Links to Past Poker Runs:

• 2010
• 2011

You may need to scroll through the pages to find the pictures but pictures are there !!!

Hope to see you there !!!

 

What is a Poker Run? Since I have been asked I thought I would basically explain a Poker run and how it works.

A Poker run is a rally that doesn't have anything to do with speed. Everyone starts from the same location and either travels as a group or single and heads to a common ending point (in our case Mt Washington Resort in the Comox Valley). Along the route there are checkpoints that each vehicle must get to. You are supplied with a detailed map but none of the locations are hard to find. For those that know the island they can take off as a single or as a group and head whatever way they wish. Those that don't know the island and want to have more of the scenic tour can go with another group that will have some local owners and we will take the ocean routes to the checkpoints.

At each checkpoint will be a deck of cards. Each car selects a card. If you don't like the card you get, you can pre-purchase "mulligan" tickets which allow you to exchange the card at the checkpoint and return the card you first selected. Mulligan tickets are purchased at the start of the event and you can only purchase 3 tickets. Of course you "draw" a card you don't get to see what it is until after you have it in your hand.

Once you get to the finish you should have 7 cards. From those cards you make the best Poker hand you can and submit it to the event people. We have a nice sit down dinner at Mt Washington Resort (last year was Carved Roast Beef and Chicken Cordon Bleu with a great selection of salads and other nice things). During the dinner you are encouraged to purchase tickets for the silent auction items with all proceeds going to Camp Shawnigan. After dinner we award the silent auction items and we then award prize money to the 1st, and 2nd, and 3rd place card hands.

After that we have the bar and the facilities until midnight.

Most of the participants will stay on the Mountain in various accommodations that are available. Participants of the Poker Run do get a special rate on the Mountain. It is also possible to attend the festivities and still make it down to Nanaimo to catch the ferry to the mainland, should staying overnight not be an option. The next day we normally cruise back to Victoria as a group stopping someplace for lunch. This year it is proposed that we may include a further 'sight seeing' tour further up the island, before making our way back.

Any questions, don't hesitate to PM me or fire me an email at dave.donovan@elocas.com

Thanks and I hope you can make it out to this worthwhile event.

 

OK all the checkpoints have been confirmed:

Starting Point ==> BC Systems building on corner of Seymor Place and Cloverdale (9:30 start).
ChkPnt #1 ==> Campus Honda (Victoria)
ChkPnt #2 ==> Discovery Honda (Duncan)
ChkPnt #3 ==> Nanaimo Honda (Nanaimo)
ChkPnt #4 ==> Sunrise Ridge Waterfront Resort (Parksville)
ChkPnt #5 ==> French Creek House Resort (Parksville)
ChkPnt #6 ==> Arrowsmith Golf and Country Club (Quallicum Beach)
ChkPnt #7 ==> Island Honda (Courtney)
Finish Point ==> Mt Washington Resort (Alpine Villiage, Comox Valley)

Thanks to all the businesses donating their time to help out with the event.

 

I finally got on to BC Ferries- sorry for the delay on that. MNR should also be contacting you shortly directly to determine what kind of support they can give. They've been pretty busy as well- nothing seems to happen quickly at the beginning of the season!

Anyway- really looking forward to the event again this year! Interested to see what happens with the expanded enthusiast market! What are we shooting for this year? 5K?

 

What is Camp Shawnigan? I have been asked by a few interested people, what is Camp Shawnigan.

Camp Shawnigan is the recipient of all proceeds from the Japanese Import Poker Run. I selected Camp Shawnigan for two reasons

1) The kids
2) The kids parents.

But what is Camp Shawnigan? Well the camp is run by The British Columbia Lions Society under the Easter Seals program. It is one of a few specialized overnight camps for children with Disabilities. Not only does this camp provide some form of normality for the kids that go there, but it also offers the parents a well deserved break. Allowing a disabled child to attend summer camp and putting a smile on the face of that child is what the Poker Run is all about.

On average it takes $2,300.00 to send a disable child to camp for one week. The camp has specialized staff that can address the needs of each child on an individual basis. They schedule activates that are challenging and fun. They allow the kids to be kids and for a brief week in the child’s life, they help make that child smile and make that child experience what so many of us take for advantage.

Find below a link to the Camp Shawnigan web site and read about all the wonderful work that they do. If we can get together and have some fun and raise money for the great cause, then we all win.

http://www.eastersea.../camp-shawnigan

Thanks for helping me to help the Kids! If you can attend, please do, it truly is a wonderful, fun event with an excellent cruise, great prizes and raffle items, fantastic dinner in a wonderful mountain resort, and some truly great people. I hope to see you there.

Importmeet.com has been helping to sponsor the event and has offered hosting of a registration form for this event. That form will be open on April 14th, for participants to register for the event. I will announce when the form is ready.

Have a great day !
Dave

 

Ya 5K is a good number, 50 cars and 80 people would make me happy. Thanks for putting in the work for me Ian. Put the word out and if you can print off the advertisment that I put on the site here and post it around in different shops if you can.

 

The registration form is complete and is being hosted with Importmeet.com. They are sponsors of the event and have agreed to host the registration form. Importmeet.com has nothing to do with hosting the event itself or are they part of the organization team, they are just helping out the import meet community by offering me a space to host the registration form,although they will be attending the event this year. Big thanks to Matt at Importmeet.com for all his help.

You can find the registration form here:

Japanese Imports Poker Run Registration Form



Please sign up early ...,

 

One of the NSX crew that lives up in Courtney has offered his 5 acres of grassy land up to anyone that wished to bring a tent. Most of us stay up on the Mountain on the Saturday night. We do get a deal on the rooms, last year it was between $89.99 and $119.00 depending on the room type. Paris from NSXPrime lives at the bottom of the mountain and as such this is a perfect way to save some cash.

I realize that with a ferry and the event costs that can get expensive, so Paris has offered up his property to anyone that wants to tent it to try and save some money. He also said anyone that wants to bring up a trailer or something like that is welcome to as well. Just thought I would pass that on..., and a big thanks to Paris from NSXPrime.

Contact me and I will put you in touch with Paris.

 

Registration form is back up and live, see link above.

 

We have started to firm up some details for the Poker Run this year. All checkpoints have been set (see above posting). We also now have some of the sponsorship items coming in. The Honda Way in Abbotsford has donated a week in Whistler trip. Discovery Honda in Duncan will once again be providing us with a BBQ. Mt Washington will again be providing us with ski and tubeing passes.

I have also contacted Mt Washington administration, and they have once again graciously offered us a discount on accomodations.

Lodge room in Deer for $99 + taxes
Range is $99-$189 (3 bedroom)

"Best to call
250-338-4383 or toll free 1-877-845-4499, and please ask them to be
consistent with who they say they are with - I think last year we had a
few different names floating around. Poker Run participant?"
Our discount code is "POKER".

Many sponsors have signed on but have not provided a list of what they are going to supply. They include Saunders Subaru, Island Honda, Nanaimo Honda, French Creek Resort, Sunrise Ridge Resort, Arrowsmith Golf and Country, WindRestrictor, and some others.

The Registration is going very well. Would like to see more local people signing up and thanks to those of you that have to take a ferry to get here. I realize that certainly adds to the cost and I am doing everything I can to keep costs as low as possible for you.

 

Registration as of April 27th:

22 Cars / 39 People

 

Sponsorship is still coming in. Registration is going well.

Registration as of May 2nd:

28 Cars / 48 People

 

May 11th Update:

Lordco is now offering us some sponsorship by donating some gift certificates for us to raffle off. As well Island Honda is providing some Tom Tom GPS units and some Honda Apparel. Arrowsmith Golf and Country club have donated 18 holes of golf for four including carts. Discovery Honda in Duncan is once again supplying us with a BBQ at the checkpoint. For those of you coming over on the Friday night, we have been given some gift certificates for The Swiftsure Lounge, so we may just go for a small cruise and end up down in the inner harbor for some drinks.

I am continuing to receive donation offers from sponsors, which means again this year we are going to end up with a lot of stuff..., Never a bad thing.

Last years prize money for the highest hand was $500.00 won by nightzone who borrowed mecton2003's S2000 while he was off in Libia for 6 months. Nightzone graciously donated $200 back to the charity. Second place won $300.00, and that prize went to Murray, an S2000 owner from Peachville. Third prize went to ssthrd from Parksville. That was a nice $200.00 and again went to an S2000 owner from our very own S2Ki. I expect that the prizes will be in the same denomination this year (depending of course on participation numbers).

I hope to have the menu posted soon, we are still working out the details around that.

Register Here: http://www.importmeet.com/2012-vanco...and-poker-run/

 

May 22nd Update

The schedule for the Poker Run is as follows:

Friday August 17th - Meet at the Poker Run Starting location (4000 Seymour Place) around 7:30pm. We will get together and I can hand out the maps and paper work to those that are here on the island already. After that perhaps a small cruise and we have been invited down to the Swiftsure Lounge afterwards, which is right in the inner harbour. We can have some appies and drinks.

Saturday August 18th - Arrive at the starting location for 9:00, Please don't be any later so I can get any paperwork off and we can have any announcements that need to happen. I want to send out the first crew no later than 9:30 and the second crew about 15 minutes later, again depending on how many participants we have by then. The event will last all day with a dinner and awards evening. We have the chalet until midnight so you are welcome to sit with us or you can go out and enjoy the Mountain. Dinner is normally around 7:00pm and is always excellent fair.

Sunday August 19th - Gather at chalet for 11:00. Last year one group continued on up island to Gold River, while the others headed back on a slow cruise back to Victoria stopping at one of the checkpoints for lunch.

If you are coming over from the mainland you can indeed make it back on the Saturday night. The Nanaimo last ferry leaves at 11:45 giving you time for dinner without a problem.

 

this sounds fun wish we could that here