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Reflections on Carlisle and The Corvette Action Center
[SIZE=+3]A[/SIZE]nother Corvettes at Carlisle event has come and gone and for me personally, it went by way too fast. I took plenty of pictures, and I'll be adding those to the Members' Gallery soon.
I packed my Vette Thursday night and promptly left at 7:15 am from my home near Leesburg, VA. Travelling to the Carlisle Fairgrounds for me is almost as good as the event itself. I started out taking Rt. 15 up through Leesburg and Lucketts which has some of the most beautiful rolling hills and farmland I have ever seen.
I'm a country boy at heart, born and raised in New England, so mountains, woods and clean air are in my blood for life. I moved down here to Northern Virginia about three years ago, and the cookie-cutter homes on postage stamp-sized lots become stifling after a while.
Route 15 opens up past Frederick, Maryland and the terrain becomes a little flatter with mountains and farm land in the distance. The scenery is a nice change and the wide open stretches of smooth pavement is most inviting to a Corvette.
Just past Gaithersburg, I hopped on Route 94 which is another favorite road to take the Vette on. It starts out running through a very small, sleepy little town where the posted speed limit is 30 mph. A couple miles down the road and it opens up to 55 mph and the terrain becomes extremely "hilly" surrounded by wide open farm land. The hills are actually so steep that as you approach the crest of some of them, you literally cannot see over the hood of the Vette! The road takes a turn just after some of those crests so if you're not careful with your speed, you're likely to end up in a turnip patch!
The Corvette really comes into its own element here because you have an excellent variety of open stretches of road, sharp hills and tight corners. Speed and handling are the Corvette's forte' and it is right at home on roads like this one.
If you've never been to Corvettes at Carlisle, it's actually hard to put into words. As you approach the Fairgrounds, you start to see more Corvettes driving around. Once you enter the Fairgrounds, it's like heading into Heaven on earth. There are Corvettes EVERYWHERE and you are completely surrounded by fiberglass and horsepower. It's actually almost intoxicating because you're not exactly sure where to start and what to see first.
This particular Corvettes at Carlisle event was an important one for me. I had several meetings scheduled throughout the weekend with various people, and Chip Miller hosts these fantastic events along with his business partner, Bill Miller, managed to gather 54 - 1953 Corvettes. His original goal was 50, but he managed to get 53. Due to the 1953 Corvette Registry that we have here on the site, I have briefly talked to some of the owners who came. I was really looking forward to seeing them all together because given the fact that it's the Corvette's 50th Anniversary, this was going to be a precious moment in Corvette history.
I ran into Chip early Friday morning and he informed me that they would be pulling the 1953 Corvettes out of their tents for a special photograph session. I quickly made my way up to the top of the hill and took numerous photos. Words cannot express seeing all of these 1953 Corvettes together. You can see a listing of the owners who attended and photos of the event here: Corvettes at Carlisle 2003: 53-1953 Corvettes.
GM Engineers and Dave Hill
Another highlight for me was the GM tent. Every year, several Corvette Development Engineers bring along new Corvettes for everyone to drool over and this year was no exception. The 2004 Commemorative Editions were present and the tent was packed on Friday and Saturday. I took the opportunity to meet a couple of the engineers and let me just say, I cannot thank them enough for taking time out of their busy schedules to attend an event like this.
What really stood out at me was that you can literally see them get excited and their eyes flare up when they start talking about the work they have done on the C5 and the testing they do. They literally have horsepower running through their veins and they get just as turned on by seeing some 1962 Corvette with a blower and slicks on the back as some of us do.
Diamonds in the Rough
The other highlight for me is the vendors. You can find just about ANYTHING you are looking for that is Corvette related there. Parts and collectibles galore! If you plan to attend Corvettes at Carlisle, make sure you bring the other type of plastic with you - the type that fits in your wallet because you will not leave empty handed.
Unfortunately for me, I already have a lot of Corvette collectibles, pictures, models, etc., and I'm actually out of room. My home office, AKA "Corvette Action Center Central Command", is too small for me to display all of it, so instead, I use Corvettes at Carlisle to dig for information that I can use in our Corvette Research Center and Knowledgebase. Sometimes you have to look hard and sift through some greasy parts, but every now and then, you come across those little "Diamonds in the Rough" and for me, I walked out with plenty. There will be plenty of additions coming to these sections of the site so stay tuned!
Feedback
Of course, the ultimate highlight was meeting those of you that were able to attend. Events like Corvettes at Carlisle tend to be extremely valuable and productive for me, not because of all the Corvettes and collectibles that I'm surrounded by, but because I can actually interact with you on a more personal level and I get a ton of feedback from people that are not even members here; people that I didn't think knew that we existed.
All of the feedback was extremely positive and the two things that rang out loud and clear to me were, how helpful the information is that we have here, and how the site is well organized, professional and easy to use. This is music to my ears because it indicates to me that the original goals that I established for the Corvette Action Center are being met and I could not be happier.
What is the Corvette Action Center
As I had expected, a few people asked the same questions that I received last year at Carlisle: "what is the Corvette Action Center" "why did you start it and why do you do what you do?"
I actually covered a lot of this last year and you can read about it here: http://www.corvetteactioncenter.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15448
My time at Carlisle this weekend would not be complete without thanking some people (in no particlar order):
Chris (*89x2*), the Callaway Forum Members and Callaway Engineers: I can't thank you enough for inviting me to your dinner Saturday night and giving me the opportunity to meet with all of you. You guys are definitely a top notch crew and I'm really proud that you've made the CAC your online home.
Andy Bolig, Paul Zazarine and Ronnie Hartman: I really enjoyed meeting all of you and thank you for taking the time to talk with me. Hopefully we can do it more often and somewhere that will be just a tad bit cooler in temperature! It's probably a good thing that nobody took a photo of us because we probably looked like a pack of drowned rats. :L
Dave Hill and GM Engineers: I'm sure that your jobs are not all fun and games everyday, but regardless, in our eyes, you guys have some of the best jobs going! Thanks for taking the time to attend Carlisle and give everyone the chance to chat with you.
Jim Stevenson: Jim it was a pleasure to finally meet you and I'm looking forward to working with you in the future.
Paul Koerner (c4c5specialist): Paul, I REALLY appreciate the time we spent talking Friday night and walking through the Vendors on Saturday while talking Corvettes. You are, without any doubt, a class act and we are extremely lucky and grateful to have you with us in the Corvette community. Your feedback and insight Friday night was appreciated more than words can say.
Chip Miller: Chip it was a pleasure to finally meet you and thank you for the heads-up on the 1953 photo shoot. The pictures came out great and I'll be forwarding a link to the article here at the CAC as soon as finish it.
Last but not least, thank you to all of the members that made it to this year's Corvettes at Carlisle. It was really great meeting all of you and I cannot be more proud of the crew we have here. You guys were an absolute riot Friday night and I wish I could have made it there Saturday night but there is always next year. I am going to look into setting up something a little more official and will be talking with Carlisle Productions in the future.
I packed my Vette Thursday night and promptly left at 7:15 am from my home near Leesburg, VA. Travelling to the Carlisle Fairgrounds for me is almost as good as the event itself. I started out taking Rt. 15 up through Leesburg and Lucketts which has some of the most beautiful rolling hills and farmland I have ever seen.
I'm a country boy at heart, born and raised in New England, so mountains, woods and clean air are in my blood for life. I moved down here to Northern Virginia about three years ago, and the cookie-cutter homes on postage stamp-sized lots become stifling after a while.
Route 15 opens up past Frederick, Maryland and the terrain becomes a little flatter with mountains and farm land in the distance. The scenery is a nice change and the wide open stretches of smooth pavement is most inviting to a Corvette.
Just past Gaithersburg, I hopped on Route 94 which is another favorite road to take the Vette on. It starts out running through a very small, sleepy little town where the posted speed limit is 30 mph. A couple miles down the road and it opens up to 55 mph and the terrain becomes extremely "hilly" surrounded by wide open farm land. The hills are actually so steep that as you approach the crest of some of them, you literally cannot see over the hood of the Vette! The road takes a turn just after some of those crests so if you're not careful with your speed, you're likely to end up in a turnip patch!
The Corvette really comes into its own element here because you have an excellent variety of open stretches of road, sharp hills and tight corners. Speed and handling are the Corvette's forte' and it is right at home on roads like this one.
If you've never been to Corvettes at Carlisle, it's actually hard to put into words. As you approach the Fairgrounds, you start to see more Corvettes driving around. Once you enter the Fairgrounds, it's like heading into Heaven on earth. There are Corvettes EVERYWHERE and you are completely surrounded by fiberglass and horsepower. It's actually almost intoxicating because you're not exactly sure where to start and what to see first.
This particular Corvettes at Carlisle event was an important one for me. I had several meetings scheduled throughout the weekend with various people, and Chip Miller hosts these fantastic events along with his business partner, Bill Miller, managed to gather 54 - 1953 Corvettes. His original goal was 50, but he managed to get 53. Due to the 1953 Corvette Registry that we have here on the site, I have briefly talked to some of the owners who came. I was really looking forward to seeing them all together because given the fact that it's the Corvette's 50th Anniversary, this was going to be a precious moment in Corvette history.
I ran into Chip early Friday morning and he informed me that they would be pulling the 1953 Corvettes out of their tents for a special photograph session. I quickly made my way up to the top of the hill and took numerous photos. Words cannot express seeing all of these 1953 Corvettes together. You can see a listing of the owners who attended and photos of the event here: Corvettes at Carlisle 2003: 53-1953 Corvettes.
GM Engineers and Dave Hill
Another highlight for me was the GM tent. Every year, several Corvette Development Engineers bring along new Corvettes for everyone to drool over and this year was no exception. The 2004 Commemorative Editions were present and the tent was packed on Friday and Saturday. I took the opportunity to meet a couple of the engineers and let me just say, I cannot thank them enough for taking time out of their busy schedules to attend an event like this.
What really stood out at me was that you can literally see them get excited and their eyes flare up when they start talking about the work they have done on the C5 and the testing they do. They literally have horsepower running through their veins and they get just as turned on by seeing some 1962 Corvette with a blower and slicks on the back as some of us do.
Diamonds in the Rough
The other highlight for me is the vendors. You can find just about ANYTHING you are looking for that is Corvette related there. Parts and collectibles galore! If you plan to attend Corvettes at Carlisle, make sure you bring the other type of plastic with you - the type that fits in your wallet because you will not leave empty handed.
Unfortunately for me, I already have a lot of Corvette collectibles, pictures, models, etc., and I'm actually out of room. My home office, AKA "Corvette Action Center Central Command", is too small for me to display all of it, so instead, I use Corvettes at Carlisle to dig for information that I can use in our Corvette Research Center and Knowledgebase. Sometimes you have to look hard and sift through some greasy parts, but every now and then, you come across those little "Diamonds in the Rough" and for me, I walked out with plenty. There will be plenty of additions coming to these sections of the site so stay tuned!
Feedback
Of course, the ultimate highlight was meeting those of you that were able to attend. Events like Corvettes at Carlisle tend to be extremely valuable and productive for me, not because of all the Corvettes and collectibles that I'm surrounded by, but because I can actually interact with you on a more personal level and I get a ton of feedback from people that are not even members here; people that I didn't think knew that we existed.
All of the feedback was extremely positive and the two things that rang out loud and clear to me were, how helpful the information is that we have here, and how the site is well organized, professional and easy to use. This is music to my ears because it indicates to me that the original goals that I established for the Corvette Action Center are being met and I could not be happier.
What is the Corvette Action Center
As I had expected, a few people asked the same questions that I received last year at Carlisle: "what is the Corvette Action Center" "why did you start it and why do you do what you do?"
I actually covered a lot of this last year and you can read about it here: http://www.corvetteactioncenter.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15448
My time at Carlisle this weekend would not be complete without thanking some people (in no particlar order):
Chris (*89x2*), the Callaway Forum Members and Callaway Engineers: I can't thank you enough for inviting me to your dinner Saturday night and giving me the opportunity to meet with all of you. You guys are definitely a top notch crew and I'm really proud that you've made the CAC your online home.
Andy Bolig, Paul Zazarine and Ronnie Hartman: I really enjoyed meeting all of you and thank you for taking the time to talk with me. Hopefully we can do it more often and somewhere that will be just a tad bit cooler in temperature! It's probably a good thing that nobody took a photo of us because we probably looked like a pack of drowned rats. :L
Dave Hill and GM Engineers: I'm sure that your jobs are not all fun and games everyday, but regardless, in our eyes, you guys have some of the best jobs going! Thanks for taking the time to attend Carlisle and give everyone the chance to chat with you.
Jim Stevenson: Jim it was a pleasure to finally meet you and I'm looking forward to working with you in the future.
Paul Koerner (c4c5specialist): Paul, I REALLY appreciate the time we spent talking Friday night and walking through the Vendors on Saturday while talking Corvettes. You are, without any doubt, a class act and we are extremely lucky and grateful to have you with us in the Corvette community. Your feedback and insight Friday night was appreciated more than words can say.
Chip Miller: Chip it was a pleasure to finally meet you and thank you for the heads-up on the 1953 photo shoot. The pictures came out great and I'll be forwarding a link to the article here at the CAC as soon as finish it.
Last but not least, thank you to all of the members that made it to this year's Corvettes at Carlisle. It was really great meeting all of you and I cannot be more proud of the crew we have here. You guys were an absolute riot Friday night and I wish I could have made it there Saturday night but there is always next year. I am going to look into setting up something a little more official and will be talking with Carlisle Productions in the future.
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