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I bought a Supercar and got a lot of slowlane lessons...

RHL

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On Saturday I bought a Dodge Viper ACR from Kansas, and drove it the 1100 miles home. The trip could have doubled as a collection of vignettes on sidewalk/slowlane/fastlane mindsets; the story MJ told about how the Countach stunned his sleepy ice cream stand was played out again and again in small towns in Kansas, Missouri, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

-The guy who picked me up from the airport was a wonderfully kind, cheerful, and talkative gentleman. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him though, at 79 years old he described himself as the "low man on the totem pole" at the car dealership. After the printing company he worked for most of his career failed (fortunately leaving him with his pension and some money,) he became "semi retired." He chauffers people to-from the airport to pay the bills. How'd you like to be working at 79? How about working as "the low man on the totem pole?" His reaction to the Viper purchase? "Never in all my life would I have been able to afford an exotic car like that." He was three times my age and had done everything right: Got a pension, worked hard for a company, married, never divorced, went to college (you can find out a lot about a guy from Kansas in an hour).

-At my first stop, some people working at a hand car-wash came up to talk to me about the car. One particularly intent guy in his 20's seemed to be dying to say something, so I asked if he wanted to sit in it. He did, and was going crazy. then he asked me if we could drive two blocks over and buzz his girlfriend's house. I was feeling generous, so I agreed. After we waved to the stunned girl (she was sitting on her front step), I returned him to his work. He sighed, "I'll never be able to get a job that pays the bank to afford something like this."

I told him the truth: "If you want to drive a 3 series or a Lexus, get a better job. If you want to drive a supercar, create a better job."

He looked puzzled and confused, and walked away quickly without asking a follow-up.

-I stopped in Missouri to get dinner, and a crowd formed immediately. Teens leaving the local Wal-Mart took pictures while one of their parents chided, "get a good look, you'll never be able to afford it." Self fulfilling advice from role models.

-At a stop in Illinois, a guy asked me how much I paid for the car. When I told him (it wasn't very much), he just said "I hope you got good financing." and drove away in his early 2000's Cadillac before I could respond. I paid cash.

-The stop in West Virginia for breakfast was the most dramatic. The McDonald's that didn't have any other customers (nothing else was open at 4AM in nowheresville) completely emptied out: The manager, staff, everybody came out to see the car. A guy driving by pulled into the parking lot and was going crazy. When his girlfriend tried to get him to get going, he kept saying "No way baby no way, this is my absolute dream car, my dream car, I'll never be this close again. After this I'm going to have to go back to driving it in video games forever."

The amazing thing is that about two months ago I'd have been saying many of these same things, perhaps more slowlane-y and less sidewalk-y in some instances, but same deal: My job is not good enough, car is too frivolous, I'll never have it, in my dreams, be happy you have a pension, maybe when you're 65, etc.

I'm going to be creating a progress thread in the near future to illustrate how I did it. I've been working so hard on my fastlane plan the last few weeks (I wish I could say that this 31 hour trip was the only time recently I've gone a day without sleeping), that I don't really have time. As it is now, I'm just rambling my excitement, but I want the progress post to be specific, scientific, and methodical so it adds the most value to readers over the long term.

Takeaways:

1. Do authority figures and role models tell you "in your dreams!" when you talk about financial freedom? Are you doing anything to counteract that?

2. Are you betting everything on a life that will make you the "low man on the totem pole" as an octogenarian while the bright eyed kid next to you lives your dreams in his 20's?

3. Do you get excited about the fruit of the Fastlane but then don't have that same excitement when figuring out how to plant the tree to grow it?

4. Is your solution to money problems "I need to find better job" rather than "I need to make a better job?"

5. Are you watching on TV, reading about, or playing a video game representation of your dream life, while the person you're pretending to be is out there really living it?

If so, wake up. There's a better way.
 
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Kak

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Lets see some pics bud!

Its sad how people see cars like this and think to themselves that "these things are made for other people". Why not you?
 

RHL

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I just woke up an hour ago (30 hours without sleep and 4 Starbucks double shots in one day tuckered me out pretty good), so I only have the ones from the dealer before purchase, but here you go:

9loth1Xh.jpg
vY5O0Mqh.jpg
p8gzJWah.jpg

To me, this version of the GTS was always "the" Viper, it's the one I had on my bedroom wall as a teen, and it's the one I really wanted.

Its sad how people see cars like this and think to themselves that "these things are made for other people".

If that thought makes them sad, reading my upcoming progress thread would probably make them catatonic. The saddest part about the people who watch/play video games of their dreams is that their consumption is actually making those dreams a reality for the people in those things (in the video games' cases, it's the creators. $1bn in sales from GTA V anyone?)

Anyway, you don't realize how big the difference between slow-lane and fastlane is until you actually cross the divide. I'm all in now (well, mostly, I still have a brick and mortar job for the insurance and peace of mind (and because I love my slowlane job to death) and about $30,000 lying around in various investments and accounts, but w/e I just started in September), and I couldn't have imagined the insane stuff I'm doing now even back in August.
 
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exige

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Congrats on the achievement, that's an awesome ride. The attention will get old, when all you want to do is _drive_. Enjoy it! We're heading into nasty PA road season so get some driving in now we might have some snow coming soon ;-)

Are you going to track it?
 

RHL

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Congratulations. Brings back feelings of getting my first Vette (a childhood dream). Enjoy it and be careful...

Corvettes are wonderful. I got my Corvette:

qIYbjsch.jpg

right when I finished graduate school. I was on track for the slow lane, but the purchase at that time was pure sidewalk for me. I had the most ballin' car at the $780/mo apartment complex and in the parking lot at TGI Fridays on Saturday night. When that guy started the "Should I Get a Muscle Car" thread on here I wanted to scream "NO! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, NO!" That decision set me back very far financially. I was looking at my little pile of money from my first real job and thinking, "what can I buy with this money?" instead of "what can I earn with this money?"

I wish so bad that I'd bought the Corvette now rather than when I did. My earliest memories with it would be a lot less alloyed than they are now. I hope yours didn't harm you financially like mine did, because it really is a great, great car. If only I'd had MJ's book back then.
 

RHL

The coaching was a joke guys.
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CXxvD71.jpg


One more (craptacular in-the-dark cell pic) from the drive home. It's covered with blue no-mark painter's Duck-Tape to protect from road debris until I got it home, because the dealer in Topeka didn't have a clear bra installer available and none were nearby. Could be a lesson in that about upselling and selling package deals; they'd have gotten another $1,000-$1,500 out of me easily with that service available.
 
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JEdwards

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Had one just like it for over 5 years and 20k miles. Congrats, Have fun.
 

RHL

The coaching was a joke guys.
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We're heading into nasty PA road season so get some driving in now we might have some snow coming soon ;-)

Yeah. I'm going to go to town cleaning it this afternoon in advance of the storm, so it can be really buttoned up. I hosed it off before I fell asleep when I got back, but I was way too beat for the 3 hour detail job I usually do to get my car's truly "clean."

Are you going to track it?
Auto-X for sure. Beyond that, I'm tepid. A guy I know offed his SRT-10 into grass at a track day. Hit nothing on the way off, but variations in the ground level cracked the front facia as it dragged through the grass at high speed. Here's how his expenses broke down from that day:

Track insurance that had a deductible of 20% of the car's value (the best he could find for his application), $700/day.

Front fascia damage: $4,500+ bond/respray (way less than 20% of the car's value, so 100% out of pocket)

Cost to enter track day: $500ish

Total cost: $6,000 in about two hours. I like making money at that speed. Losing it, not so much.
 

RHL

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Had one just like it for over 5 years and 20k miles. Congrats, Have fun.

You rockin' the F430 now? As the last V8 Ferrari with 3 pedals, I covet one pretty bad. I love that metallic dark electric blue color (flame?) they have.
 
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JEdwards

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You rockin' the F430 now? As the last V8 Ferrari with 3 pedals, I covet one pretty bad. I love that metallic dark electric blue color (flame?) they have.

Yes for over 3 years. Hands down, best car I have ever owned.
 

RHL

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Yes for over 3 years. Hands down, best car I have ever owned.

Good, it'll be the best one I ever own too then. Although my Viper will be tough to top; it has a full Belanger exhaust with high-flow cats and a tune, and it literally spits fire when you lift off at WOT. The cackle anytime you lift in low gear sounds like an endless Metallica bass solo. Driving through a mountain tunnel on the way back was life changing.
 

SeanKelly

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Corvettes are wonderful. I got my Corvette:

View attachment 6246

right when I finished graduate school. I was on track for the slow lane, but the purchase at that time was pure sidewalk for me. I had the most ballin' car at the $780/mo apartment complex and in the parking lot at TGI Fridays on Saturday night. When that guy started the "Should I Get a Muscle Car" thread on here I wanted to scream "NO! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, NO!" That decision set me back very far financially. I was looking at my little pile of money from my first real job and thinking, "what can I buy with this money?" instead of "what can I earn with this money?"

I wish so bad that I'd bought the Corvette now rather than when I did. My earliest memories with it would be a lot less alloyed than they are now. I hope yours didn't harm you financially like mine did, because it really is a great, great car. If only I'd had MJ's book back then.

Awesome thread. AWESOME Viper.

I never bought the muscle car (thank God...)
 
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RHL

The coaching was a joke guys.
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Its sad how people see cars like this and think to themselves that "these things are made for other people". Why not you?

I know I already responded to this, but I just want to lift up something else from this great, terse response for others.

The biggest shift in my mindset that got me to this point in life was when I examined exactly what Kak just said above: I had listened a million times to the role models and authority figures around me complain about how much CEO's and the 1% made, how much power they wielded, how lucky they were... a million times, but it wasn't until later that I asked the critical question that none of the people who saw, jumped up and down over, and tweeted pics of my car asked the whole way home.

Instead of saying, "they have it so good, how should the law be changed to penalize them?" I asked, "They have it so good, if I become like them, will I have it so good also?"

Two months later I'm driving a car that's making grown men short of breath with excitement.
 

RHL

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I never bought the muscle car (thank God...)

Good. You already did better than me. I hope to see you pass my ingenuity and success. I'm shooting for freedom by 38. You shoot for it by 28 and beat me to it.
 

Tommy92l

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Just a question

- How does it feel the first time you actually walk into the dealer and buy your first exotic?

Is it surreal? Or did the build up to get to that point make it so it wasn't so instant, making it more believable ???
 
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exige

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So let me ask a question. You're expecting your freedom date to be 10 years out and you've been at your Fastlane plan for 2 months. Would you have been able to use the funds from the car purchase to instead accelerate your freedom date so its not so far out? Or is your freedom date more by choice because you like/enjoy your job?
 

RHL

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- How does it feel the first time you actually walk into the dealer and buy your first exotic?

It was actually more surreal when I test drove the first one (a non ACR, I didn't buy it; I held out for what I really wanted), because that was more of a whim thing. I was taken away from the floor and wisked to a special part of the dealership, the "garage where they keep the supercars." And I realized that that was what was about to happen, I was at a real dealer, in a room full of real supercars (911Ts, Ferraris, Bentleys) looking for MY NEXT CAR.

When I got this one, I'd scrutinized it so extensively from afar that it was a little less shocking, and carrying a certified check equal to what a lot of Americans make in a year made my hands a bit clammy and tremulous, but after I got it the giddiness was surreal. I was freaking out for hours afterwards as I drove.
 

RHL

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Would you have been able to use the funds from the car purchase to instead accelerate your freedom date so its not so far out?

This is a perspicacious question. Very good. That's fastlane thinking.

The answer is "no," but not for any of the reasons you listed. Wait for the progress thread. Everything will become clear. Spoiler alert: This car was free.
 
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Tom.V

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At a stop in Illinois, a guy asked me how much I paid for the car. When I told him (it wasn't very much), he just said "I hope you got good financing." and drove away in his early 2000's Cadillac before I could respond. I paid cash.

Spoiler alert: This car was free.

Hmm, now I'm confused.
 

RHL

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Hmm, now I'm confused.

Don't be. I paid for it up front, but it's going to pay for itself. Like I said, I'll explain everything in a little bit, I'm not ready just yet, I don't mean to be cagey, but my methodology hasn't let me down yet; I want to make sure I have something really solid before I start posting about it.
 

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We sell Vipers in KS? Thought this state was too slowlane to have those :) I live in Kansas City, but from out west...driven through/been in Topeka many times. Rarely see anything in this neck of the woods. Corvettes are still the most widely seen/exciting vehicles around here haha (new Camaros don't count). Congrats on the purchase. Look awesome! I'll have to own several someday, as I couldn't stand just having the older generation...love the look of em all. Glad you held out for the ACR. That'll set you apart by far!
 
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During those 2 months something really crazy must have happened, it's a pretty spectacular change. I look forward to reading your progress thread to see what it's all about.
 

RHL

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We sell Vipers in KS? Thought this state was too slowlane to have those I live in Kansas City, but from out west...driven through/been in Topeka many times. Rarely see anything in this neck of the woods.

This is a great tip for bootstrapping. Buy in an area of low/no demand and sell in an area of high demand.

During those 2 months something really crazy must have happened, it's a pretty spectacular change.

I think that most level-headed office drone types like me typically do about one day of honest work in a week. If you work seven days in a week, it's amazing what happens.
 

Tommy92l

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Even the guys on FerrariChat.com said that out of all the cars they've owned, the viper gets the most attention. Have you gotten any other funny reactions?

Oh and letting that guy drive it is awesome.
 
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RHL

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Have you gotten any other funny reactions?

It's a circus every time you leave the house. I don't think I've stopped at a light yet and had my picture taken less than three times.
 

RHL

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RBefort

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This is a great tip for bootstrapping. Buy in an area of low/no demand and sell in an area of high demand.



I think that most level-headed office drone types like me typically do about one day of honest work in a week. If you work seven days in a week, it's amazing what happens.[/QUOTE]

This part is actually what gets me excited about the fastlane...diving head over heels into YOUR OWN "stuff." Live it, breathe it, bring it to life. Enjoy the work inside, and when you need a break (whenever you CHOOSE to), just take a spin around the block and be giddy in the ride.
 
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SBS.95

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That Viper just looks so mean, congratulations!

May even get to see it out on the open road if you're in Philly, that's only an hour away.

Drive fast, take chances. :coolgleamA:

(and stay safe- taming the Viper sounds like a tough task)
 

FiveOone

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I think that most level-headed office drone types like me typically do about one day of honest work in a week. If you work seven days in a week, it's amazing what happens.

Congrats on the purchase, very nice! Having been a drone myself I can't wait for your progress thread.
 

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