1990 ZR-1 Blk/Gry 430hp $18,500

[ZZZZZR1]

John,

Congrats! Look forward to pictures on your trip home!!!



David

[RHanselman]

Stop by Vegas and say hi!

[AustinJohn]

Thanks for the good wishes! John

[Ccmano]

She's waiting patiently for you John, I promise to keep her under 150mph as I drive her daily to keep her loosened up.
Hans

[AustinJohn]

Several of you were kind enough to ask for highlights of Henry and my trip back to Texas and I'll happily oblige.

After rescheduling to accommodate Henry’s busy summer we flew to California June 23rd and started our way east the next morning after a Bon Voyage event organized by Hans that included Hans, his friend, John Waltman, and their wives. John (in the Route 66 shirt below) is the owner of five Vettes including a ’90 ZR-1 and the fabulous retro-rod. The other picture is Henry later in the trip at Winslow.

After returning to Hans’ house, we introduced ourselves to Hans' magnificent ZR-1, Hans gave us an orientation and we were on our way. One week later Henry and I pulled into his driveway in Memphis and two days later I was home in Austin having had the time of my life while driving the ZR-1 a total of 2694 miles.

As for the trip and the ZR-1, in a word "Fabulous"! The ever-evolving history of Route 66 seems to have further polarized since I first traveled it on my motorcycle back in 2000 and my Corvette visits in later years: some venues have turned it into a richly-mined art form while those on the other end of the scale have slid even further into obscurity. The Route 66 highlight of this trip was the truly spectacular stretch from just north of Needles to Kingman, Silegman and Williams (where a big-city street sweeper appears every morning to keep a Disneyland-like atmosphere).

Williams was also where Henry and I took the train to the Grand Canyon about which Henry wrote (in one of two emails he sent to an assortment of his and my family and friends)

When I first saw the Grand Canyon I thought I was dreaming because it is so big and so beautiful. There are no words to describe it but breathtaking. I tried taking pictures, but I could not capture the beauty and the expanse of the Grand Canyon.

One of the recipients of Henry’s emails responded to Henry

Memories are so great. Just always try and remember that "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away". Keep that in your mind forever and go in search of those special moments.

But much of the trip wasn't intended to center on scenery but rather on time to visit and that was all I could hope for. Many "older" couples Henry and I visited with on the streets, in restaurants or at the Grand Canyon told Henry "You're the luckiest teenager in the world to be on this trip" and although I didn't disagree, I felt equally lucky to have an uninterrupted week with Henry. Quite a trip indeed.

As to the ZR-1 although I feel I’m preaching to the choir I’ll simply say it was and is amazing. I've had a fair amount of seat time in Corvettes - my '94 and '85, several C5's I evaluated and a C6 I rented from Hertz for a week and drove 3000 miles around Texas - but none came close to this ZR-1 as Hans has it set up. The power is perfect, the transmission is perfect, the brakes are perfect and the Corsa's were never irritating and just the right tone for city/country/short hop/long haul trips. It doesn't feel like any Corvette I've ever driven but it feels like the Corvette I would like to drive forever. I just hope I can keep it to the same standards it was in when I backed it out of Hans' garage. [And to add a coda: The first day back in Austin the ZR-1 passed its Texas state inspection with flying colors and I got my Texas registration and plates.)

John

[VetteMed]

Great post, thanks for sharing!! Congrats!

[ghlkal]

Thanks for sharing your adventure with us, John. (I can only see two of the images ... the others are red X's - I want to see more pics!)

A ZR-1 on Route 66 with your grandson - it can't get much better than that. The memories you made are priceless.

[AustinJohn]

Originally Posted by ghlkal

Thanks for sharing your adventure with us, John. (I can only see two of the images ... the others are red X's - I want to see more pics!)

Actually I only posted two pix. I didn't want to wear out my welcome.

Originally Posted by ghlkal

A ZR-1 on Route 66 with your grandson - it can't get much better than that. The memories you made are priceless.

You're right about that!

John

[ZZZZZR1]

John,

Thanks for posting and telling us about your trip!

Pictures are awesome!!!!!



David