Alex Roy’s Team Polizei 144 Blog

Ashley, 9 and Dustin from Mischief.tv, and whose haircut requires an explanation…

Multiple final updates from Des @ GT Spirit (check out his frequently updated photo gallery and forums), the Players Run Official Blog, After Dark 360, and Team Polizei’s very own Piloten Jon Goodrich, vacationing with Ashley Van Dyke on this year’s Players Run, who ends his wrap-up with a very personal thanks to those who helped him. Before the jump, I’d like to thank Marcus - organizer of the Players Run, Carbon McCoy from eCirkit, and Bret Haller from The Unlimited Class, who were kind enough to invite Team Polizei and took such good care of my old friend 9…

9/16/2007 - San Diego - 2007 Players Run Finish Line

Gentlemen-

Time for grateful and nostalgia…

Left the Mondrian this morning at 11AM with a police escort from LA to San Diego.  Let me just say that it’s too bad we can’t hire police escorts more often, because they are awesome.  Every intersection was blocked by a cop on a BMW motorcycle.  Red lights were meaningless and getting from Sunset to the 101 was a breeze.  (JON!!!!! THIS IS SO BAD!!)  We jumped on the highway and the cops took it up to a respectable 85 MPH. Everybody pretty much behaved themselves, staying in a single lane and maintaining reasonable speeds.  Pretty much everybody knew we should/could not pass the front of the escort, so instead we just slowed up and waited so we could have one last bit of fun.  Blow-bys at 120 were pretty common and after riding together for a week, respect and protocal were in full effect.  Ashley drove the final leg with her usual style and fineese showing me that many of the things we had worked on all week were now a part of repertoire.  We met up with some friends of hers around 1/2 way to San Diego.  Two guys in 40th anniversary Murcies, a new M5 with no actual license plates, and an M6 convertible.  When these guys showed up, everybody on Players Run picked it up and for about 10 minutes we wrung out the last bit of north-of-120 good times we will probably see for a while.

Our final stop at the Rady Childrens hospital was something that I believe sets apart Players Run from the rest.  Where most rallies end with a feeling of remorse and guilt, this one ended with respect and reflection.  The Rady Hospital is home to children in some very unfortunate, often terminal situations.  We were asked to bring toys for the kids and the outpouring of generosity from every single participant was incredible.  There were literally piles of toys.  The DarkCyde guys let everybody use their semi to transport all the toys that were purchased, since most participants do not have what can be considered a ‘trunk’.  When the truck showed up and unloaded the hundreds of toys and gifts purchased and you saw the kid’s faces light up, you just knew that everybody had gotten it.  If you are going to take, you have to give.  Its really that simple.

We arrived to San Diego in a pack and parked the cars two lanes deep in front of the Ivy Hotel.  Have to say the Ivy is one of the nicest places I’ve ever stayed and even though they didn’t have our rooms ready on time, they did take good care of us and buy us drinks while we waited.

We have been sitting pool side for most of the afternoon sunning ourselves and having several well-deserved cocktails.  The awards ceremony and dinner is in an hour and then we are looking forward to one last night out before returning to our civilian lives.

Now for the grateful and nostalgic part..

Thank you Ashley, for taking me on Players Run.  It has been an amazing experience I will never forget.  Despite what most people think of you, I can say without pause that you are not just beautiful, but smart, charming and a kick-ass driver.

Thank you Ecirkit.com and Carbon McCoy for sending Ashley and I and for the Aston.  We are both extremely grateful.

Thank you to Marcus for putting on a lovely event.  Players Run is far from extreme, but what it is a well-coordinated, well executed rally with fun people, great hotels, fantastic food and plenty of chances to run what ya brung.

Thank you to the people at the Rady Childrens Hospital for having us and for showing us what really matters.

Thank you to everyone who followed along.  Knowing that anybody cared about the adventures of Nine and Ash made it that much more special for both of us.  We appreciate the support and all the postings online.

Lastly, thanks to Herr Roy, our fearless leader and my best friend for sending me.  It has been an honor and a pleasure to represent Polizei on Players run and I hope to be called for active duty again soon.

Jon9

(Alex - Jon, I’m glad you, Ash and everyone else are safe….but I’m getting too old for this type of driving….especially given my eyesight and reflexes.)