buckle-up

With August’s oppressive heat bearing down on us it was good to be able to take the RV to the track. Readers may recall that in my last post I complained bitterly about not having the RV with us, writing about how we had to suck it in and take the 105+ temperatures as best as we could. And this was just two weeks prior to our return for this weekend, early in August. While fortunately the temperature didn’t return to these levels it was still extremely hot, and being able to retreat to the cool, air-conditioned, Pyalla Technologies Track Days command center made the outing enjoyable. The weekend’s activities would be centered on the National Auto Sport Association (NASA) Rocky Mountain Region event and to prepare ourselves we elected to arrive early Friday morning to take advantage of an open lapping day and the picture above is of me, the red Corvette and the RV. The High Plains Raceway (HPR), to the east of Byers, Colorado, has now become our “home circuit” that both Margo and...

What began several months ago as a possible side-excursion in Las Vegas, while we waited for a Computer trade show to start, took on a life of its own in the lead-up to the event. We had been considering renting a couple of modern-era supercars from “Exotics Racing – the ultimate driving experience”. The more we looked through their garage of cars, and before we finalized the deal (Margo had already decided on the Aston Martin V8 Vantage and the Porsche 997 Turbo S while I had gone down a different route choosing instead the close relatives, the Audi R8 V10 and the Lamborghini Gallardo), the more we thought that this might also appeal to our good friends from Simi Valley, California, Brian and Jan. However, during the time that they visited us, to help us come to terms with our new RV, they purchased an Aston Martin of their own. In the post of May 22, 2012, “ Three weeks to remember ... ” I developed a story line around this momentous occasion, including how over the course of t...

The week before heading out to southern California had been spent in Nashville, Tennessee, where afternoon thunderstorms had provided the only relief from days that had temperatures climb well into the 90s. Fortunately, for most of the week, business had kept us indoors, but even on those occasions when dinner plans had necessitated a trip outside, the humidity was just as oppressive as the heat. However, driving over the continental divide, with 60 feet of rig, provided a weather experience from out of the other end of the weather spectrum. Snow! The picture above was taken by Margo as I drove cautiously down from Vail summit into the township. Snow continued to fall, and while there was no snow on the road, several times I felt the full rig wriggle just a bit – clearly, not the best of conditions. From the humidity and heat to the snow of the mountains, and that was just the beginning. The following morning, as we pulled out of our overnight truck campsite, a gale hit us fair o...

It was a welcome change of pace to find ourselves back at High Plains Raceway (HPR). After our last outing we had the brake and power steering fluids replaced and upgraded to fluids more suited to track outings, and I was very interested to see if we had rectified the suspicious brake “pedal to the firewall”, a momentary heart-stopping syndrome Margo and I both experienced the last time we were at the track. More importantly, we wanted to see whether the fun we both had behind the wheel of our older Corvette, series 5, or C5, Z06 would continue, or was just a one-off following so many frustrating weekends behind the wheel of our newer, Corvette series 6, or C6, supercharged coupe. The picture at the top of this post is of “the rig” we drive to track events now. Whether it’s just a day’s outing or a weekend affair involving several days of driving just to get to the track, we are now totally sold on the value of bringing home with us. There’s still some teething troubles and a few...

When this title first came to me I immediately thought my readers would associate this headline with red wine, and while I am not averse to sampling a good red at any time, but given the season, it’s really a time when a man’s fancy turns to thoughts about the track. After suffering through innumerable snow storms and looing heavenwards for any signs that warm weather was imminent, pulling the car from the garage for the first time and prepping it for the track proved every bit as satisfying as tasting a better red wine! Much has already been covered in previous postings of how, after many discussions, Margo and I elected to retire the big blue supercharged C6 Corvette in favor of our little red C5 Z06 ‘Vette. Having it assume the mantle of the garage queen this past decade did sit well with this car, I have to believe, so prepping it over the past couple of weeks provided a lot of fun. Out with the old clutch, transmission and differential fluids – still in original condition ...

Well it’s spring but it feels more like summer. Temperatures have climbed rapidly and the coming week it is expected to be mostly high 70s. Perhaps even low 80s, and definitely looking like it’s time to head to the beach, or, at the very least, to unplug the cars from their battery tenders and to once again fire them up in earnest. Tires may actually be able to grip the road and brakes may actually work! It’s been several months since Margo and I have been on a serious fun-drive in the mountains and as I write this post, Margo is already out and about in the C6 ‘Vette. The photo at the top of the page is of the C5 Z06 Corvette freshly washed and waxed alongside the new trailer and with the appearance that it is just ready to go! Again, the lines from that Beach Boy’s song come to mind once again. Yes, while we are once again enjoying the C6 as a daily drive, Margo and I can barely wait to see how the C5 performs and with the early onset of spring, it’s only a matter of weeks befo...