Ferrari of Tampa Bay's 5th Annual

Mille Miglia di California

2015

September 12th  -  September 21st 

Well, I'm on the road again.  This time for the Ferrari road rally.  A week long driving trip around California from Sacramento to Lake Tahoe to Yosemite to Napa Valley, across the Golden Gate Bridge and on to Monterey.  

I found out about this trip last summer when I saw a Ferrari of Tampa Bay trailer parked outside the Little Nell in Aspen. When I took my car in for service last October, I asked why the trailer was there and was told about a road rally that they have every year.  So naturally ... I jumped on board and here I am.

My dear friend Sharon flew all the way to California to meet me in Sacramento yesterday where we met up with 11 other couples to begin the rally.  I had no idea what to expect.   

We were greeted at the airport by some folks from Ferrari of Tampa Bay who drove us to the Ferrari staging area, Whitney Oaks Country Club.  

       

Our cars were strategically placed in a circle drive surrounding a fountain, reminiscent of a beautiful Tuscan villa.  Each car had been labeled with the event's logo and a car number.  My yellow 458 Spider is number 12.  

We had lunch on a terrace over looking the car display as folks meandered around the vehicles, snapping photos and drooling over each one.  

After lunch, it was time to lock and load.  

Sharon and I went to the yellow #12 458 Spider where Thaddeus, the Ferrari expert technician, showed me how to turn on the headlights, how to tune in the satellite radio, AND to my surprise, I discovered that I have a large trunk.  Sharon didn't have to downsize her purse after all.  

Around 3:00, a line of 12 gorgeous Ferrari's set out on our journey to Lake Tahoe.  Gil had the pole position.  I was second in line.  

We made our way from the Whitney Oaks Country Club to the interstate where Gil turned it on.  Apparently Gil has only two speeds, slow and wide open throttle!  The line of Ferrari's raced down the interstate reaching speeds of 105 miles per hour as folks hung out of car windows to take photos of us.  

For those of you who don't know, a Ferrari 458 Spider is really a street legal race car.  The speedometer registers 220 miles per hour.  If one drives over a coin on the road, the suspension is such that you can identify whether it's heads or tails.  Just kidding about the heads or tails thing, but it definitely rides like a fine tuned racing machine.

The views changed dramatically as we drove toward Lake Tahoe.  However, at 105 miles per hour, the only view I was concentrating on were the taillights of the Ferrari directly in front of me.  At these speeds, and with the convertible top down , conversation between Sharon and I was impossible.  I have to give Sharon credit.  She is a GREAT passenger.  If I had been the passenger driving at these speeds, racing down the interstate, I would have had white knuckles AND white hair!  However, she said she felt incredibly confident in my driving.  I'm glad SHE was confident.  I was just holding on and trying to keep up.  How does my racing friend Kenny drive at speeds three times this fast.  I have a new appreciation for The King of Speed!!

The scenery could have been exquisite, but we saw it through a haze of smoke.  Lingering, smelling of ash in the air and burning our eyes, smoke from the California fires hung heavily in the air, giving the appearance of thick fog, 

I haven't driven this car much in the past three years, so I'm still learning my way around it.  I commented to Sharon how quickly the temperature had dropped once we reached the mountains, from 94 to 80.  Even though it didn't feel like the temperature was dropping, I tried to convince myself the air was cooling, when I suddenly realized that I was looking at the digital speedometer instead of the thermometer.  That was a blonde moment.

I had no trouble keeping up with the lead car in front of me and we were running rapidly down the highway when Sharon received a text that we needed to make a fuel stop.  So we all exited the road and pulled into a gas station.  It gave me a chance to catch my breath and break the death grip that I had on the steering wheel.  When we pulled out of the gas station, I politely waved cars along and when we finally pulled out, I realized I was no longer behind the lead car, but rather dead last!   I felt very secure in the middle of the pack, but very vulnerable in the last position.  Sort of  like  when hiking ... the last person in line gets eaten by the bear. I just knew I was going to get stopped by the police, ticketed and hauled away to jail for excessive speeding.  And nobody would have known because as fast as they were driving, they'd be in the next state before they realized I was gone.  Fortunately, there was no police incident.  The other drivers were quite surprised that I could keep up with the pack.   I think I earned some healthy respect from the seasoned members of the rally. We arrived at the Ritz Carlton of Lake Tahoe in record time.

Shortly after checking in to the hotel, we taxied to the Lone Eagle Grill at the Hyatt Regency, for a late dinner.  On the shores of Lake Tahoe, the restaurant offers spectacular views and an amazing dining experience making it one of the top restaurants in Lake Tahoe. The restaurant was packed, the food was great, the surroundings were lovely, but most of these folks arrived today from the east coast.  By the time we finished dinner, it was nearly 2:30 east coast time.  We were all  exhausted, so the 30 minute taxi ride back to the Ritz was very quiet.  

Tomorrow, we're off for a ride around the lake to South Lake Tahoe for a lake cruise.  Hopefully, the smoke will clear.