So I should just tell the story start to finish - starting last night. I knew there was a leak on the front, under the timing cover, but I thought I'd sealed it with good silicone... let it set overnight - that made it so I had to get up at 5:30 this morning to load the car. When I went to load the car, I backed into a landscape rock.... now I need to fix the quarter panel. Went to load the car, there's like 3 spots on my driveway where I can load the car. When I was wasn't it. So I moved the truck, moved another landscape rock with the trailer. Fortunately, all the lights were working (I'll come back to this). Loaded the car, ate breakfast, then took off to be at the track in time for the 8:30 driver's meeting.
As I'm driving down the road, I notice the front tires are turned - not good - on the car. I re-fasten down the car, but when I release the tension, the bumper hits the ramps..... sigh, why can't my nice cars stay nice cars?
I get to the track, spend several hours in class, then we go out to practice braking - what they meant was practice trail braking (my one criticism of the day, they knew what they were teaching, but somewhere in the last 300 years of teaching they forgot to define obscure terms....).
During the braking they notice oil stains on the pavement. At the time they noticed it, the entire track was shut down because someone forgot to tighten their drain plug and put oil completely around the 2.75 miles of the track.... needless to say, they were reluctant to let my car run. Fine, my wife was already going to meet us in time to watch the track portion - so I asked her to bring her BMW so that my friend and I would have something to drive. She got there about noon, and we got brief chances to practice in the parking lot.
The track day itself was pretty uneventful once it got started. 20 out, 40 in novices in their own group, and two other groups - intermediate and advance.
It was, however, raining, and given the oiling from before it was slick. Still, I had a lot of fun spanking Z4s, M3s, and an Evo. Now technically the Evo was faster. It passed me, then spun out. The later crashed, ending the day. So yes, he was faster, but a DNF makes that moot. It was funny to hear the other guys talking about not being able to keep up with a wagon - but it was all light-hearted banter. Of course, I'd have been remiss not to point out that I was spanking them in my wife's car. Which got me a kudo from the instructor - he got into the car, said "nice car" -I said "thanks, it's my wife" he tries to start the car, nothing happens - I point out that he needs to press the clutch in, he says in a voice filled with surprise and adoration "your wife wanted a manual in her wagon??!!!" "yep" I said proudly.
It's a good thing the track is so far away, otherwise, I'd be hooked.... anyway, back to the grind of putting the motorcycle together.
.... and the trailer lights - the marker lights didn't work coming home, so I turned on the Corvette marker lights.... I hate trailer lights.