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From the Archives #23, March 2024

This month I thought we might look at our Region’s last year the printed Newsletter (“Sandscript”) was published. That would be 1991.

The February, 1991 edition reported on the December 1990 Christmas Party, saying that it had a couple of outrageous moments and was fun for almost all the participants. There was no report on who didn’t have fun. I was surprised that the Party was held in a private home, just as it had been in the earliest years of the Region. And there was no limit on the number attending (as was the case this past January 2024 at the M Resort). 

Our Region had only 91 members in 1991 (I assume this didn’t count the associate members i.e. mostly spouses), which represents only about a tripling of the membership from 1974. (From 1991 to 2024, the LVR approximately sextupled its’ membership, on the same basis of not counting associate members.

As had been the case since its founding, the LVR was still supporting one or more charities in 1991. The newsletter lists fifty-nine (59) separate companies that were Region charity sponsors, including fifteen hotel-casinos and nine auto-related companies. WOW! I’d like to see that sales team in action today.

In February 1991 our Region staged a time Trial (aka today as a DE) that attracted “over 100 participants.” Entrants came from San Diego, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, and, of course, Las Vegas. The report noted that most of the “students” were from the LVR.

There was a very interesting report on a “Gumball Rally” (as invented by Brock Yates and later re-run by Burt Reynolds) held on (redacted). This apparently was a weekend event, with the course going from (redacted) to (redacted). It included considerable curvy-and-fun mountain roads in the (redacted) mountains, some very long, straight, deserted roads on the (redacted) Plateau, one TSD leg, and a 55-mile cool-down leg to the finish. They had a drivers’ meeting Friday night at the (redacted) motel, where the route instructions were distributed. There was obviously a lot of fast driving, including one leg where the prescribed speed was the speed limit plus (redacted). The contact for the 1992 event was given as (redacted). Redactions by the original reporter, for more-or-less obvious reasons.

I’ve signed up for the 2025 running.

And lastly, for the first three months of 1992, PCA National President Burt Misevic, visited the Zone 8 Presidents’ meeting held in Ventura, CA and discussed the planned PCA racing series, which was just getting started. As a personal note, Burt used to work for me at my engineering consulting firm in Camarillo CA.

Next month, we’ll finish reporting on the LVR’s 1991 adventures.