Willem F. Schol, Chile
A dream that became a reality
Willem F. Schol is Vice President of Porsche Club Andino in Chile and co-founder of Porsche Club Peru.
Since I was a child, I have always loved cars. But it was only when I was a teenager that I had the chance of discovering that my passion had a name: Porsche. The only problem was that at that age I could only dream of owning a Porsche.
The dream grew painfully over time, especially during the 4 years that I lived and worked in Belgium, as I could still not afford to own one. The dream lasted 29 years until I came to live and work in Chile. One day, while driving past a used sports car dealer I saw an orange 911, model year 1973. It was love at first sight and the first chance to own my first Porsche. The day I bought it was maybe one of my happiest days in my life and the start of a long-lasting romance with the Porsche brand that has thrived for 65 years.
Perhaps like for many of us it was the first Porsche I owned and the one that I regret having sold. But I was lucky enough to continue experiencing other more modern Porsches that I have owned over time, including other 911, type 993, 996, 997 and 991 models and even an RUF CTR Yellowbird and an RUF CTR 2 Sport – I also regret very much having sold the last two cars. I even explored owning other brands like MB and McLaren, but my passion always brought me back to Porsche. Today I own a 993 Turbo converted to GT2 by Cargraphic, a 996 GT2, a 997 GT2 and a 991 GT3.
Today, I am happy to also have been one of the founders of the Porsche Club Andino in Chile and the Porsche Club Peru to share my passion with other Club members. Among the things we have done between both Clubs and that I will remember forever is the organisation of the Machupicchu Expedition, a trip that started in Arica in the north of Chile and that took us though cities in Peru like Tacna, Arequipa (where our Peruvian Club members joined us), Juliaca, Cusco and obviously also included a visit to Machupicchu. A 6-day trip through two countries and with a 3,500 km drive reaching altitudes of up to 4,700 metres above sea level. This is a project that will be hard to repeat and that the participating Club members will never forget either, especially as we produced a documentary movie and a book.
What is next? I do not know, but I am sure the story will not end here. A good thing though is that my wife Patricia has always been with me in this adventure and passion, and I am grateful to her for that.
