Tail of the Dragon - WAY COOL!
 

Was in Asheville, NC for a work meeting, so couldn't resist taking the extra hike and going to visit the Dragon.

All I can say is: WOW! I'm originally from Europe and have been to a bunch of twisties in the Alps etc., but this road is absolutely over the top! Most roads leading up mountains have hairpin-straight-hairpin etc... layouts - not the Dragon... Some of the stretches have 10 or so turns without any straights worth mentioning. The road dips nicely in the corners as well - as if designed for Boxsters! Road surface, unlike many other roads in NC, is just about perfect!

I was going between 4,000 and 7,000 revs in 2nd most of the time (std. Box, 5 gears) - Great sound! I had PSM on and off at times, and found the car easier to push through tight corners with it off, but you do have to be a little more careful.

I was lucky to be there on a weekday, as weekends go pretty nuts from what I understand. Many bikers on the road, most are cruisers, some are racers. I went once in each direction, and must say NC->TN was my favorite direction.

Tons of other cool roads around there as well, many less crowded. The 5 hour drive home after this, most of it interstate, was rather dull...

Also, don't make too much of an effort preparing to make action shots; there are at least 3 entrepreneurial bikers that take pictures of all cars and bikes and post them on the Internet to buy. I'm waiting for my HQ pics, but here's a sample of what's to come.

http://www.fuqua2003.com/Tail-of-the-Dragon-8-18-06.jpg

Awesome, just awesome. Good for you. I'm incredibly jealous!!

Over here in LA area there are some nice canyon roads. In the city area (Mulholland Dr, Malibu Cyn) they are way too crowded to enjoy. But between Santa Clarita and Palmdale - try Bouquet Canyon Road for a nice long set of turns. 5 miles are nearly empty, and another 5 miles have campgrounds and stuff so you have to be more cautious.

Tail of the Dragon - thats legendary... maybe someday I'll check it out! Sweet!

Hi,

Glad you enjoyed it. I have done the Dragon a few times, but in my Esprit, not the Boxster... yet! Best to plan for a weekday if you can or at least arrange your trip on a weekend when the Healey, Miata, Jag or other clubs aren't having an event.

I too have driven the Alps (was raised in Switzerland) and while the Dragon is truly a great stretch, there's lots of great Alpine roads as well. The Coast Road in Maui from Walea up around the Western Tip of the Island and down to Hana is also one of my favorite roads. My wife and I really put a Miata through it's paces on that road and it's a Gas...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

You need to come down to Orange County/San Diego county. Plenty of rather unoccupied roads (compared to Bouquet Cyn & Mailbu), namely Palomar Mountain. Taken the 987S up that road once, very nice. Ortega Hwy from Lake Elsinore to Capistrono is OK but usually crowded or under construction, not to mention very dangerous (co-worker took his last ride on that road at night).

I've never heard of the Tail of the Dragon, but it looks like loads of fun! I won't say I'll never drive my car across country to go try it out, but .. if you let me borrow yours :D

PCNA just had their 2007 987 model demo for journalists at the tail. Apparently they thought it was the perfect road for showing off the Boxster as well.

Got the link from the Google feed:

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1155812843606&call_pag eid=970599119419

I haven't been myself, but on my list of things to do....one day, right?