Adirondack Run Report

[Osman Parvez <oparvez1@nycap.rr.com>]

Hi Folks,
   What a great Day! I headed out sat morning, stopping at a carwash on
route to APG (the meeting point) and picking up the promised doughnuts.
Within a few minutes of myarrival, Bob and Annetta Myers arrived in the 
awesome S6. Aly Abukheir arrived shortly afterward in his not-nearly
stock
 red Mr2. Gary S. soon arrived with yet another 5000csQ (no, not the
silver
 ghost from PP butanother one). Gary had to explain very carefully what
the 
deal was with the switcheroo. I had no idea he had 5 Audis at home! Soon
 Phil and Judy Rose pulled up in his very nicely kept 91 200q, followed
lastly 
by Wayne in his 93 Mr2 Turbo. Not a bad mix of cars! 3 type 44's, the
S6, and MkI
and MkII Mr2s.

    We hung out at Autobahn for a while, talking cars and poking under
hoods. While Bob and Phil seemed engrossed in figuring out the
differences between the two 20v's, Gary and I were eyeing the 5000 Turbo
engine parts car. The engine had been removed, but lots of good stuff
remained. Naturally a little bit of rivarly was chatted up early on
between the two marque fans...(me being torn between). Wayne meanwhile
was talking performance mods with the shop I think.

    Eventually, around 11am we got underway. Traffic was thick on the
Northway (I-87) until Saratoga Springs. We lost Aly for a while (turns
out he stopped at a Sunoco before the highway), but eventually he caught
up with us. We made the Albany to Lake George run in approximately an
hour. I ran lead car using a 3000gt for a rabbit. A very clean S4 came
up on us but the driver was completely oblivious. Bob might have made
faces at him or something from his S5, I'm not sure...
     

After a bit of confusion at the exit, we were back on the road heading
up
9N North. Congestion was a little tight as we wove our way from Lake
George
 up 9N. Very nice roads, but not much chance to fly with slower traffic
 blocking the way. The leaves weren't very colorful in this region, 
which was attributed to the moderating effect of the lake. Lots of
twisties,
 so we were forced to apply the "Slow the heck down, then speed the heck
up"
method of playing in the S's. 

       Eventually the traffic cleared quite a bit, but one BMW
motorcycle kept us from really gettting playful. He would speed up on
the straights, then slow down tremendously on the bends. The guy hardly
got the pegs down low, which probably meant that he hadn't been riding
long. We resorted to backing off then charging a corner or two, then 
backing off again...

We made a stop outside of Hague. There was a very beautiful
overlook of the Lake where we parked. A couple of us shot some pictures,
so they may appear soon on either mine or Gary's webpage. Car talk made
the better of us, but Bob's cooler head prevailed (or maybe his
stomache). I noticed him sitting in his car patiently waiting for us
to get rolling again. So we did, making tracks with thoughts of lunch on
our minds. It was time to eat!
        

Aly and I switched cars for the next few miles until we stopped
for lunch at a lakeside cafe a few miles down the road. Driving Aly's
Mr2 made me wish I had mine on the road again. It took me a few moments
to get use to the direct feel and playfulness of driving a Mr2 again.
Aly's suspension set-up took the most getting use to. It was much
tighter than my Mr2 and completely different in feel to my 200q. After a
few minutes though, I was comfortable. 

         What was most impressive though was the power Aly's car had
over my Mr2. I know he is running oversize Pistons, but I'll leave it to
Aly to elaborate on the set-up. I could feel this ear-to-ear grin
develop the moment i started out. Even though I didn't push the car, it
was clear to me that my Mr2 could use a little shot in the arm of power.
I
really like the wheels he was running as well (and amazed at the deal he
got). 
          Anyway, we enjoyed a lunch at this little Cafe on the lake.
Gary,
 Aly, Wayne and I sat together while the couples shared a table. Even
though it was cold, the view was incredible. I think that this cafe
should be footnoted not only for having a incredible view (with outdoor
patio) right on the lake, but for having a reasonably priced menu. The
only thing odd about this place was that it had a outdoor toilet
(Port-O-San) with a humungous chain attached to the door-key. Phil will
attest to the heft of that chain. 

           After Lunch in Hague, we flew up rt. 8 to Brant Lake. This
little section of 8 is a GREAT road. A number of fantastic twists, and
open road for the first few miles was just what the doctored ordered for
stress relief. Although Aly was behind me when we started, I noted that
I quickly lost him in the turns! I guess the boost mod and redone
suspension helped alot as I would have expected him to on my tail the
whole way. Unfortunately we got stuck behind a boat for a few minutes,
but then a passing lane emerged. We took advantage of this and got out
from behind the boat. Only two cars seperated us from open twisties and
casual driving tourists. I got lucky when I saw a break and took it,
passing both of them. The next few miles were pure joy as I took curve
after curve of winding lakeside road. Unfortunately, for a few miles I
was the only one who could enjoy this fully since the two cars I had
passed Bottle-necked the rest of the group. I may have gotten as much as
a mile ahead! 


      We pulled off at the public boat-launch at Brant Lake. Another
scenic spot that was a great-backdrop for a photo. After arranging the
cars
for the shot, Gary figured out a way to position his camera for a
timer-shot without the tripod. At that moment a obnoxious women in a
Ford Explorer showed up towing a empty trailer. Immediately she started
demanding that we move our cars because she had a boat coming in. Gary
rushed to coplete the shot before this woman "went postal" on us. She
was acting as if the boat would sink if she didn't get her truck turned
around soon enough to land it. So, we finished the shot and moved all
the cars out the way of the boat launch....
       

 At that point, Bob & Annette and Phil & Judy turned around and
headed back down rt.8 on route to Manchester NH where they were staying
the night in anticipation of the Kanc Run II. The remaining four of us
continued on Westard on rt. 8. Aly, having to meet with a friend, took
off back down the Northway when we crossed it. Gary, Wayne, and I
continued to enjoy the driving together. We stayed on 8, which finally
had some big passing opportunities but less twisties, until it met
rt.30. We took rt. 30 on down again, stopping for some beverages at the
Rain Dancer Restaurant just outside of Amsterdam. 

Wayne split off from us and took I-90 back home in Amsterdam. Gary and I
 continued back on rt.5 until we returned to APG. All together it was a
 great day. I had a chance to see some people from Pikes Peak again and 
meet some new friends as well. Even though there was a mixed group
between
 the MR2's and the Audis, we soon realized that we spoke the same
language.
 Naturally there was a bit of ribbing, mostly from Bob of course, but it
 was in good fun. I hope to   do it again  real soon. Now where are we 
going skiing this winter?



Osman Parvez
Albany NY
89 200q 175K (down but not out)
85 Mr2 77K
91 Golf (temp)