Ten years ago, I was in the 8th grade, still more than three years away from obtaining a driving license, much less a car of my own. I had no idea I would one day own an example of the car that was making such a splash in all the automotive magazines, or that the enthusiast community would prove so important in my life. S2ki, however, was almost a year old and going strong, as were the first-model-year S2000s. In April 2001, some of the early members on the East Coast decided to get together for a spirited group drive through rural Maryland in their new toys. Their gathering served in part as inspiration for the first Fall Colors Tour, an event that continues to this day.
This year, many of them reunited (along with a few new faces) to retrace that route, in celebration of eleven years as a community and to commemorate that first drive. Original owners and early S2Ki members paS2K and Ricks2k organized the meet and planned (or re-planned) the route. Despite some protracted detours due to a variety of road closures, both on the route and the journey to the starting point, the drive was a resounding success.
Sorting through a pile of S2000 memorabilia, paS2K came upon an original route handout that was prepared by Ricks2k for a drive on April 7,2001 and it occured to him that maybe he should ask Ricks2K if he wanted to do it again. Plans were made on the hush and seven original owners gathered in Maryland in early October to drive the backroads to the Prettyboy Reservoir.
Upon completion of this drive, paS2K started a thread in Vintage about the drive alongwith a poll asking how many members were online on S2Ki in 2001. The thread also contains pictures and links to pictures from earlier drives. For many of us this is a look back into time to when the S2000 was the stuff of our dreams and yet for several of our original owners this may be reminiscent of their early days with a very special car.Our member, Matt_in_Va, sums it up best on behalf of the original owners “If this car does not put a smile on your face, you either do not like cars or you are dead”.
It speaks volumes of the kind of community we are and of how special the S2000 is based on the fact that even after production has ceased, we still have original owners gathering together to commemorate and celebrate what could very well have been one of the first organized group drives and continuing to enjoy the car as much as they did during those early days. A deserved tip of the hat to paS2K and Ricks2K for organizing this drive.
What were you doing in 2001 around the time the original drive was planned? Did you own an S2000 or Was ownership of the S2000 within reach? OR was s2000 ownership a dream for the distant future? Click here to access the 10 Year Commemorative S2000 Drive thread and join the discussion.
Images courtesy of paS2K & canberra
RELATED LINKS:
S2KI – 10 Year Commemorative S2000 Drive
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on Nov 15th, 2011 at 11:57 am
My del Sol was in an accident in Bowling Green,KY the summer of 2001 during a huge Sol meet.
After the settlement I had my sights on a brand new 2002 S2000 only in GPW. The rest is history and I’m proud to still claim original ownership over it.
on Nov 15th, 2011 at 2:12 pm
Nice pics on the thread. Thanks for sharieng. S2Ki forever :thumbup:
on Nov 16th, 2011 at 12:35 am
In 2001, I was…
Eight years old. Wow. Long way from these guys, can’t believe the community has stayed so strong over a decade. I hope it never dies!
on Nov 16th, 2011 at 11:38 am
I was only 10 years old when the s2000 came out, but I will always remember when I went to a car show here in my home town. The first thing when you walked in the doors was a spa yellow s2000. From then I had always wanted one. The rest is history.
on Dec 3rd, 2011 at 5:00 am
Wow, you’re definitely taking me back in time. In 2001 I was a senior in high school and had a 99′ Buick Century that I tricked out with Rims and all. A far scream from the S2K but it was a good car and certainly had a much smoother ride! I never imagined owning an S2K myself at that time. I ended up buying a Civic in 07′, trading it the next year for an 08′ SI (should have gotten the Si in the first place!) and so began my love for Honda. I started learning more about the S2000 and had always wanted a convertible. A few years later I ended up making that dream a reality.
Fast forward to now and I’m 27 and couldn’t imagine myself NOT being an S2K owner. It indeed puts a smile on my face; I can have the worst day possible and hopping into the car and going for a short drive really helps to clear my mind (In contrast to the experts telling us not to drive when we’ve become upset).
I’d love to get involved in a drive and it would be great to participate in the Fall Colors Tour. Now, if only Iowa was closer and I had more vacation time.
Thanks for sharing this story; very well written and kudos to the earliest members of s2ki for sustaining the annual group drives.