Vintage Porsche crash kills Oakland man

An Oakland man was killed Sunday afternoon when two Porsches collided in Pope Valley in north Napa County, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The victim, whose name was not immediately available, was driving a 1969 Porsche south on two-lane Pope Valley Road near Pope Valley Cross Road around 3:25 p.m., while John David Ravitch, 53, also of Oakland, was traveling directly behind in a 1989 Porsche, CHP officials said.

As the driver of the 1969 Porsche tried to make a left turn onto eastbound Pope Valley Cross Road, Ravitch tried to pass it by driving over the double yellow lines into the northbound lane, according to the CHP.

The driver of the 1969 Porsche braked forcefully but was unable to avoid a collision with Ravitch’s Porsche, which struck the left side of the Oakland man’s vehicle, CHP officials said.

Both Porsches became lodged into a tree at the southeast corner of the intersection. The driver of the 1969 Porsche died at the scene, according to the CHP.

Ravitch and his passenger, a 51-year-old Oakland woman, suffered minor injuries and were treated at St. Helena Hospital and released, CHP officials said.

Alcohol or drug impairment was not a factor in the collision, according to the CHP.