Christmas may come but once a year, but for Porsche-philes it comes but once every three years. As such, Christmas came a little early this year when 350 Porsche racing cars and thousands of owners, fans, and famous drivers gathered at the Daytona Motor Speedway on November 2–4, 2007, for the third Rennsport Reunion.
Organized by Brian Redman’s Intercontinental Events and Porsche’s Bob Carlson, the third installment of this stunning event was an absolute overload of significant Porsches and significant Porsche drivers. With the iconic 917 and the 956/962 serving as featured models, the paddock was positively awash with history. Among the multitude of 917s present were the 16-cylinder prototype, the 1971 Le Mans-winner, the 917L “Hippy Car,” the infamous 917/20 “Pink Pig,” the prototype 917 PA Can-Am, as well as Donohue’s 917/30. With the 956/962 also sharing the weekend’s limelight—and its 25th anniversary—over 20 examples were present including numerous Le Mans and Daytona winners, as well as the prototype featured in VR’s special October Rennsport issue. On top of this were hundreds more Porsche racecars from early 550s and 356 variants, to countless 935s and several specials including the debut of the ex-George Follmer Porsche-powered Lotus 23.
Photo: Chuck Andersen
If fans and spectators were stunned by all this Porsche history in one paddock, they were even more shocked by the depth and accessibility of famous Porsche drivers—Joe Buzzetta, Richard Attwood, Jürgen Barth, John Morton, Tony Adamowicz, Brian Redman, Gijs van Lennep, Chip Robinson, John Paul, Jr., Scooter Patrick, Jackie Oliver, Willi Kauhsen, David Piper, Sam Posey, Vic Elford, David Hobbs, Denise McCluggage, Elliott Forbes Robinson, and literally dozens more. All these legends, wandering the paddock, signing autographs and, like the fans, shaking their heads in disbelief at the sheer volume of history present.
In addition to three days of spirited racing, the weekend also included several special dinners, a model-car contest, and a “concours de sport” organized by Amelia Island impresario Bill Warner, which saw the famous Daytona pit lane absolutely jammed with racecars and spectators, as a panel of famous drivers and journalists judged the field based on history, significance, and authenticity.
If you missed Rennsport Reunion III, you’ll have to wait until the fall of 2010 before the next iteration.
The big question will be, “How on earth will they top this one?!”
By Casey Annis
