Encounter with 911 (Air-Cooled) Owners

One day before noon on a recent day off, my husband casually said, “I’m going for a drive to Royu in the air-cooled Porsche” and headed out. As usual, when he arrived at the Higashi Rokko Observatory on the Royu Driveway, he noticed several air-cooled Porsches parked side by side in the lot.

Thinking, “Is this some kind of air-cooled enthusiasts’ gathering…?” he parked his car a little apart and went to buy coffee from the vending machine. When he returned, one of the air-cooled drivers there called out to him.

…Um… You’re the blogger, right!?

My husband was momentarily surprised, but the driver said, “When I saw this 964, I thought, ‘That’s the 964 from the blog!’ I also heard you often come to Royu Driveway, so I’ve been hoping to meet you someday!”

We exchanged greetings with the group, and it turned out some lived near Royu Driveway and even ran a 964 Owners Club.

After chatting for about an hour, my husband came home with a special Royu Driveway sticker that the group had made themselves (inspired by the Nürburgring sticker).

So cool! The “U” is even styled as “Ü” — very classy (lol)

Back to Royu Again

The next day, my husband went back to Royu (he really loves it, haha). There was a striking red 964 parked there again, and when he spoke with the owner, it turned out they were part of the same air-cooled group from the day before. They also knew about this blog.

After returning home, my husband said thoughtfully,

Thanks to Porsche, I’ve been making great connections lately. Everyone’s so gentlemanly and kind. If I wasn’t driving a Porsche, I wouldn’t have met these wonderful people at all.

Then he added,

Hey Mina, why don’t you go to Royu by yourself sometime? I’ll watch the kids for you.

I’ve lost count of how many times he’s said that to me (probably over 30 times). But every time he says it, I reply,

Well, since it’s not my Panamera Turbo that I bought myself, I feel like people would think, “You just ride around like you own it because your husband bought it for you,” so I don’t go.

Or,

Even if I took the Boxster, I’m not a great driver and would probably stall a bunch in the parking lot, so people would think, “You’re too bad at driving to be in a Porsche,” so I don’t go.

And so on, I always end up not going. Each time, my husband says,

What’s with that Yoshida from Black Mayonnaise kind of thinking? lol

So despite living near Royu Driveway, I’ve never been there alone. I wonder why… I’m usually quite bold in other situations, but here I get a nervous little heart.

But I’m sure if I go, I’ll meet new people, so this year I’m determined to make my solo debut at Royu Driveway.