She made it
Saturday past (5-15-21) was a big test for the little car as I asked her to take me 250 miles in one stretch.. No AAA card needed-no tools needed.. hell, I didn't even need to break out the duct tape
.. As expected, I found some issues and concerns that will need to be addressed (see next post), but it was a fun day, and she never flinched- this VFR motor is a gem.
I set out for the meet up point in Ventura (100 miles away) in a mild drizzle which didn't concern me at first, but it was getting a little worse as I drove on. (Note to self; get one of those clip on hand-operated wipers the street rod guys use for days like this). the wet wasn't bad enough to have me turn around- just had to drive very carefully on the slick road on these low-grip tires (the drizzle ended by mid morning).
I quickly settled in and learned she likes to cruise at about 65 mph, and it doesn't feel too dangerous, at least until you stop and think about what you're doing, then you remind yourself to quash those thoughts about 'death' and 'dying,' and leave those concepts behind; today you're living your best life, in your microcar, on the interstate, inches away from a 6000 lb SUV that doesn't see you.. What a day.
I'd like to thank the Porsche Club of America (PCA) for allowing my decidedly non-Porsche car into their driving event up the coast. They did an OUTSTANDING job getting us out on some wonderful, windy, twisty, hilly roads that I never would have found on my own.. so fun
There was one scary moment when we were all driving a bit 'spiritedly,' and the parade came to a screeching halt around a blind curve due to an unexpected back up.. a real pucker moment for many a Porsche owner, particularly the guy in front of me (plate TARGAGT), who did not know that I have 4 wheel disc brakes, and later told be he was certain I was going to plow into him
... Relax Porsche friend! She drives better than she looks
...truth is we all struggled to get stopped at this surprise stack up.. the guy piloting the 911 behind me thought he was going to hit me too, but we all got stopped fine
Fairly uneventful other than that.. Beautiful road, way up high above Santa Barbara, on a mild Saturday morning.. good times.. Eventually we snaked down and back onto the highway, over to the tiny town of Los Osos for a potty break, then down to the end of the organized run at Jalama Beach (just south of Lompoc, CA).
The food line at the burger stand was really slow, so I said my goodbyes to some very, very nice people, hopped back into the Berkeley, and made for home 50 more miles north.. Never a glitch, never a hiccup.. this day went a long way to inspire confidence in this little pile of square tubes, fiberglass, and Honda a go-go
**Pic below was very late in the run, and taken to capture the mustard in bloom.. In a bit I'll post up the car issues that cropped up on the drive..
--ccrunner
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Dean
1972 Honda N600 Restomod "ccrunner's N600 VFR800 repower"
1963 Volvo P1800 Restomod
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=163091959 Berkeley SE492 Restomod...
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19397"ccrunner's 1960 MGA coupe Restomod" found on MGExp.com