I am finally back home! And after 9 years of active duty I am out of the Marine Corps.
So I actually got back into the U.S. back in October in order to out process of the USMC. I had to fly into North Carolina and check into the base, but then I got a flight to DC to meet my parents at the airport and pick up the car. It was about a 6-7 hour drive back to North Carolina which was the first time I've driven the car long distance with the RPIs on the car. Honestly, it wasn't as bad as I thought.
Down there I found cans of Plasti-dip for a decent price and
painted the wheels white. There are mixed reviews on the outcome, but I'm pretty happy with the look. It was a bitch to clean, but I would have put the same care into cleaning unpainted wheels as well.
So I set off from Camp Lejeune, North Carolina last Wednesday(18th) on my road trip home. Being that I was already down South I wanted to take advantage of that and do some sight seeing instead of just driving straight home to Maryland. First stop was my pilgrimage to bring the Z back to it's birthplace at the BMW plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina. I didn't end up getting into town until late Wednesday night so I checked into my hotel so I could get plenty of sleep for the long day of driving I had planned.
Got to the BMW Zentrum not too long after they opened and was told they are actually planning to close soon for some renovations. I was able to walk around though.
I LOVE these old roadsters. I was impressed with the cars on display. I think the only things that could have made this better was some Z3 and Z4 Coupes and a 507.
Interesting to see a Z1 since they didn't sell in the U.S. as far as I know.
I was surprised to see a Z4 on display honestly. There weren't any on display in Munich in the museum. And an Alpina no less! Notice the subtle differences like the gauges and the arm rest pad around the parking brake.
Isettas!!!!!!!
I was surprised when I saw the Alpina Z4, but I really didn't expect to see a Z4M Roadster!!!! And in almost the same spec as mine! I don't know how I feel about the roll hoops being the whiteish leather, but the wood dash looks pretty nice on this car. A very special car indeed.
It's cool to see them hang up the group photos from the Z homecomings
Gina....
Some of the rest of the musem.
There was also some X models on display, but nothing too fancy. Overall the museum was a little underwhelming. It's not a large building, but at least it is free. Unfortunately the store was closed so I couldn't do any shopping. Before leaving I pulled the car up and took some photos outside of the museum.
After leaving the museum I gassed up and set out for the next part of the trip. I had seen an article on Jalopnik about best driving roads. Someone recommended 215 in North Carolina, which I noticed happens to intersect with Blue Ridge parkway. And then not too far from the end of Blue Ridge park way is Tail of the Dragon! I had been planning this part of the trip for quite a while actually, and I could not wait. Here is a little map of
most of my route. For some reason Waze gave me a slightly different path for the beginning part, but after getting on 215 it was exactly this going from the bottom right to upper left. There is also another line going to the upper right, it's the entire Blue Ridge Parkway, I didn't drive that one yet....yet...
215 was amazing, but Blue Ridge Parkway.... If you're going to be in the area you have to drive this road in these cars. Absolutely the best road I have ever driven. I only drove the last 50 miles of the road in the South direction and was blown away. Of course I was top down the entire time, with the seat heaters on and heat blasting on my feet
It was about 50-60 degrees Fahrenheit and sunny perfect skies. I was there mid day on a Thursday and the roads were EMPTY. A few people here and there, but I was alone for most of the ride. Long sweeping corners on perfect payment, I was in 4th and 5th between 3-5k RPMS almost the whole time, an amazing road! I cannot wait until spring to do the entire route.
I did feel a bit of brake fade toward the end of Blue Ridge, so I stopped to get a bite to eat, refuel the car, and let the car cool down a bit. Blue Ridge ends at A on the map picture, and Tail of the Dragon starts at C. I didn't stop on TotD so I don't have any photos. This road was a roller coaster. Even if I had my GoPro going, I wouldn't upload the footage because of how I was driving. I'm sure there are videos on youtube that will give you an idea. The deep banked alternating turns and everything made this road an absolute dream. I've driven the Nurburgring and this feels pretty comparable to some sections. I would love to do this road again with some track tires. The RPIs howling out back and the cold air in my face was one hell of an experience. 10/10 will drive again!!!!!
So after these amazing roads I hopped back onto the highway in Knoxville and drove up to the VA state line where I got my last hotel. Friday was to be a pretty straight forward highway drive, but I decided to make it a little more interesting. About 2/3rds the way into DC I hopped off the highway and jumped on Skyline Drive. Unfortunately I didn't realize this was a National Park so there was a $20 entry fee and a 35MPH speed limit
The Ranger at the gate told me I wouldn't be able to make it to the other end because they close the gates at 5pm and it was 3pm, "Challenge Accepted!"
I didn't make it though. I tried, but even trying to average 50-60mph, I just didn't have enough time so I exited with about 30 miles to go and only 20 minutes to do it I was polite and didn't pass anyone in places I should have or anything, but it's impossible to drive a road like that in a car like this at slow speeds. The drive was pretty amazing aside from the speed limit and the slow people who fallowed it and wouldn't let me pass. I saw 2 Black Bears along with more Deer than I could count and surprisingly no road kill.
By the time I got home the whole road trip ended up being about 1200 miles, and in total probably about 2000 miles from picking up the car to getting home. After all this time overseas it is really nice to have my car for more than 2 weeks at a time. I can't wait to drive it again!