2009 POCA Fun Rally
The Twenty-Eighth Annual
Reno, Nevada
If you haven’t registered for the Fun Rally, now is the time to engage. The 2009 Fun Rally is set to take stage in Reno on Wednesday June 10th through Sunday, June 14th. Clear your calendar, prep your car and prepare to enjoy the best that friends and things De Tomaso have to offer!
As of April 30th, registrations for the event are in line with recent Fun Rallies. Certainly, with the closer proximity to the Northwest, there will be many new faces and people to meet, who you may not have previously seen at a Fun Rally. Ergo, there will be Panteras at the Reno Rally that we haven’t seen in Vegas.
My conversations with the Chapter Presidents have led me to understand that most have organized caravans for their members to coordinate the drive together. This provides a margin of safety and we certainly encourage you to drive your Pantera if you feel comfortable. To ease maintenance concerns upon arrival, our plan is also to have a lift and basic tools available to perform a cursory inspection of vehicles to ensure they are ready for the rest of the destination drives and return trip home. Fortunately, Pantera vendors will be attending the Fun Rally; so, they will have parts available. Otherwise, our volunteers will endeavor to ensure your car is capable. However, this inspection is not for teching cars for the Track Event.
The POCA Chapters and Pantera International are working hard to organize events around Reno that will be both memorable and a blast in your De Tomaso. Once there, you will be glad that you brought your De Tomaso.
Events that are planned include:
· The Fernley Track Event hosted by the PCNC Chapter. This is both a driving school and or competitive driving event – your choice.
· Dinner at the National Automobile Museum. Hosted by Reno Tahoe, this event includes a private tour of the Harrah’s Auto Collection.
· Panteras Northwest has organized a Lake Tahoe scenic drive and paddle wheel boat excursion. This is a two-hour cruise to Emerald Bay and back. We will have lunch on the paddle wheel boat.
· Reno-Tahoe Panteras will spearhead a drive to tour a Hot Springs Winery and sample an actual bathing hot spring. Nevada has 312 hot springs, more than any other state. Come prepared!
· Space City Panteras will orchestrate the assembly of De Tomaso automobiles on the new Plaza adjacent to Virginia Street and create a spectacle. The gathering of Panteras is an opportunity to explore beautiful original examples along with the engineering genius that many of our friends incorporate to enhance their cats.
· A De Tomaso display in the Hospitality Suite will be a welcome aspect of this year’s Rally. One objective is to try to get an excellent example of each model displayed. The Fun Rally Committee has spoken with Chapter Presidents regarding their members’ De Tomaso inventory and invited each Chapter to display a De Tomaso of their choice. Arrangements will be made to provide owners the ability to extract their cars from the suite for the drives & Virginia Street display.
· Go-Cart competition is back thanks to Pantera International. We’ll see how fast you really are!
· At our Saturday Banquet, our own, Jason Eaton, will reveal his experience as a competitor with his Pantera in the new reality series “BullRun”.
As you can see, there will be a lot going on around Reno. This will be an outstanding Event for DeTomaso owners.
Circus Circus Hotel had set aside a block of rooms for us until May 11th. With that date having passed, I do not know the current availability of rooms or rates. For comparison or negotiation purposes, our group rates were as follows. Our single / double occupancy rates was $69 North Tower or $59 Sky Tower per night Sunday through Thursday, $89 North Tower or $79 Sky Tower per night Friday and Saturday, with a $10 per person per night charge for the third and fourth person in the room. The rates did not include a 13.5% room tax. I have been told that the only difference between the two towers is the length of the walk to the Hospitality Suite. The North Tower is closer. I would surmise that with the economy as slow as it is, there are bound to still be deals available.
You may contact the hotel directly at 1-800-648-5010 to make your reservations; our group code that provided the earlier pricing was “Pantera Owners Club of America”. Please let them know that you are with our group. The price that POCA pays for use of the facilities is a function of the number of rooms that we book.
This year’s event cost is lower than last year. Based on the will of the majority, an open bar in the Hospitality Suite is included in your registration fee. Participation in the Go-Cart races, Track Event, dinner at the Museum and Paddle Wheel excursion require additional fees.
Event information, updates, registration forms and payment through PayPal is available through the new POCA website at www.POCA.com
On behalf of POCA and the other DeTomaso enthusiasts, look forward to seeing you there. The more the merrier!
John Taphorn & Judy McCartney
Event Co-Chairpersons
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