The Carlisle Convoy

Way back in 2019, my youngest son and I were considering a visit to the Porsche only swap meet in Hershey, PA. We did not make it there in 2019, then the pandemic hit.

2022 was a whole different story. Since 2019, I actually put a Porsche in my garage and joined the Porsche Club of America (PCA). As well, the swap meet moved down the road to Carlisle, PA which is a little closer to us.

The 2022 swap meet, which is the largest of its kind in the world, brings Porsche people from all over the country (and world). This particular Saturday had a perfect sun-filled forecast. Some of the folks from the local chapter of PCA were set to meet early and drive up together in a little convoy.

Hitting the road

With a 7:30am departure time, we were up early to get some breakfast and head to the rally point about 45 minutes away. A nice 50 degree morning greeted us. With the sunroof open we were off. We rolled up to Dunkin’ Donuts with enough time to grab a sandwich and get to the rally point.

Once organized, we were off for a pleasant drive through the farm lands of Maryland and central Pennsylvania. Our ’99 996 was followed by a red 718 Spyder and preceded by a red 991 911. The town of Carlisle was awash in Zuffenhausen’s best. The real shocker was pulling into the Porsche only parking at the event. There were Porsches for as far as one could see. Porsches of all kinds, colors and years were present. There were at least 700 – 1,000 Porsches parked in the grassy lots of the fair grounds.

Strolling

Our first order of business was to stroll the parking lot. We were both impressed with the offerings in the parking lot. There were license plates from Ontario, Canada to Florida to Arizona in the lot. As for the cars, every 911 version was present, as well as 944, 914, 928 and 912’s. The parking lot took on the look of a tailgate party with people sitting in camp chairs talking about their rides.

After soaking in all the beautiful cars in the lot, we strolled through the sponsors tents. We made a few mental notes of some possible purchases and moved on to the vendor area. We were both amazed by the Porsche “stuff” people brought to swap and/or sell. Since we were not there to look for parts. Rather, we both tended toward the tables with posters, Hot Wheels, magazines or other unique items.

Our last bit of business was to roam through the people’s choice concourse. With like cars organized into groups A-F we took our time analyzing cars and making our choices.

On the hunt

With our gawking and drooling done, we made our way back to a few vendors to pick up a some items. We actually lucked into a couple with all kinds of stuff for sale. I noticed a, still in the box, polizei livery Hot Wheels car with a .99 cent price tag. I asked if it was right and the fellow said sure. Once money was exchanged his wife asked how much he sold the car for. She was not pleased as she paid $3 for the car.

Our last stop on the way out was the Mechanicsburg Porsche tent to grab a sweatshirt. We ended up getting matching, heather grey hoodies.

A good day

We made our way back the way came through the massive orchards of central PA and wound our way home. While not an international jaunt to an exotic location, the day was a lot of fun. More than anything, it was quality, one-on-one, time with one of my boys. I’m sure he will have this day tucked in his memory bank. For me, it will be memorable on many levels. On the drive back my youngest admitted that while the swap meet was awesome, his favorite part was the Porsche convoy drive up. His rationale was that everyone we passed, in either a car or pedestrian, stopped to watch us go by. Rock stars Porsche stars if only for a day.