Got my first wave from a C8 driver today!
The people in the newest generation of Vette, especially if it's their first Vette, often don't know about "The Wave".
Just as Porsche owners flash their lights and Jeep owners leave ducks under the wipers, Corvette owners wave.
Some generations are more likely to wave than others.
C1 and C2 owners typically don't return the wave to C4 and newer. They will not initiate the wave to C3 and newer. They're a dour lot.
C3 and C4 owners wave enthusiastically, especially if returning the wave from a C6 or newer!
C5 owners are the exemplar of wavers. No prejudice up or down in generation.
C6 and C7 owners are tentative wavers. This is because there are a lot of second owners in this population as the original owners transition to the C8.
The generation one removed from the newest typically won't wave at the newest.
The newest often doesn't wave at all, as detailed above.
Ducks? Yes, I'm a fat old vet, but must not be in target demographic. All I'd heard about was the "Wrangler wave". (And as near as I can tell, real Wranglers have two doors).
ReplyDeleteA lot of the Jeep guys I know kind of look down on any of the Mopar era Jeeps and any of the square headlight ones... and some even poo poo the Cherokee (although for some reason they don't seem to hate the same disdain for the old Wagoneer).
DeleteAnyway, I try to wave at any Vette I see, although sometimes prudence of safety keeping eyes on the road and hands on the wheel make me miss a few. And sometimes myself or the other Vette are just moving too quickly for it to happen in time.
Of course since I'm a C3 and C4 driver that puts me in the "wave enthusiastically" category, so I can't argue too much with the above...
Other than it is rare to see a C1 or C2 on the road anymore except going to and from car shows. Car show types tend to be less dour than others... well at least most of the wash and shine shows we have around here. The NCRS and trailer queen type people... yeah, sometimes pretty "serious".
Here in Bowling Green, every Vette owner waves at every other Corvette.
ReplyDeleteC3 owner here, guilty as charged…
ReplyDeleteMy theory, and this is borne out by the various sub-forum’s on “The BIG Serious Corvette Forum” is that Corvette driver friendliness and sense of humor is inversely proportional to your car’s cost, and directly proportional to the likelihood of it stranding you on the side of the road at the least opportune time.
The guys with the expensive trailer old queens are a “very” serious bunch, always discussing casting and lot numbers, while folks with newest generation or two have never suffered the indignities of a stuck thermostat or a thrown u-joint. Those of us who drive the middle generations never know when we might be reliant on the generosity of a stranger to get us home, and thus, are generally a pretty happy go luck bunch, who wave 😉