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Monthly newsletter of the Pikes Peak Section of the Mercedes-Benz Club of America.
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Welcome new members!
Inside this issue:
View From the Peak 2
January Fun Run 3
Bugs Bunny 3
New MBUSA CEO 3
Valentine’s Dinner 4
February Fun Run 5
March Fun Run 5
Springs Rally 5
DIY Tech Session 5
MHS Events 5
PPS Shirts 6
Desert Stars Event 6 Der Marktplatz 7
Click 7
Holiday Party Recap 8
Lights Drive Recap 9
GT-S Nomination 9
Glass Dash 10
Peter Kulzer2009 SL63
William & Brigette Ruskin
Reginald & Miranda Shoats
2011 GL4502015 GLA 250
Newsletter of the PIKES PEAK SECTION
JANUARY 2016
‘ROUND THE BENZ
2016 Pot Luck DinnerSunday, 31 January 2016
6:00 p.m.One of the high-lights of our annual Section schedule of events is always our Pot Luck Dinner. This year, we’re holding it on Sunday, January 31, 2016. That’s the week before Super Bowl 50 or “L” for you Roman numeral aficionados, in San Francisco. This gives you plenty of time to attend both our Pot Luck and the game - we’re hop-ing, of course, that the Broncos will be one of the teams playing! And it’s the week before your New Year’s resolu-tions actually need to kick in.
So, everyone, break out your favorite dishes to share. We will all bring hearty appetites and expectations of a gustatory extravaganza! In past years, we’ve asked for main dishes such as casseroles and crock pots but salads and desserts are also on the list of things to bring. Surprise us!
Please give Dave Wil-liamson a call at 575-
7976 (or email him at [email protected]) by 25 January to let him know you are coming and what you
will be bringing. The dealership provides the tables, chairs, plates
and napkins as well as the beer and wine and soft drinks. We like to give them an ac-curate head count in advance. It’s only polite, right? consider-ing all that they do for us.
We’ll have a surprise raffle again with our cutie pie auc-tioneers Jadyn and Glenn handing out some fun gear
and other surprises.
Our Paved Peaks & Passes traveling gnome also known as the Platinum Posterior Award, will be moving to a new home-with some lucky traveler who put some serious
miles on his own posterior as well as
his car. You won’t want to miss the look of surprise and dismay on the recipi-ent’s face this year.
Please plan to join us for this fun-filled evening - your taste buds will be glad you did.
Good friends, good food
Platinum Posterior Award winners
The Best or Nothing!
Highlights From 2015
Autcioneers Extraordinaire
View From the Peak by Andrew NelsonSection OfficersPresident:Andrew [email protected]
Vice President:Judy [email protected]
Secretary:Mary [email protected]
Treasurer:Julie [email protected]
Directors:Stan [email protected]
Glenn [email protected]
Henry [email protected] Sylvia [email protected]
Dave [email protected]
Webmaster:Robert [email protected]
Editor:Judy [email protected]
Regional Director:Michael [email protected]
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‘Round the BENZ is published monthly by the Pikes Peak Section of the Mercedes-Benz Club of America (MBCA), Inc. Articles and ideas are the opinions of the writers and no authentication is implied as to the validity of any infor-mation contained therein. Explicit permission to republish any article with proper attribution is given to all sections of MBCA, Inc. Articles for publication consideration should be mailed to Pikes Peak Section, MBCA, Attn: Editor, 4335 Penhurst Place, Colorado Springs, CO 80906 or, whenever possible, emailed to: [email protected]. Deadline for receipt is the 18th of the month prior to the month of issue.
Pikes Peak Section members are encouraged to support the advertisers in our newsletter. They help to make this publication possible.
‘ROUND THE BENZ
It was great to see such a wonder-ful turnout for our two 2015 year-ending events. We definitely closed out the year in style.
Thanks again to the party committee of Judy Bennett, Mary Bixler, Julie Nelson, and Sylvia Russell for another outstand-ing Holiday Party at the historic El Paso Club in downtown Colorado Springs. The club and the entire staff did an excellent job - the timing and pacing of the service was spot-on and the food was delicious.
I was honored a second time with the Rocky Mountain Region Officer of the Year award. I am very grateful to receive this award and accepted it on behalf of the entire Pikes Peak Section Board of Directors. All of our board members are hard workers and consistently serve the club membership with invariably out-standing events every year. Their dedi-cation and hard work make my job as Section President easy.
The Saturday following our Holiday Party was our annual Top-Down Holiday Lights Drive. The mild weather (for December) contributed to the excellent turnout, I’m sure. Many of the SLs were festively decorated with colored lights, including lit-up Mercedes stars. At the end of the tour, we enjoyed a pot luck at Steve and Barb Dierks’ house.
The feature event for January 2016 will also include a pot luck. Please join us for our 2016 kick-off event at 6:00 p.m. at Mercedes-Benz of Colorado Springs for our annual Pot Luck Dinner. This event is free, the dealership provides the bever-ages and set-up, and you provide the rest. Come and show off your excellent culinary skills and bring a salad, main dish, or dessert. You choose - just let Dave Williamson know you’re coming. The night will also include a prize auction and surprise raffle. We will also have pre-sentations of the Paved Peaks & Passes program for 2015 and introduce the 2016 program. I hope to see all of you there and at many upcoming 2016 events.
As far as the 2015 Formula One season, Mercedes-AMG finished with a flourish, with Nico Rosberg winning the Dubai Grand Prix, much to the dismay of the other teams. Lewis Hamilton has won the last two world championships while Mercedes topped the 2014 and 2015 constructors’ standings. During that time Mercedes has won 32 of the 38 races and clocked 23 one-twos, with Ham-ilton’s closest challenger for his titles being team-mate Nico Rosberg. In fact, the Red Bull team has called on Formula One to bring an end to these ‘predictable’ results by changing the current regula-tions. Mercedes fans, however, disagree, saying, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The Hamilton-Rosberg feud at the top is just what F1 needs to keep things interesting. What do you think?
As always, drive safe, and I will see you down the road.
Andrew
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“...spotlight-
ing classics like
What’s Opera,
Doc? The Rab-
bit of Seville,
Rhaposdy
Rabbit....”
January Fun Run Saturday, 16 January 2016
9:00 a.m. The weather outside remains frightful, or at least the possibility is there, despite Christmas being over. Winter has well and truly set in and that makes driving some-times problematic. For that reason, we have not scheduled any official event for our January Fun Run.
Let’s just say, if it’s nice, we’ll drive to a destination yet to be determined. If the
weather doesn’t cooperate, we’ll enjoy a nice meal in the company of good friends and the opportunity to catch up on what’s been going on with everyone.
So, come on out to The Egg & I restaurant at Citadel Crossing at 9:00 a.m. We order from the menu, as much or as little as we like. Andrew provides a recap of upcoming events and happenings within the Club. It’s a nice, relaxing way to end the workweek, so please join us.
Bugs Bunny at the Symphony celebrates Looney Tunes and its legendary stars! See everyone’s favorites—Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Sylvester, Wile E. Coy-ote, Road Runner and more—projected on the big screen while the Colorado Springs Philharmonic performs the extraordinary original scores live.
This concert has thrilled audiences around the world, spotlighting classics like What’s Opera, Doc?, The Rabbit of Seville, Rhap-sody Rabbit, and Baton Bunny.
We are planning to attend the performance on Saturday, 6 February at 7:30 p.m. at the Pikes Peak Center in Colorado Springs. Seats in the balcony cost $33 per adult and $13 per student, if we have a group of 10 or more.
Please give Julie Nelson a verbal reserva-
tion by 6 January so we can secure seats together. Give her a call at 719-634-7522 or 719-271-945; or email her at [email protected].
Bugs Bunny at the Symphony - 6 Feb 2016
Mercedes-Benz USA CEO Steve Cannon is leaving the automaker to head the com-pany that owns the Atlanta Falcons.
Dietmar Exler, 47, U.S. sales chief, will become CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA ef-fective Jan. 1. Cannon will become CEO of AMB Group, parent company of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons. The company is owned by The Home Depot co-founder Arthur M. Blank.
Cannon had led the automaker’s U.S. arm since 2012. In July of this year, Mer-cedes-Benz USA moved to Atlanta from its longtime home in New Jersey. Soon after the U.S. operation arrived in Atlanta, Cannon announced that the brand would sponsor the new Atlanta Falcons stadium under construction. It will open in 2017 as Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mercedes also sponsors the Superdome in New Orleans.
MBUSA Gets a New CEO
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Sign up today!
“Plan to take
your special
someone
to Mimi’s
Cafe....”
Plan to take your special someone to Mimis Cafe, 7133 N. Academy, for a specially planned Valentine’s Day dinner. For only $30 a person, we’ve planned a 3-course meal to include your selec-tion from a menu chosen just for us. The menu will offer a choice of soup or salad and a main course of beef, fish, chicken, or pasta. A signature dessert, coffee, or tea will top off the meal. A no host bar will be available. Meet and greet at 5:30 p.m. followed by dinner at 6:00 p.m.
Please complete the form below and mail it, along with payment to Mary Bixler. We need to receive payment no later than
Monday, 8 February. Please direct any questions to Mary at [email protected] or give her a call at 719-597-1281.
Valentine’s Dinner - 14 February 2016
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PREVIEW OF COMING ATTRACTIONS!
‘ROUND THE BENZ
Angel Heart TourDate: 16 January 2016Location: 4950 Washington StCost: $5 per person donationContact: Max Townsend, 303-770-1128, [email protected]
Mile High Section EventsFor more information, visit the MHS website at http://www.milehighmbca.org
March Breakfast & Fun Run - 19 March 2016March is known to come in like a lion and go out like a lamb. We have no idea what it’ll do in the middle. But we’ll find out on Saturday, the 19th at 9:00 a.m., when we gather for breakfast and a possible fun run
to follow.
We’re open to any and all ideas. Got any new and unique locations you’ve been hankering to visit? Let’s go!
President Andrew is tee-ing up another fun day on the road for the annual Spring Rally. This time, he’s giving new meaning to the term “springs.” Could be about our hometown, could be seasonal, could be hardware, could be liquid. Given that it’s Andrew’s brain that’s coming up with the clues, the
possibilities are endless.
Come on out for breakfast at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, 16 April and find out what he has in store for us. Or meet us in the parking lot at The Egg & I at 10:30 a.m. to join the fun.
“Springs” Rally & Breakfast - 16 April 2016
February Breakfast & Fun Run - 20 February 2016We wrap up an action-packed Febru-ary with our monthly breakfast and fun run. Meet us at The Egg & I Restaurant at Citadel Crossing at 9:00 a.m. for a leisurely meal.
We’ll review upcoming events and discuss what we want to do after breakfast, so bring your ideas and weather-permitting, we’ll give it a try.
“...another fun
day on the road
for the annual
Spring Rally.”
Valentine’s Dinner - 14 February 2016
Plan to attend our Spring Do-It-Yourself Tech Session on Sunday, 24 April at Mercedes-Benz of Colorado Springs at 730 Automotive Drive. We start out the morning with coffee and doughnuts, cour-tesy of Dave Williamson, and then head to the lifts where we change our wiper blades, oil, and tires just in time for the
Spring thaw and resulting slush alerts. We can also tend to other minor repairs. Give Dave a call at 719-575-7976 to reserve your lift and discuss your project. Time to save some big $$ people; remember, it’s one week after the IRS puts a dent in your wallet. Call Dave Williamson at 719-575-7976 for details.
D-I-Y Tech Session - 24 April 2016
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Pikes Peak Section ShirtsTime to show your MBCA spirit, Pikes Peak Section. We’ve found some new shirts that look spectacular - light blue for the ladies and darker blue for the gents.
Your choice of cotton pique or polyester. For more details, please contact Judy Ben-nett at [email protected] or 719-576-9737. The order form is below.
Desert Stars M-B Enthusiasts DinnerThe Desert Stars Section is hosting an event during Auction Week in the Phoe-nix/Scotts-dale, AZ area.
Barrett-Jackson, RM, Gooding and other car related auctions and events take place from Jan 23-31, 2016. The Arizona Con-cours d’Elegance judging at the Biltmore Hotel occurs on Sunday, Jan 24, 2016.
With all the beautiful cars with the stunning prices or unbelievable bargains, and so much eye car-candy, many dazed auction attendees are seen wandering the desert for days. So how do the MBCA Desert Stars celebrate the Auction-mania? They get beautiful cars to gawk at, eat a great meal together, and enjoy the fellowship of the group.
They will gather at Scottsdale’s Maggiano’s Little Italy in a beautiful private dining “room
with a view.” The local Mercedes-Benz dealership, Schumacher European Ltd., will bring new Mercedes-Benz models to explore. Also, behind the scenes tours are being planned during the auction week and will be available for Mercedes-Benz Enthu-siast participants.
So, if you plan to be in the Phoenix area during this time, consider joining the week’s events and finish off the week meeting Desert Stars and other visiting members in a fun location with great food and more cars. You’ll meet some new folks, knowing everyone shares the same love and enthu-siasm for Mercedes-Benz and other great marques.
The Enthusiasts Dinner is on January 30 at Maggiano’s Little Italy, 16405 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, AZ. They require your paid registration by Jan 20, 2016. Call John and Roberta Phin at 480-272-8851 for more information. We look forward to seeing you there.
“...con-
sider joining
the week’s
events....”
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Der MarktplatzE350 Michelin X-ICE Studless Winter Tires 245/40R 18. Set of 4; purchased new last winter and used for less than 1k miles. Tread depth is 10/32d
(New is 10.5/32). The E350 is going to Arizona and will not need winter tires. New was over $800, will sell for $400. Call Bob Lyle 719 209-8207
Wanted. C36 or C43 sedan. 300SEL 6.3 sedan. Call Pete at 719-599-7100 or email [email protected]
Running Board Trade. I have a 2012 ML 350 that needs running boards. I’m looking for someone with a 3rd generation ML who has running boards but re-ally wants rocker panel covers. Let’s trade. It’s not a
hard job to do and we’ll each save over $1000. Contact Dave Car-penter at 719-532-0257 or [email protected]
Roof Box Cargo Carrier. Price reduced! $300 cash only or make an offer. Contact John or Hilda at 548-8322 or [email protected]
2000 SL-500 hardtop (black and perfect) with storage stand for $1,000. Plus I’m interested in purchasing a ‘04/’05 SL-500, Black on Black or Black on Gray, the usual stuff - perfect and low mileage for around $20,000 - $25,000. Call Rick Palmer 597-5241.
Mercedes CD Changer – 6 disk, $80, 002 820 5989, with frame-holder and velcro cover. Call Har-vey at 331-1212.
This just in from the latest edition of the MBCA e-newsletter, Click, a quick wrap-up of news, dis-counts & special events:
Announcing StarFest® 2016! Wednesday August 3rd- Saturday August 6th, 2016. The Minuteman Section invites you to New England for 2016 StarFest®! StarFest® 2016 will take place in Con-necticut’s “Quiet Corner” with lush Green Valleys and picturesque Hilltop Farms, it’s also know as the Antique Capital of Connecticut. From
the seashore near the host hotel, to the lush green-ery near the host track, the two linked by a short trip on I-395. Spectacular scenery and iconic New England towns await your discovery. Registration for StarFest® is open now. For more information, visit MBCA.org.
2016 Germany Tours. Travelers will enjoy guided tours of the Carl Benz Museum in Ladenburg; the Daimler Workshop in Bad Cannstatt; AMG facili-ties in Affalterbach; the Mercedes-Benz Museum and Brand Center in Unterturkheim; the Technical Museum in Sinsheim; the Bad Cannstatt Engine Assembly Plant; the Classic Center in Fellbach and the Sindelfingen assembly plant that covers more ground than the entire principality of Monaco. This trip is $2,500 U.S. per person plus airfare.
For more information please contact Jim O’Sullivan at 843.671.2079 or [email protected]
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The Pikes Peak Section Holiday Party was a great way to celebrate the holiday season. With 60 new and old members all dressed in holiday finery, we gathered at the venerable El Paso Club in downtown Colorado Springs for holiday cheer and camaraderie.
We met in the library for drinks, canapes, and conversation before adjourning to the dining room for a delicious meal. The mixed grill of filet mignon and jumbo shrimp was awesome and only surpassed by the large serving of tender prime rib. Desserts were changed up this year to toothsome choco-late cake, fresh cherry cobbler, or eggnog bread pudding. No one left the table hungry.
Raffle prizes and awards galore were the stars of the evening and the source of some hilarity, courtesy of emcee Charlie Bennett. Mercedes-Benz of Colorado Springs gener-ously donated many of the coveted items this year - like a street sign, a clock, a seat-belt purse, Christmas ornaments, and wine stoppers.
We kept the Colo-rado theme going with Colorado wine and vodka and accompany-
ing glassware, framed Garden of the Gods pictures, and Drive-In Movie mugs with hot chocolate. Clark Absher and Joyce Blutt were the big winners of some of these awe-some prizes.
We awarded the Member of the Year to Dave Carpenter for the wonderful Enchant-ed Weekend regional event. Rocky Moun-tain Region Officer of the Year deservedly went to our President Andrew Nelson for his outstanding performance (2 rallies, count ‘em, 2 rallies) this year! And finally, the Donn & Dorit Wald Award for service and commit-ment to the section went to Dave William-son. This is a singular honor that recognizes a member of the Pikes Peak Section who has provided long-standing and steadfast support to our section.
Thanks to the party committee of Judy Ben-nett, Mary Bixler, Julie Nelson, and Sylvia Russell for their great work in putting it all together and to Mercedes-Benz of Colorado
Springs for their generosity. It was a great evening. Check out all the pictures on our Face-book page at MBCA Pikes Peak Section.
Holiday Party Recap
“...a great
way to
celebrate
the holiday
season.”
Dave Williamson receives the Wald Award
Charlie awards prizes
Dave Carpenter - Member of the Year
Andrew Nelson - Rocky Mountain Region Officer of
the Year
One of the prize tables Dining in style
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The Mercedes-AMG GT S joined the elite list of nominees for the Motor Authority Best Car to Buy nominees. Winners will be an-nounced on 4 January.
An argument can be made that these are the salad days of luxury and performance cars. As fuel economy standards get strict-er, automakers are looking to make their vehicles more efficient, but not so much so that there isn’t still room for power and performance. In fact, some of the traits of efficiency—lighter weight and slippery aero-dynamics—also play into the hand of per-formance. Other nominees include Cadillac ATS-V, Cadillac CTS-V, Chevy Camaro SS,
Ford Shelby Mustang GT350, Lamborghini Aventador SV, and Mazda MX-5 Miata.
These cars stood above the crowd because of their amazing power, world-class per-formance, engag-ing driving ex-perience, or any combination of the three. These are the cars that really got the blood pumping and ignited the desire to spend hard-earned money.
Good luck Mercedes!
Top-Down Lights Drive RecapSteve and Barb Dierks were the hosts with the most on Saturday night, December 19. They opened their house to our section for the an-nual Top-Down Lights Drive. They spent nu-merous hours designing an awesome drive that hit all the high-lights (pun intended!) in the north part of town. We had lights dancing and march-ing and flickering - most set to traditional Christmas music. The displays were awe-some and we appreciated the hard work the homeowners put in.
With a snow and ice storm earlier in the week, it was a little iffy as to whether we could break out the roadsters. But a warm
spell on Friday and Saturday melted the ice just enough that we could make it through the route with our tops down.
First, we descended on the Dierks with crock pots and platters in hand - everything
from meatballs to sandwiches to Christmas cookies. A great omen for the 2016 Pot Luck. We really have some great cooks in our section. Then it was time to hit the road.
After driving through the night and seeing all there was to see, we returned to hot food and bever-ages and good company. As the last section event of the year, it was a great way to close out the sections 2015 social calendar and set us up perfectly for 2016.
Sincere thanks to Steve and Barb for all the hard work that went into hosting this event.
Mercedes-AMG GT S Nominated by Kirk Bell
Lights!!!
Hosts Steve & Barb Dierks
Part of the spread
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“...the E-class
has to break
new ground,
and convey
the latest in
information
design....”
How do you interpret “modern luxury” when consumer electronics change every 18 months but a luxury car has to last 15 years?
That was the challenge facing the designers of the next Mercedes-Benz E-Class interior, and their answer was to blend recognizably Mercedes design cues with a fully digital
“glass dashboard” that stretches almost two-thirds the width of the cabin.
While the next E-Class hasn’t (quite) been revealed yet, there have been plenty of spy photos to show that the car will have a shape similar to that of the latest S-Class and C-Class sedans.
But inside, the E-Class has to break new ground, and convey both the latest in infor-mation design and a level of luxury one step above the C-Class. To do that, the design-ers blended “intelligent” with “emotional” design, starting with the “double-S” wrap-around dash design with a center section that swells slightly into the cabin. They used four circular chrome-ringed vent outlets--one more than the three in lesser sedans--and one more at each end.
But it’s the “dashboard” display that catches the eye, under an eyebrow housing that stretches from the driver’s door well to the passenger’s side of the console.
In it are a pair of horizontal 12.1-inch LCD displays that butt together, with two large virtual dials in front of the driver and a
somewhat simplified version of Mercedes’ usual infotainment and navigation interface on the center section.
This wide display doesn’t stand proud of the dash, as in the sportier CLA, but a faint echo of that freestanding design can be seen in the edge detailing, where the screen appears to float just in front of the
dash itself.
And for the first time, drivers can choose not only what information they want to see displayed in the various segments of the dash, but also the graphic style of the displays themselves.
Three graphic styles are deemed Classic (an updated version of tradi-tional Mercedes style), Sport (with matte colors and sportier textures), and Progressive, whose gridlike displays and luminescent colors ap-proach a science-fiction look.
The designers, said Koert Groeneveld, also added details to the interior to convey a sort of sensual luxury in some of the little touches.
The seats, for instance, were inspired by old dress forms. They have actual “shoul-der” lines that almost appear human-shaped from certain angles. The cushion upholstery narrows and widens with the curves of the bolsters, far from the tradition-al square-cut Mercedes seats of yore.
At the top of a range of three audio sys-tems, there’s a stunning Burmeister setup producing 1450 watts that feed no fewer than 23 speakers. With the four doors shut, the sound quality of this system was remarkable; the interior designers and engineers from Mercedes worked with the Burmeister acoustic engineers from a very early stage. An Easy Listening setting for long trips slightly reduces the “punch” of the system to alleviate fatigue. A VIP setting directs the sonic focus to a specific seat--any of the four outboard positions can be chosen--if the standard optimization for the cabin as a whole isn’t sufficient.
All-Glass Dash in 2017 by Joel Voelcker
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5 January 2016Board Meeting - 6:00 p.m.Andrew Nelson 719-634-7522
16 January 2016Monthly Breakfast & Fun Run - 9:00 a.m.Andrew Nelson 719-634-7522
31 January 2016Annual Pot Luck Dinner - 6:00 p.m.Dave Williamson 719-575-7976
2 February 2016Board Meeting - 6:00 p.m.Andrew Nelson 719-634-7522
6 February 2016Bugs Bunny @ the Symphony - 7:30 p.m.Julie Nelson 719-634-7522
14 February 2016Valentine’s Dinner - 5:30 p.m.Stan & Mary Bixler 719-597-1281
20 February 2016Breakfast & Fun Run - 9:00 a.m.Andrew Nelson 719-634-7522
1 March 2016Board Meeting - 6:00 p.m.Andrew Nelson 719-634-7522
19 March 2016Monthly Breakfast & Fun Run - 9:00 a.m.Andrew Nelson 719-634-7522
5 April 2016Board Meeting - 6:00 p.m.Andrew Nelson 719-634-7522
Calendar of Upcoming Events
The Pikes Peak Section Board of Directors meets the First Tuesday of Each Month at Mercedes-Benz of Colorado Springs, 730 Automotive Drive. Meetings start at 6:00 p.m.
All Section members are welcome and encouraged to attend.
Return Service Requested
On the Web at www.mbca.org/pikes_
peak/
To:
‘ROUND THE BENZ
‘Round the BenzEditor
4335 Penhurst Place
Colorado Springs, CO 80906
MBCA Pikes Peak Section
Happy New Year!
