Congratulations Vaidas - Saab Pride of Ownership competition winner!
Voting has finished in the Saab Pride of ownership competition and we have a winner.
Congratulations to Vaidas in Lithuania for submitting the winning entry in the competition.
As you can see, the competition for second, third and fourth place was very tight, with Wilfried just beating out Willy D for second place, and Tim S finishing a very close fourth.
Congratulations to all the finalists and all of the entrants in the competition. At the end of the day, this was more of a celebration than a competition. An exhibition of pride in owning a very distinctive marque.
I’d like to thank you all again for your participation and interest in the whole campaign. It’s certainly been a pleasure to host it here.
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It would be quite remiss of me not to mention our competition sponsor, Elkparts.
John has been a supporter of this website almost since the first post was written and his contribution and generosity in this campaign is appreciated. Elkparts provide a great range of parts and accessories for Saabs. Their prices are always competitive and they can deliver anywhere.
So check ‘em out.
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* the observant ones amongst you will note that Denver Newbie’s bar in the graph above has a black outline indicating that a vote for it was placed from my computer. Lest you think I was favouring anyone, the vote belonged to my wife, who loved the red setting.
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Swade, those 9-5’s photograph so well…..
well done to everyone, I enjoyed watching this competition take place and also to be apart of it, well done Swade.
Congrats, Vaidas! Quite a shine on that 9-5, and that seems to be the distinguishing factor.
D New: Great setting, and I was pulling for you, but it wasn’t meant to be.
Thanks to all for the photos — great to see where everyone lives and drives.
So, what was first prize?
Prizes are as follows:
1st Prize:
….consists of five Saab publications - an instant Saab library! And these are all very desireable books.
Mr Saab - 157 pages - the story of Saab’s most famous driver, Erik Carlsson. Heaps of great stories and photos
Saab Welcome Book - heaps of history and philosophy about the Saab brand
50 Years of Saabs - Motorhistorikist Magasin - 108 pages of detailed history about model specs and development from 1947 to 1997. An essential for a Saab historian and one of the best books I’ve got.
Saab 9-3, An Entriely New Sport Sedan - written by Anders Tunberg. 141 pages telling the story of the Saab 9-3 Sport Sedan, with heaps of all facets of the car’s development.
The Spirit of Saab - it’s not hard to get. You can order one from Amazon right now, but it’ll cost you $265.
2nd Prize:
The Saab 9-3 Backpack - A sporty and functional backpack with the Aeroplane handle. 20 litres in size. Saab branding on front and Saab 9-3 SportCombi on back side.
The Nallis Bear - Wonderful soft toy bear. 50 cm tall. Saab T-shirt and “move your mind” embroidery under the foot. An official Saab accessory.
3rd Prize:
1GB UrSaab USB drive.
I am glad I had a share in the vote and secondly, that the old mule did show a clean pair of heels to the iconic ones. Can’t wait for the book, Swade. I’d say we are ready for press!
Wow, given the quality of the competition, I’m am extremely surprised
All of the finalists and honourable mentions were amazing!
I would like to thank everyone for voting as well as Wilfried, Willy D (whose entry was my favourite), Tim and Denver Newbie for great photos and stories!
Congratulations Vaidas !
Congratulations Willy D., Tim S. & Denver Newbie !
But also congrats too all other pride saab owners, very nice cars you all drive out there.
And of course thanks for the dedicated voting.
Text was back in 2007 written in a hurry.
As there is only limited landscape visible at my picts and I suppose most of you can’t follow the actual dramaserie ‘KATARAKT’ on Belgian television (where the region I live forms the decor) I will give you some links to discover the region of Haspengouw (which is so proud on its heritage, the province is promoting tourism under the slogan ‘the Toscane of the North’).
on the actual tele-dramaserie: http://www.katarakt.be/Deserie/Delocaties/tabid/58/language/nl-NL/Default.aspx
on the region:
http://www.haspengouw.be/
on the 2000 year old remains of the romans:
http://www.galloromeinsmuseum.be/content.php?hmID=31&smID=35
Sorry for the language, sites are all in dutch, but if anyone is fancying a saab-(pride)-drive through this landscape, be my guest.
Given the quality of all of the entries, it was extremely tough to narrow it down. I chose mine, then I saw one that Swade had chosen and I thought to myself “Yeah, I love that one, too, so why was it not on my shortlist?”
Excellent effort from everyone.
Now, Swade, will you post the photo of my Aero and Viggen on your blog given that I was excluded from entering the competition?
Will do, John, in the next few days. Excellent shot, that one.
I could post one of my own (again) I guess, too, and one of Stu’s Camry……
What a privilege to have taken a part in this contest!
Swade - you must be complimented - again - for your innovative site that offers all of us (even the ‘newbies’) the opportunity to learn and take part in this world-wide Saab community. Without your style and sincerity I wouldn’t be here.
Vaida - beautiful pictures, wonderfully executed - congratulations! I definitely was most impressed with that 9-5 in the old Sports Stadium. Dame Edna is still the star of the show!
Wilfried, that mysterious setting at the gate was a study in intrigue - one just knows looking at the picture that you are alone with your thoughts - and your car.
Tim and Willie D - congratulations!
And thank you all kindly for your thoughts, consideration and your votes; I am pleased my submitted story overcame - to some degree - the quality of the pictures and earned a spot as finalist.
Thank you.
Finally, a thought or two:
We’ve heard over our lives that sports can help bridge the divides between two countries at odds with each other - thus the Olympics are often celebrated as a way to help heal wounds between nations.
Likewise, soccer’s World Cup fosters both a pride in one’s nationality, while at the same time makes our world shrink a bit, as we see soccer fans from around the world unite in celebration of a sport.
In a smaller way, Swade, this Trollhattansaab website shrinks the world for me. And never more so than during this Pride of Ownership Competition, where the love of a car (a little trite) unifies a group of 60 entrants and 378 voters - and many more who read and thus participated in the joy of Saab - so that we now have a small glimpse into the world of others. From that glimpse around the world I was reminded - this is ALL God’s country!
How cool was it for me to see Wilfried’s silver 9-3 in Belgium - same color and wheels as my little 9-3 - and know that Wilfried is driving his in Belgium, while I enjoy the same Spirit of Saab thousands of miles away. It is that spirit of community that inspired me to participate, rather than just read.
This community you’ve formed, Swade, is indeed a friendship. I’ve laughed more at comments made by you and Eggs over the last year than any striking screenwriter has ever evoked from me. Thank you both for your efforts.
Lastly, I consider this entry as my swansong as a ‘newbie’. All the hours I spend reading TS certainly disqualifies that moniker.
- ’saabvious
your friend -
Tim in Denver
Congrats to Vaidas, all of the finalists and everyone who participated in the Saab Pride of Ownership competition!!! And to all you fellow Saabers, keep doing what you do and stay safe out there.
I really hope Saab takes note of this, apologies if I haven’t followed it closely enough lately but I hope they’re on board.
The POO shows they have a keen (but sadly small) supporter base and as a huge fan of not just Saab - but also the Evil Empire (BMW) - I can’t recall anything met with similar enthisiasm by Beemer owners.
It’s really time to beef up the brand and its reputation! Btw we have an E36 in the family, I drove it VERY gently last week for a day in Adelaide as the seat mountings have broken…
Anyway congrats to the winners, love that shot near the man-made arch; mmm climate control on, some good sounds on the stereo, partner in the pax seat and a cosy b&b waiting at the end of the day. Well, a picture tells a thousand different words to different people!
thanx swade
congrats to the winner (Vaidas — my vote)
@Simon S, “mmm climate control on, some good sounds on the stereo, partner in the pax seat and a cosy b&b waiting at the end of the day” , I never have time in a car to do such things, I’m mostly in a rush while driving, complety focused on the road.
Congratualtion Vaidas! I voted for you in the end. It was very hard to decide, but the small thing that tipped the scale for me was that I live by the sea just across the Baltic in Sweden. When I was a kid, I remember always looking out over the sea to the east and wondering what was out there. It was a closed world on the other side with all kind of stories about how people suffered. Sometimes, fishing boats came back with people they picked when they tried to flee from the Baltic states in small a boats. It was strange times. So seeing such beautiful Saabs in Lithuania was kind of special to me.
denvernewbie-agree with everything you’ve said, well done swade!! and vaidas.. you got my vote too
Congrats Vaidas, Wilfried, both Tim’s! I really enjoyed your photos, and all of the pictures and stories from around the world. And thanks Swade - it was a privelige to take part in this.
I look forward to sending some more pictures now that I’ve learned a little more about my camera. (The POO gave me more reason to buy a Digital SLR!!!!)
Agree Wilfried - but selling cars is all about selling an image. One’s gotta dream and the dream sure isn’t the motorway hold up!
@Vaida
congratulations. Your pics and your car are beautiful. You really deserved it, thus the competition offered an amount of overwhelming pictures and “stories”.
@swade: Thanks your for this wonderful competition. It´s been a pleasure to read through all the entries and to watch those beautiful pictures. Hope, a book about this will be published.
Greetings from Austria
Alexandra