And Part 2
Tuesday
It is funny, when I’ve done this sort of thing before, on trips, I try to do it during the trip and it is a lot harder to remember things a week afterward! Not what happened but when it specifically happened.
I went back to Manny’s. Manny recommended installing a Dashtronix display system to show the AFR and boost in the DIC. Of course as Manny is always pushing the envelope on things this is a custom design and so it is requiring some tweaking. It is the third car I believe that he is doing and they are all slightly set up differently, actually Colin’s 2011 Grand Sport has one as well.
I ended up doing a lot more driving and today I went to a bunch of used book stores and it also allowed me to do some walking around which I really enjoyed. Lots and lots of compliments on the car, people waving, ladies smiling, the feelings of happiness you get from driving a car like this is really nice. It makes me feel good that the car makes other people happy to see it.
Tuesday night I returned to the park that the running club meets at. This was my best day for exercise. While I believe that in the 4 to 5 days I was there I ended up logging in about 65 km I did 25 km on Tuesday alone, an 8 km walk in the working, 8 km around 4 in the afternoon and then I ran 8 km with the club. They were really super and very welcoming. I had contacted the club through their website to let them know I was going to be down and to ask if I could join them for a run. These people are serious and train hard but it was a lot of fun, maybe we were just all so happy to have such great weather for an evening run.
The car I actually did start to push a bit. It was warmer out, dry and I thought I could get a bit of heat into the tires. Well, OEM run-flats with 2/32” of tread are not going to do it. 2nd and 3rd gear wheelspin is brought on without going to full throttle in an instant.
While the plan had originally been to drive the car home across most of Canada with the way the spring (or is that late winter!) weather was I started to realize that would not be possible with seeding my crop too. While I considered just having shipped home I really wanted to make the trip for some many reasons and also I thought it would be good to have a cooling off period to reflect on my first experiences with the car. It would give me a chance to fully digest what it was that I was going to be driving and how to go about it in a responsible and safe manner. Nothing would have been more disappointing than surviving cancer, getting the car, having it modded and then killing myself in the first week of driving it. I think that this has worked out well. What I have come to realize is that this car really is crazy wild powerful and that it will need a huge amount of respect. I could drive the car in any gear WOT stock but this is going to take some getting used to and to extract the best performance it will be a case of learning how to feed the power in gradually. But I think that I am willing to make that sacrifice!!
But you get an idea of what the car is now capable of when you can just smack the throttle and you’re starting to go sideways next to know!
Wednesday
This was a blast! An opportunity to meet up with the drivers at Mud Street! Colin and Justin met me at my hotel about 10 am. Justin has a really nice black C5 Z06. We convoyed down the road together which I must admit was a lot more enjoyable than I would have expected. Not just a couple of sports car guys but three Corvettes! Colin lead, I was tucked in the middle and Justin brought up the end to make sure I didn’t get lost. Now if you think that one Corvette gets peoples attention when it becomes pluralized it gets even better. But no antics, stunting or anything like that, just the three of us and our cars in sunny weather on a nice drive.
We arrived at the Tim Horton’s at Mud Street and Wayne was waiting for us, topless of course. No, uh, not him, his car............
We all parked together which so enhances the experience. Then a few others arrived, Brian was back, suitably modified for the weather. Then Steve (or John or Jim depending on what we felt like calling him!) and then Tony and Kathy. 6 Corvettes in all and best of all three of them yellow!
I came to appreciate what a fanatic Colin is about his cars when he popped the trunk and saw the cleaning supplies he is packing – he does love his cars and it shows.
So lots of car talk, looking at each other’s rides and then inside for a nice lunch, more conversation and then back outside to admire our cars. It is nice to not have any marquis battles, just 7 people together knowing our cars are the best!
Then Steve, Tony and Kathy parted ways and the five of us remaining convoyed together for the journey home. I can see why people get together to do stuff like this, it really is a lot of fun.
Brian peeled off first, then Wayne and then it was just Colin, Justin and myself. I had Justin pull ahead of me so I could look at his car on the road and the three of us were in fine form. Even sport bikers waved plus there were a few other Corvettes that were encountered and it was nice to wildly wave back and forth.
I decided at this point that on the 401 or 408 or whatever the highway was, in 3rd gear that not only did I go WOT but I held it there too for the first time. I won’t be making that mistake in the future soon. At 1500 rpm it is not too bad but when the boost came on and I went past 4000 rpm the car started to go around again! Having that sort of power ought to be illegal. Thank God it isn’t.
As usual I almost botched things up by running out of gas too.........some days I am just not paying attention and I get myself into trouble. Worst of all abandoning Colin and Justin to pull into the 1st gas station without being able to let them know I had to stop. Good thing they’re two understanding guys.
Then back to Manny’s to drop the car off. I asked Manny for a few more things to go ahead with, the new tires, Red Stuff brake pads, full 3M paint protection and more interior color. The car will stay for another two weeks and then should start it’s trip back to Edmonton where I will get it.
Whew – this is taking a long time to type!
Colin was kind enough to offer to get himself up a 4 am to pick me up and to take me back to Hamilton for my return flight. You don’t find someone as decent as Colin often in your life.
I was also able to spent more time watching the guys at work in the shop including Arun tuning a car. An opportunity to ask some questions and to listen to he and Andrew talking about the procedure.
I went for a final walk Wednesday night, it was so nice and warm out and then went to bed so that there was little chance of me sleeping in.
Thursday
Got up on time, Colin was waiting for me. I don’t think his SHO looked that good when it left the factory! And next I knew i was homeward bound................
I may do more editing later on but after a week I needed to get this up.
I’ve thought about what my final thought and statement would be about this trip and experience.
Yes the car is a big part of it, more than I ever imagined it would be and will I ever be proud to be given the privilege of driving it. I remember after Manny drove me to the restaurant getting out and lingering around the car after everyone went to the restaurant and then shouting out "Thank God I got cancer!" Well not quite but you get the picture I'm sure.
But the trip was more than that. An unexpectedly significant part of the trip was the people that I met. Of course Manny and the staff at DaSilva who were so kind to me. The people who took time out of their lives to share this experience with me, especially Colin, Wayne and Brian. Such kindnesses that you extended to a total stranger.
I had the hope that I would arrive, make and leave with new friends in my life. It leaves me instead with the feeling of having found a new family.
I hope all is well back home. I have to admit that after seeing your V-yellow Vette filling my rearview that I think my next Vette just might be yellow. Maybe we will meet again in the future. Good times.:thumbup::thumbup:
