Happy birthday, Checkered Blog!  This week marks one year since FlagRaiser, Win'sGal, and I, your trusty CheckeredChick, began our online musings and observations on what FlagRaiser likes to call "the automotive play place in Hampton Roads, Virginia."  And the Checkered Blog has received one amazing birthday present:  Auto Dealer Monthly magazine has ranked Checkered Flag's website at the top of its annual listing of excellent auto retailer sites.  A panel of eight judges examined all aspects of Checkeredflag.com and singled out its "personality" and "unique" nature.  Judging by the other auto dealer web sites on the magazine's "Top 10" list, the competition was stiff, so we are all very excited about this. Thanks to all who have suggested topics for this blog, submitted comments, and sent e-mails ... and please keep your ideas and posts coming!

Forgive my self-congratulatory tone, please.  It is Monday. I needed a bit of a pick-me-up this morning and I got it when news came that The Checkered Blog had picked up another trophy, this time a prestigious Gold Award from the Hermes Creative Awards, an international competition that honors creativity in traditional and new media.  Thanks to everyone who gave us feedback and suggestions for making the blog even better.  Keep it coming!

There are intelligence wars that are constantly being fought in the car industry.  Leaks, attributions to "anonymous sources" and, yes, spying are practically as common in the modern vehicle manufacturing world as they were between the two great powers during the Cold War.  If you don't believe me, check out this story regarding Porsche's CEO finding a "bug" in his hotel room the day before an important board meeting.  While that is creepy, and illegal, there are other times when the fruits of espionage are far more rewarding. 

Details on the new 2009 Porsche 911 recently found their way to the world wide web.  Here's what we "know":  The new 911 will feature direct fuel-injection resulting in a healthy increase in horsepower (+20 h.p. for 3.6-liter engine).  Additionally, the '09 911 will include Porsche's PDK, a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission.  A new touch screen "Communication Management" system will also be available.  Outside, we will see more subtle changes, including slightly tweaked front and rear bumpers, larger headlamps and mirrors and stainless steel exhaust tips.

While it is still very cloak-and-dagger, the leak will more than likely ensure that details on the official release will come sooner than previously thought.  The 2009 Porsche 911 is expected to be on sale mid-fall.

There are plenty of folks at Checkered Flag whose work, almost entirely "behind the scenes," helps make the business as successful as it is.  One of those "unsung heroes" is Charles Russell, our maintenance director.  Charles manages a staff of 20+ and oversees the housekeeping, maintenance and landscape operations at Checkered Flag, including those relationships with contractors and outside vendors that pertain to maintenance operations. The Checkered Blog recently caught up with him and cajoled him into answering a few questions...

CB:  How long have you worked at Checkered Flag?

CR:  10 years as of June 1st.

CB:  Congratulations!  How long have you lived in Hampton Roads?

CR:  Over 40 years

CB:  Where do you currently live?

CR:  Chesapeake

CB:  What are your hobbies?

CR:  Racing, fishing and having fun in the sun!

CB:  What's your favorite restaurant?

CR:  Pirate's Cove

CB:  What's in your CD player right now?

CR:  Classic rock or country

CB:  What's one thing people would be surprised to know about you?

CR:  I am very artistic.  And I have a lot of celebrity friends.

CB:  Oohhh....intrigue.  What's the one invention you couldn't live without?

CR:  Hairdryer.

CB:  That would explain the celebrity friends.  LOL.

CB:  What's the best thing about working for Checkered Flag?

CR:  The management and the fact that it's where winners work.

We want to pass a big THANK YOU to all the people at Dealer.com who have been helping us to bring the all new Checkered Flag.com to life!  It has been quite the task, beginning in September of 2007 when Alex Snyder, our Director of eCommerce, visited the folks at Dealer.com in their Vermont headquarters.

"I wanted to make the new Checkered Flag.com something people have never seen from their automotive dealers before.  I wanted it to cater to what our customers wanted, while providing that little extra to make someone say "wow".  During my visit with the Dealer.com staff, I realized we were going to be able to do just that!"  -Alex Snyder

Dealer.com has been hosting the Checkered Flag.com website since April of 2006.  The relationship has been awesome!  This hybrid site you're seeing now (hybrid as in a mating of things that don't usually go together - not the cars) has been a long collaboration of idea sharing. 

We would like to thank Mark Bonfigli, Rick Gibbs, Ryan Dunn, Andy Cole, Justin Heininger, Lee Allen, Scott Gale, Steve Waud, Kenneth Botka, Ishmael Ahmed, Tamar Bouchard, Timothy Burgher, Drew Chalke, and the rest of the teams who have helped make Checkered Flag.com what it is!  A special thanks goes out to Brian Valentine for being in the trenches with us every day - none of this could have happened without your help!

Dealer.com and Checkered Flag will continue to improve our Checkered Flag websites, on a daily basis to better serve you.  Keep tuning-in for bigger and better.....videos will be here soon!

The 8^th annual Ward?s e-100 issue is out this month and the Checkered Blog is pleased to announce that Checkered Flag was recognized as #14 on the list of the top 100 Internet dealers in the country. That is saying something since the independent ranking only began in 2001 and just over 60,000 vehicles were sold on-line in the U.S. that year. In 2007, that number topped 175,000! Congratulations to Checkered Flag?s e-commerce team!

I say "new" because both new car manager Ed Klima and pre-owned manager Joe Hernandez, have actually been around Checkered Flag for many years.

Ed has long been the go-to guy at Checkered Flag Porsche. In fact, pretty much everyone that I talked to about his promotion simply said, "It?s about time!" Ed laughs, "It is nice to have it be official." Ed has been at Checkered Flag for over 7 years and working with Porsche customers for almost as long. He told me that he was really excited about the improved inventory conditions at Porsche, which will ensure more vehicles are available to customers who want them, as well as the renaissance of the Audi brand, "Audi has always been a great German-engineered car, but people are realizing more and more that it?s also very accessible. There really is something for everyone."

Joe Hernandez recently returned to Checkered Flag after having spent some time out of the car industry. With the exception of the last few years though, Joe has worked in the auto biz pretty much his whole career (since the mid-80s!). He moved to Hampton Roads about 14 years ago from northern Virginia and was quickly offered a position at Checkered Flag Toyota. He eventually moved on to Checkered Flag Porsche. When I asked him what made him come back he explains, "They say it [selling vehicles] gets in your blood and you can?t get rid of it and they?re right. I enjoy the instant gratification and being able to help customers get what they want, when they want it." Joe is married and has three children, including a son who recently graduated from Virginia Tech, another son in college at JMU and a 4 year old daughter.

The Checkered Blog would like to congratulate both Ed and Joe on their new positions and wish them the very best luck!

The all new Checkered Flag.com was launched on April 8th, 2008 and is much more sophisticated than the last site.  We apologize for any issues you may have while viewing the site - WE ARE WORKING ON IT NOW. 

The new site has been a long work in progress, but there was only so much we could do on testing servers.  Now that the site is live we are able to fully wrap our hands around some of the holes and problems.

We assure you we are working night and day to get things running smoothly again.  We also hope you like the new site, and promise to continuing adding more to it forever!

Feel free to use our Contact Us form to bring anything to our attention.