| "Dr. Dean" has been a bit of a house hold name around here (tt.net) over the past decade. Dean's Z has always been on the cutting edge of what the market has to offer and even a few trick goodies that may not be on the market per-say. Dean has been in the process of upgrading and building his "Baby", a Black Z32TT for the last long while. With great anticipation, coupled with a few close friends Dean hit the track for the first time in about 2 years equipped with a fresh Specialty Z build and a couple hundred more horse power that then last time prior. The result can be seen in the pictures below. What can not bee seen is that this event was Dean's first time racing this build. It was on a pro tree (no 2 tiered count down of the yellow lights), and his brand new MT ET Street Radials had a tough time holding the extreme amount of power the Z is putting down. A long time friend of Dean's, Greg Dupree, was there to lend a hand in the pits. Seb was unfortunately unable to attend this event, but you can bet that he will be make it to the next one with a smile on. Talk about service! Anyone that has been a Specialty Z customer will know that they treat you like family first! This is why us AZ guys make it out to their shop about twice a year :) To round it our Ryan (SeedyRom) and & were there for to show our support and to burn some film. For those of you who do not know or have never meet Dean let me fill you in a little bit.... I first met Dean in person about 2 years ago when me and a couple other AZ guys came to hang with the SoCal guys at an IDRC even in Fontana, CA (only about a 5 hour drive for us). Dean was going through some tough time in his life then , but managed to keep a smile all night long. As the racing ended that day and the sun crest the horizon we gathered around as Dean captivated us with stories of past events. He would take about when Seb & Zoe made it into the 10s with 5spd transmissions, the low 11s runs Mike H. made on stock turbos, Greg's first 9s pass and the elaborate tales of some of the canyon cruises he had shared with Greg. Before we knew it the time had struck midnight and we all ventured back to our hotel that evening. After that event I kept intouch with Dean via email every now and again to keep up with a great guy that made us all feel welcome on that winter track day. Fast forward a year and I had gotten an opportunity in the SoCal area that I just couldn't pass up.
After a couple talks over the phone, meeting his wonderful GF, "V", I was invited to take up residence in the home that is a Z32 shrine. Dean took me in and made me not only feel welcome but he made me feel like family. I have gone through many experiences in my life during the time I lived with Dean & I can honestly say that I came out with another best friend. If anyone is ever around a track in the southwest region take the time to say hello to Dean. He will make you feel like one of the guys. Then he will kick your A$$ on the track, because... well Dean is one fierce competitor! I was fortunate enough to have Dean as my text messaging life line on my first 1/4 mile outing a few weeks back (I will post about this later). He helped me shave over a full second off my time from his advise and experience. "Thank you" may just be two words, but I have a feeling Deans knows the depth of those words. On to the pictures! Take a good look how the show car worthy Z is capable of running mid 9s! There are very few Zs out there that look this good and go this fast. 
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For more info on Dean's Z check out the Specialty Z Blog
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DR. Dean Delevie hits the track! (06/20/2010) - 
