venues), and all the best drives and tours were already sold out. Undaunted, we registered anyway and were assigned car number 1,007 (they start with car number 1).
We booked a hotel 20 miles away in Jasper, chose some dinners to attend and the autocross, figuring we would explore the Indiana countryside on our own.
Lesson 2: Keep checking for rooms
The week before the event I called all the hotels again and found a room at a hotel in French Lick just 1 mile from the activities at the resorts. Things were already starting to improve.
We caravanned to our North Carolina home, which is about halfway to French Lick. Our new Macans were the perfect cars for the trip — smooth, powerful, great-handling cars they are. We would put them to good use the next day.
The next morning, we experienced the superior capabilities of these fabulous cars as we assaulted The Tail of the Dragon at Deals Gap. We left our house in the rain to find The Dragon soaking wet and virtually empty because of the conditions.
The turbocharged V6 and full-time all-wheel drive of our Macans were put to the test, and they rocked! Any other cars we encountered had to pull off the road to get out of our way as we executed the The Dragon's 318 curves over its 11-mile length.
We drove our Macans through The Dragon at Deals Gap in North Carolina.
Lesson 3: Check the bulletin boards
We drove straight to the French Lick resort for registration. On a bulletin board where people post messages, we found tickets for the Ohio River Scenic Tour that someone wanted to sell. We arranged for their purchase and were excited to have them.
Lesson 4: Get to the goody store right away
It was like a feeding frenzy. Cyndie and I bought a few items, but by the end of the first day there was nothing left.
Day 1 was the Concours. As you would expect, this was a huge display of beautiful machines. Since this was the 60th Parade, there was a special venue called 60 4 60. Here 60 cars over the last 60-plus years were displayed together with information about their unique places in Porsche history. The bookends were a black 1949 356 Gmünd coupe and a deep purple 2015 918 Spyder.
Day 2 was the Ohio River Scenic Tour drive. The registration said it was limited to 40 cars, so we felt fortunate to have secured our spot. But, by the time we started rolling, 120 cars were there including a 2015 Targa at the front of the line, driven by Dr. Wolfgang Porsche and his son Felix.
It was a fun drive through the rolling hills, corn fields and Amish communities that make up this part of Indiana. I even got Dr. Porsche to autograph my new PCA hat I bought at the goody store.
The next day was spent at the airport runway. In the morning, I drove a 2015 Boxter GTS courtesy of Michelin on a course they set up to showcase their new Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires. This was my first drive of a Boxter GTS ever, let alone in an autocross-type environment. The car was a blast to drive, well balanced with plenty of power. I got to drive the course three times, shaving off a few seconds with each pass.
That afternoon, I drove Cyndie's Macan in the autocross. The experience I had driving on The Dragon just a few days earlier helped prepare me for how the car would handle the autocross course, and I was able to secure second place in class.
Michelin featured a drive in 2015 Boxter GTSs on a course they set up to showcase their new Cup 2 tires. (Photo: Damon Lowney/PCA)
Lesson 5: They take autocross results seriously at Parade
After all the drivers were done, each car had to park with its hood and trunk open so your competitors could inspect your car for any rule violations. You could protest someone's car by giving the protest committee $100 to hear your complaint. If your protest was valid, you got your $100 back. If you were wrong you lost your $100.
This process took more than an hour after the driving finished, making Cyndie and I late for dinner that night.
On Thursday, we struck out on our own into Amish country. The rolling hills and forests were a nice change from the flat, straight roads of Florida, although you did have to watch for the occasional one-lane tunnel.
On Friday morning, we said goodbye to French Lick and headed out on the next leg of our two-week, 3,000-mile driving adventure. Our first Parade experience created many fond memories.
Maybe we will see you in Vermont in 2016 ...
