Monday, December 12, 2022

NMS-North 2022 Wrap-Up

As we say adios to 2022, and hola to 2023, here's this year's top ten highlights from the NMS-North perspective. 


New York: First look at the new Nissan Z

10: NY International Auto Show
            This year's show was fun since it was sorta after Covid! Even though the show was a bit smaller than pre-Covid, and with a lot of the Jacob Javits Center taken up by indoor electric car driving opportunities rather than new cars to see, there was still plenty on display. The growth of the electric car side of the business showed that people still love cars, and there is plenty of change still to come. 


Kaiser Darrin at the Malcolm Pray Achievement Center


9: Epic Cars and Coffee
             One thing my local Porsche club does extremely well is visit interesting automotive locations. Julie and I visited with some other club members and had a great day at the Malcolm Pray Achievement Center in Bedford NY. 


Plymouth Road Runner Superbird

8: US Merchant Marine Academy Car Show
            This year's car show where I work was a lot of fun, because unlike the previous year when it was held in a parking lot (thank you again, Covid) this year we returned to the very scenic campus grounds, with cars displayed in the large space basically surrounded by the barracks and academic buildings. I got there early and parked right by Wiley Hall, former home to Walter Chrysler, so that gives this show a great bit of automotive background. Look for this event to return in mid-May 2023. 

 
Guess who got to drive the BMW i4 M50?

7: BMW Ultimate Driving Experience
            I've attended the BMW UDE several times in a couple of different locations in New York and New Jersey, and it's always fun to drive someone else's brand-new car in a situation where they are asking you to go faster! Our local 2022 version at Tobay Beach was the first national event this year, and just happened to be in the same location as a lot of Porsche Club of America autocross events. Oh, and yes, I do enjoy driving other people's 500+ horsepower cars, even if it's in a parking lot!


McLaren F1 at the Audrain, driver sits in the center of 3 seats!   
           They only made 106 of these, and now I've seen 2 in person, both in museums. 
              A McLaren F1 sold at auction in 2021 for over 20 MILLION DOLLARS!

Porsche 918 Spyder at the Newport Car Museum.   
                         I believe they built 918 of these, I've seen maybe 4 in total. 
                  Want to buy a used one? Plan on 1.5 MILLION DOLLARS and up.

6: Audrain Car Museum and the Newport Car Museum
            In one trip, Julie and I headed to New England and managed to visit two very nice museums that we highly recommend if you're in the neighborhood. In fact, they're both in the Newport Rhode Island area, so it's easy to catch them both. You might know the Audrain from their many videos with Donald Osborne and his friend Jay Leno. At any one time they have a small exhibit on display, but it is always well worth it. 
            The Newport Car Museum takes a different approach and displays the huge private car collection of one guy. This museum just opened in 2017 and is well worth your time if you like any kind of car at all. From a room full of Shelby and Mustangs, to American cars from the 50s, to super cars, and even a Tiny Tikes car, it was a blast to visit!




5: Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA) Museum
            If you're around Hershey Pennsylvania and looking for something besides chocolate to sink your teeth into, let me suggest the AACA Museum. Focusing on older US models, I really liked this visit. 



Lemons Car Theme: "Themes Are for Suckers"

4: Lemons race at CMP and the Friday Night Block Party
            My only track time this year was a blast, thanks to the Bunch of Idiots team at the Carolina Motorsports Park 24 Hours of Lemons race in their 1990 Miata. We didn't bring home any trophies, but I really enjoyed several practice sessions on Friday, and then taking my turn in the race on Saturday and Sunday. As the "out of town guy" and not-really-a-BOI-member, it was nice of them to let me just show up and drive. This race is still the only Lemons event in the country where on Friday night all the race cars gather for a car show in the local city, in this case in downtown Camden SC for a block party. Now that's a fun way to spend a weekend!


June Autocross: Stay Hydrated!

3: My personal best driving event this year was in a full year of autocross with the Porsche Club of America, NY Metro Region, and once again I landed in the top 10 for Porsches on Pax Time for the year. That was my goal for 22, so it was great to hit this target for the 2nd year in a row. In June's event I turned in my best placing ever, finishing 2nd on PAX for the day, and at the end of year my unofficial points count says I finished 4th overall for Porsches, another personal best. 


Kyle, Luke, and Brian with the Lucky Dog CHAMPION Hardware!


2: Brian teamed up with Kyle and Luke on three different weekends, on two different tracks, and in six different races, to WIN the Lucky Dog Racing League Southern tour! These guys have done a good number of other races, autocrosses, time trials, and other driving, but this year they kicked it WAY UP (that's more than "a notch") by driving and wrenching with the best of them to win it all. One example was the final two-day weekend of races where they spent Saturday night replacing the clutch on their Miata and got out on track the next day with no issues. 


Katie and Joanna

Alicia and Brian


1: OK, not car related, but I'm going with two weddings this year as the toppermost of the toppiest uppermostest highlights. Wedding #1:  Katie and Joanna in January in Chicago, and Wedding #2: Brian and Alicia in November in South Carolina. When both your children get married in the very same year, after waiting for Covid to slow down, well, that's an awesome highlight, and it sure made 2022 a great year! Thanks for following on the blog!


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