Corvette Z06.

Mine 'ain't no garage queen! She runs the tracks hard, but still looks pretty.
I drive her like the designer's of the Corvette Z06 meant her to be driven!

It's an unbelievable thrill driving on the Daytona road course in any car!

Half a lap starting out with clean underwear in my upgraded 2002 Corvette Z06...

... then at 150 MPH keep it steady again with the steering and shift into 5th gear and flatfoot on the gas! Stay really near the outside wall and exit turn four at 160+ MPH, shift into sixth gear and GO. At the Start/ Finish line the Z06 speed is about 170 MPH and start braking, as at the Turn 1 almost hairpin like corner you need to take at 55 MPH is approaching at 250+ feet per second!

If you are a 'Car Guy Or Gal' you might like the road course stuff that's below...

An enjoyable 'Advanced/ Instructor' HPDE session with very little traffic.
Top speed with this particular track configuration is just about 130ish.

I own a Chevrolet Corvette Z06 with new track modifications. I don't race the car, however I do High Performance Driving Education (HPDE) with it. HPDE refers to driving schools held on dedicated road race tracks designed to teach drivers proper high speed driving techniques. It's amazingly addicting, and slighty scary sometimes to be honest. Add in very expensive, and that's the basic formula for this hobby.

It's definately an expensive 'Love/ Fear/ Respect' relationship that I crave to be cranking along safely at 160+ MPH in this car on a real race track like I did at the Daytona road course. It's somewhat boring driving around the roads where I live in this Corvette, and the fastest it's been publically is 80 MPH on the Florida Turnpike... Honest, no kidding.

The stock Corvette Z06 can run 165ish MPH on the track, and 0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds/ 0 to 100 in 9.2 seconds/ and 0 to 100 and back to 0 in 13.5 seconds. The Corvette Z06 gets 18 MPG in town, and 28 MPG on the highway. Never thought that did 'ya?

Here's a dashboard camera video of HPDE Instructor's only driving on the track.
On lap two I let a full blown racing Porsche GT3 Cup car pass me because he can.

Here's some new track additions to my Corvette Z06...

• 61"W X 14"H Carbon Fiber adjustable rear wing.

• New six speed racing transmission and clutch.

• Slotted rotors, new calipers, and racing brake pads.

• Harness bar and six point safety restraint system.

•hans® head and neck restraint device.

Nomex 2 layer fire suit and other personal fire wear.

• Cockpit radio for driver and passenger.

• HalGuard fire extinguisher on quick release bracket.

• Three 1080p HD cameras mounted in the cockpit.

• Set of Nitto NT01 road racing tires on OEM rims.

• Seven bulb LED adjustable RPM shift light.

• Aluminum 'Heel And Toe' wide throttle pedal.

•Custom external oil cooler with stainless steel hoses.

• Upgraded Master Cylinder and braided brake lines.

• DOT4 fluids in all applications, instead of stock fluids.

• Corvette C6 Z06 knuckles in the front suspension.

• Lowered overall ride height for Z06 track race setup.

• 'AIM' Data Acquisition. Speed, Lap Times, G-Forces, etc.

Whew! ... And more stuff I can't remember just right now.

Many thanks to John Crawford of Islamorada, for working on my car!
It's very reassuring on the track knowing you have a Technician that cares.

Some photos of my Z06 ready for the tracks...

200 MPH speedometer standard on the Z06 model.

Carbon Fiber adjustable wing for downforce and stability.

Six point harness belts and a Halguard fire extinguisher.

hans® Head And Neck Restraint System.

3 HD 1080p cameras mounted to the harness bar.

Under the hood... C5 Corvette Z06/ LS6 405 HP engine.

Nitto NT01 road course racing tires on second set of rims.

Go Have Some Great Fun On A Real Race Track!
If you have a fast car, or even a car that's not so fast and want to try it on a real race track, click an HPDE link below! These are well run events and safety is top priority. Starting out you WILL have to have a qualified Instructor before you advance which is a wonderful learning experience at your rate of advancement, and skill level goals.

No matter how much you think you can drive a car smoothly and fast, you will learn far more from your Instructor than you ever could imagine! I know I did, and thousands of others too. Lamborghini or a Nissan Leaf... all are welcomed. This is not a 'Richard Petty Driving Adventure', as YOU will be driving YOUR car to the limits you want to... learning and enjoying it all the way around the track!

These are all professionally run events by people that have a ton of racing and HPDE experience. They are all well orchestrated and not chaotic at all. It is a controlled and safe enviroment with safety to every participant being most important.

I drove 23 HPDE track days in 2011, and here are my Organizer picks.
- ALL ARE PROFESSIONALLY RUN, AND SAFETY IS TOP PRIORITY! -

Most dang fun laps for your ... My very favorite!

I like them very much. Open passing for some drivers.

Very nice people, but I hate the after session meetings.

Drive a fast Corvette with an Instructor. I drove Daytona!

A limited Florida track schedule, but a well run organization.

To Find Southeast HPDE Events.

HPDE On Track Insurance.

Great on-line free magazines...

For the average guy on a road course track.

The very latest in all new car information.

Last but not least, here's on of my favorite videos. It's his first laps on a track, and he was really nervous even before we ventured out on racing slicks. Then it rained.

Enough of this driving cars on a track stuff; back to fishing!