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The Northeast Region

I arrived late at night in Allentown, PA to connect with the rest of our group, who had left at a more sane time of day. Thursday's trip was largely uneventful until we left I-81 to cross the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. I thought I'd planned a friendlier route over the mountains for our trucks and trailers, but much to my surprise it turned out to be the same route we'd taken last year. That trip contributed to the near expiration of Bill Hawe's truck as we climbed up and over these same mountain roads. Fortunately this year we had no problems with which to deal, and we were able to enjoy the hairpin curves and switchbacks. Next year we'll avoid Route 501!

On our way home after the event Susana and I took a different route over the mountain range. That road (Route 60) was better paved and a bit wider, but if anything it was a bit more challenging. Instead of several up hill climbs, this route was relatively flat for a number of miles, but then climbed to the top of the pass in one long twisting climb. That climb featured frequent hairpin curves and switchbacks. At the top we encountered a tractor-trailer rig hauling a couple of concrete construction beams. As a result we crept down the hill at a very low speed - which was probably a good idea because the road when down as abruptly as it went up. At any kind of speed the trip down would have toasted our brakes in short order. As it was I put the truck in low gear to minimize brake usage.

When we entered Virginia we stopped at what has to have been one of the busiest truck stops in the country. While we refueled, Bill Chadwick discovered that this particular stop sells 20 truckloads (@10,000 gallons/load) of diesel fuel per day! Their parking lot was jammed with tractor-trailer rigs fueling up - body and vehicle both. Fuel prices were very low in comparison to New England, which probably explains some of the attraction. Despite the low prices we'll not be stopping at this particular location again, as moving around in their parking lots was difficult. 

When you think how many truck stops must do similar business around the country you start to understand why fuel prices are fluctuating wildly these days. Between Boxford and Danville, VA the price differential for 87-octane gasoline was almost $.40 per gallon. New England taxes probably account for some of the difference. The balance of the cost difference is harder to understand. 

The trip down and back was largely with out incident with the exception of the nearly two hours in total we lost in two separate highway construction delays in Pennsylvania late Sunday evening on our way home. We were planning on stopping for the night in Allentown, PA and for a while it looked like we'd arrive around 10:30 pm after 8 hours of driving. Between Allentown and Harrisburg, PA our plans fell apart as we were trapped in two separate 5-mile long traffic jams. There is nothing more frustrating than to be trapped on an Interstate hardly moving. After the first jam we finally broke free and started thinking about crawling into bed for some much-needed rest. Then 15 miles from Allentown we encountered and even worse jam. My normal good humor was sorely tested over the next hour. 

The following day I got a bit to sure of myself and opted to cross over the Tappan Zee Bridge in New York rather than take the 10-mile longer option through Newburgh, NY. Of course we encountered another monster jam up at the bridge requiring another long wait and slow crawl the full length of the bridge. The lesson learned was to avoid the bridge no matter the time of day!

Throughout the entire trip we hardly saw any police enforcement, until we hit Worcester. Then in short order we ran through two speed traps. Fortunately neither officer came after us despite our over the limit pace. Our arrival back in Boxford was a welcome relief.

The three days we spent on the VIR circuit were great fun. On Friday Susana and I each drove three 45-minute sessions on the full 3.3-mile circuit. We'd driven the North portion last year, and came back this year to drive the full combined North and South Courses. This option challenges drives with low and high speed S's, three significant straightaways and lots of challenging corners. We crawled out the car at the end of each session, exhausted and exhilarated. The main back straight is very long and up hill for most of its' distance then plunges downhill into an uphill braking zone. I don't know how fast we traveled but it has to have been north of 150 mph. As fast as many in our group ran, we were traveling a what appeared to be a snail's pace in comparison to a well prepped GT2 911 which left us all in its' dust. 

Sixteen region members made the trek down to Virginia for this Zone 2 event. It was a very well run event at a terrific facility at an ideal time of the year. If you're looking for a track to drive next May, this is a not to be missed event. We'll be attending again next year - those high speed S's are a kick to drive!