Florida Corvette Club Inc. - The Most Active Club In Florida

The Tail of the Dragon
October 20, 2006

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Our trip to Asheville, N.C. started out on Oct. 20th where we meet at 6:00 at the Mobil on the Run on 46 and I-4 in Sanford. Dave and Elaine Stanley, Lisa and Dave Jessing, Michael Brown and Katreece Dunbar, Michael McBride, Patrick Sidorchuk and Karen Blihar caravanned up 95 to the Georgia rest stop and met Bob and Ellen Malizia.

Driving up 95 to 26 into North Carolina where the mountains were beautifully covered with fall colored leaves. We stopped for lunch at the world famous Maurice's BBQ. Once at our hotel The Best Western Biltmore West, we meet Dick and Linda Nitz and Jeff Bootz and Renee. The hotel was once a convention hall and hotel for larger parties. They were remolding parts of the hotel rooms but over all it was nice for the price of $77/nite. Many others were paying $150 since this was peak season. We had a pool inside and out, pool table, workout room, inside rooms looking over the pool/gardens inside, and outside rooms, vending machines, ice and continental breakfast. We were located right next to our exit with gas stations, Applebee's, Fats, and many more restaurants.

Friday night some decided to sit at the hotel and relax. Patrick, Karen, Dave and Elaine, Dick, Linda, Micheal McBride went to eat at Maggie's Galley with Rich and Suzy, some corvette friends who were staying at their cabin in Maggie Valley. Maggie's Galley is a log cabin made out of two old cabin put together, with a fireplace and an upstairs it was very quaint. The food was delicious with a lot of seafood on the menu and the prices were under $20. This was a place only the locals knew about.

The next day it was up and out of bed early and it was a balmy 34 degrees. We drove about two hours to 129 Deals Gap which is the start of the Tail of the Dragon, here we stopped and bought souvenirs. The Tail of the Dragon is 318 curves in 11 miles which we raced as an autocross. When we reached the end at the lake we were like little kids getting off the rollercoaster and couldn't wait to do it again. Professional photographers were present and took our pictures as we raced by and are posted on the web. Check out dragonslayer.com, moonshine.com, killboy.com and hillbilly.com -day 10/21/06. You may purchase these photos as a keepsake. We took highway 28 back to the interstate to Asheville. Jeff Bootz and Renee announced their engagement on this trip and headed back to the room for some alone time.

Next we did the FCC version of the Keystone cops in downtown Asheville; we never passed the same corvettes so many times in all our lives. The club members meet at the Shell station off the interstate while Michael and Katreece drove to the AAA office to purchase discount tickets for the Biltmore. On their return to the station Michael's car got stuck in first gear and we waited- what seamed like forever for their return. Michael, Katreece and Michael McBride stayed to repair the car as the rest of us headed to the Biltmore Estate.

Entering the front gate the drive was a three mile ride though a pine forest. We parked the cars and were shuttled to the Mansion. Once inside we walked the shops while our table was being prepared for lunch at the Stable Café. The tour was about two hours where we covered all four stories and the basement of how the Vanderbilt's lived and entertained. The 255 room estate was built in the 1890's at a cost of 4 million dollars and is truly an American castle. We then toured the winery and gardens with live jazz music playing. There was a court yard with tables and chairs to eat and socialize. There was a party in Michael and Katreece's room and after drinks and snack the dragon slayers called it a night.

All the members left at the crack of dawn but Patrick and Karen drove to Maggie Valley and toured the Wheels Though Time Museum. The first thing we saw was a red /red 62 corvette. There were dozens of classic cars and hundreds of antique motorcycles. We departed with Karen driving, and hopped on the Blue Ridge Parkway. We drove up the mountain though the thick clouds to see a sunny dry barren mountain top. The Blue Ridge Parkway is a beautiful winding road with scenic overlooks every few miles. The leaves were peaking with all the reds, yellows and oranges of fall colors. After 71 miles of mountains to the interstate we headed back home to Orlando with 94 degrees. Three days of fall wasn't enough but it was memorable.

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