PACE 10th Anniversary Picnic
by Christian LeHew
On Saturday, July 20th, nine of us and Dakota the dog headed up to Samuel Lewis State Park just outside of Harrisburg for the PACE Miata club's 10th Anniversary Picnic. With tops down, we all headed north along some great roads that run through Pennsylvania. And aside from the strong "fertilizer" odor at one point, Elaine (riding shotgun in Tina's Titanium SE) led us on a great run up to the park.
And were we surpised! Ever seen 150+ Miatas parked together? It was all we could do to park the cars so we could all check out the other cars. A quick tally of license plates included Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, West Viriginia, and even Virginia. There were even a couple Miatas that I recognized from magazine coverage.
Off to one side was the show & shine, which included a handful of pristine Miatas, including Eric Derr's (a Miata.net moderator) supercharged red M1, an immaculate Evolution Orange, and a garage-queen Œ91 BRG that was probably secretly trailered to the event! I think I even saw TJ trying to steal some parts off of it...
After a great meal of BBQ, we went for a scenic drive through the country, with two groups of about 30 each. And except for a single motorcyclist that insisted on driving 15mph in a no-passing zone, the miles flew by. We eventually made a pit stop at another park in the mountains that overlooked the Susquehanna River.
The day wrapped up with a gorgeous sunset over the mountains, and Miata friends new and old still talking and enjoying the company.
Thanks again to the PACE Miata club for the invite, and for putting on such a great event. We can't wait for the 20th Anniversary!
