back to previous pagePorscheshop Manx Tour 2008 Review & Information
On leaving Liverpool docks on Friday morning it was clear we had more cars and more variety this year than ever before, we counted every model made from the mid 70s to the present day, these ranged from the humble 924 of John Lord's, and included 944, 928, 968, 911sc & Carrera's, 964, 993, GT2, GT3, Turbo's all the way through to 997 Turbos & a 997 GT3RS belonging to Jeff Maynard.
Our crossing was pleasant and on arrival at Douglass docks it was a bit of a frenzy as some of the group knew their way to the Mount Murray Hotel and others didn't, how everyone got there is a mystery, however Porsche drivers are quite resourceful when it comes to trusting others, and tagged on to whoever looked like they knew where they were going.
Friday evening was an opportunity to meet & greet in our own private function room in the golf club, the buffet was fab (Thanks Geoff & the MM staff) and we even had our very own head of police Derek Flint to welcome us for the weekend & point out the do's and don'ts of the local motoring culture (the shocker being that we could actually be locked up under Manx law and sentenced to long term prison there if we didn't behave ourselves!, not a nice thought!!)
Saturday Morning 6am saw us set off for what was to be our first of 2 “Dawn Raid” laps of the famous TT circuit, leading off in single file from the TT pit lane at Oncan in groups of 5/6 cars, each party was led by a Manxman Porsche region driver who was able to lead us round at speeds which were both safe yet beyond our own limited knowledge. On returning to the pits area we headed home for a hearty full English breaky before readying ourselves for Geoff's cryptic Treasure Hunt.
Saturday evening saw most of us filling the hotel bar for bar meals & booze, before an early(ish) night to prepare for Sundays Dawn run.
Sunday morning saw us back at the pits again (at 6am!), this time a little hung over with considerably less sleep than the night before, however it was to turn out to be the better of the two days, again led by the Manx region Porsche club (Thanks Guys) we had a fabulous fog free run with clear blue sky's and near zero traffic to contend with, back for breakfast again, followed by our annual regularity run at 11am.
Sunday evening was our traditional Gala Dinner, with near on 100 people attending this was a real treat, all the ladies were looking splendid in their evening wear, where as the guys clearly had their own take on “formal evening wear”, which is only to be expected with our mixed bunch, however we were honored to have Chief Constable Derek Flint & his wife Sarah as our guests of honor, Derek, not one to shy away gave a great after dinner speech, and one which was hilarious and yet quite heart felt (Derek you should have on the stage!!)
Monday morning was another early rise for some of us who were leaving on the 7.15am ferry back to Liverpool, others preferring to take the 3pm crossing, or enjoy extra time on the island, time to enjoy the sail and reflect on what was another fantastic weekend, roll on next year.