build diary

August 27, 2007: The Lotus Owner's Gathering (LOG) took place in Aspen this past weekend.
I was too burnt out from other car-related activities to sign up for the Colorado Exotic Car Association trackday on Sunday or the LOG trackday today, but I did jump in the passenger's seat of the Westfield and head down to Aspen for the "concours". As a friend noted, the organizers had spread 2 short days of activity over three full days, so there was lots of time to just wander around and look at cars because, well, nobody had anything else to do!

One thing I did do was meet up with Peter Egan. He wanted a look at the Westfield, and for me it was a chance to sit down and talk with a hero. Like many gearheads, I grew up reading his work in Road and Track, and I do hold him heavily responsible for my interest in Sevens due to his enthusiasm for light cars, British cars and working on cars - and the habit of combining all three. Our conversation about the Westfield meandered around, taking side trips to discuss why nobody can ever identify the year of a classic Cadillac and Hank William's last road trip. It was a most enjoyable afternoon.

I did spend a bit of time looking at the captive Lotuses, though. It appears that Chrome Orange is very popular amongst Elise owners but that the color doesn't really flatter the car as much as it flatters mine. Interesting. Lotus does have some delicious colors on the Elise, though - a red with bottomless highlights and Laser Blue, a color I've used on a Miata in the past. Janel was ready to put in an order for a Laser Blue Elise, although she did state a worrying admiration for the earlier cars. And she thinks I spend a lot of time in the garage now!

One car that did catch my eye was this Donkervoort. Look at that metal work! Not just the pretty vents in the flawless aluminum nose, but the lip around the air intake in the bonnet and even the contouring around the suspension. Amazing work. And a whole lot of polishing.

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