Anaheim – Jan. 24th  , 2010, marked the date of SoCal Challengers’ first annual meeting. The car group, which formed in January of 2009, now includes more than fifty members spread out over six counties. The meeting facility was hosted by Stack Performance of Anaheim, Ca. and lunch was provided by In & Out Burger. Members spent the morning in meetings discussing the past year’s events, 2010 events, and financial matters. Awards were given to many members for making a contribution to the group that was exemplary. Once the meetings were concluded and lunch was served, Stack Performance hosted a dyno day and crazy hat contest for SoCal Challengers members.

The annual meeting had struck me quite profoundly when I started my preparation for it some months before. The group was a year old. I started having flashbacks to that first Cars and Coffee eleven of us met at on Dec. 27th, 2008. We were a group of guys piddling around on ChallengerTalk. I was just about to get my car so I signed on there to see what other Challenger owners were doing in my area. A group was talking about getting together, and talking, and talking. I proposed going to Cars and Coffee in Irvine. That seemed good to everyone so I found a meeting place and the rest was history. When we met that day, I had only taken possession of my car five days before. We had a great time and soon after SCC was born. It got me to realize how far we had come. We were now almost five times larger. We are now a Non-Profit Organization. We have logos and uniforms. AND, people know who we are almost everywhere we go. People are asking US to show up at their events. What cigarette ad said it best, ”You’ve come a long way baby”. We certainly had.

When I saw the 2009 at a glance document that Heather had created I didn’t realize we had done twenty-seven events over the course of 2009. No wonder I was tired. Also, I hadn’t realized all the awards we had won not only as a group, but as individuals. We did extremely well. I know that means too that we will have to bring it bigger in 2010. People know we can bring it now and we won’t be surprising anyone this year.  I think we will rise to the occasion and have just as much success as we did in 2009.

After covering 2009, I began discussing 2010 and our tentative schedule. I had Klaus Kindor speak about track days for SCC and he was received warmly by the group. Klaus tells it like it is, and I could tell the group appreciated it. We also discussed a calendar and other events as well. All in all, more shows, more track days, more cruises, and some new events to make 2010 an exciting year to be an SCC member.

The financials and NPO were discussed by Jeff G. We wanted to convey to the members our transparency, accountability, and the reasons why we had made the decisions we had made. I think Jeff did a great job of doing that. I followed up with the liability issues involved in our decision to become a non-profit organization. I think membership now clearly understands why this was necessary.

After some housekeeping issues it was time to hand out awards to our members. Dave, Jeff, Heather, and I had wanted to acknowledge several members for their outstanding contributions to SCC over the year.  We decided to create categories for all of the members we had wanted to recognize. The categories included attendance, vendor support, event planning, and an award for best family participation. It was a great feeling handing those out and hearing the applause from the membership. They obviously felt the same way we did. They were all deserving.

After stuffing ourselves with In & Out Burger for lunch, Stack Performance took over and started their dyno day. Many members for the first time got to hear their car at speed from the OUTSIDE. It was for many an exciting new experience. Car after car went up the ramp and let it fly. Awards were given for blower-equipped vehicles and normally aspirated vehicles. And finally, James won for the craziest hat.

It was a fantastic day for everyone. I’d like to thank my fellow officers for their hard work in 2009. I’m blessed to be surrounded by great people in my leadership team. Most of all I’d like to thank our members for which we wouldn’t have a group without. If it wasn’t for your love of the Challenger, and your desire to become something bigger than yourselves that can accomplish things much greater than yourself, we would not exist. Thank you…