Trip to califronia.
I am new her and wanted to contribute.
This past summer I went on a trip that I will remember for the rest of my life.
A little background info. For a Christmas gift my father gave the opportunity to drive across the United States of America in his 993 Porsche. When I got this gift I was speechless I did not know what to say exactly. I replied with an emphatic yes and a big thank you. Well many months had gone by from the time I received this gift and the time we actually got to go on the trip.
After some planning we were ready to head west to the great State of California to go up and down the historic Highway 1. So we packed very little (remember it is a Porsche small luggage compartments) and left Dallas on our journey. On a trip like this you learn many things but one thing I learned was how big the state of Texas. We drove for 10 hours straight and we were still in Texas I could not believe it. There is not much to see in West Texas but 2 lanes of straight, traffic free highway a sight that I welcome with open arms and very little state trooper presence. We are out of Texas and into New Mexico, not much in New Mexico, so we decided to stay the night in Phoenix, Arizona. In one day we drove a total of 1,150 miles. That my friend is a lot of miles but they were enjoyable miles!
After a sleepless night on a rock hard hotel bed we got back on Interstate 10 and we keep heading to the West Coast. After about half day of driving we make it to Los Angles. We stop to get something to eat and to fill the car with gasoline and check all the vital engine fluids. We decided to go to the Peterson Automotive Museum in L.A. We seemed to find ourselves in what seem to be a slow moving four-lane parking lot. YES, I am referring to the traffic in LA, a complete mess. When we get to the museum there are many fine vintage automobiles. The museum had a collection of million dollars plus cars in a special display area. There were some extremely rare automobiles, for example a Bugatti Royal one of only three or four left in the world and valued at well over $8 million dollars. After this we headed to Pacific Coast Highway to travel north to Carmel. California should rename this highway to the “high dollar highway.” I saw a huge collection of expensive cars, a Ferrari F-40, countless new 996 turbo’s. I even saw the fastest road legal car in the world, that right I am speaking about the mighty McLaren F1 in a burnt orange color. I just about had a heart attack when I saw it. I saw other exotic cars such as Astons, Ferraris, Lamborghini’s, and many, many Porsches. I saw everything from an old vintage 356 speedster to the mother of all Porsche’s the mighty 959! Even though they are illegal to drive on the highways in the USA. I also saw a disguised Mercedes Benz SLR. Up north until the wee hours on Highway 110 to Salinas for the night.
Day three. We looked at the map and saw that we were not to far from one of the greatest racetracks in North America, Laguna Seca Raceway. When we pulled in we had no idea if there was going to be any racing or just an empty racetrack. Just our luck we found ourselves at an SCCA regional race. So we walked around the track saw the famous corkscrew and special features of this great racetrack. Something I saw that was very interesting was a brand new Porsche GT3 Cup Car with only one sponsor, the monopoly machine Microsoft (Xbox).
From there we decided to drive down the historic 17-mile drive, a very scenic drive down to the Pebble Beach Golf Club. My dad is a big golf fan and had to see the beauty of the famous golf course. We stopped in the clubhouse for a little lunch. After that we decided to take U.S. Highway One to San Simeon. Little did we know how absolutely beautiful this drive was going to be. The only way I can describe this drive is that it is something like a dream. If any of you have driven it you know what exactly I mean. The road seemed to wind back and forth for miles and miles, 73 miles to be exact, and we have a picture of the sign to prove it. The road went from coastal seascapes to the pine tree forests and then back to seaside cliffs. It started to get dark and we pulled in to a small little lodge in Lucia. Actually the lodge is the town. It was a very nice and peaceful establishment and I would recommend it to anyone staying out on U.S. Highway One. We stayed the night after enjoying our meal and scenic views of the Pacific Ocean.
We woke up with the sun on this morning. At breakfast we decided to drive back up to Carmel and the back down the coast. So after the fastest breakfast in my life we were back on the “dream road” as I like to call it. But this time there is not a single car on the highway for miles. But the drive back down the coast was a different story, we got stuck behind a caravan of Winnebago’s, my dad got stuck with this particular part of the drive. We stopped in at Lucia Lodge again for a to stretch and for some drinks, then I slid behind the wheel again and the roads cleared for the next 45 miles it was great. On this highway I saw many rare Porsches. I saw a new turbo as you might expect but I also two 964 speedsters (rare) and what seemed to me as a real 550 Spyder (very cool). We took a tour of the Hearst Castle in san Simeon. An extremely nice house!! We drove to Costa Mesa to visit my older brother, for a couple of days. We had a great time racing the Shifter Carts at an indoor track.
Then it was back to the big state of Texas making a few stops here and there. The best part of this trip was the memories that I formed with my Dad (sounds cheesy but, true.) I know that someday if I am lucky I will do the same for my son.
Very fun trip.
[/img]
__________________
Porsche:
Spiritually,we never stray too far from the racetrack!
|
Linear Mode
