Dragon tales
May. 16th, 2005 10:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
greatbearThis entry is a bit late in coming, since I was hoping to get my hands on some of the hundreds of pictures that were taken during the invasion of MINIs at The Tail Of The Dragon the weekend prior. Alas, people have been sitting on their pictures or just havent gotten around to posting them yet. Suffice it to say, there is still plenty to be found. The following three shots were ganked from Killboy's site, which is the definitive source for Dragon action pictures and stories.
The first two caught me taking mom on a spirited run with a lot of >0.8g turns. She managed to wave in for the camera. She actually had a good time, commenting on how much like a rollercoaster the whole gig is, with all the MINIs zipping about:
The last is me on a solo run, putting a couple thousand miles worth of wear on my new tires, 11 miles at a shot. Those with sharp eyes might have noticed the center caps missing from the wheels up front. The heat from the brakes was apparently too much for the plastic that the caps were made from, as they loosened up so much that they fell off in my hands. I had new, spun aluminum ones sent to me free of charge. If'n you need some tires/wheels, give Alex @ The Tire Rack a shout. He'll set ya up.
One of the people I met was Jeff, a rep from MINI USA. In addition to being a friendly source of info, Jeff has the same stature (about 5'4"ish) and build as bodybuilder Lee Priest. Yeow. An astoundingly low, strong voice too. It was all I could do to not throw him over my shoulder and have my way with him. I have not been able to track down the pic taken of me and him. Even in jeans and a t-shirt there was muscle busting out all over. *whew*
Pictures slowly trickle into this thread at North American Motoring. There are some good ones there already.
The event was not without some incidents. Right before the start of our midnight run on Saturday, a dude in a Miata who also had a bit to drink decided to pass a Volvo at a short straight in the road but totally lost it at a hairpin and hit a large tree head on, breaking it in three pieces. Very stupid. As luck would have it, one of our group that left a few minutes early to check on the road before the big group hit it was an ER nurse who helped coordinate the first aid and subsequent calls to 911. The local authorities seem to admire the MINI group when it's in town, and I think it's these kind of things that keep us on their good side. They seem to have a hands-off policy when we are obviously going a bit over the various limits. I hope it remains so.
It's fun trying to find me and/or my car in the myriad shots taken over the weekend. I found this one of me being held back by 'traffic'. The photographer was getting a bit artsy in Pshop:
Not to be outdone, I altered one I took of our midnight ritual of shining our headlights skyward. Someone said we look like an alien landing party waiting for the mothership:
This can be done because the headlights are attached to the hood of the car and rise with the hood when it is opened. Yet another unique and unusual quirk about these cars.
It's a 550 mile trip to get to this little piece of asphalt nirvana. It's worth every mile. Especially since the Dragon takes me to the lodging at Fontana Village. It greets you on the way in, and slaps you on the ass on your way home.
The first two caught me taking mom on a spirited run with a lot of >0.8g turns. She managed to wave in for the camera. She actually had a good time, commenting on how much like a rollercoaster the whole gig is, with all the MINIs zipping about:
The last is me on a solo run, putting a couple thousand miles worth of wear on my new tires, 11 miles at a shot. Those with sharp eyes might have noticed the center caps missing from the wheels up front. The heat from the brakes was apparently too much for the plastic that the caps were made from, as they loosened up so much that they fell off in my hands. I had new, spun aluminum ones sent to me free of charge. If'n you need some tires/wheels, give Alex @ The Tire Rack a shout. He'll set ya up.
One of the people I met was Jeff, a rep from MINI USA. In addition to being a friendly source of info, Jeff has the same stature (about 5'4"ish) and build as bodybuilder Lee Priest. Yeow. An astoundingly low, strong voice too. It was all I could do to not throw him over my shoulder and have my way with him. I have not been able to track down the pic taken of me and him. Even in jeans and a t-shirt there was muscle busting out all over. *whew*
Pictures slowly trickle into this thread at North American Motoring. There are some good ones there already.
The event was not without some incidents. Right before the start of our midnight run on Saturday, a dude in a Miata who also had a bit to drink decided to pass a Volvo at a short straight in the road but totally lost it at a hairpin and hit a large tree head on, breaking it in three pieces. Very stupid. As luck would have it, one of our group that left a few minutes early to check on the road before the big group hit it was an ER nurse who helped coordinate the first aid and subsequent calls to 911. The local authorities seem to admire the MINI group when it's in town, and I think it's these kind of things that keep us on their good side. They seem to have a hands-off policy when we are obviously going a bit over the various limits. I hope it remains so.
It's fun trying to find me and/or my car in the myriad shots taken over the weekend. I found this one of me being held back by 'traffic'. The photographer was getting a bit artsy in Pshop:
Not to be outdone, I altered one I took of our midnight ritual of shining our headlights skyward. Someone said we look like an alien landing party waiting for the mothership:
This can be done because the headlights are attached to the hood of the car and rise with the hood when it is opened. Yet another unique and unusual quirk about these cars.
It's a 550 mile trip to get to this little piece of asphalt nirvana. It's worth every mile. Especially since the Dragon takes me to the lodging at Fontana Village. It greets you on the way in, and slaps you on the ass on your way home.
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no subject
Date: 2005-05-18 12:38 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-05-17 05:16 am (UTC)What fun! It's such a great thing when enthusiasts get together and share their passions.
I really like the color of your Mini. The Close Encounters shot is priceless!
Looks like you had a motoriffic time! Yay!
no subject
Date: 2005-05-18 12:44 am (UTC)Of course I'd immediately hone in on ...
Date: 2005-05-17 05:34 am (UTC)Oh if you ever find that picture, I SO wanna see it. Just your description ... grr. ^_-
Can I just tell you how much I love your altered pic? I had no idea those things did that with the headlights. ^_-
Re: Of course I'd immediately hone in on ...
Date: 2005-05-18 12:46 am (UTC)Did I mention his shaved head and rather prominent 'roid gut'? ^___^
no subject
Date: 2005-05-17 11:24 am (UTC)I must say - I really like your mini - they are fun cars in General. I test drove one - and weeeeeeeeee!
no subject
Date: 2005-05-18 12:47 am (UTC)Oh, and the cars are a blast to drive. They sell themselves.
no subject
Date: 2005-05-17 01:13 pm (UTC)B. You're still hot...especially in your car...rowr.
C. I so want a MINI I could just pee.
no subject
Date: 2005-05-18 12:48 am (UTC)B: No I'm not.
C: Dunno how well a dealer would handle watersports!
Why?
Date: 2005-05-18 01:44 pm (UTC)Brains.
Brawn.
A bracing sense of humor.
Plus, you're the only person I know that looks good in a tank top.
C'mon, Phil...you ARE hot.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it, whether you want to play along or not. :)
no subject
Date: 2005-05-18 12:55 am (UTC)I'd love to have a classic too, but around here good ones are very rare, and getting expensive as such.
And thanks for the good word for mom. :-)
no subject
Date: 2005-05-17 06:23 pm (UTC)Have you finished up with the mods you were going to put into the Mini yet???
no subject
Date: 2005-05-18 01:02 am (UTC)Most of the mods are done for now (other things have hold of my time and wallet now), though the next batch will include swaybars to tighten up the handling some and tune out the stock understeer, oil and water temp gauges, and the bigger injectors I have sitting in the garage once I determine that I can get the Cooper Works ECU tuning to match them. Springs and adjustable rear lateral links and front camber plates are a distant possibility.
I just hope I dont get started on the stereo. :-O
good boy
Date: 2005-05-19 11:54 pm (UTC)