- Joined
- Jan 19, 2003
- Messages
- 3,021
- Location
- 5,800 feet above sea level
- Corvette
- 2006 'Evil Stealth Black' Roadster
As I was organizing some paperwork at home, I came to realize something: yesterday was the seven month anniversary (would that be the right word?) of the day I took delivery of my Z06. It was on a brisk (but not altogether cold) Saturday in early January when the deal got inked. I remember it very clearly: the dealership was supposed to have closed at 7:00 PM that night. It was just a little bit before 8:00, and my salesman and the general sales manager were standing outside with me, handing me the two key sets and congratulating me. I turned at one point to look at the car- it was sitting there on the display patio in front of the main entrance, shiny and reflecting the lights from the dealer's parking lot, and I was in a state of disbelief. Did this really just happen? Was I really going home in a Z06 Corvette?
Well, I did go home in a Z06 Corvette. (A couple of days later, my salesman and the general manager had told me they, and a couple of other employees from the dealership, had stood there on the porch after I left, listening the sound of the Z06's exhaust as I drove away, thinking how cool and loud it sounded.) I remember carefully parking the Z06 in the garage when I got home, and at several points during the night, waking up and going down to the garage to just look at it to convince myself what had happened was real.
It was real. It's been real for seven months now.
In seven months, I've amassed a ton of observations. Not just about the Vette, but about others and how they react to it. For instance:
As my Z06 is my only means of transport, in the past seven months I have driven it in all kinds of different weather- rain, sleet, snow, ice, and those beautiful days, too. And it's performed like a trooper. It's earned my appreciation, and I've done my best to return the feeling by giving the Z06 everything it needs- the premium gas, the oil changes, all the regular maintenance, and all the regular cleaning.
And this has led to me observing how others react to her- after all, when you have such pride in an automobile like this, you can't help be attuned to these things.
Now I'm just waiting to be flashed by some young girls on the road.
So what are some of your observations about your Corvette, and how others relate to it? Do you have any funny stories to tell?
-Patrick
Well, I did go home in a Z06 Corvette. (A couple of days later, my salesman and the general manager had told me they, and a couple of other employees from the dealership, had stood there on the porch after I left, listening the sound of the Z06's exhaust as I drove away, thinking how cool and loud it sounded.) I remember carefully parking the Z06 in the garage when I got home, and at several points during the night, waking up and going down to the garage to just look at it to convince myself what had happened was real.
It was real. It's been real for seven months now.
In seven months, I've amassed a ton of observations. Not just about the Vette, but about others and how they react to it. For instance:
As my Z06 is my only means of transport, in the past seven months I have driven it in all kinds of different weather- rain, sleet, snow, ice, and those beautiful days, too. And it's performed like a trooper. It's earned my appreciation, and I've done my best to return the feeling by giving the Z06 everything it needs- the premium gas, the oil changes, all the regular maintenance, and all the regular cleaning.
And this has led to me observing how others react to her- after all, when you have such pride in an automobile like this, you can't help be attuned to these things.
- I've observed how kids riding in the back of the soccer-mom mobile plant their hands and faces against the windows to just stare with unabashed awe at the car.
- I've had teenagers and kids in their early 20s pull up next me at lights, all the attitude gone from their faces, as they just say, "Man, that is so sweet!"
- I've had cops from the municipality I work for follow me and pull up next to me when I drive into the supermarket parking lot, just to tease me about how sooner or later, I'm going to slip up, and they're going to impound my car when I do (so that they can take it out for a ride.)
- I've had co-workers accuse me of having entered an early midlife crisis. ("You're just not old enough to be driving a Corvette!")
- I've had neighbors shake their heads at my incessant and slightly compuslive cleaning rituals.
- I've had little old ladies quickly get out of my lane when they observe me coming up from behind, and studiously avoid making eye contact with the young hoodlum driving that loud sports car.
- I've had fathers stare at my car from behind the wheel of their mini-van, wife and kids in tow, with a poignant expression that spoke volumes about how if they had only waited to have kids, they might be driving one of these, too.
- I've had complete strangers come up to me in parking lots to ask me all kinds of questions about the Corvette, how it drove, what I've done for mods, and my favorite: how much fun is it to drive?
- I've had owners of other Corvettes wave at me, and I waived enthusiastically back, every time.
Now I'm just waiting to be flashed by some young girls on the road.
So what are some of your observations about your Corvette, and how others relate to it? Do you have any funny stories to tell?
-Patrick
