[BlackTalon]

VaSteve's experiences mirror my own. I never learned about the mechanical workings of cars when I grew up, but I did obtain an appreciation of sports cars from my parents. A few years back, a local group of Talon/ Eclipse/ Laser owners banded together, and a handful of guys with mechanical skills started helping others work on their cars -- both as a form of recreation, and to help each other reduce repair costs. This helped me overcome my hesitation to work on cars.

But until the Dorkiphus board was formed, I did not touch a single bolt on my holy 911. Ivan Arzola had been maintaining my car for several years, and I was (and still am) extremely happy with his work. But it is not cheap to always bring your car to a mechanic, especially for smaller repair items (CV boots, bleed brakes, change oil, etc.). And since I have been attending more track weekends, I have had to reallocate more of my budget to brake pads, tires, hotel, etc. So joining the Dorki Board has allowed me to hook up with many people who can provide guidance and support when I need to have something repaired. But I actually joined to attend the monthly get-togethers, which have for the most part been replaced with car repair sessions (which is even better).

Of course people like Dirk, Kurt and Tony always frequented the PCA Potomac BB, but very little repair info flowed back and forth on that board. Fact is, there are many people in the Potomac group that have a lot of mechanical knowledge they can contribute to this group. But they also have a better background in the DE side of things, so they can be quick to point out when someone should think twice before a planned mod to their car. The reality is that when I joined the Dorki Board, most of the members were into modding/ improving ther cars, but were not in the DE program yet (I even remember hearing people say it was unfair they needed to join PCA just to participate in the DE program).

In the end, there is a lot of cross-over between the two groups. There are many cliques in PCA, and one could easily argue that Dorki is just another clique. But the Dorki group has one big difference -- they/ we always accept new Porsche enthuseists into the group, with no questions asked. And the Dorkis will invite newcomers to their garages to help them with needed repairs, or drive an hour+ to their house to help them out -- even though they have not even met the person face-to-face yet.

In the end, being a Dorki is not so much being part of a group of cool people as it is a state of mind. It's a bunch of guys (and some gals) who like their cars, like working on cars, and like helping others. This in no way conflicts with the mindset of most PCAers -- it's just that many of them never had the chance to be part of a similar group. I never understood why there wasn't more car repair support within PCA Potomac, but I'll always be grateful Dorkiphus stepped in to fill that void.