[DeTomaso] Fun Rally Chronicles, day six

Christopher Kimball chrisvkimball at msn.com
Thu May 29 02:53:49 EDT 2014


Day Six:  The 2014 POCA Fun Rally officially begins! This morning, after a relaxing sleep-in, we returned to a wonderful eatery we discovered yesterday called “Mary’s English Kitchen” (www.marysenglishkitchen.com) for brunch.  Since my mother is English, I loved this restaurant--it has all kinds of food I remember enjoying during (and after) my youth:  wonderful tea (with plenty of cream and sugar, of course), finger sandwiches, quiche, English chocolates, lemon squares, pound cake, soups, chicken pie, etc. etc. etc.  I had the full “high tea” menu option today, and left completely stuffed.  
That feeling of being overly-full is one I've become very familiar with over the last week or so.  Something I've discovered is when one is on vacation, one usually doesn't think about what things cost, or whether or not it is prudent to continue eating.  I have been spending and eating consistently since I left University Place, and am sure I will weigh 25 pounds more when I return from this trip than what I weighed when I left.  There have been days when I've consumed up to three milkshakes within 12 hours—and loved every minute of it. Besides food, we've taken the time to see some pretty neat landmarks so far.  Those of you on the forum won't be able to see the pictures I've included of several places:  Old Town, the Hotel Del Coranado, the Cheesecake Factory (that’s the picture of the milkshake), to name a few.   Until a couple of days ago my car was the only Pantera in the parking garage, safely protected by its car cover as you can see in the photo.  Then, a couple of days ago, another Pantera appeared, also under a car cover.  
Last weekend the entire property was infested with middle-school age kids involved in some sort of baseball and/or basketball tournament.  I have a sneaking suspicion that may have something to do with the evidence I saw on more than one occasion indicating someone peeked under my car cover.  Fortunately there were no pizza-sauce fingerprints extant on the paint, so no harm done.  
The same couldn't be said for our sleep.  
There’s something about middle-school-age kids…what is it?  Oh yes, they are hyperactive, loud, and don’t go to sleep.  Ever.  I'm not kidding; there were laughing, crashing, and banging noises all night and again at six in the morning.  My sons even detected a certain smell they recognized wafting under their door one evening.  It seemed to be coming from the next room, so since we’re in California and not Washington or Colorado, they called Security to check it out.  
We never heard what happened, but not long afterward the smell disappeared… After brunch, we headed back to the hotel.  On the way we saw (and heard) a number of Panteras beginning to converge on the hotel property.  When we arrived there were dozens of Panteras in the parking garage.  Only 24 hours before, the spaces had been filled with normal, boring cars.  Walking to the outdoor snack bar by the pool I ran into Bob Reid and President John Buckman.  We chatted for a while, and I was surprised to see despite all the activities they had been planning in order to organize the event (along with help from others, of course), they both seemed to have remained quite sane. I spent some time outside the pool reading, and had the opportunity to meet Phil Tomlinson from Texas.  We talked about Panteras, health, retirement (his, not mine) and the fact his location makes it tough for him to interact with other Pantera owners.  The closest tech sessions are a half-day’s drive away from where he lives. I went upstairs to check out the hospitality suite and to check in, and found the Panteras Northwest banner displayed in quite the prominent spot.  When I sent the banner to California, I knew slipping in a $50 bill couldn't hurt! Four very hardworking women helped me register (I was the first person to do so), and they are in the picture those of you on the forum wish you could see.  Left to right:  Judy McCartney, Cheryl (whose last name is Stra followed by some other letters I can’t read because I wrote it down with a stupid sharpie and can’t read my own writing.  Sorry Cheryl!), Kathy Buckman and Christine Hall.  I visited the POCA store, which was up and running (other clubs hadn't yet arrived with their wares) which was being ably staffed by (left to right) Josett Dorazio (the store manager), and two other folks who preferred to remain anonymous.  They obviously haven’t been reading about the NSA.  I bought a cool DeTomaso tie for the amazingly low price of $10. After wandering back to my room, we decided to go to Chick Filet (again) for dinner.  I love Chick Filet.  Where else can you get both crispy AND grilled chicken nuggets accompanied by chocolate milk AND a hand-spun, peach milkshake (plus a soft-ice-cream cone)?  Sadly, we don’t yet have Chick Filet restaurants in Washington.  Something tells me there’s a franchise in my future. Because this is a vacation, and a full stomach is no deterrent to eating more food (see paragraph one), we then drove to the mall next to the hotel and visited Wetzel’s Pretzels where we each ordered one of the cinnamon variety.  Delicious.  Plus, thanks to the coupon book thoughtfully placed in my goody bag by the Fun Rally organizers; because we bought the first two pretzels at normal price, the third was free.  What a bonus! Once back at the hotel, I waddled back up to the hospitality suite and said hi to Denny and Maggie Finn, and Forest and Judy Goodhart.
Denny told me he is currently working on a Pantera in his Shop in Oregon.  He described to me the myriad layers of metal comprising the structure of our favorite cars.  I thought about how difficult it must have been, and the exacting scientific methods needed, for the Italians to figure out how to trap moisture and encourage rust so efficiently.  
Later I met Eugene and Eva Boston, who, despite their last name, are from California.  We traded stories about speeding tickets, collector cars, and that sort of thing until the exciting moment arrived when Bob Reid announced I didn't win the raffle for two, free nights at the hotel.  D’oh! While I was talking with the Bostons, I learned Eguene was a family physician who retired a couple of years ago.  I wanted to ask him if he retired because of our President’s crazy policies, but realized the medical profession probably isn't affected at all by how John Buckman behaves. Tomorrow I have to get up at the ungodly hour of 8:00 AM so I can go with a group of POCA members to a car museum.  For those of you unfamiliar with collector-car owners and their idiosyncrasies; just because a collector-car owner is surrounded by a large amount of really cool, rare, classic cars, this does not mean he or she will miss an opportunity to go to a place to see more cars.  In fact, Friday night there is a car cruse which I’m planning on attending, and Saturday a car show all who are here are planning on attending.  Think of it this way:  In the same way there can never be too much ice cream; there can never be too many cool cars.  It’s just that simple. On final thing on a serious note:  This afternoon one Pantera owner had to be transported from the lobby to a local hospital due to a medical problem.  Since I don’t know specific details, I won’t speculate on what happened, nor will I divulge his name, but please remember him in your thoughts and prayers. 		 	   		  
-------------- next part --------------
   Day Six:  The 2014 POCA Fun Rally officially begins!


   This morning, after a relaxing sleep-in, we returned to a wonderful
   eatery we discovered yesterday called Marys English Kitchen
   (www.marysenglishkitchen.com) for brunch.  Since my mother is English,
   I loved this restaurant--it has all kinds of food I remember enjoying
   during (and after) my youth:  wonderful tea (with plenty of cream and
   sugar, of course), finger sandwiches, quiche, English chocolates, lemon
   squares, pound cake, soups, chicken pie, etc. etc. etc.  I had the full
   high tea menu option today, and left completely stuffed.

   That feeling of being overly-full is one I've become very familiar with
   over the last week or so.  Something I've discovered is when one is on
   vacation, one usually doesn't think about what things cost, or whether
   or not it is prudent to continue eating.  I have been spending and
   eating consistently since I left University Place, and am sure I will
   weigh 25 pounds more when I return from this trip than what I weighed
   when I left.  There have been days when I've consumed up to three
   milkshakes within 12 hoursand loved every minute of it.


   Besides food, we've taken the time to see some pretty neat landmarks so
   far.  Those of you on the forum won't be able to see the pictures I've
   included of several places:  Old Town, the Hotel Del Coranado, the
   Cheesecake Factory (thats the picture of the milkshake), to name a
   few.


   Until a couple of days ago my car was the only Pantera in the parking
   garage, safely protected by its car cover as you can see in the
   photo.  Then, a couple of days ago, another Pantera appeared, also
   under a car cover.

   Last weekend the entire property was infested with middle-school age
   kids involved in some sort of baseball and/or basketball tournament.  I
   have a sneaking suspicion that may have something to do with the
   evidence I saw on more than one occasion indicating someone peeked
   under my car cover.  Fortunately there were no pizza-sauce fingerprints
   extant on the paint, so no harm done.

   The same couldn't be said for our sleep.

   Theres something about middle-school-age kidswhat is it?  Oh yes, they
   are hyperactive, loud, and dont go to sleep.  Ever.  I'm not kidding;
   there were laughing, crashing, and banging noises all night and again
   at six in the morning.  My sons even detected a certain smell they
   recognized wafting under their door one evening.  It seemed to be
   coming from the next room, so since were in California and not
   Washington or Colorado, they called Security to check it out.

   We never heard what happened, but not long afterward the smell
   disappeared


   After brunch, we headed back to the hotel.  On the way we saw (and
   heard) a number of Panteras beginning to converge on the hotel
   property.  When we arrived there were dozens of Panteras in the parking
   garage.  Only 24 hours before, the spaces had been filled with normal,
   boring cars.


   Walking to the outdoor snack bar by the pool I ran into Bob Reid and
   President John Buckman.  We chatted for a while, and I was surprised to
   see despite all the activities they had been planning in order to
   organize the event (along with help from others, of course), they both
   seemed to have remained quite sane.


   I spent some time outside the pool reading, and had the opportunity to
   meet Phil Tomlinson from Texas.  We talked about Panteras, health,
   retirement (his, not mine) and the fact his location makes it tough for
   him to interact with other Pantera owners.  The closest tech sessions
   are a half-days drive away from where he lives.


   I went upstairs to check out the hospitality suite and to check in, and
   found the Panteras Northwest banner displayed in quite the prominent
   spot.  When I sent the banner to California, I knew slipping in a $50
   bill couldn't hurt!


   Four very hardworking women helped me register (I was the first person
   to do so), and they are in the picture those of you on the forum wish
   you could see.  Left to right:  Judy McCartney, Cheryl (whose last name
   is Stra followed by some other letters I cant read because I wrote it
   down with a stupid sharpie and cant read my own writing.  Sorry
   Cheryl!), Kathy Buckman and Christine Hall.  I visited the POCA store,
   which was up and running (other clubs hadn't yet arrived with their
   wares) which was being ably staffed by (left to right) Josett Dorazio
   (the store manager), and two other folks who preferred to remain
   anonymous.  They obviously havent been reading about the NSA.  I bought
   a cool DeTomaso tie for the amazingly low price of $10.


   After wandering back to my room, we decided to go to Chick Filet
   (again) for dinner.  I love Chick Filet.  Where else can you get both
   crispy AND grilled chicken nuggets accompanied by chocolate milk AND a
   hand-spun, peach milkshake (plus a soft-ice-cream cone)?  Sadly, we
   dont yet have Chick Filet restaurants in Washington.  Something tells
   me theres a franchise in my future.


   Because this is a vacation, and a full stomach is no deterrent to
   eating more food (see paragraph one), we then drove to the mall next to
   the hotel and visited Wetzels Pretzels where we each ordered one of the
   cinnamon variety.  Delicious.  Plus, thanks to the coupon book
   thoughtfully placed in my goody bag by the Fun Rally organizers;
   because we bought the first two pretzels at normal price, the third was
   free.  What a bonus!


   Once back at the hotel, I waddled back up to the hospitality suite and
   said hi to Denny and Maggie Finn, and Forest and Judy Goodhart.

   Denny told me he is currently working on a Pantera in his Shop in
   Oregon.  He described to me the myriad layers of metal comprising the
   structure of our favorite cars.  I thought about how difficult it must
   have been, and the exacting scientific methods needed, for the Italians
   to figure out how to trap moisture and encourage rust so efficiently.

   Later I met Eugene and Eva Boston, who, despite their last name, are
   from California.  We traded stories about speeding tickets, collector
   cars, and that sort of thing until the exciting moment arrived when Bob
   Reid announced I didn't win the raffle for two, free nights at the
   hotel.  Doh!


   While I was talking with the Bostons, I learned Eguene was a family
   physician who retired a couple of years ago.  I wanted to ask him if he
   retired because of our Presidents crazy policies, but realized the
   medical profession probably isn't affected at all by how John Buckman
   behaves.


   Tomorrow I have to get up at the ungodly hour of 8:00 AM so I can go
   with a group of POCA members to a car museum.  For those of you
   unfamiliar with collector-car owners and their idiosyncrasies; just
   because a collector-car owner is surrounded by a large amount of really
   cool, rare, classic cars, this does not mean he or she will miss an
   opportunity to go to a place to see more cars.  In fact, Friday night
   there is a car cruse which Im planning on attending, and Saturday a car
   show all who are here are planning on attending.


   Think of it this way:  In the same way there can never be too much ice
   cream; there can never be too many cool cars.  Its just that simple.


   On final thing on a serious note:  This afternoon one Pantera owner had
   to be transported from the lobby to a local hospital due to a medical
   problem.  Since I dont know specific details, I wont speculate on what
   happened, nor will I divulge his name, but please remember him in your
   thoughts and prayers.


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