SJVMC 8th Annual St. Patrick's Day Poker Run
By Genny PaauweSeven SAMOAns attended the 8th Annual St. Patrick's Day Poker Run this year. The event, put together by the San Joaquin Valley Miata Club, was a terrific look at the scenery in the Fresno-area foothills and a challenge for the 48 drivers that participated.
The SAMOA attendees were Tom and Denise Klisz ('96 M Edition), Ben Fowlkes ('00 Silver), Cassandra and Cynthia Flemister ('99 Emerald Mica) and Bob and I. This year we took Bob's '92 silver, Trickster, to the event.
The day before the event, Bob and I drove down Highway 49 from El Dorado Hills to Oakhurst, then down Highway 41 to Clovis where the festivities began on Saturday, March 16.
From old town Clovis, our hosts signed in 48 cars for the 10:30 departure. The route had to be amended to reflect the 3000 foot snow level (most of us didn't come prepared to chain up) and we commend the event coordinators on making the changes go smoothly for participants.
Despite the chilly weather most of the tops were down. Well, until the hail storm came through 15 minutes prior to the flag being waved for the event to begin. One Delta Miata Club member, DD Ann (per her license plate), sat in her 1993 red which boasted 202,000 well-earned miles (original clutch!) with her umbrella and waited the storm out. Now that's a Miata lover!
Spaced nicely, the cars first went over straight farm roads, then into the foothills southeast of Fresno. We climbed higher into the hills, along nicely paved, challenging roads. One highlight was the rural zoo we encountered, which served as lodging for goats, pigs, peacocks, dogs, chickens, and various other penned pets.
Our lunch, at the Hummingbird Café along Kings Canyon Road near Dunlap, was quick and homemade. Miatas double and triple parked and everyone was served and satisfied, back on the road in no time.
The route then hooked back toward Fresno, down sandy, twisty lanes. Too soon we were back in the flatland, where it started to hail again for a few brief minutes. Remarkably, there was little rain on the entire 3 ½ hour run and only two bouts with pea-sized hail.
Back at the Clovis Cole Best Western everyone drew their last poker card and made plans to meet at Michaelangelos for the buffet dinner and raffle. The restaurant was closed to all except the poker runners for the night. We enjoyed the act put on by the SJVMC president and her court, as the club is run this year by an all-female board.
Sunday, retracing our route toward Highway 49, it was snowing as low as Coarsegold and there were several inches of snow falling near Oakhurst. We were lucky because the highway was open with no chain requirements. It was a beautiful drive through the white stuff back north.
Thank you to the SJVMC for another excellent event, especially in the face of foul weather. We'll be back next year!
