Mathematically, it is impossible to orchestrate any event where 40% of one club's cars are driven by guys named "Jerry," so for this weekend and this weekend only, we decided rename our club the "Jerry SKY Club." 

According to the Social Security administration Name Database, today the name "Jerry" ranks about 300th in terms of birth name popularity, somewhere below Gustavo and Zion and Jaxon (with an X) and Lukas (with a K).  However, in the 50s and 60s, Jerry was consistently in the top 50 names, so due to an axial alignment of the planets during a blue moon plus the affects of a Sedona Vortex that draws certain people to Arizona, our club has an inordinate proportion of Jerrys, most of which drive SKYs.

From speaking to other participants, this is the FIRST year that any Saturn SKYs participated in the Arizona Route 66 Fun Run, which drew more than 900 participants this year.  There have been several Solstices in the past, and we did see a red one and a yellow one at various stages of the event, but we weren't sure if they were both officially registered and were never able to really speak to the owners.

A breeze blew across the desert in mid-April as the Phoenix Sky-Sol club gathered for a ride to Bartlett Lake.  A group of eight vehicles lead by Norm departed at 1:30 p.m. and headed up to Carefree highway and into the town of Carefree to view some fantastic homes.  The first group of homes was located off Stage Coach Pass Road adjacent to the 5 star Boulders resort.  Many of these wonderful homes are built on the hillside and nestled right into the boulders themselves.  Next the group traveled to the popular "Easy Street" shopping area for a cruise of some unique shops and a photo opportunity in front of the West's largest sundial.  From there, the eight roadsters headed for Bartlett Lake and after a challenging twisty road ride complete with a slow down for the local sheriff and his radar gun, the group arrived at the lake and proceeded to visit Rattlesnake cove and SB cove for more photos.

On the return trip, Rich took the lead and guided everyone through some unique roads in the back area of Carefree.  These roads were without traffic, with loads of turns and twists with quick drop-offs and roller coaster like hills.  Many beautiful homes were spotted along the way and everyone felt it was a great workout for the roadsters. 

What a perfect day.  Some of the group gathered at Sue and Norm’s for the BBQ as the rest of the group was finishing their ride.  Delicious goodies began to appear on the counter in the kitchen.  Appetizers of cheese and crackers, fruit, hummus, dips, olives, pickles….too numerous to mention them all.  Next, sliders made of Kobe beef arrived on the scene and out came shrimp, chicken wings and a multitude of delightful salads.  For those who were still hungry, you were invited to dine on scrumptious Angus beef hamburgers and Polish sausages….  Jerry and Marion arrived and we sang Happy Birthday to Jerry and ate chocolate cake, delicious home made flan, two other desserts and we topped off the evening with ice cream sandwiches!  We enjoyed each other’s company and soon it was getting dark.  The fire was started.  The children had been anxiously waiting for s’mores.  Soon we were ready to learn a game called Left, Right, Center.  You play with quarters, and it seems that Rose is quite good at it.  She won both games!  If anyone is interested in getting a set of the dice, just let Sue know as she knows where to get them.  Many thanks to our host and hostess for a wonderful evening, everyone had a terrific time.  

After months of waiting April is finally here along with the 3rd Annual North American Solstice/Sky Meet taking place at the end of the month.  For those not able to make it to Vegas there are several other activites this month which will be as exciting.

04/10 (Thurs) Dinner at AZ88- This months dinner will be at AZ88. Well known for their martinis this promises to be an excellent dinner event.

04/12 (Sat) Wine Tasting Party- Tami and Dennis have offered to host a wine tasting party at their home in Goodyear.  Please RSVP by April 1st so they can prepare the wines and accompanying foods. 

04/19 (Sat) BBQ at Sue and Norms-  Sue and Norm are hosting a drive to Lake Bartlett and BBQ dinner.  Please RSVP with what dish you will be bringing to share.

04/22 (Tues) Kappa Koffee at Leaps- This months Kappa Koffee will be at Leaps in the West Valley.  The topic will be Vegas of course.  And as usual there will be dinner afterwards.

04/25-04/27- National Meet in Vegas- After months of waiting, Nationals is here!!  The weekend will be filled with fabulous drives and activities. Please RSVP if you are interested in driving up with other club members.

Things to mark on your calendar:

8/15-8/17 2nd Annual San Diego Coast Run

There was a great article in the FIRST issue of Saturn 360 Magazine about our trip to San Diego last year.

The two-page article is available either on the San Diego Roadsters website, or as a PDF, using one of these two links:

TXT Saturn 360 Article - Text Version

 saturn360-sandiegotrip-aug07 477.21 Kb

We are in the planning stages for a regional gathering in San Diego again this year, currently planned for August 15-17th (click here for the RSVP form so we can plan our caravans, departure times and meet-up locations). 

Last year's event was a TOTAL BLAST, with a great shoreline cruise on Saturday, and a mountain trip to Palomar and Julian on Sunday, which was the trip described in the Saturn 360 article.  Last year, we rented two sailboats (with four on one and six people on the other), and this year there will be sailing for anyone who is interested.

If you have something specific that you would like to do at this year's San Diego regional gathering, either mention something in the forums, or put a comment into your RSVP.