My SRT Track Experience

This week I went to VIR (Virginia International Raceway) and participated in the SRT Track Experience. The day consisted of four different driving events including the full throttle challenge, performance drive, Challenger challenge, autocross, and a ride along with an instructor driver in one of the SRT vehicles. All the vehicles we drove in were the SRT models of the Charger, 300, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Challenger, and Caliber. Instructors from the Richard Petty Driving Experience host the event and each event has a brief to set the expectations and limits for the event.

The full throttle challenge was a drag racing event where two drivers competed for 1/8 of a mile. I did not do as well as I wanted to at this event but I did get better by the third time out. Each driver got four times out in this event.

The performance drive gave drivers the opportunity to drive along the VIR tack with an instructor driving lead with two drivers riding behind in either the Challenger, 300, or Charger. I drove in both the Charger and Challenger at speeds in excess of 120 mph on the one main straightaway. Each driver got four times out in this event as well.

The Challenger challenge was a road course where cones were placed on the track and the objective was to make the best time without knocking down any cones, this was one of two events that I did better than I had expected. Each driver got four times out in this event.

The autocross was much like the Challenger challenge but we drove the Caliber, which surprisingly was a fast and maneuverable little car. Then for the last time on the autocross course, we drove the Jeep Grand Cherokee, which was much more maneuverable than I had expected for a vehicle of its size. Each driver got two times out in the Caliber and one time out in the Jeep.

For the last event, each driver and their guest had a chance to ride along with an instructor in one of the SRT vehicles. Twenty percent of the drivers were selected at random to ride in the Viper SRT 10. I was one of the lucky drivers that had the chance to ride in the Viper and we reached speeds of 160 mph on the main straightaway. Each person got one ride along with an instructor and this was the last event of the day.

This event cost $500 per driver and $60 per guest but people who buy a SRT vehicle get to go to the event free. I bought a Dodge Charger SRT 8 and the dealer I bought my car from told me about the event but I did not think that I would actually go, but I am glad that I did. The experience overall was positive and I recommend it to anyone who has bought an SRT vehicle or wants to experience what a SRT vehicle can do on a raceway.

Here is a video from the day's events:

Great C# Book for Beginners

I found that this book was extremely helpful in learning the key basics of the C# language. I am a novice programmer and trying to learn C# in order to become a developer and eventually take the MCPD (Microsoft Certified Professional Developer) exam. I am currently in college and have taken a class on C but this book with the examples provided the basics I need to continue forward. The author only shows examples of console application but from a beginner’s standpoint I think this is a great place to start. The language throughout the book was easy to understand and having examples to support what the author was trying to teach was helpful. The book has tutorials, examples, and drills that helped me to better understand what I was studying.

I would recommend this book to anyone that has some basic programming skills and wants to learn about the C# language.

Applied Knowledge Group YouTube Video

The company I work for (Applied Knowledge Group) posted a YouTube video showing people how not to collaborate. It is a funny video that I recommend viewing at least once.

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate Review

I had Windows XP Professional on my computer and thought it was about time for me to upgrade. My computer is Dell XPS Dimension Gen 3 and this could have been a terrible experience if I had not read that I need to run the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor, which is a free download from Microsoft that will tell you what possible problems you will have when you upgrade. The upgrade advisor found 5 software problems and 3 hardware problems on my machine. The 5 software problems were problems with Norton’s Anti-Virus, Ghost, and products from the System Works family. Most of these products were over 2 years old and not often used so uninstalling the programs was not a problem. I did a full backup of my machine, using Norton Ghost 9, then used the “upgrade” option to migrate to Vista. The upgrade took about 2.5 hours, in which the machine rebooted 3 times. Then I discovered driver problems with my printer, which the upgrade advisor had warned about, so I downloaded new drivers and the problems were fixed. I had to buy a new version of antivirus that was compatible with Vista, and uninstall some games that don’t work on Vista. I turned off the highly annoying “User Account Control” so that it no longer brings up a popup notification every time I try to run a program. Overall I’d give the install experience 4.5 out of 5. Getting used to the new interface and features has been easy, and if I don’t like them I can make the interface look like XP again. I love the new “search” in the start button area. Overall I give Vista with service pack one 4 out of 5 stars because the operating system is not radically different from XP.

Seven Random Things

I saw the post on Lynellen's blogs and had to respond. Here are my seven random things from left field:

1. I like movies (SciFi is my favorite).

2. I like NCIS.

3. I like to play Guild Wars to the wee hours of the night.

4. I like the technology I work with (most of the time).

5. I like to do a job right the first time.

6. I am not normal and do almost everything differently than most of the people I know (including my wife).

7. I like Stargate (yes the series is over but the movies are coming).