Summer always brings an atmosphere of excitement with a school break, the promise of beach vacations, and of course, the Porsche Parade. If you've never been to a Porsche Parade before, you should check out the 61st annual Porsche Parade, scheduled for June 17-26 at Jay Peak Resort in Vermont.
Back in April, the resort noted a management change, and is now operated by Leisure Resorts & Hotels. If you haven’t registered for the Parade yet, don't let the name change confuse you. It's not too late for you to join in on all the activities. If the beautiful location of a snow skiing resort 5 miles from the Canada border isn’t enough to thrill you, here's a general idea of what you can look forward to at this Porsche Parade.
One reviewer of the Jay Peak Resort claims it is "something of an amusement park." There is a lovely golf course to hold the Concours d’Elegance with mention of a tent in the case of poor weather conditions. A water park is open year-round, providing an excellent activity for families with children who love water slides and adventure or adults who want to relax in a warm, lazy river.
An original tour of the facility after last year's Parade revealed the banquets are expected to be held in the Jay Peak Ice Haus — an ice rink for hockey, figure skating and curling. Porsche Paraders may total more than 2,000 attendants this year. The ice will be melted and drained, and replacement flooring installed for the banquets.
Food is great, but what about the autocross location? (Autocross involves driving a car, in this case a Porsche, through a track full of obstacles. Drivers compete for the lowest time score.) Some Parade attendants will be flying into Newport Airport, and that is where the resort plans to host the autocross. The airport is about 20 minutes from the resort, and the runway is a perfect open space to compete on the blacktop.
If you need a break from all of the excitement, the resort has a cable car lift option to the top of Jay Peak. At just shy of 4,000 feet, the mountain is not considered incredibly large, but the view is breathtaking while the world fades away around you.
To kick off the parade, what better way to begin than with the Concours d’Elegance? (Concours d’Elegance involves Porsches being judged against each other in classes, and typically the one with the highest quality wins. This is highly competitive.)
All weekend long, cars will be prepped for judging that will take place on Monday, June 20. For attendees who aren't taking part in the Concours d’Elegance, Sunday is when the fun kicks off. The welcome tent opens at 8 a.m. You can drop off art show entries, get checked in and enjoy the welcome party that evening.
Then on Monday, alongside the Concours d’Elegance taking place all day, you can enjoy a historic display of Porsches across the years, participate in wine tasting that afternoon, and get prepped for rally and autocross competition. If you've wanted to try a rally or autocross before but have been too intimidated to sign up, don't shy away this time. While Porsche Parade has many veteran competitors, newcomers are always welcome.
Tuesday, the rally begins bright and early at 8 a.m. If you aren't familiar with a rally, it's a driving event where you take a partner and together you navigate through instructions to complete the course. It can be a lot of fun, especially on the pleasant, winding back roads in Vermont.
Then, later that evening if you're up for even more driving competition prep, you have an opportunity to walk through the autocross course. But if you're at the parade more for the company and appreciation of Porsche, there's a safety demonstration, RC car racing event, an ice cream social, and various tours and seminars you can attend.
Wednesday and Thursday both have autocross competition events running for the majority of the day. Even if you aren't driving, it's entertaining to watch the different classes and compare the movement between a sporty, slender 911 and a square, sturdy Cayman, for instance.
But there's also so much more packed into the rest of the week. A golf tournament, beer tasting, tire drive-and-compare tests from Michelin, fantastic food, banquets and even a 5K run/walk at the end of the week.
There is so much packed into a Porsche Parade event that it's difficult to describe everything that happens. And, of course, for the youngsters and young at heart, there's still an incredible water park and arcade at the resort and childrens' activities available through Parade. Whether you're a family with young children or enjoying the shift to retirement, there's something at the Porsche Parade for you.
People come together with a passion for the car, and new friends are made with all different kinds of backgrounds. You never know who you're going to meet. For Parade-goers over the years, the annual event is much like a reunion. If you've been debating whether you should come, Porsche Parade 2016 at Jay Peak is the year for you.
