Author Archive: Phil Reese

From the Archives #28, October 2024

A couple of months ago, I described in this column the Las Vegas Region’s entry into the computer world with the purchase of a computer and a printer in April of 1995. The purchase was described as being primarily for the purpose of creating the monthly LVR Newsletter (“Sandscript”) and keeping track of the ever-expanding membership and mailing list. 

When I transferred to the Las Vegas Region from the Santa Barbara crowd in early 2012, there wasn’t a printed newsletter. In fact, there wasn’t much of a newsletter at all, just an occasional “Blast,” which was an e-mailed notice to the members, mostly having to do with the Spring Mountain DEs.

So what happened? We had a computer. Why wasn’t there a published and mailed out Newsletter?

To investigate, I looked through the boxes of the old Sandscripts, only to discover that the last published Las Vegas Region Newsletter [...]

From the Archives #27, September 2024

This month we’ll continue our look at the Region’s year 1995, the 21st anniversary of our Region. 

In the July 1995 issue of Sandscript there was a telling article about the President’s new Dodge van. Carl bought it in his first-ever shopping trip for a NEW car. He said new car shopping was eye-opening, in that he had a lot of questions, but the dealer salesman had only answers to questions he didn’t really ask. Such as, since he intended to use the van to tow his race car, he asked: “Does it have a towing option?” And the salesman replied: “It comes in eight beautiful standard colors and three more at extra cost.” Oh….. to go back to the 20th century car shopping adventures.

But I digress. The comment that caught my attention was that, during his first towing trip with his new 1995 Dodge V-8 powered van, [...]

From the Archives #26, August 2024

Again this month we’ll look at 1995, the 25th anniversary of our Region. The year 1995 was a mere 29 years ago (it seems like about two or three years ago to me.) The first thing I noted in reviewing the old Newsletters was that many of the social events, such as dinners and pool parties, were held in individual members’ homes. Even with a participation rate hovering around 15%, we can’t do that nowadays with a membership of about 1000. 

It looks like 1995 was a good year for the “Nevada Open Road Challenge” event. In this event, entrants choose a speed they believe they can average over nearly 100 miles of a (temporarily closed) public road. Their speed choices ranged from 95 mph up to 170 mph in 5 mph increments, and there was an unlimited speed class as well. This on a PUBLIC 2-LANE road!! The [...]

From the Archives #25, June 2024

Last month the LV Region celebrated its 50th anniversary, and began looking forward to the next 50 years. Since this column is supposed to recount the history of the Region, I thought we might look back to the time the Region celebrated its 25th anniversary and began looking toward its second 25 years.

That would be 1995.

Bill Clinton was President of the US, and an equally audacious character was President (again) of the LVR. That would be Carl Young. If you’ve read this column previously, you’ll know what I mean. Suffice it to say that Carl was Region President in 1975, and he founded Carl’s Place.

During the first few months of 1995, several members praised the new 993, while at the same time complaining about all the “bells and whistles” that they didn’t understand (They should try a 2024 Cayenne.)

The Las Vegans started the year with [...]

By Phil Reese

Phil’s first Porsche was a 1964 901, which he thought was the same as a 356. He had previously driven and fallen head over heels for a 1961 356 coupe, which, luckily, a Porsche-knowledgeable friend pointed out, before he bought it, was totally rusted out below the door handles. This was in Baltimore for heaven’s sake. They use salt on the roads in wintertime.

Phil then came across the 901, in 1966, and he bought it, not knowing the difference between a 356 and a 911. He soon found out [...]

From the Archives #24, April 2024

Since this issue of Desert Drives commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Las Vegas Region, we thought we’d bring out some history of PCA and the LVR.

PCA National (often referred to as ‘PCAN’) itself was founded in July 1955 by Bill Scholar of Alexandria, Virginia. The first PANORAMA came out in December 1955, and the first “Region” was the Potomac Region, founded in 1956. To join PCA there was an Initiation Fee of $5.00 and annual dues also of $5.00.

Before the Las Vegas Region was founded, in 1973, if you were a Las Vegan who owned a Porsche and tried to contact other Porsche owners or members of PCA, you were pretty much out of luck. The closest Region was Riverside and there were actually a few Las Vegas Porsche owners who were members there.

Eventually enough Las Vegas locals met other Porsche-owning locals and managed to [...]

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 [...]

From the Archives #22, February 2024

After a month of joblessness, here we go again back into the LVR’s past. BTW, the Prez let me go last month (actually, he fired me) in an attempt to reduce Newsletter costs as a result of some production problem with the Region’s newsletter. To get me back he had to TRIPLE my salary. 

And I bet you thought this was a volunteer job!

So let’s go back again, this time we’ll look at the year 1980. (IMHO the nadir of the dullest dozen years (1974-1986) in the automotive world, what with emission regulations, crash safety requirements, MPG requirements, digital computers still on the horizon, et al.) 

The Region announced the formation of a new car club in Las Vegas in January 1980… the SNRR, or Southern Nevada Road Racers. The SNRR’s first event was a “Club Race,” or a “Drivers’ School” according to two consecutive sentences in SNRR’s [...]

From the Archives #21, December 2023

In our Region’s middle-age, in 2002, Ed Pacini was the President. He was the LVR’s 19th President by individual, and 29th by year. Our Region had almost 200 members at the time.

Ed died at 90 last month. He had been still sort of active in the Porsche world, having bought a new Macan just two years ago; it was black, and he had it custom pin-striped with red. And he was a member of the POT.

So I thought I’d look back at Ed’s Presidential year and report some interesting happenings under Ed’s guidance. First, you have to realize Ed took over the Region leadership just three months after the horrible events of September 11, 2001. Against this background it looks like Ed rallied the Region quite well. To quote from his “President’s Corner” in the Jan 2002 Sandscript: “It could be argued that activities like car clubs [...]