George Murray
Enthusiast
Note: This site will not let me post anywhere but here for some reason, so that's why this is posted in this category. Tidewater Mopar Club event at Virginia Motorsports Park, Dinwiddie (Petersburg) VA 21-22 September
(I'll preface this slight rant with the following: I know how important social (versus Motorsports) events are for this car club. Chatting, getting to know people, making friends, and including family members is vital for an enjoyable car club.)
To those who attended, you know that this event was a great success, and lots of FUN!
As far as I can tell, it was advertised well. More on that in a few paragraphs…
Many thanks to the staff of the Tidewater Mopar Club (TMC), the club president, Butch Hora, and especially Tom McCormick, a member of both TMC and the VA/MD VCA Chapter.
Members of other area Mopar Clubs also attended. Scores of Chrysler (and some AMC) owners brought lots of vintage as well as late-model Mopar muscle and other cars and trucks. The late-model HEMI dragstrip shootout on Saturday alone was worth the price of admission. 9 second ¼ Mile Grand Cherokees (and 10 and 11 second Chargers, 300s, Challengers, Magnums)…who wouldda thought?
Except for very early Sunday morning, the weather was PERFECT.
This year, the TMC wanted to do something extra special for the Viper owners of the region. Vipers have been around for more 20 years, which means early Vipers are now considered classics. So, Sunday was set aside as the featured Viper day.
What that meant was that on Sunday there would be open test and tune on the dragstrip (actually test n tune was available for Vipers on Saturday as well), as well as a nice FAST Autocross course set up by NASA. For those of you who Autocross, NASA’s Mid-Atlantic chapter is no joke – great people who set up a fine course (also very active in road course venues including Summit Point and VIR).
If you’re afraid to break something on a dragstrip, then Autocross is a great way to have lots of fun with practically ZERO risk of breaking anything except pride if you nail one too many cones.
I’m not sure what the exact Viper count was on Saturday, but I think it was 10 or 11. Sunday? FIVE.
Has the VA/MD chapter become merely a “meet for lunch” social club? Do many Viper owners like to drive their Vipers in a controlled environment where you can actually (safely) learn and experience the performance these incredible cars offer?
It appears this event was well-advertised via email. I saw tht John M. announced it more than once.
Of all of the local, “grass roots” events planned for Viper owners, this one was the real deal. I’ve been a Viper owner since 1996, and this was by far the best “local” event that included Vipers in the past 10 years. The only thing that would have made it better was more Vipers.
People: We had only THREE Vipers show up for the Autocross course.
Camaraderie, Vipers and Mopars, great people, and the chance to experience high-performance driving. The driving wasn’t required, of course. Some chose to show only and not drive. But they did, at least, show up.
What am I missing?
(I'll preface this slight rant with the following: I know how important social (versus Motorsports) events are for this car club. Chatting, getting to know people, making friends, and including family members is vital for an enjoyable car club.)
To those who attended, you know that this event was a great success, and lots of FUN!
As far as I can tell, it was advertised well. More on that in a few paragraphs…
Many thanks to the staff of the Tidewater Mopar Club (TMC), the club president, Butch Hora, and especially Tom McCormick, a member of both TMC and the VA/MD VCA Chapter.
Members of other area Mopar Clubs also attended. Scores of Chrysler (and some AMC) owners brought lots of vintage as well as late-model Mopar muscle and other cars and trucks. The late-model HEMI dragstrip shootout on Saturday alone was worth the price of admission. 9 second ¼ Mile Grand Cherokees (and 10 and 11 second Chargers, 300s, Challengers, Magnums)…who wouldda thought?
Except for very early Sunday morning, the weather was PERFECT.
This year, the TMC wanted to do something extra special for the Viper owners of the region. Vipers have been around for more 20 years, which means early Vipers are now considered classics. So, Sunday was set aside as the featured Viper day.
What that meant was that on Sunday there would be open test and tune on the dragstrip (actually test n tune was available for Vipers on Saturday as well), as well as a nice FAST Autocross course set up by NASA. For those of you who Autocross, NASA’s Mid-Atlantic chapter is no joke – great people who set up a fine course (also very active in road course venues including Summit Point and VIR).
If you’re afraid to break something on a dragstrip, then Autocross is a great way to have lots of fun with practically ZERO risk of breaking anything except pride if you nail one too many cones.
I’m not sure what the exact Viper count was on Saturday, but I think it was 10 or 11. Sunday? FIVE.
Has the VA/MD chapter become merely a “meet for lunch” social club? Do many Viper owners like to drive their Vipers in a controlled environment where you can actually (safely) learn and experience the performance these incredible cars offer?
It appears this event was well-advertised via email. I saw tht John M. announced it more than once.
Of all of the local, “grass roots” events planned for Viper owners, this one was the real deal. I’ve been a Viper owner since 1996, and this was by far the best “local” event that included Vipers in the past 10 years. The only thing that would have made it better was more Vipers.
People: We had only THREE Vipers show up for the Autocross course.
Camaraderie, Vipers and Mopars, great people, and the chance to experience high-performance driving. The driving wasn’t required, of course. Some chose to show only and not drive. But they did, at least, show up.
What am I missing?
