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 Thunder
Valley may be the most appropriately named stretch of racetrack I've driven.
When you race through that short straight engine sounds are magnified,
and that wonderful noise bounces off the nearby guardrails and hillsides.
"Thunder Valley" is just one of several great to drive portions of the
Mid-Ohio racetrack. At that same track you'll find the "Keyhole", "Madness",
and the "Carousel", three more sections that offer still more challenges
for drivers. Wouldn't you rather drive "Madness" at Mid-Ohio versus "Turn
5" at most tracks? You know the corner must be very different to merit
the name "Madness." It's almost a given that if a racetrack corner has
a name (as opposed to a number), the corner must have something unique
to offer. Examples abound: "The Esses" and the "Bus Stop" at the Glen,
or "Namerow" at Mont-Tremblant, the "Downhill" at Road Atlanta, or "Big
Bend" at Lime Rock. VIR has the "NASCAR" left turn, the very slow "Oak
Tree" turn, and the sequence of corners called the "Rollercoaster" that
ends with the "Hog Pen" right hander (named for a long gone pig farm apparently).
I mention Mid-Ohio because we once again journeyed out to Lexington, Ohio to participate in an NNJR Driver Education event at the track. We've become regular participants in this event, as we rate this track in our top three or four on the "fun to drive" scale. With miserable spring weather the norm in New England there certainly wasn't any reason to stay home this year. The three-day event was blessed with warm and generally sunny weather all weekend till just as we were packing to head home. Then the skies opened up and dumped a lot of rain on a few people slow to pack up. Our trip out and back took on a slightly different approach, as I'm now very focused on finding places large enough to accommodate our truck and trailer. You don't just stop anywhere for fuel or lodging when your rig is 60 plus feet long (and you have an aversion to backing out of too tight spaces!). We've now dutifully noted that the Hampton Inn in Dubois, PA has the best parking for trailers, and that a "Blue Beacon" truck wash is located a mere 40 miles north of the Mid-Ohio track. We now only gas up at truck stops, as regular gas stations can't accommodate our length. Unfortunately we have to use the big truck pumps, which always is a problem when we go to start the pump. The facility expects anyone using those pumps to be a semi-rig with a corporate account number. Which of course I'm not, so that then calls for a trip into the building to drop off a credit card. They need a Mobil "Speedpass" option for truck stops. I was tweaked a bit at Mid-Ohio by my very young student (driving his own 993 Coupe!). While we were waiting to go out for one run he inquired as to how long I'd been instructing. I commented that I'd been instructing since 1984, to which he responded that he'd not yet been born by that date! Fortunately he was a very talented young driver who didn't need a lot of instruction from such an old driver as me! Susana's student was also very good and quick, so she signed her off by the second day. Her student promptly drove off (straight) into a gravel trap - fortunately not damaging her car in the process. We had a chance to renew acquaintances with our '98 Cup Car while we were at Mid-Ohio. The car's new owner was there learning how to make that car go fast. It feels a bit funny to see a car we once owned being driven by someone else. This past month Susana and I took by mother to Asheville, NC as a combination Christmas and belated Mother's Day gift. We were supposed to make the trip in May, but I messed up the airline reservations, so we rescheduled for Father's Day weekend. More errors on my part, as that was a major television motorsports weekend. Speed Channel televised the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Canadian Grand Prix, and Fox had the NASCAR race from Michigan. I managed to sneak in a few hours of Le Mans coverage in between our trip to the Biltmore Estate (well worth a visit), and Susana and my mother's visit to the Spa at the Grove Park Inn. The race wasn't all that competitive, as the Bentley's had the field covered right from the start. The televised coverage was excellent, with cameras covering the entire 8 plus mile track, and the commentators were knowledgeable. I missed the Canadian Grand Prix coverage; unfortunately, as it sounds like that race was very competitive with the first four cars finishing within a few seconds of each other. Susana and I let our arms get twisted a bit this month, when we agreed to help out with the 2005 Porsche Parade. That event will be held in Hershey, PA (an easy drive from Boston) in late June/early July. Susana produced a spectacular Parade logo for what will be the 50th event. I've agreed to chair the Driving Event (Autocross) competition. Hopefully a number of Northeast Region autocrossers would like to assist in the planning and organization for that event (a number of you have already volunteered to help - any more volunteers will be eagerly accepted!). I'll have more details as to timing for the Parade in the future. This will be the first parade held in the Northeast since Mont-Tremblant, so many of you should think about attending as Parade's are very entertaining total Porsche immersion events. I may have to acknowledge greater wisdom on Porsche management's part. Porsche sports car sales have really softened in our slow economy, but Cayenne sales seem to be offsetting that softness. Through May Porsche has sold approximately 4000 Cayenne's in the North American market - about 900 of them the $90,000 each Turbo versions. That has helped Porsche increase sales over 20% this year in North America, despite significant decreases in Boxster sales in particular. I didn't expect Cayenne sales to make such a difference, but it seems they are! |
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