Memphis, Tennessee – Day 4 of the 2013 Hot Rod Power Tour

The drive today from Little Rock, Arkansas to Memphis, Tennessee was through flat farmland mainly devoted to rice, and previously, cotton. We passed through an almost-ghost-town called Cotton Plant where a few hardy souls (649 as of the 2010 census, to be precise) were still living amongst the neglect and decay. We passed one lady out cutting her lawn, while next door stood a once-magnificent church that was now abandoned with a huge section of the roof missing. A few of the Power Tourists stopped to take pictures of their older car in front of the atmospheric backdrop of the abandoned gas station and stores on the main street.

The Chevelle in this picture is the one featured prominently on the promotional material for this year’s tour, and I had the pleasure of speaking to the owner yesterday morning in Texarkana. The same group of owners of the six cars featured are on tour again this year; just some of them have brought different cars. His best friend since first grade is also on tour with his son in a blue Chevelle, and that sort of exemplifies the people I have met so far on tour. Friends and family enjoying the American countryside together and then hanging out at a car show once the driving part of the day is done.

Today we rocked up at the Memphis International Raceway for the car show and some drag racing. I would have loved to have drag raced the ZR1 but it was very hot and there was a massive queue for a run, so I’ve decided to hold fire until Friday at Mooresville, South Carolina. Tomorrow however, I will be doing the autocross at Hoover, Alabama, assuming we complete the 300 miles from Memphis in a reasonable time and I can do the planned broadcast live via Skype on my iPad for the next Corvette Web Blast. My cunning plan is to stop somewhere en-route tomorrow and set up so that I can show the Power Tourists passing as I talk to the studio back in the UK. This might work, or then again it might not, but it seemed like a good idea when I thought of it…

An Illinois-registered Corvair / Corvette caught my eye as it had a mid-engine Corvette powerplant in a Corvair chassis.

Larry Larkin from the Buda Gearheads club in Texas with his 1993 C4 Corvette.

This GTR body kitted Corvette will definitely divide opinion.

My full set of pictures from today can be found on Facebook – Hoover, here we come!