427Hotrod

You guys really missed a good time! Most folks figure you're making it up about all the fun of the Forum Cruise In, so I thought I'd give a little detail of a Road Trip to Bowling Green.

This was my 3rd year to go. I met some new friends this year and a few were willing to give it a try. Nick had been last year with his 540" '72, but this year he talked another buddy into coming with him too. Joe is the 2nd owner of a '61 283 2x4 car and jumped at the chance for a road trip. He says it's not restored, but he's fixed just about everything on it over the years, so it's no big deal! Patrick is another new friend from the Forum. he rode up with me, but will be bringing his '68 next year.

Joe and I only got a chance to vaguely talk about going a couple of times over the last year. Exchanged a few e-mails, and then WHAM...we met at McDonalds in Magnolia Tx on Wed morning (Joe works overseas and just got in from Moscow the night before!) and headed off.

We got in all the fun traffic on getting out of town then made it over to Livingston Tx. to pick up Patrick (he has a '68 big block convertible) who wussed and decided to leave his at home. He lives in Beaumont, but his parents live in Livingston, so it made a good drop off place. We then headed up to meet Nick and his buddy Dixon (flew in from La. to Dallas to ride up) in Texarkana. Had lunch and finally started the "bench racing" and story telling. We then headed off toward Memphis. We got there and found the Hotel. We talked the local Police that were hanging out there to move their cars and let us park under the drive up canopy. We figured it looked better with a C-1, a C-2 and C-3 sitting there! The desk clerk let us leave them there all night. The only issue was when Joe tried to put up his top...seems like it may have shrunk a little over the last 44 years!! Oh well,,that's why they make car covers!

We then cleaned up and had a cab take us to Beale St. If you've never been there..it's a lot of fun. Wed nights are apparently "Bikes on Beale" nights, so it looked like Orange County Chopper night. with a few hundred bikes parked all up and down the street. They handed us a beer as soon as we got there and we walked up and down the street listening to the live guitar and sax Blues music coming out of each door. We finally decided on one and headed inside for some great food and music. We hung out there for a few hours and headed home in a cab.

Thursday had us heading to BG. There was something about some "Voodoo" feathers we found that we took with us for luck...oh yeah..not supposed to tell that one..... Trip was great..weather was beautiful for a convertible (Nick constantly bragged about his new A/C though!). But Joe and I looked cooler! Got caught in a couple of traffic jams, but nothing too bad. Made it to Hotel, took off for the Museum and registration and souvenir buying.

This is where Joe started his "Trifecta". He immediately volunteered to put the "DevilDog" on the chassis dyno and show them what a "real Vette" can do. They had a little trouble with computer on first run..we decided it had to do with electrical interference from points or something! But you should have heard all 8 barrels on that screaming 283 at WOT!! Joe plays quiet with that little dude....but it can scream when it's called on!! Bingo...highest HP reading for a C-1 at the event!

Then we went back to clean up cars at car wash and stake out some good front row parking at hotel.

At this point Dan, one of my other buddies who couldn't drive his car in from Houston due to having to work in Canada last week got there. He flew into Nashville, rented a car and drove up (1 hour). We decided to order pizza to the parking lot and just hung out there meeting everyone and getting acquainted/reacquainted. I think we ended that night around 2am or so. The "Texas Circle" was a pretty popular place to be. It may have to do with the free Jack Daniels we provided everyone!

Friday we took Dan's rental car back to BG airport and then off to enter Joe in the Autocross event. He donned his helmet and proceeded to once again show the young "whippersnappers" what kind of Vette really earned all that history they brag about! He sawed his way around the track like a Pro and never hit a cone! We thought he might need a massage therapist when he was done after working that big 'ole steering wheel...but he hung in there. He had the Texas Flag colors flying from his antenna all the way around the track, lap after lap! Again....he racked up another win as the "Quickest C-1 Autocross Champion!"

Then we had a really neat deal set up. Nick knows folks at Holley (as in Carburetors) and had it set up for us to get a personal guided tour. We met his buddy for lunch and then spent 3 hours deep inside the Holley plant. We saw all the old equipment still in use machining stuff just fine as well as all the new CNC bad-boy stuff. He took us to the dyno cells and chassis dyno room where we saw the project cars, experimental stuff etc. Lots of neat stuff to see and it was great! Not just everyone gets a trip like that...but hey...the "Texas Connection" pulled it off!

After that we headed back to Museum and took the tour. There was also a group photo shoot and Joe and his '61 were featured up front. If you look in the picture in the background...you can see a certain blue C-2 and a red C-3 prominently displayed dead center almost! And we're there waving to everyone!

Joe had signed up for the pasta dinner at an 1800's house that the Museum Director owns, so he went out there. We all headed back to Hotel to clean up and stake out best parking places again. Again, we did well and got great spots...I think everyone knows they are ours now!

Of course this is when we see the evening Bowling Green newspaper, and who would have thunk it...there was the Joe and the Devildog right there in full color on the front page working it out at the Autocross!! With all those new Vette's there...they knew which one the public wanted to see!! We had to provide a neckbrace to support his "bobblehead" that was a little swollen after this!

Roscoe's BBQ is a Cruise In regular and he does amazing things with prime rib! We stuffed ourselves and Patrick made quite a few runs to the beer trailer with spigots on the side for all the beer he could drink! Dave Hill (the new "Zora" so to speak- head of Corvette development) was there in the parking lot with a couple of new Z06's. Those are the ones with 500 Hp, titanium connecting rods etc etc. I got to park my butt in one.....probably the only time it will happen. Great car though!

Did lots of BS'ing Friday night. The editor of Corvette Enthusiast came by again to hang out with us all night. He's the one who shot my car for the cover last year. After we talked a while I got him to look closely at the "patina" of the DevilDog and consider a feature. Before he left, he told me he wanted to shoot it the next day!!

Sat. morning we took Dan's luggage to UPS and shipped it home. We had another friend from Houston who was supposed to fly up in his personal plane and take Dan's stuff home, but at the last minute he couldn't make it. After lots of consideration, we decided there just wasn't room for another big suitcase in any of the Vette's! Then we headed to go on the 80 mile cruise in the country with a bunch of other Vette's. We had no idea exactly what we were going to get into, but we should have known....last year the tour was known as the "Oh My God We're Going to Die Tour"!! It was a great drive through rolling hills and Amish country. We saw a "barn raising" going on even! We stopped at a park called "Kentucky Down Under". They have a Cave tour, kangaroos and lots of beautiful scenery. They had a great lunch set up for us with Bison Burgers, Hot dogs etc and lots of cool drinks. Even had cobbler and ice cream under the tents!

We then headed back to BG to hit the dragstrip. It was a little crazy there because they had an NHRA Division 3 championship race going on. But we got to see lots of Stocker and Super Stocker Vette's pulling wheelies along with Hemi Super Stockers and dragsters etc etc. We finally got in a couple of runs ourselves. Joe had changed his "colors" to his Marine flag on the antenna. We basically did no preparation other than unloading lawn chairs and luggage and pulling to the line. I was amazed when they asked if I wanted to run with top down! Sure..sounds like fun! I managed an 11.50@130 mph....which was pretty good with the little weenie cam I had in it and plain street tires, capped up headers and no "race tricks". I did outdo a Supercharged Viper's run that was on drag radials! Check the video of the run. Had to do some serious "walking it" to make it finally hook up in 3rd and 4th gear. My " Buzz Lightyear" mascot can be seen flying from the rear view mirror.....he likes to go fast!

http://www.corvetteforum.net/c3/gra...3/hotrod427.wmv

Nick pulled off a 12.40@120 mph in his C-3. And once again..Joe ended the Trifecta with the fastest C-1 at the event title!! You can see he and I racing in the video together! I had to do my best.....I had already seen that dude on the dyno and knew I had my work cut out for me!

We headed back to hotel after "restocking" supplies. We again created some good parking for ourselves and set up "court" in the middle of the parking lot. Again we seemed to draw a crowd, especially after we had made our show at the track. Everyone wanted to pass on their congratulations.

We had some more great BBQ too. The editor of Corvette Enthusiast came by again...through all the action of the day we never quite got hooked up with him for Joe's photo shoot. But we have a plan worked out for the fall. I'm in charge of gathering a bunch of Vette's together for when he comes out Houston and Dallas at that time. So that should be fun! He took a ride in Doug "Snowman"'s Supercharged C-5 convertible. When he came back I asked if he was ready to now go for a ride in an "old tech" Hot Rod. He jumped at it and strapped in. (no drinks had been consumed at this time!) So we cruised the parking lot down by the C-5 crowd where burnouts had been going on all evening. We decided to show them that an old Vette could do them too. Personally I think we sounded/looked the best. Then we hit the highway for a little "exhibition of speed". I think he liked the gear banging and 130-140 mph blasts! He gave me a great compliment when he said it reminded him of the movie "Two Lane Blacktop" (if you remember that one!). When we got back and they asked him for the differences in the two cars, he said the first thing he noticed was that mine didn't have head rests when you nailed it!!

Sat night ended about 3;30 am for the diehards and then we were up for breakfast at 6;30 am. Loaded cars. got gas and headed home. We had to make a detour in Memphis to retrieve Patrick's camera that he had left in the hotel and get some lunch. Luckily it was found and turned in! The trip home was actually pretty cool..we all swapped around riders and all the passengers got to ride and drive different cars and we all got new folks to talk to. It's tough making up new stories for that long! We broke apart at Texarkana again and headed our separate ways. We hit a little rain on 59, but nothing too bad.

Anyway, for anyone who didn't go, you missed a great time. I sure hope to convince y'all that we all ought to make it next year. We can invade the place. This is just the CNN version of everything that went on...but hopefully you get an idea of how much fun it can be. It's sort of like going to Vegas...."What happens at the Cruise In Forum...stays at the Cruise In Forum"!! If you want ALL the details and fun...you have to come for yourself!!



JIM

mjmsc5

You forgot to mention the complimentary copy of the paper that Joe got everyone at the Baymont.

Bullshark

Jim, Nick, Joe. It was great to meet up with you guys again this year. Project RamJet made it back to St. Louis with no real problems. The Tremic is now shifting much easier. Had to pass three Trooper gauntlets on the way home .....all three had a half dozen or so troopers on the entrance ramps waiting their turn as cars passed. It reminded me of staged taxi cabs at the airport waiting thier turn to pick up a fare. That last one in Illinois scared the sheet out of me. The trooper peeled off the ramp and came up along side of me, flipped on his lights and pulled the guy in front of me over Had to pull over at the next rest stop and clean out my pants I wish we could get a better C1,C2, C3 turnout down at the CI. Paul Borowski and I talked about pushing for a big C3 turnout next year. C2's also . Maybe I can talk the STL Sharks into making the trip

Bullshark

RedWolf

Hey Jim:
I can't seem to get that video link to work. Would love to see that run!

NEED FOR SPEED

Hey Jim, who was the guy who gave you the tour of Holley. I got a good friend who works there.He gives a lot of private tours.

427Hotrod

It was Doug......

Really neat place!


JIM