View from the Empty Nest: October, Corvette Month: Part 2, Setting a World Record

Corvette owners, indeed most sports car or motorcycle riders, keep a mental list of great roads to drive. They usually involve lots of turns; the kind that test your vehicle, show off its suspension, handling, and your driving skills.

One of those roads is US 129 crossing the mountains between Tennessee and North Carolina. It is called The Tail of the Dragon. If you look at it on map, it kind of looks like a dragon tail.

It's claim to fame is 318 curves in 11 miles. Speed is not as big a deal on this stretch of road because many of those turns are very tight hairpin curves that bring the car to about 25 mph. But even at that speed, centrifugal force takes over leaving the driver clinging to the steering wheel, and the rider grasping for a handhold.

Thanks to some of these turns, vehicles over 20' are prohibited from driving this stretch.

Since this stretch of road is not far from us, we have been on it a few times. On October 16, 2015, corvette owners from all over the United States signed up to set a Guinness World Record for the most corvettes to drive the Tail of the Dragon in one day. Since there is no official count, whatever we came up with would set the record. The hope was to get 200+ cars involved. There were well over 438 corvettes when it was all said and done, but the official record will be 438 because that was the number that officially signed up!

Corvette Caravan: View of our club from our rearview mirror

Our club left Blairsville, Ga at 9:30 that morning and headed for Loudon, Tennessee to attend the Corvette Expo. Once there, we registered for the run and received our certificate.

Car shows are mostly about walking around admiring someone else's car, or sitting by your car as people come and admire yours. Think of it as you will; 'exciting' probably doesn't quite describe it, but it can have its moments when you come across some really unusual old cars, new cars, souped up cars,.... anyway, it's a car show.

Happy 'Vettes wear happy faces.

Love this sign! Humor and reality meet.

At 3:30 pm the moment had arrived to line up the cars. At that point, we didn't know just how many cars were participating but we knew it was a lot. As we sat in our car and waited for the signal, 'gentlemen, start your engines', we could hear a gentle, low rumble take over the hill above us where the first cars were getting ready to go. We didn't start our engine, because while there was a 'gentle, low rumble' in the distance, if it had been OUR engines we would not have been able to hear when it was our turn.

Our arm of the car show, lined up and waiting for the call to GO!

I was glad the day was sunny and not cold. For a convertible owner, it would have been unthinkable to participate in such an event with the top up. However, it also wasn't warm. The sun was bright in a clear blue sky, but the air had a chill to it, so I had my fleece headband protecting my ears, and my hoodie and windbreaker and heated seats protecting the rest of me as we headed into the mountains.

We took our place in an already lengthy line and rumbled out of the Loudon Municipal Park. Engines revved as we accelerated onto the highway. Traffic was not an issue. This was an official event and every (EVERY!) intersection for miles was blocked by local police. I wondered what the people sitting in traffic one mile from the traffic light were thinking as Corvette, after Corvette, after Corvette........ kept passing them by. Did we feel a little smug? Of course. It's hard not to as a police officer holds everyone back and waves you through a red light!

For some of the onlookers, it was truly fun. I glimpsed people standing outside stores, eyes fixed on the passing parade of sports cars. One couple, who had planned ahead, had pulled their car over and set up lawn chairs. (By the time our parade was done they probably wished they'd packed a picnic lunch.) As we passed a Harley-Davidson store five guys stood outside. (I told Larry they were standing at attention, saluting. "Really?" he asked. "Well, the sun was in their eyes, so maybe that's why their hands were there," I admitted.)

As we finally turned onto 129, a group outside a store cheered and waved. I would love to know how long they had been standing there. We were in the middle of the pack and cars had been going by for quite a while.

Leaves filtering down left water spots on the windshield.

I must confess, that when 438 cars line up to drive the same road, it definitely changes the tempo. As in any traffic jam, when one car slows up for a turn, the accordion effect takes over and the whole pack slows down. This run really wasn't about speed, superb handling or skilled driving. It was totally a numbers game. Even so, it was fun!

11 miles and 318 turns later we turned into The Dragon Motorcycle Resort at Deals Gap, in North Carolina. It's an iconic pit stop, and that's why we were there...i.e. bathroom break and soda pick up (or drain and refill). Fifteen minutes after we pulled in corvettes were still filing by!

Some went on to Fontana Dam for a photo op, but by then, it had been a long day and we had an hour drive home.

So with the sun setting, the temperatures dropping to a cool 52 degrees, the heated seats on, and the top still down, we said goodbye to the Dragon. It had been fun. I'm really glad we were able to say WE were there, the day the World Record was set.

Now, dinner was calling.

11 Miles, 318 Curves, 438+ corvettes! Yeah, It was definitely worth it.

NOTE: When checking sources online, I found one article that said the unofficial count was 423. Our club president sent us an email telling us the count was 438. Whatever the official count turns out to be, it was still a pretty awesome experience!