buckle-up

What constitutes a sports car? What do we really mean when we say we like to drive sports cars? And does the definition evolve as we move from one country to another? As a small child I would watch a Jaguar roadster drive by and immediately recognize it as a sports car, just as I would attach a similar label to a variety of Triumphs and MGs that appeared on our Australian roads. But as I look at the cars around me I see the word “sports” appended to just about anything – from sports sedans to sports utilities. This week our 2003 C5 Z06, “Fiftieth Anniversary” Torch Red Corvette, heads back to the shop for the first time this year. After a prolonged hiatus, there are just enough breaks in the weather to take the car out of the garage and cover the four or five miles to Curt’s Corvette Spa in Longmont, Colorado. The first phase in the preparation of the C5 Z06 will be all safety oriented – tow hooks added front and back, and a fire extinguisher mounted on the floor, just ahead of t...

Housebound for the next couple of weeks, which is pretty much what all we have been doing for the past couple of weeks, it’s hard not to let the mind drift and where thoughts center on much sunnier days. Winter is never a good time for car enthusiasts and even though it’s a time for car shows and for wandering through showrooms, it’s still a poor substitute for getting back on the road. Perhaps I should just stay indoors, look out the window and take in the view of the mountains, a grab a warm drink. The Escalade SUV is tolerable and lets us get about in slick and treacherous conditions but let’s face it, there’s little to get enthusiastic about when you are behind the wheel of something that weighs almost 6000lbs! And each time I take out the trash I pass through the garage, as seen in the photo above, and in doing so, I pass a bevy of cars and motorcycles anxiously waiting for Spring! Pulling the latest issue (February, 2012) of Grassroots Motorsports from the mailbox always c...

It’s time to look back at what transpired in 2011. While returning to living full time in Boulder, CO, was definitely the highlight of 2011, when it came to adventures on the track and the fun we had behind the wheel, unfortunately, the needle was firmly planted in the other direction. The year 2011 had to have been the worst of years. But then again, if learning to drive quickly and safely on a race track was easy to do, America’s many road circuits would be full of participants every weekend! The picture above is of the 70’s era Pontiac Trans-Am I purchased for US$2,000 shortly after arriving in America. For the third time! Yes, I had spent several months in 1977 living in Dallas, Texas, where I rented a Pontiac Grand Prix for the duration of my stay, and when I returned in 1986 I had bought a used Pontiac Grand Prix for US$2,000 that I kept for all of that year. If I am residing in America, it would seem then, there will be a GM car in the driveway. And yet, I still harbored f...

There’s no escaping the fact that with the early onset of winter this year there’s little opportunity for any further track time. The blue Corvette is ready to go – new suspension, new alignment and ride height, and with the track-ready wheels and tires mounted. Each time I walk past the car that is sitting rather forlornly in the garage it is a reminder of how much I miss track weekends and just how good the Vette really is – yes, close on 65,000 miles with all by 20,000 running the forced-induction (FI) set up and with some twenty five track weekends under its wheels! And the picture above is of the car laying idle, but hooked to its faithful battery charger, waiting for the seasons to change. Keeping it company, and just as likely to be spelled from any further track driving duties is the Viper; every bit as reluctant to test step outside with snow on the ground! Our home track, High Plains Raceway, is also out of action but less so due to early snow falls. The track is undergo...

Even as I harbored thoughts about of perhaps one more track day, I awoke this morning to snow. Lots of it! Everywhere I looked there was snow piled high; the picture above was what I was treated to as I opened the garage door and made my way out the few feet to the Caddy Escalade. Having spent the past four years commuting between Boulder, Colorado, and Simi Valley, California, I had managed to be in California for most of the past four winters, and so it was quite a rude awakening. And did I mention it was cold, too? Yesterday temperatures had hovered around 80 degrees, but this morning it was some fifty degrees lower! The Escalade now has to fend for itself, outside, in whatever weather visits us, as all four garage spaces are now occupied. The reality of returning to Boulder meant that we now have four cars in addition to the two motorcycles, in addition to the Escalade, and so I am just waiting for the day my neighbors remind me that the rules of our little community disallow an...

The opportunity to return to High Plains Raceway (HPR) outside Byers, Colorado, and about 50 miles east of Denver gave me the chance to return early to the scene of what was a pretty dreadful weekend last time out. While the company had been terrific, and the weather perfect last time at this track, I let myself down when it came time to put my experience to the test and so I was anxious to take another look at the circuit. Memories were still vividly painted in my memory and I really wanted to demonstrate some degree of improvement, even if it was just for me. The picture above is of the Corvette covered in dirt and weeds following a big off in the second session of the day – an ominous start to the day. I had elected to return to the circuit on one of the track’s open lapping days, and it being a Friday there were only a small number of participants. The track would be free to exploit for eight hours and so my plan was to run four sessions before lunch – three each of about 20 t...

Now there’s no need to plan for the trip back to Boulder - after nearly five years of commuting to Omaha, Nebraska, and then Simi Valley, California, the wheel has finally stopped spinning and we are able to treat our house in Boulder truly as our home. Yes, the garages are full as we went about consolidating what was spread across multiple locations, and while I had done my best to join Margo as often as I could at her townhome in Simi Valley, neither of us ever felt really at home there. As for the blue Vette, number 116, we finally were able to enjoy it once again. In the last post, “We need (more) new pumps!” the team at Rocky Mountain Competitive Research (RMCR) determined that our fuel pump was on its last legs and simply couldn’t keep up as revs rose, so a replacement pump was ordered and this time it would be the fuel pump normally reserved for the C6 Z06. When I was advised of its arrival I took the Vette once more to Colorado Springs. What a difference! So, where do we...