Hello everyone!

After more than a decade of yearning for my dream car, 5 years since I began my working for myself, I have finally accomplished my goal of buying a Corvette Z06.
I can't explain how good it feels to be finally strapped into the cockpit of such an amazing machine. Even now, after 2 days and 300 miles, it still feels unreal; like a dream.

If you've seen my previous thread, you already know what's up.

For those of you just tuning in, I'm driving this bad bitch from Houston back home to San Francisco Bay Area
I wanted to be able to share my experiences with you along with some photos/videos of the journey back.

without further ado..



https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...db78d733f5.jpg

Ta Daaaa!

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Beautiful view from our room at the Royal Sonesta Houston

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...757b26a93d.jpg
Caught some airline pilots checking out the whip. I feel like aircraft pilots have an affinity for Corvettes.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...65aaa80d0c.jpg
That ass



EDIT:

First thoughts on the car: WOW. I always knew going from an almost stock Lancer Evolution to a Corvette z06 would be a huge leap, but nothing could've prepared me for the actuality, power and bottom end torque of this amazing machine.

It took very little effort to (accidentally) break traction, despite traction control being on and only driving in eco/weather mode.
I have yet to use Touring, Sport or Track. Everytime I get on it a little bit, my lady gives me this unfamiliar, dirty look like I did something wrong. Never got that reaction from her in the Evo! :D

The transmission shifter feels stiff. not as crisp as the 5-speed transaxle on my old Evo- which I drove for 12.5 years- so most of my comparisons will be based on that standard.
I often find myself forgetting to shift into 6th. Going into 5th gear and 7th gear can be tricky sometimes because they're practically the same motion. Hopefully this improves with some more miles behind the wheel.

With more than 3 times the displacement of the 4G63 2.0 liter inline turbo of the Evo and half the driven wheels to propel the vehicle, I can honestly say this car has more potential than I can handle, at least for the moment. I'm considering taking some lessons down at Spring Mountain. The most important mod is driver mod, after all!

Nice dude! And it always provides a little satisfaction when people stop to check out your ride, especially affluent people. What's with the face blackouts though? You guys in witpro?? :rofl:

Congrats on the purchase and finally picking it up for the ride home. Looking forward to seeing how the journey unfolds...

My lady and I like our privacy is all. :)

Also, we're hideous. You guys should be thanking me for doing you all the favor of sparing you from having to look at our faces

Me too! Im not sure what to post about! perhaps you guys would like to give some suggestions? Are you guys interested in non-corvette related photos??

So was it flooded last year :D

BTW, many congrats! Hopefully many miles of smiles for you ahead :thumbs: I also bought my first vette, a first Z06 and first manual last year and it has been a blast ever since.

Congrats! The car looks great. It sounds like you're really enjoying it. Happy 6th Anniversary too! Enjoy your time in San Antonio.

I see you altered your trip to a southern route. Normally Roswell wouldn't be worth a dedicated drive, unless you're passing through to another destination, but I see you're heading west from there to Ruidoso & then down through Alamogordo which is a nice drive. There isn't much in Alamogordo other than White Sands National Monument,16 miles west of Alamogordo off of highway 70 (not too far out of the way) if you're interested in checking it out.

That reminded me that years ago while we were out at White Sands & passed by Holloman AFB the B2 stealth bombers were just taking off towards Hwy. 70 (the runway isn't far off the road) & flying very low over everyone as they were trying to gain altitude. The cars on the highway all stopped on the side of the road to watch them fly directly over us. I'm not sure if they even keep the B2s at Holloman anymore but it was cool seeing an entire group of them flying right over your head.

I think the B2 is retired now (or very close to it). They're "updating" to the B-21. Would be sweet if you saw those things taking off!! I say let us know about whatever floats your boat, but certainly include some corvette pics with some nice backdrops. I mentioned that on the other thread, but hey, new thread so it's not redundant! :-p

I don't think so! The car looks great in n out! A few cosmetic imperfections, that's all!

Thank you thank you. The map I posted in the previous thread was more of a general reference rather than the exact itinerary. We're still deciding exactly where to go from San Antonio.
My lady mentioned White Sands Monument. We'll probably end up heading that way.

The B-2 is really cool. I saw a decommissioned SR-71 Blackbird in Los Angeles, very cool. It would be amazing to see a B-2 takeoff... Are there any military planes I can park the z06 next to for some photo ops near the air force base? that would make for a very cool backdrop, no? :)

Sometime in the 2020s it seems.

I don't know since I haven't been there in a very long time. Having some military planes for a backdrop for your car would look great.

I've also seen those SR-71s if you're talking about the decommissioned ones they have sitting outside in Palmdale. I used to live in Canyon Country right off of CA14 30 minutes south of there. Back in jr. high & my first two years of high school we lived up in Santa Maria & my dad worked out at Vandenberg AFB on the Space Shuttle program for Martin Marietta (now Lockheed/Martin). My best friend's dad at the time was also a Lt. Colonel at Vandenberg. So between my dad & my friend's dad we used to go on base to check out the shuttle & to also watch missile launches up close. As a kid that was always fun.

Actually the one I'm referring to is located by the USC Trojans stadium/Museum of natural history

I wasn't aware that they had one on display there. An SR71 would be a cool backdrop.

Sure post em' up. Always fun to see pictures of an adventure like this. My wife and I will be taking our first long drive with the car next summer so anything you learn along the way is also appreciated. Most importantly just have a blast!

Familiar scene. I had an office about a block down from your hotel for 10 years in the 90's. Please do post up a full trip report. Love to see how the Corvette helps you get across country and what places you get to. Take some pictures from your Riverwalk boat. It is a neat boat tour.

A lot of air force bases will have decommissioned planes (fighter jets often times) near the gates. I'd google air force bases on your route and do a street view

Anybody ever find which number car this was?

http://gmauthority.com/blog/2016/03/...ccident-watch/

nice! congrats and enjoy the ride

Yes, post up pics along the way, with Corvette, without and interesting places you go. I think we'll all enjoy it, esp. those of us stuck in snow/cold/wind/sleet/rain/ice/ etc. YUK! Have a great trip. Just be careful out there....:thumbs:

Crank it Up!!
 

Put that thing in Sport Mode and the Exhaust in Track. As long as the temps aren't too cold and the pavement is dry, you can't get in any real trouble in Sport unless you really try. You'll get used to the power quickly if you keep dipping your toe in. Enjoy! :rock:

Congrats...enjoy the ride back to Cali.