Road trip to Laguna Seca

[thepoche]

Just wanted to share a few pics and videos I took on my road trip to Laguna Seca. I left from Montreal November 14 at 5pm. I was back home, 13,000km later on November 28 at 5pm.

First time I got out of the car for more than 5 minutes was at Hoover Dam
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7389.jpg

The view of the dam from that bridge is going to be spectacular
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7393.jpg

My next stop was at Micro Image where I met cali yaris and TEHxFALLEN. That was very nice, I bought brake pads and rotors and used their shop and tools to install them there, then we had lunch. Very nice guys :thumbsup:
And yeah, my Yaris is the dirty one by the dumpster...
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/IMG_0019.jpg

After that, I went slowly up the coast line following the Pacific Highway 1
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7446.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7493.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7515.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7606.jpg

Those thing made sounds that belonged in a Star Wars movie
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7657.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7668.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7671.jpg

I have now reached my destination :headbang:
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/IMG_0031.jpg

Seeing all these amazing cars, I felt like a little kid in Disney Land
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7697.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7700.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7716.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/DSC_7719.jpg

The next pictures were taken by a photographer at the track. http://www.motorsportlens.com/

And this is where the fun all began...
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/MSL_0004_104WhiteYaris.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/MSL_0007_104WhiteYaris.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/MSL_0011_104WhiteYaris.jpg

At the top of the corkscrew, looks like I have stock suspension now :biggrin:
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/MSL_0018_104WhiteYaris.jpg

This one is my favorite picture
http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/MSL_0016_104WhiteYaris.jpg

http://thepoche.com/California/LowRes/MSL_0019_104WhiteYaris.jpg

I also took videos from inside the car. You can watch them on vimeo.com
Videos (http://www.vimeo.com/user874502/videos)

Thats pretty much it. It started raining not long after the day was over and I left the next day for another very long ride. Got home in freezing rain, that wasn't so fun with high performance summer tires.

Next track... Nurburgring?? Probably not with the Yaris lol

[Malaya1221]

great pix and videos:thumbsup:...how did the ohlins handle?

[Thirty-Nine]

Wowza -- those are some fantastic photos!

[YAR1S]

some nice pics of the pacific, thats one view I have yet to witness in my life it hardly compares to the atlantic view.

[TheRealEnth]

Dam straight dude. Amazing photos. Really breathtaking, what camera you using?

[thepoche]

great pix and videos:thumbsup:...how did the ohlins handle?

The Ohlins were very nice. Felt very stable at high speed and under braking and through the corners, with the help of the hankook rs-2, I could feel a lot of g-force.


how was the actual drive there and back? very nice pics

Very long!!! On the way there, I started with heavy rain, some snow/rain in St-Louis, more rain, then from New Mexico, I burned with the sun in the face all the way to Vegas. On the way back, I stopped for sleep only twice, 3-4 hours each and was back home in 55 hours, then I slept for 2 days.

Dam straight dude. Amazing photos. Really breathtaking, what camera you using?

I borrowed my father's camera, it's a Nikon D80. It does take nice pictures once you get familiar with it but I took a lot of photos and those are the only ones that were good :rolleyes:

[pinoypizzaboy]

very nice pics :smile:. those are some badass custom cars there. i wonder what motor is on that black batmobile looking car?:drool:

[Crandall]

Props for taking on the journey that in itself is no small feet.

I'm thinking of heading out to Laguna Seca at some point. I know some people with some nicely set up cars I could drive. Did you get a lot of track time?

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Awesome pics.

How much and what are the requirements to run on the track? I'm just a few hours away from it (and Infineon).

[thepoche]

I went with SpeedVentures (http://www.speedventures.com/). Requirement is a car that does not leak and is in good mecanical condition and a helmet. Price was $295 USD for registration for one day. It includes 5 sessions of 15-20mins. Worth every penny and them some:thumbup:

[thepoche]

very nice pics :smile:. those are some badass custom cars there. i wonder what motor is on that black batmobile looking car?:drool:

Thats an Ariel Atom and it has a Honda engine. It look very cool and fast.

[Malaya1221]

$295!:eek: kl, guess you have to wait till u get your r.n. license!:smile:

[ChinoCharles]

That is freekin' sweet.

[Saggio]

Killer pics! What do you have done to your car as far as mods for power and suspension?

[thewifesyaris]

:drool::drool::drool::drool::drool::drool::drool:: drool:
I wish I got into racing real cars!

[eTiMaGo]

you are my hero :biggrin:

[bikegerm]

Great pics !! Track speeds, time with yarisworld friends, a perfect recipe for an amazing excursion. ROAD TRIP !!

[cali yaris]

It was great to meet you and thanks for hanging out with us at Micro Image. The pics show the awesome sights you saw and what a FUN track day on a world class track!

That really is what our coast looks like, I hope more of you can come visit, our door is always open to you.

[thebarber]

you are my hero :biggrin:

x2

[marcus]

stock lookin yaris in laguna...sweeeet!

[WeeYari]

Awesome. Hopefully that was one of those items on the proverbial "Things to do before I die" list.

That stock tow hook looks like a friggin harpoon sticking out the front. :laugh:

[Kaotic Lazagna]

$295!:eek: kl, guess you have to wait till u get your r.n. license!:smile:

Yeah...that's going to have to wait until after I become an RN. :laugh:

[TEHxFALLEN V1.2]

It was very nice meeting you, thepoche!

Glad you had a great time at Leguna Seca, as well as an awesome road trip to and from your destination!

Thanks for sharing pictures and videos with us; what a truly awesome experience you had!

[Benggolf2]

Thanks for sharing your experience and fantastic photos! :thumbsup:
Sure brings back memories of the many road trips we made across the USA. :biggrin:

[tk-421]

Excellent writeup and pics, thepoche!
Thanks for sharing. :thumbsup:

[Zefoxe]

I might take the trip out there next December, was thinking Florida but the sea lions won me over :P lol

Sad thing is I could see all the apex's on the track from playing Gran Turismo so much :B

[eTiMaGo]

Sad thing is I could see all the apex's on the track from playing Gran Turismo so much :B

Hahaha join the club...

Go look up a top gear video, Clarkson takes his best time around the track in GT4 and tries to replicate it in real life with the same car... not as easy as it looks...

[darkmoon87]

Nice pictures. What a trip!! Looks like u had a blast, esp. @ the track.

[solarVitz]

looks like you had so much fun out there. those are really some nice pics. im looking forward on taking a road trip from San Diego to Toronto, Canada this coming April. im getting excited already.

[aeipee13]

the photos are so nice i felt like i was reading national geographic.

[thepoche]

the photos are so nice i felt like i was reading national geographic.

haha, actually it's a documentary about the winter migration of the Yarii :biggrin:

[mfratt]

How in the hell were you keeping up with those 911's?

[thepoche]

How in the hell were you keeping up with those 911's?

Years of practice in Gran Turismo :burnrubber:

[jinxor]

amazing pics mate...they were nice..... especially the one on the pacific highway...

[SilverBack]

Nice pics! Must've been a hell of a roadtrip...

See you hit Point Mugu on the way. There's no wrong way to take a pic of that rock sticking out to sea:thumbsup:

The pic of you heading down the corkscrew at Laguna Seca is my fav too. Would look awesome as your desktop wallpaper IMO:smile:

[jkuchta]

Very cool pics, and great lap times at Laguna! Big respect for driving across the country to drive at Laguna Seca...must have been a transcendental experience.

[LtNoogie]

Great videos. I'm picking the best lines in my mind a split second before your hit them.