TRIP OF A LIFETIME   (The Heart and the Heartbeat)

Part Two of the Trip of a Lifetime will cover days 5-10 of our 18 day Left Coast Power Tour.  The first four days were detailed in the January Chips (posted 1-1-12), so if you haven’t read that article this may make more sense if you do so.

August 15:  Destination J Lohr Winery at Paso Robles, about 40 miles

This is our first day without driving the majority of the day and it is time to start learning about the art of wine making.  As we drove the 40 miles to Paso Robles my mind wondered to the “lazy days of summer” and the people who talk about that topic. What do they drive and how do they invest their allotted 24 hours of each day.  Summer is the perfect time to enjoy driving your Corvette to experience the great country we live in.  I hope as you read this your mind wonders to people and places you can travel to next summer.

We arrived at J Lohr at 9 AM to beat the heat as we toured the vineyards and the farm equipment used to produce the many varieties of grapes needed to produce quality wines.  There is real science, intensive management, untold hours and a great deal of hand labor involved in the production of quality wine grapes.  Wine grapes are much smaller than table grapes and it takes years of intense management before a vineyard is productive.  Different root stock, climates, soils, and elevation all have impact on producing grapes used to produce the wide variety of grapes used to satisfy our individual preferences for wines.  Since Seven Oaks is a popular J Lohr wine we had lunch and wine in a vineyard, on top of a hill, under one of the many oak trees in J Lohr vineyards.  This unique experience is one that will forever be a memory.  It wasn’t elaborate, it wasn’t costly, and at 100 degrees plus it wasn’t even comfortable.  The people and the setting make it a lifelong memory.

During an awesome evening meal at McPhees in Templeton, Jerry Lohr explained how each of the wines we sampled matched the different courses we enjoyed.  After toasts, thanks, and hugs we said good bye to Jerry & Jolene and joined the ranks of regular tourists.

August 16:  Destination Morgan Hill on CA HWY 1.

We headed north on Hwy 1 from San Luis Obispo with the Pacific Ocean on our left and mountains on our right.  Our first stop along the coastal highway was the Hearst Castle. We toured the home, gardens, pools and heard the history for about four hours and didn’t come close to seeing it all.  We had a late lunch at Rugged Point, followed the curvy, foggy coastal highway through Big Sur, Monterey, Carmel and then headed inland toward Morgan Hill.  Along the route we passed through Castroville (the artichoke capital) and Gilroy (the garlic capital) as we made our way to our motel that would be our home for the next six nights.

August 17: R&R day, zero miles

After breakfast the ladies took half of the Corvettes to shop and the guys spent most of the day at the pool talking about the upcoming car activities in store for us over the next several days.

August 18: Destination Carmel, about a one hour drive.

               The car activities over the next several days are all part of the Pebble Beach Concurs d’ Elegance which is the event our West Coast Power Tour was planned around.  Today most of the vintage automobiles that will be judged on the 18^thfairway of Pebble Beach are driven on a HWY 1 tour and then parked on the streets of Carmel for a free viewing.  The Concurs d” Elegance is a by invitation only, judged vintage car show held at the famed Pebble Beach Golf Course.  The charitable event features the rarest restorations seen any where in the US and possibly the world.

The owners include car enthusiasts with one collector car or many, like Jay Leno who have large collections that range the entire history of automobile production.  Today’s show is very casual and the owners are happy to share their passion for vintage automobiles.  The drivers and passengers dress in period correct attire, including leather driving gloves and goggles.  The side streets are lined with modern exotic cars and collector cars owned by the viewers.  As the vintage cars began to arrive the sights, sounds and smells make us all appreciate how technology has improved the traveling experience.

Even among the most expensive and exotic European cars, six Corvettes from SD drew ample attention, compliments and photos.  Our joke of the day was asking each other “ did you see Jay Leno”   “NO”  “neither did I”

When the vintage cars left town, we had lunch at the Hog’s Breath Saloon, made famous by its former owner Clint Eastwood. As we departed Carmel, we experienced our first traffic jam.  We drove in stop and go traffic for about 15 miles, but it was like a slow moving car show as we shared the roads with very courteous car lovers.

August 19: Destination: Golden Gate Bridge, Sausalito & Muir Woods. About 90 miles

We have a few more days of car activities planned, so it’s time to do something not related to cars.  As we arrived at the Golden Gate Bridge tourist center the strong Pacific breezes were cool, but the daily fog was nearly absent, so we had great views of the bridge, the city and Alcatraz.  The Redwood forests will have to wait for another time because parking was nonexistent, so we had to settle for the view along the 20 minute drive to Sausalito.  Scoma’s Restaurant is right on the bay and we had a great view as we enjoyed our lunch.  Poor planning on my part put us in stop and go traffic as what appeared to be half of the population of San Francisco headed out of town on Friday afternoon toward the Monterey/Carmel area for the weekend.  The ladies enjoyed the shops in Sausalito and even I did a little shopping.  I found my brand of eye drops at the first pharmacy I stepped into.  Am I just lucky or a focused shopper?

August 20: Destination:  Guys and Marie headed for Laguna Seca Raceway.  Gals, Garmin’s, and credit cards headed for San Jose.

Fort Morgan is located halfway between San Jose and Monterey which made it logistically simple for everyone to enjoy their passion. (Cars or shopping).  By this point in the trip the gals had all the best shopping spots in San Jose pinpointed on their Garmens, so half of the Corvettes headed for shopping and the other half headed for the 2.3 mile, 11 turn road course at Laguna Seca.  The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion is a weeklong series of racing events for cars dating from pre-war through the 1970’s.  Cars are broken into classes based on era, horsepower, and technology.  It’s exciting and nostalgic to see the progression of technology that racing has brought to the vehicle we drive today.  My personal favorite was the Grand Am class that ran when road course racing in the US peaked in the late 60’s and early 70’s. The four major US manufacturers were heavily involved with factory-backed cars.  We watched Camaros, Mustangs, Challengers, and AMC Javelins battle it out on the track just like when the major four marketing plans were driven by “Win on Sunday, sell on Monday” philosophy.

Much of Corvette’s current sales success in North America and Europe has been driven by Corvette’s domination on road courses.

Two of the benefits of watching road races are that you can move around the infield freely to watch from numerous vantage points and the pits are always open to spectators.  The owners, drivers and pit crews are eager to share their knowledge if they aren’t busy preparing for their next race. As we were walking through the pit area, Art asked again if I had seen Jay Leno and I responded “no”.

Art pointed over his shoulder and said he’s right there.  I responded “yeah sure, but did look the direction Art was pointing and much to my surprise Jay Leno was posing for a photo with a fan.    As Jay started walking, I asked for a photo and he very graciously obliged.  Our discussion was brief and very cordial, but I was very impressed with his willingness to interact with fellow car lovers.

Later in the day we joined our wives for dinner at an authentic Mexican restaurant.  We shared stories about the races and the shopping experience.  Credit card balances were not discussed.

August 21:Destination:  Guys and Marie: Concurs d’ Elegance, Gals and Garmins:  Shopping somewhere

Once each year about 200 of the most prized collector cars in the world roll onto the 18^thfairway of Pebble Beach for the Concurs d’ Elegance.  The Concurs is a contest of elegance, well preserved or totally restored cars and motorcycles that must be driven.  The cars are judged but there is no score sheet.  The winners are chosen based on the eyes and the hearts of the judges.  Be sure to put the Concurs d’ Elegance on your bucket list.  Since words can’t describe these beautiful cars, you’ll have the chance to view them at upcoming SFCC meetings.

Collectively we took hundreds of photos that will give you a feel for engineering and craftsmanship that has had major influence on the automobiles that we drive today.

Dinner that evening next to the pool again did not include credit card balances.

What are the chances…..

….of running into someone you know at the Barrett-Jackson Auction in Scottsdale, AZ?  Shortly after arriving at the auction on Thursday, January 19^th we ran into our Club president, John Pesicka and his wife Denita.  Later in the day we met club members Dave and Ann Burns and while we were marveling at the chance meeting—–MJ and Cathy Klokkenga walked by us.  We heard there were at least four more couples from our club also attending the auction but didn’t happen to run into them.  Considering the Barrett-Jackson auction has multiple buildings, tents and outdoor displays, held over several days, and with over 270,000 in attendance it is not surprising we missed a few familiar faces.

Randy & Cheryl Nielsen