Y2K5SRT
Enthusiast
So I am out driving the Viper today. In the rain. No, in the POURING rain. Torrential downpours and flooding in Kansas City. And I am driving the Viper. Okay, so at least four people ask me, as you are asking yourselves, "ARE YOU CRAZY?!" Nope, had a "mission" to fulfill and it was worth every drop of rain that I encountered. The background:
About eight days ago I get an e-mail sent to last year's local VCA officers (of which only one is a current officer). The e-mail read in part, "I am looking into obtaining use of a Viper for my Father's 80th birthday celebration. It is his dream car, and he has never had the opportunity to drive, or even ride in one. My query is this... Would you, or anyone you know, be willing to take my Dad for a ride in a Viper?" Now this guy writing is in Seattle, so I am trying to think of some owners that would take his dad for a ride. Turns out that his dad is right here in Kansas City and all SEVEN of his children are flying in to celebrate his 80th birthday. The requested ride is a surprise.
Here is the sad part: Some people TRULY ****. The kids had chipped in together and spoke with a guy that knew another guy that had a Viper. He worked at a Toyota dealership of all places. The guy told the kids that he would let them use his Viper for the weekend for $500, payable up front. So they sent him the $500. And never heard from him again. The dealership told them that he was "passing through" and was somebody that didn't even own a Viper. Needless to say, the kids (many of which are older than I), were devastated and trying to scramble to locate a Viper for their father's birthday. It seems that when they asked him what he wanted for his birthday, he replied that he would like each of them "to pitch in $12,000 or so and buy him a Viper." Kidding, of course. It turns out that the Viper was his favorite car he had ever seen since the concept first appeared in 1989. RT/10, GTS, and SRT-10 - he thought they were the coolest cars on the planet, even though he had never seen one in person.
So, I vow to make up for the scam artist and get at least one Viper there for Dad. I ask a couple other guys to join me so that he can have his "pick of the litter" and choose any model he wanted to ride in. The surprise location was even better: The same high school parking lot where he had taught each and every one of his seven children to drive over the past 40 years. Having that strange TV show connection, I lined that up to cover the event. The kids lined up the local newspaper (Kansas City Star) to cover it as well. All looked to be perfect.
And then the rains came. As expected, the other Viper owners scratched. No desire to go out in a light rain with heavier rains expected. Knowing there was no way I would let this family down again (we had agreed "rain or shine"), I made the trek over to the school. I gotta tell you, it was one of the coolest things I have EVER done as a Viper owner. I first arrive in the prescribed parking lot, making sure to give the engine the appropriate revs to let them know I had arrived. There is a crowd. A LARGE crowd. Besides the numerous umbrellas and makeshift awnings in the trees (tarps), there were several kids waiving flags to "guide" me in. These were grandchildren and I suspect great-grandchildren. Despite the rain hitting the roof and the rumble of sidepipes, I could hear (and see) everybody cheering like I had just crossed the finish line of the Indy 500. It was awesome.
So I pulled in and was quickly surrounded. The crowd parts and an elderly gentleman approaches with his eyes wide. Then a grin like I have never seen breaks open and the rain meant nothing. He begins hugging his children one by one and more than a few are teary eyed. He then comes over to me and introduces himself. The cameras are rolling and flashbulbs are going off everywhere. I tell him happy birthday and that I understand he would like a little driving lesson. The grin gets even bigger. I give him a model Viper (Milestone RT/10) on behalf of the club. I then suggest he jump in the driver's seat (knowing he would not drive) and check out the real deal. He revs the engine after everybody, including me, eggs him on. He was like a kid in a candy store:
And here is a small sample of the crowd that came out to celebrate:
Notice many are chatting with him as he sits in the driver's seat. So, we then do a quick TV interview and then chat with the newspaper folks. All are beaming as Dad tells the story of teaching his kids to drive and his love of a car he had never seen in person. With that said, we decided to take a little drive. Now mind you, I asked a week ago if his health was good and if a quick sprint would bother him. That was before the rain fell and the parking lot had buoys instead of cones.
All said his health was fine and I asked him the same. Well, 0-60 runs were impossible, and triple-digit runs on soaked highways were also out. So I did the next best thing: We went for a cruise and I explained most of the history of the Viper and what the differences were between each model. As we arrived back at the parking lot, I turned to him and said "Ready?" He gave me that devil-may-care grin and said "let's go for it." We then did some spectacular donuts in the parking lot with his family watching and cheering like crazy. Even managed a nice figure 8 for him.
We pull back to the family, who is still clapping and cheering. He gets out, raises both hands in the air and yells "WOOOOOWEEEEE!!!" It was priceless. The kids insist we get a group photo with the seven of them, Dad, and myself. I managed to sneak in a side picture from one of the spouses that used my camera:
There were then hugs all around and kisses from all the ladies (on the cheek, of course). One of the daughters approached and was literally in tears as she thanked the Viper Club for being so generous and caring on such a miserable day. I told her how sorry I was that they had been ripped off and hoped that this made up for it a little bit. She couldn't stop thanking me and it was pretty cool indeed. I then went over to Dad and told him that there are going to be a LOT of Vipers at the I-70 Speedway on the 13th. He immediately said "Can I go?" All the kids laughed and I told him "Absolutely - we will surely have a spare seat or two." So we traded business cards and I am sure we will see Dad again. Very soon.
And finally, two strange things happened on the way home: First, in this pouring rain that no sane person would be driving in, I pull up to a light. Up next to me pulls a new Porsche 911 variation in blue. We both look at each other and shrug - even if he had AWD there was no way we could test each other out in that river that used to be a road. We got a good laugh out of that. The next thing was a jaw-dropper:
I had to slow down and roll down my window to get this picture. It is one of those "you have GOT to be kidding me!" pictures and situations: She was actually using the squeegee to clear her windshield as she drove! Apparently the windshield wipers were toast and she had even rigged up a "pad" for her elbow (in red in the picture). Needless to say, I gave her plenty of room after that, all the time watching as she wiped her windshield at 45 MPH. When we came to a light, I was going to suggest she check the fuses and that I would be happy to check them for her. Alas, she sped off before I could get her attention. I still have the photo though!
Whew! Sorry for the long post, but this was just too good not to share. Despite a VERY rainy day, it was most certainly one of the highlights of my Viper ownership experience. Hope your day was just as great and drier!!
Chris
About eight days ago I get an e-mail sent to last year's local VCA officers (of which only one is a current officer). The e-mail read in part, "I am looking into obtaining use of a Viper for my Father's 80th birthday celebration. It is his dream car, and he has never had the opportunity to drive, or even ride in one. My query is this... Would you, or anyone you know, be willing to take my Dad for a ride in a Viper?" Now this guy writing is in Seattle, so I am trying to think of some owners that would take his dad for a ride. Turns out that his dad is right here in Kansas City and all SEVEN of his children are flying in to celebrate his 80th birthday. The requested ride is a surprise.
Here is the sad part: Some people TRULY ****. The kids had chipped in together and spoke with a guy that knew another guy that had a Viper. He worked at a Toyota dealership of all places. The guy told the kids that he would let them use his Viper for the weekend for $500, payable up front. So they sent him the $500. And never heard from him again. The dealership told them that he was "passing through" and was somebody that didn't even own a Viper. Needless to say, the kids (many of which are older than I), were devastated and trying to scramble to locate a Viper for their father's birthday. It seems that when they asked him what he wanted for his birthday, he replied that he would like each of them "to pitch in $12,000 or so and buy him a Viper." Kidding, of course. It turns out that the Viper was his favorite car he had ever seen since the concept first appeared in 1989. RT/10, GTS, and SRT-10 - he thought they were the coolest cars on the planet, even though he had never seen one in person.
So, I vow to make up for the scam artist and get at least one Viper there for Dad. I ask a couple other guys to join me so that he can have his "pick of the litter" and choose any model he wanted to ride in. The surprise location was even better: The same high school parking lot where he had taught each and every one of his seven children to drive over the past 40 years. Having that strange TV show connection, I lined that up to cover the event. The kids lined up the local newspaper (Kansas City Star) to cover it as well. All looked to be perfect.
And then the rains came. As expected, the other Viper owners scratched. No desire to go out in a light rain with heavier rains expected. Knowing there was no way I would let this family down again (we had agreed "rain or shine"), I made the trek over to the school. I gotta tell you, it was one of the coolest things I have EVER done as a Viper owner. I first arrive in the prescribed parking lot, making sure to give the engine the appropriate revs to let them know I had arrived. There is a crowd. A LARGE crowd. Besides the numerous umbrellas and makeshift awnings in the trees (tarps), there were several kids waiving flags to "guide" me in. These were grandchildren and I suspect great-grandchildren. Despite the rain hitting the roof and the rumble of sidepipes, I could hear (and see) everybody cheering like I had just crossed the finish line of the Indy 500. It was awesome.
So I pulled in and was quickly surrounded. The crowd parts and an elderly gentleman approaches with his eyes wide. Then a grin like I have never seen breaks open and the rain meant nothing. He begins hugging his children one by one and more than a few are teary eyed. He then comes over to me and introduces himself. The cameras are rolling and flashbulbs are going off everywhere. I tell him happy birthday and that I understand he would like a little driving lesson. The grin gets even bigger. I give him a model Viper (Milestone RT/10) on behalf of the club. I then suggest he jump in the driver's seat (knowing he would not drive) and check out the real deal. He revs the engine after everybody, including me, eggs him on. He was like a kid in a candy store:
You must be registered for see images
And here is a small sample of the crowd that came out to celebrate:
You must be registered for see images
Notice many are chatting with him as he sits in the driver's seat. So, we then do a quick TV interview and then chat with the newspaper folks. All are beaming as Dad tells the story of teaching his kids to drive and his love of a car he had never seen in person. With that said, we decided to take a little drive. Now mind you, I asked a week ago if his health was good and if a quick sprint would bother him. That was before the rain fell and the parking lot had buoys instead of cones.
All said his health was fine and I asked him the same. Well, 0-60 runs were impossible, and triple-digit runs on soaked highways were also out. So I did the next best thing: We went for a cruise and I explained most of the history of the Viper and what the differences were between each model. As we arrived back at the parking lot, I turned to him and said "Ready?" He gave me that devil-may-care grin and said "let's go for it." We then did some spectacular donuts in the parking lot with his family watching and cheering like crazy. Even managed a nice figure 8 for him.We pull back to the family, who is still clapping and cheering. He gets out, raises both hands in the air and yells "WOOOOOWEEEEE!!!" It was priceless. The kids insist we get a group photo with the seven of them, Dad, and myself. I managed to sneak in a side picture from one of the spouses that used my camera:
You must be registered for see images
There were then hugs all around and kisses from all the ladies (on the cheek, of course). One of the daughters approached and was literally in tears as she thanked the Viper Club for being so generous and caring on such a miserable day. I told her how sorry I was that they had been ripped off and hoped that this made up for it a little bit. She couldn't stop thanking me and it was pretty cool indeed. I then went over to Dad and told him that there are going to be a LOT of Vipers at the I-70 Speedway on the 13th. He immediately said "Can I go?" All the kids laughed and I told him "Absolutely - we will surely have a spare seat or two." So we traded business cards and I am sure we will see Dad again. Very soon.
And finally, two strange things happened on the way home: First, in this pouring rain that no sane person would be driving in, I pull up to a light. Up next to me pulls a new Porsche 911 variation in blue. We both look at each other and shrug - even if he had AWD there was no way we could test each other out in that river that used to be a road. We got a good laugh out of that. The next thing was a jaw-dropper:
You must be registered for see images
I had to slow down and roll down my window to get this picture. It is one of those "you have GOT to be kidding me!" pictures and situations: She was actually using the squeegee to clear her windshield as she drove! Apparently the windshield wipers were toast and she had even rigged up a "pad" for her elbow (in red in the picture). Needless to say, I gave her plenty of room after that, all the time watching as she wiped her windshield at 45 MPH. When we came to a light, I was going to suggest she check the fuses and that I would be happy to check them for her. Alas, she sped off before I could get her attention. I still have the photo though!
Whew! Sorry for the long post, but this was just too good not to share. Despite a VERY rainy day, it was most certainly one of the highlights of my Viper ownership experience. Hope your day was just as great and drier!!
Chris
