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Hello and welcome!
The first time I'd ever been on a racetrack was October, 2004, about three months after I'd taken delivery of the 550.
Ferrari of Denver invited me to attend a track day at Pikes Peak Intl. Raceway in Fountain, south of Colorado Springs.
This photo, by David C. Ayers of Nitro Graphics, shows me on the first lap of the track with my instructor,
the one and only Roland Linder.
Later that first day, I felt safe enough to chase Roland's mighty F-40LM!
Shooting video in the passenger seat was Diane, a really cool
"blonde" who used to race against Corvettes herself in Austin Powers...
er HEALEYS!
Diane and I chased the two 500 and 600+hp F-40's in the (really) fast lane while
listening to Van Halen,
singing "Round and Round" on the stereo!
Here's a video "taste"
of Roland's F-40LM exhaust!
(600Kb movie and hold on!)
Then, a year layer in October, 2005, Quickchick Racing hosted "The Last Lap" event at PPIR, to mark the track's closing (due to its sale). it was a great two day monster bash of fast (and faster) cars... and one nasty V-10 Viper-powered pickup truck from Kansas!
This training saved my life, February 27, 2006!
I was driving my Pontiac van on Interstate 80, and was within two car lengths of passing the back of a semi... when a psychotic that had been racing up the right lane in a Dodge Magnum pickup, jumped into the left lane in front of me... with so little space for the maneuver, he was only half way into the left lane!
You LITERALLY could not have put us on a driveway together...me at 80..and him at 95mph I didn't hesitate and knew EXACTLY what to do: Accelerate as I steered left to avoid him- NO braking!
I passed him at 85-92 on the left shoulder, taking advantage of his blind spot... and then cut back into the left lane... HARD... to take control of the lane and force him to submit.
With my left foot on the brake pedal (just enough to cause my brake lights to come on) to fool him that my brakes were now being "slammed", he (predictably) slammed on his brakes as I was actually accelerating away.
The only thing I saw in my rear view mirror was the top of the Magnum's cab, occillating
back and forth in one-second/12 foot leaps!
Back and Forth!
Back and Forth!!
Back and Forth!!!
Back and Forth !!!!
He was now FREAKED...completely out of control... and trapped in the left lane...
as an oversteering-induced suspension harmonic had his macho pickup and him by his sick balls!
GET THIS: As I sped away from the semi, preparing to pull over and deal with this asshole
if he came after me with road rage... HE DIDN'T PASS THE SEMI!
That uncontrolled back-and-forth harmonic nearly killed the SOB! He'd have either crashed into
the semi trailer to his right and been caught up in the wreckage...or veered into the median
to the left and possibly rolled at 80-90 mph (just as I would have, if I'd hit my brakes!)
This sicko evidently lost all his energy in the harmonics and then pulled back... and pulled over to consider the merits of his testosterone-poisoned life! The other pickup that had been behind me when this occurred, later passed me (V-E-R-Y- carefull and politely) with a wide-eyed look on his face!
Cops looked for that Magnum (which was an escort vehicle for Oversized Loads!) for hours...but he vanished!
So, that's how this track training saved my life!
Here's some more still photos I shot
of the fun days at PPIR!
...starting at Sun up.
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