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Viffermike's 'Doc Hollywood' blast to PEC Atlanta

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15K views 25 replies 15 participants last post by  Viffermike  
#1 ·
Hi gang,

As promised, here are some photos from my six-day, five-night, 2,550-mile Deep South blast from Dallas to the Porsche Experience Center Atlanta and back -- all with a temporary tag still on my 718 Cayman. It was an awesome trip ... Some notes:
- I typically avoid Interstates. 90 percent of the trip was driven on either U.S. or state highways, with the odd 'interesting' county road thrown in.
- The 718 did not have one single issue the entire trip.
- I averaged 29.7 mpg. That's right: 30 miles per gallon in a Porsche!
- I hit 110 mph three times and 115 once, all inadvertently. This car essentially feels the same at that speed as it does at 45 or 50. Just fantastic!

Now, onto the pics:
On La. 484, which runs parallel to the Red River, central Louisiana:
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A bridge over swampland on La. 22, southeast of Baton Rouge (The Cayman's element: swamp!):
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Off U.S. 90 just west of Biloxi, Miss.:
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An, um, 'expansion' of an AME church in rural Alabama just east of Tuskegee:
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Morning view of the playground at PEC Atlanta:
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Me and my driving instructor in front of the 718 I drove during my Driving Experience session at PEC Atlanta. It was a HOOT; really thankful I did this. Knowing firsthand what my car is capable of, both on the track and under out-of-control situations, is a huge win.):
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A panorama from a crest in Talladega National Forest, eastern Alabama:
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A second shot from Talladega National Forest:
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Outside the Barber Vintage Motorsport Museum -- the world's largest motorcycle collection (and incredible architecturally; it's a must-visit for any gearhead) -- at Barber Motorsports Park, in Birmingham, Ala.:
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Next to the American Queen riverboat on the Mississippi River in Natchez, Miss.:
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And, for you college football fans ...
Outside Tiger Stadium (LSU):
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Outside Jordan-Hare Stadium (Auburn):
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Outside Bryant-Denny Stadium (Alabama):
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And outside Davis Wade Stadium (Mississippi State):
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#24 ·
Wow! I just joined and I have to tell you, I love your road trip pictures. Your first picture on LA Hwy 484 looks to be beside the Cane River Lake in Natchitoches, LA. This is where I live.
I'm so excited to see that you stopped at Tiger Stadium also.
I love looking at your pictures and seeing your posts!!

I'm a new Porsche owner. I'm thinking of powder-coating my wheels. Would you recommend it?

Thanks for the advice.
Katrina
 
#26 ·
Thanks, Katrina! (PLEASE tell me you weren't named for the hurricane ... ) My family's got deep roots in your area, so it's dear to me. Example: an old family cemetery is southeast of Alexandria, and my grandfather -- the youngest of 23 children -- ran a campground on Toledo Bend reservoir outside of Many for many years. Both he and my father are LSU grads.

Look up my Colorado trip pics in this same subforum ... and I'm in the process of planning a 13-day, 7,100-mile trip in early May. :D
 
#22 · (Edited)
Great pictures and a great trip. Thanks for sharing with us. We could have picked any car we wanted to take on the PEC track but the more powerful the car, the more it cost to rent/use on the track. We drove a Cayman GTS and a Boxster. We picked up our car at Atlanta PEC and drove 640 miles back home to South Florida. We got over 30 miles per gallon on the trip home in a new GTS.
 

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#23 ·
Thanks! 30MPG in a GTS, too! Noice!

Looks like I'll be doing a second multi-day trip in early July; in the route-planning stages now. Alli (my 718) gets new Conti ECS shoes tomorrow and her 10k maintenance (at 7.8k, natch) on Wednesday in preparation for it.

There'll be a second trip-photo thread when I get back! :)
 
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#15 ·
Thanks all, very helpful! I have used the Armor All but my wheels were not in "perfect" shape when I bought the car so I am not sure if it has made a difference with the stock silver color.
 
#16 ·
The Armor All product does a great job at repelling brake dust but it won't do much for improving the look/shine of your wheels.
 
#13 ·

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#7 ·
Well done!

We had a similarly good time at PEC/Atlanta in December. Our trip, back to NJ was about 1500 miles (via, Savannah, Myrtle Beach, Charleston, OBX, etc.)

We actually get slightly better mileage in our 2.0 base car, probably because we were driving gently as we broke it in.

We loved the drive home and have been inspired to plan some longer trips coming up. Friends of ours finished a 14,000 mile trip in their Cayman in Sept. They left California, headed north across Canada all the way across to PEI (where we met them). And then they roamed the southern US, finally heading back to California. And they brought their dog with them.
Their car was the bronze-colored '09 PDK Cayman S that Randy Pobst tested for Motor Trend.
 
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#2 ·
Great pictures! It looks like it was an epic journey.

At the PEC, do they let you choose a car that is optioned close to your own (for example, base vs S, manual vs PDK, tire size)? They recently opened the one in Los Angeles and plan on attending, but since you can't take your own car, I would find it most instructive if I can match my car's setup.
 
#3 ·
Great pictures! It looks like it was an epic journey.
Thanks! it was, though not quite as epic as this 3,200-mile drive I did this past March in a BMW 2 Series.

At the PEC, do they let you choose a car that is optioned close to your own (for example, base vs S, manual vs PDK, tire size)? They recently opened the one in Los Angeles and plan on attending, but since you can't take your own car, I would find it most instructive if I can match my car's setup.
They do, to a point. Here's the list of PEC Atlanta options and prices. They do ask if you prefer PDK to manual (as well as if you can drive a manual), and the track cars tend to have most performance-oriented boxes checked (Exceptions: Most don't have PTV (Porsche Torque Vectoring w/ LSD) if it's an option, and most don't have CC (carbon ceramic) brakes if it's an option). My track car was very close to what I own.