Columns Editor's Notes

Between the Lines – June 2019

The times, they are a changing.

You’ve heard rumblings of a digital version of Challenge since the end of last year. And I’m sure, in the intervening six months, you’ve had questions. What was it going to look like? Would it be more (or less) user friendly than the printed version that you’re used to, etc? While the Challenge Transition team has shown some demos recently, if you’re at all like me, you want to open the door, climb in and take it for a ride yourself.

Here’s your chance. Climb on in and take that ride.

The new, digital Challenge was designed to look and handle like the print Challenge. All of the Departments you’re familiar with are there. Just click on Columns in the navigation below the masthead and you’ll see Autocross, DE, Coffee Runs, Tours, Community Service and more. Those columns are all nicely laid out in alphabetical order. There is an About section with information on the Challenge staff and club officers; there are instructions on how Advertisers can place an ad, and how you as a member can contribute articles or photos (more on that later). Besides these regular monthly columns, there’s a good deal of Feature content, like Walter Hyjek’s great piece on Sebring 2019 and Jim Maitland’s piece on volunteering at a PCA Club Race and Paul Kudra’s retrospective on 40 years of Challenge.

If you’re looking to buy or sell a car, parts to a car, or rent your ski house in Vermont, you’ll be happy to know The Mart is still part of Challenge. We’ve just updated it a bit. The digital version of The Mart is a fully functioning classifieds section. And it’s all self service. You can place your own ad and add pictures to it. Your ad won’t get published until someone reviews it, but the turnaround time, from when you submit your ad to when it is available, is now days as opposed to weeks (or months). Ads in The Mart have been designed to keep your private information private. Anyone who responds to your ad does so via a form, so your email address isn’t visible. Unless of course you choose to share it in the text of your ad.

One last thing. I mentioned photos.

Because Challenge is completely digital, we’re excited to announce that we’ve added some things. Challenge now has the capability for members to show off some of the amazing photographs they take. The new Galleries section supports both image and [eventually] video galleries. And it’s shareable! Be sure to check out Bob Reincken’s Club Race 2018 gallery page to get an idea of what a gallery looks like. Bob’s agreed to be our gallery guinea pig and this one is the first of many Bob is planning to contribute.

So welcome to the future. Or at least, welcome to the future of Challenge. It’s been a long time coming. All of us on the Challenge Transition Team – Phil Capella, Jeff Coe, Shelley Krohengold, Don Phelan and I – hope you’ll find that the new digital version of Challenge not only meets, but exceeds your expectations.

Eric Richmond, Challenge Chair

PS. If you have any questions, comments (good or bad), please let us know. Just use the form on our new Contact page.

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