Life isn't a matter of milestones but of moments
Dr. Porsche or:
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Track
It's been almost 16 months since I drove home from my local dealership in my '07 C2S Cab. In that time I've really been racking up the miles and driving the car every chance I get. For a guy who works from home and has no commute, I'm actually a little bit boggled. In the five years I had my M Roadster I only put 32K miles on it. Last month I realized that the magic 20K mark was staring me in the face on the 911 and I wanted to do something special to commemorate it. It took a little bit of creative dispatch work and a few times where equiraptor got to drive us places in her car, but I managed to hit 20,000 while out on the track at Texas World Speedway this past Sunday. I passed 20,000 coming out of turn 4 and crossed the "finish line" on the front straight with the odometer still reading all those 0s. I can't think of a better way to commemorate the occasion.
It's true that mileage markers like this are completely arbitrary but our brains are wired to create narratives. When you hit a milestone like this it turns into a great opportunity for reflection. It invites an array of questions: How have the past 16 months been? Was the car worth it? Should I have done anything differently?
I've got to say that this 911 has been the most rewarding car I've ever owned. Full stop. The depreciation has been breathtaking but every time I get behind the wheel those pragmatic thoughts just evaporate. When I buy the next 911 (oh, yeah, did I mention that it's 911s from here on out for me?) It's probably going to be a very similar spec to this one. Sure, I'll skip the silly sport chrono and go for the ceramic brakes, but for the most part I think I got it "right for me" this time around.
On the street the car seems to attract just the right amount of attention (and the right kind).
On the track the handling is sublime and I continue to be amazed by the degree and level of feedback I get from the car. I'm no expert track rat, just a solid intermediate "blue group" driver. Even at my level it's not only possible but quite fun to play around with the limits of traction at the rear end and muscle the car through corners using that rear weight to tighten up the turn. Porsche's experience building these cars is quite evident when an amateur like me can do stuff like that out on the track.
This past weekend was my first time running Texas World Speedway clockwise, so I had to re-qualify to drive solo. I took some video on my third session on Saturday with my instructor in the car with me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VR-RA1fV2Ec - One Lap
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xB_IrP0nfU - A spin and A pass
Cheers! Get out there and drive! Don't save your car for the next guy, he probably won't appreciate it like you do.
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Track
It's been almost 16 months since I drove home from my local dealership in my '07 C2S Cab. In that time I've really been racking up the miles and driving the car every chance I get. For a guy who works from home and has no commute, I'm actually a little bit boggled. In the five years I had my M Roadster I only put 32K miles on it. Last month I realized that the magic 20K mark was staring me in the face on the 911 and I wanted to do something special to commemorate it. It took a little bit of creative dispatch work and a few times where equiraptor got to drive us places in her car, but I managed to hit 20,000 while out on the track at Texas World Speedway this past Sunday. I passed 20,000 coming out of turn 4 and crossed the "finish line" on the front straight with the odometer still reading all those 0s. I can't think of a better way to commemorate the occasion.
It's true that mileage markers like this are completely arbitrary but our brains are wired to create narratives. When you hit a milestone like this it turns into a great opportunity for reflection. It invites an array of questions: How have the past 16 months been? Was the car worth it? Should I have done anything differently?
I've got to say that this 911 has been the most rewarding car I've ever owned. Full stop. The depreciation has been breathtaking but every time I get behind the wheel those pragmatic thoughts just evaporate. When I buy the next 911 (oh, yeah, did I mention that it's 911s from here on out for me?) It's probably going to be a very similar spec to this one. Sure, I'll skip the silly sport chrono and go for the ceramic brakes, but for the most part I think I got it "right for me" this time around.
On the street the car seems to attract just the right amount of attention (and the right kind).
On the track the handling is sublime and I continue to be amazed by the degree and level of feedback I get from the car. I'm no expert track rat, just a solid intermediate "blue group" driver. Even at my level it's not only possible but quite fun to play around with the limits of traction at the rear end and muscle the car through corners using that rear weight to tighten up the turn. Porsche's experience building these cars is quite evident when an amateur like me can do stuff like that out on the track.
This past weekend was my first time running Texas World Speedway clockwise, so I had to re-qualify to drive solo. I took some video on my third session on Saturday with my instructor in the car with me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VR-RA1fV2Ec - One Lap
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xB_IrP0nfU - A spin and A pass
Cheers! Get out there and drive! Don't save your car for the next guy, he probably won't appreciate it like you do.
I've planned the same thing for the 50,000 km mark while lapping Nordschleife again a couple of weeks ago...and then I just missed the magic moment being to busy with driving 
Many more happy miles 
I'm absolutely going to do European delivery on my next Porsche specifically so I can get some laps in at the ring on "my" car.
