Hello all,
I wanted to take a minute and talk about my week out in Austin, Texas. I must say the Texas Rally wasn’t exactly what I expected…. It was much better! Being my first GT rally, I didn’t quite know what to expect really. I’ve been to countless Automotive rallies/meets/expos but this was much different.
I arrived late unfortunately to Tuesday night’s dinner had to unload the GT and change after driving 14 hours from florida w/ the truck and trailer. I arrived roughly around 8 pm, where everyone was already seated and enjoying their salads/appetizers. I looked around the room only to recognize NO ONE! Being one of the “Young Guns”, I was wondering how easy it would be to fit right in and be welcomed. To my surprise, I was blessed with the openness and warm welcomes right off the bat. You don’t find this with any other car group. I often read the forums about how wonderful the GT family is, but haven’t posted much, and until now haven’t seen first hand. It’s truly impressive how together and friendly everyone is.
Parking down in the garage the first time, it was equally impressive. So many GT’s of all colors and modifications. Each represent a personality trait of their owner. The GT Owners aren’t afraid to give their own personal tweaks to their vehicles. Something you don’t see often on this caliber vehicle. As a great man recently said (*cough* Shadowman *cough*), “Egos are not a component of this group but rather self confidence”…I couldn’t agree more. I didn’t meet one egotistical GT owner, but I did meet several very proud ones, almost father like, as they should be. I feel like now I need to design more products/modifications so I don’t have such a plain White w/ blue stripes GT parked in the garage after staring at all of yours!
I tried my best to consume myself into as many conversations as possible. To those who I didn’t have the opportunity to speak, my apologies. But to those who I did, Thank you. I had a great time speaking with all of you. Being an engineer myself, I enjoyed lengthy chats with Camilo, Jamal, and Mark about various technical discussions; opportunities that would have never been possible without the Rally’s existence. My only regret is not taking more pictures, so I will be enjoying peeking at everyone elses pictures they post along the way.
Special thanks to Dave and Francesca. You guys are great, it’s not easy putting on an event like this. Chip Beck, many thanks to you as well. I didnt know Bony, but I could surely tell how important he was to this community. I could sit here for days on end typing about all the great people and stories, but in short, it was a pleasure meeting everyone. :cheers
In closing, I must post my favorite picture I snapped at the rally.
I look forward to future events, and hope to see many of you new friends in the coming months. But for now, I have to go wash hundreds of dead insects off the GT!
Regards,
Steve Mason
P.S. DBK please don’t forget to fix my PM’s! and change my user title too if you can when you’re not too busy thanks! :thumbsup
I wanted to take a minute and talk about my week out in Austin, Texas. I must say the Texas Rally wasn’t exactly what I expected…. It was much better! Being my first GT rally, I didn’t quite know what to expect really. I’ve been to countless Automotive rallies/meets/expos but this was much different.
I arrived late unfortunately to Tuesday night’s dinner had to unload the GT and change after driving 14 hours from florida w/ the truck and trailer. I arrived roughly around 8 pm, where everyone was already seated and enjoying their salads/appetizers. I looked around the room only to recognize NO ONE! Being one of the “Young Guns”, I was wondering how easy it would be to fit right in and be welcomed. To my surprise, I was blessed with the openness and warm welcomes right off the bat. You don’t find this with any other car group. I often read the forums about how wonderful the GT family is, but haven’t posted much, and until now haven’t seen first hand. It’s truly impressive how together and friendly everyone is.
Parking down in the garage the first time, it was equally impressive. So many GT’s of all colors and modifications. Each represent a personality trait of their owner. The GT Owners aren’t afraid to give their own personal tweaks to their vehicles. Something you don’t see often on this caliber vehicle. As a great man recently said (*cough* Shadowman *cough*), “Egos are not a component of this group but rather self confidence”…I couldn’t agree more. I didn’t meet one egotistical GT owner, but I did meet several very proud ones, almost father like, as they should be. I feel like now I need to design more products/modifications so I don’t have such a plain White w/ blue stripes GT parked in the garage after staring at all of yours!
I tried my best to consume myself into as many conversations as possible. To those who I didn’t have the opportunity to speak, my apologies. But to those who I did, Thank you. I had a great time speaking with all of you. Being an engineer myself, I enjoyed lengthy chats with Camilo, Jamal, and Mark about various technical discussions; opportunities that would have never been possible without the Rally’s existence. My only regret is not taking more pictures, so I will be enjoying peeking at everyone elses pictures they post along the way.
Special thanks to Dave and Francesca. You guys are great, it’s not easy putting on an event like this. Chip Beck, many thanks to you as well. I didnt know Bony, but I could surely tell how important he was to this community. I could sit here for days on end typing about all the great people and stories, but in short, it was a pleasure meeting everyone. :cheers
In closing, I must post my favorite picture I snapped at the rally.
I look forward to future events, and hope to see many of you new friends in the coming months. But for now, I have to go wash hundreds of dead insects off the GT!
Regards,
Steve Mason
P.S. DBK please don’t forget to fix my PM’s! and change my user title too if you can when you’re not too busy thanks! :thumbsup
