King George II

This was NOT a surprise! All season long the inch-perfect, smooth flowing brilliance of his drives had been noted at the award presentations ending each CVR AutoX. What WAS a surprise was the decisive margin of his first run in the Hoffman Cup Run Off event only to be obliterated by his astonishingly dominant second run. With the depth of good driving on display from the “Top-20” contenders it was clear that we were all just subjects of King George II. George Comanale earned his name being engraved on the coveted Hoffman Cup trophy for the second time in the seven years of this special and unique event. There was no shame in losing to such a spectacular drive; good, or even great drives just didn’t cut it this year. Motorsport at its finest. What a privilege to witness. All hail King George II !

Before “The King” reigned supreme, the day started with uncertainty for many drivers, as this was one of the closest championship seasons ever. There were four different Fastest Time of Day (FTD) winners for the six events. Second to third places were split by a microscopic one-hundredth of one percent over the three events! On top of that, there were five spots in the “Top-20” that were still up for grabs. “Fun with focus” could be seen on the faces of many as they walked the “final exam” course in the morning to prepare. The pre-published map caused many debates now that people were walking it for real. Groups paused at many spots to talk about the best lines, especially approaching the very fast optional-direction “cone wall” section.

Knowing that so many would be looking for one last score to add to their championship tally, and that there were a half-dozen new-comers starting their AutoX careers, several changes were made to the traditional run sequence. Time would run backwards on the run-order clock, with the two “Other” cars starting first, giving just enough time for the Novice drivers to pair up with an instructor and get in line. No time for jitters, no pressure to follow all of the seasoned drivers, just a calm focus and some good instruction to start their day off right. As soon as they finished their first run the next major change was that each driver pulled right back into staging, caught their breath, then immediately launched on their second run while the course was fresh in their memory. This back-to-back approach received such positive feedback that it will become the new-norm next season. The result of these changes was that everyone got six runs in less than four hours. A full AutoX’s worth! Everyone did their part to achieve this lively pace and was rewarded with a nice catered luncheon from Hoffman Porsche as the championship tally was crunched.

Drum-roll please. The final Top-20 standings were announced. Due to the continued sportsmanship of our Chief Instructor, Ed Bogue, and the schedule conflicts of two drivers, three other drivers got the good news that they would be part of the Hoffman Cup Run Off event. All morning the stunning Boxster 718 GTS enticed everyone with the anticipation of getting to drive it the way Porsche intended, in a motorsport setting. This car has it all; very efficient, powerful, handling like few others, and cover-car stunning looks. Luxury and sport are blended with reliability and practicality in an unrivaled package. I dare say that the on-line Porsche Car Configurator got a good workout after this event after everyone saw how amazing this car really was.

For those that got to watch, and those that got to drive the Hoffman Cup Run Off event, it was a treat. CVR is so grateful to the enthusiasts at Hoffman Porsche for their trust in us and their generosity in making it happen. There is no such event in the active Northwest US, in car-heaven Southern California, or the other active AutoX regions in TX, AZ, FL, or elsewhere in the Northeast. This motorsport event is truly unique across the country and is very special. Thanks to Jonathan Hoffman for continuing this tradition and to Robert Shinder and Corey Bates for supporting the event. Corey captivated everyone with a firsthand explanation of all the Boxster 718 GTS features. To the whole team at Hoffman Porsche…Bravo! What a way to cap off Hoffman Auto’s 100th anniversary.

The driving season may be over but the driving journey has just begun anew for each of us. See the cvrpca.com home page to log-in to the Member’s Only section (a brief one-time set-up is needed) to see the full results of the AutoX Championship and the Hoffman Cup. Then please plan on joining the AutoX-U Class of 2022 next year for your slice of Better Driving…Faster!