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Volume 13 Issue 3 The Official Newsletter of the Indy Miata Club March 2002
What’s InsideFour Wheel Drift... Chuck Wills
PresidentIndy Miata Club
Page 2
Officer Listing.Museum Tour.
Page 3February Go-KartEvent Review.
Page 4Future Events.Cartoon Contest.
Page 5Dr. Detail.MX-5 SpecialEdition.
Page 6Driving Music.
Page 7Best Selling SportsCar.Autocross Info.Classifieds.
Zoom-Zoom to page 2
Hard core. In Webster's, it's defined as: (hard'kor') Stubbornly resistant central part of a group, held toconstitute a social problem. Now, I take exception to the "social problem" thing, but I've always consideredmyself a hard core car enthusiast. I was born with Mobile 1 in my veins and my first words were "how fast doesit go?" (as my Mom says, it's the truth!). Whether on the street or race track, I just dig fast cars. Soundshard core, right? Wrong.
I have come to realize that though I may be a staunch enthusiast, I am not hard core. I have been forcedinto a serious paradigm shift, and have to admit that there is a person that is more hard core than me.It's my wife, Teresa. AKA Teresa Turbo.
Now don't get me wrong, I love Miata's and driving and the whole top-down auto experience, but TeresaTurbo is militant about it!Check these facts:1. Topless Issues: Teresa will never drive the Miata with the top up. NEVER EVER. We've owned the roadsterfor 5 years and she has yet to twist the ignition key with a roof over her head. I drive the car withthe top up... sometimes quite often. She complains about even riding in the car with the top up. I have seen herin the winter time with hat, gloves, scarf looking like some World War I flying ace as she pulls down the street.When I bought the hard top this winter I thought she was going to disown me. Yes, I am a roadster heretic, andshe is the purist. 2. Sideways Driving: While I may hang the tail out on the race track, Teresa Turbo has a knack for getting intothe boost and sliding on the street! Hey, no tickets, no bent sheet metal, no injuries, so more power to her. Shelikes the turbo boost, hence the nickname Teresa Turbo (be sure to call her that next time you see her). 3. Other Drivers: True story - when confronted by a poser in a certain German sedan, Teresa Turbo liberallydipped into the boost and taught him a lesson. There were unsubstantiated reports that this was at triple digitspeeds at the top of 4th gear. When this girl has an automotive point to drive home, you'd better just get out ofher way! 4. Wheel Time: If Teresa doesn't get in her required amount of roadster time, she ain't happy. And you knowthe old saying, "If Momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!". Can you blame her?
All of this reminds me of a quiz my Father once gave me. It was the "Hard core Sports Car EnthusiastTest" or something of the sort. It was multiple choice, and harkened back to the days of MG's and Triumphs -the good ones from the 50's and early 60's. The test went something like:
1. What kind of oil do you use: A. Multi-weight detergent oil B. Non-detergent single-weight C. Castor Bean Oil2. If you break down on the road you: A. Call for a tow to the local repair shop B. Call for a tow to your home workshop C. Fix it on the side of the road with your completely equipped tool box.3. When you are out driving and it starts to rain you: A. Quickly raise the top B. Pull the top from the trunk and quickly put it on C. Top? What top!??!!?
2 Open Road
2002 ClubContacts
PresidentChuck Wills
8609 Woodbluff Ct.Indpls, IN 46234
TreasurerPat Metheaux6430 Berwyn
Indpls, IN [email protected]
Club Founder/Tech
Rich Hickle317-347-9660
March 2002
Vice-President
Rick Morris4249 Springwood Ct.
Indpls., IN [email protected]
4. What kind of lights does your car have A. Stock head lamps B. Hella halogen C. Lucas Flamethrowers(That reminds me of an old English car joke: Why do the English drink warm beer? They all haveLucas refrigerators!)
Any answer besides "C" puts you in the non-enthusiast wussy category. Poor me, once ahard core gear head, now reduced to auto wussydom. At least Teresa Turbo hasn't deserted me.Maybe I'll have her take me for a top-down ride. Heck it's above freezing today, I may even drive ittopless (the car, not me!).
That's all for this month. Stay tuned for April when I describe the subtle differences between
guibo's and CV joints.
Continued from Page 1
March is here, and we have a very exciting and unique event planned. The bad news is thatwe could only schedule it at the end of the month... sorry for the long wait.
We have the unique opportunity to tour a special private auto collection at Royce Motors.This collection includes a very eclectic bunch of cars, ranging from Ferrari's and Jensen's to Pontiacsand Packards. (Article about Royce is in the December Open Road, page 2.)
There are several dozen cars in all, and each one has been restored to better than newcondition. The museum curator has been kind enough to open the museum to us that morning.
After touring Royce Motors, we will embark upon a short west-side tour around Eagle Creekand end up at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. After touring that famous collec-tion we will head to a local eatery for lunch. Please note, this is not a rally, it's a tour. You can go atyour own pace and enjoy the drive. It should be a great time!!**Admission at Royce is FREE*** Admission at the Speedway is $3 PER PERSON, CASH** We’ll meet at 9:45am, March 30th at the McDonalds at 71st & 465 (west side, Park 100)We will hand out the tour maps, have a quick drivers meeting and be on the road by 10:15 SHARP!You must RSVP to Chuck Wills if you want to attend. All money will be collected the day of theevent. Don't forget to bring cash to get into the Speedway Museum! Don’t be square, see youthere!RVSP to: [email protected] (New E-mail address) or 317-291-5563 or 317-697-7192.
Indy Auto Museum Tour 2002
MembershipDirector
Barb Gentry5379 Carnoustie Cir.
Avon, IN [email protected]
TechDirector
Wayne “Doc” Reynolds317-299-8002
Open Road Editor
Sara J mcBride317-291-8993
Website EditorJim Nutt
Please send all articles, pictures or information for publication in the Open Road to:Sara J mcBride4249 Springwood Ct. Jim NuttIndianapolis, In and/or [email protected]@dustbunny.com
The Open Road is published mon thly for the members of the Indy Miata Club. The Indy Miata Club assumes noliabi li ty for any information contained herein , or inju ry or damage resul ting from use o f this information . Theideas, op inions, maintenance, or modification t ips expressed are to be used at the reader’s discretion. Individualcontributors and/or the edi tors express no approval, authentication, o r endo rsement .
The Open Road
Please submit articles, photos or news items at any time. To be in the next edition, no later than the25th of that month. We encourage your participation in making your newsletter the best it can be!
Advertising Space Now Available in the Open RoadFor information and rates, please contact Chuck Wills or Sara mcBride.
Open Road 3March 2002
Ever wanted to be an F1 driver? Well my friends, there is an opportunity to live your fantasies out at Stephen Johansen’sKarting track! On February 9, just days before Valentine’s, the Indy Miata club, plus a couple of ringers, took to the road coursein open wheeled chariots of fire. We proved, once and for all, that none of us are in the shape we need to be to go 200mph andpush 4 G force points for 2 hours in order to stand on the podium next to Michael Schumacher.
Nevertheless, each and every one of us, save David Wamsley, came out mostlyunbruised, exhausted, and smiling/laughing at all the fun we had! Johansen’s wasideal from our perspective, as the karts are much faster than most if not all of the restof the tracks in Indy, and the course is slick, which makes steering inputs a littleeasier in my own opinion. Our participants were:1. Chuck “The Prez” Wills2. Chris “Nomad” Poglitsh3. Melissa “Kiss My Socks” Forbes4. Brian “Where’s My Hat?” Lee5. Rich “Speedy” Dinsmore
The event started with a darkened course. I wondered if we were going to do a“24 Heures Du Mans” event, until the white effect smoke began to pour from thescoreboard, and an announcer rang out “Welcome Indy Miata Club”. Unabashed, Ilet out a Rebel Howl at the moon, which is only customary in my beloved home,Atlanta. After everyone finished wondering “what the hell was that?” we got intoour karts, and began a 5-10 minute warm up session. During the session it becameclear who the more assertive drivers were going to be, and who the less assertivewere. No matter, I’d spent hours agonizing over who to team up with whom, to makethe event both enjoyable for all, and competitive.
After our ten minute warm up, we lined up in a random grid. When the greenlight shown, Dr. Spock unleashed hellfire as all karts lurched towards turn 1, two andthree across. We settled into a smooth pace, with some bumping and bashing, finishingthe first fifteen minute heat without much incident.
The track workers slowed us down, and brought us into the pits in reverseorder from “feeling out the track” up front, to “hot shoes” in back. During the tenminute break, my partner, Rich Dinsmore, wondered if he was going to be able tocontribute as much as necessary. Noting his kart’s position on the grid for the secondheat, I’d no doubts he was going to do just fine.
The second heat got much more dicey. Stacked up 3 wide into a turn, whichcould only take 2, turn one was a melee. Once through turn one, I had open track infront of me until just before an ess section. I came hammering around a corner to findMelissa’s eyes bulging, and David Wamsley sideways on the course. As much as Itried to slow, I hit Melissa and went up over the side of David’s kart. I felt really awfulabout this, as I watched David retire from the heat, limping back to the pits.
Passing is definitely doable here. That is to say, doable if youcan hold your giggles as you saw the red of Melissa’s “lipstickkisses” socks. In the second heat, I mixed it up with a couple of themore assertive variety of driver. I don’t want to mention any names,but his initials are Shane Benson. Shane drove with considerablespeed and skill, using a technique I hadn’t seen since 1998, when Iwas flying in and out of Logan Airport often. Taxi cab drivers wouldget a headlight in between you and the car in front, thus markingtheir spot. I also got directed towards the “Sin Bin” because, in myopinion, Chuck and I have almost identical helmets, and he passedme on a yellow.
By the time the third heat came up, my left side rib cage wasgetting bruised. I could feel it coming on like you feel sunburncoming on a hot summer’s day.
6. David “What a Fine Helmet!” Wamsley7. Rick “Flyin’ Ponytail” Morris8. Eric “Flash” Drumwright9. Shane “Taxi, Oh Taxi!” Benson10. Dr. Joe “I Drive a Porsche” Jakubowski
Speed Racers Show Their Karting Skillsby Chris J. Pogli tsh
Scoring was done using a 1-10point scale, as you finished your heat, ifyou came in 1 st, you got 1 point, if youcame in 10th, you got 10 points. The teamwith the least amount of points after threeheats wins prizes of immense value. Inthis case, the team of Shane Benson andDr. Joe tied with Brian C. Lee and EricDrumright at 26 points. The decidingfactor became the fastest lap time in heatthree, which was Shane’s, at 23.01. Brianand Eric came in 2nd, and Rich Dinsmoreand I came in 3rd.
Afterwards, much bench racingand rehydration occurred at Union Jacksbar and grill. Many thanks to all the racersat the event, especially Dr. Joe, who atthe last minute agreed to take #10 spotand to Sara McBride, the unofficialscorekeeper and photographer.
Eric and Chuck get settled into theirkarts and are ready to start theirwarmup laps.
Winners: Brian Lee, Eric Drumwright, JoeJakubowski, Shane Benson, and ChrisPoglitsh (not pictured: Rich Dinsmore)
4 Open Road March 2002
Your Input is Needed!Your club officers are looking for input on how to improve, change, and
make the Indy Miata Club an organization that will serve all its members. Tomake it easy for you, a feedback form has been set upon the internet andcompleting it will take less than two minutes of your time.
To participate, go to http://www.dustbunny.com/indymiata/. A login boxwill ask for a name and password, use the following information:
Name: indyPassword: miataPlease type the name and password in lower case.There are just seven multiple choice questions, and space for comments
on driving events and how to improve the club. Names are optional and youdon't have to be subtle. We really want to know! The form will be online untilMarch 29th. Thanks for your input!
Mingling MiatasAt the Noodle
This event will be a little different thanyour typical mingle! Since there was nothingon the calendar, I've taken it upon myself todo something, which for me, is in reality, noth-ing! The March Mingle will truly be a non-event. Nothing organized, nothing planned.Just show up and look for a familiar face, andhave fun.Saturday March 16th.The Slippery Noodle Inn8-ish pm until ?????
If you've never been to the Noodle, it'san experience. It's the best blues bar in thearea and has the distinction of also being theoldest bar in Indy. (You can learn more aboutthis establishment from the club’s web site athttp://www.slipperynoodle.com.) Playing thatnight are The Mean Weenies andSmokehouse Dave with the BBQ Kings. We'rejust gonna get together and hang out. Thisevening will have nothing to do with cars,rally routes, schedules or anything else "im-portant". Just a chance for some good drinks,good blues and good friends. So leave yourcares at home and come out for a truly laidback good time.
I'm not making any reservations orhanging signs, so just show up and have fun!
by Chuck Wills
Future Club EventsApril brings spring rain, the deadline for filing your income tax forms, and
of course, the Post Tax Blues Rally. Once again, we’re joining up with the LakeEffect club for the first big driving rally of the season.
Starting in Lafayette this year and ending in Logansport, your rallymastersare planning a Poker Run, so the driver can keep their eyes on the road and thenavigator can concentrate solely on getting to the next turn. Don Naglitch fromLake Effect, and Sara J mcBride from Indy Miata, have been busy scouting outnew roads, old roads, eating establishments, and have an exciting event mappedout. Last year’s PTBR was a top down day, and with luck, we’ll all be grinningon April 20th! Mark your calendar and we’ll see you there!
Just Like Death and Taxes.....
Looking Under the Hood.....On Saturday, April 27th, AIM opens its doors to the Indy Miata Club.
This year’s open house will be a tour of the shop with your chance to ask“What does that do?” and receive a professional, informative answer.
Shane Benson from AIM will answer questions concerning everydaymaintenance of your roadster, what upgrades you can make, and other hintsand tips to keep your car running smoothly.
Northern Exposure2002 Caravan InfoFor those attending the Northern Exposure2002 gathering of Miatas in Ottawa, July 5-7,a caravan is being organized for Miatas com-ing from the Midwest, northern United States,and Western Canada. After the event, returnroutes are planned for some fine “miata” roadsin Ontario . Contact St eve Holman [email protected] or 906-226-7549 for more infor-mation.
Miata Cartoon Contest!Looking for Miata humor? It’s now even easier to find on the internet as
www.MiataToons.Net has launched its first caption the cartoon contest andwill soon go to weekly cartoons. All original and all Miata!
The first MiataToons Caption Contest is now on, so point your cursor athttp://www.MiataToons.Net/ for your chance to become famous, win the signedoriginal cartoon, and jar of Zaino Clay.
You can receive updated information for Indy Miata club events at the club website - http://members.aol.com/indymiata/ or y ou can call our Hotline number at 317 -767 -523 4.
We rarely cancel or delay an event, but a call never hurts!
Open Road 5March 2002
Spring will be here before we know it, even if it can’t come too soon. This month would be a good time to make sure wehave all the stuff we need so we can be ready to give our Miatas a good cleaning when the nice weather gets here. These aretools I am currently using. If have things that you are happy with, you can stay with them or try something new. The objectiveof the exercise is to get a clean car, not launch a new career.
Car Wash – The first thing to do is get all the dirt and crud that has accumulatedon the car over the winter. Even if you have been taking the car to the coin-opwash like I have, it still needs a good bath now and will continue to needwashing over the summer. What I am using now is Zaino car wash. Almost anygood car wash will do. What you don’t want to use is the basic householdcleaner that is under the kitchen sink. In particular, you don’t want to usedishwashing soap, as it will certainly strip of any wax that you might have onthe car. You will also need a good cotton mitt for washing the car.Drying – After you get the car clean, you will need to dry it off. If I’m washingthe car at home, I dry it with an artificial chamois called the Absorber. You canget one at almost any car parts or discount store for under ten dollars. What Ilike about the Absorber is that you can wash it in the washer, which keeps itclean and ready to use the next time. Natural chamois are also good, but somewhatof a pain to take care of. A lot of the real geeks wouldn’t use anything but 100%cotton towels. I use towels over the winter, but it gets to be a pain doing a wholeload of wash every time you wash the car.Windows – This is another area that can turn into a career if you let it. I useWindex for normal cleaning, followed by regular application of Rain-X. Rain-Xis the hot setup for being able to see in the rain. We had a column a few monthsago about applying Rain-X, so you can refer back to it for instructions.Leather and Vinyl – I have a vinyl interior, so I use Vinylex to keep it and my topboth looking pretty spiffy. The same people make a product for leather calledLexol. I have used both and they are excellent for cleaning and protecting.What I particularly like is that they give a moderate gloss without leaving thesurface greasy like Armor All does.Wheels and Tires – You will need a tire brush. Be sure to buy one that hasnatural bristles (brown) as opposed to plastic (white). The plastic bristles willscratch. For cleaning the tires and wheels, I use Castrol’s Super Clean. It’sextremely good at getting off accumulated brake dust and general crud. Becareful not to get it on your paint, as it will just as quickly strip off any wax youmay have had on the car. To keep the tires looking spiffy, I use Vinylex, whichmakes the tires look nice without giving them an artificial plastic shine. I havealso had pretty good luck with Meguiar’s Endurance product, although it didn’tseem to work well on Sara’s Toyos.Car Wax – Not trying to start a flame war here. If you have a wax that you arehappy with, stay with it (although variety can be the spice of life). I am currentlyusing Zaino and have been very impressed with the way it held up over thewinter. The most important part about getting good results with any wax is tofollow the instructions. It won’t be warm enough to wax the car for a whileanyway. Removing the wax is best accomplished with bath towels, preferablyold ones (you probably wanted new bath towels anyway, so buy new ones andsave the old ones for the car). If you buy new towels for removing the wax, besure to buy 100% white cotton towels and wash them several times (no fabricsoftener or bleach) before using them. I also keep some diapers around for thefinal buff.Odds and Ends - In addition to everything else, you will need some more stuffto finish the job. By now your wash bucket should be getting pretty full. I keep
Making A List And Checking It Twice
several hand towels around. They are just theright size for washing the windows and avariety of other cleaning tasks. A small naturalbristle paint brush is handy for getting in thecracks and crevices in the interior. If you arereally thorough, you can keep some Q-Tipsaround for the really detailed cleaning. Youwant to avoid using toothbrushes, since theplastic bristles can scratch soft surfaces.Finally, a small stack of washcloths is usefulfor applying Vinylex or Lexol. You will find thatyou accumulate car cleaning stuff in the sameway that you accumulate tools.
by Dr. Detail
It has long been a Chicago Auto Showtradition to showcase Americas love affair withthe Mazda MX-5 Miata, and Mazda heatsthings up again this year as it introduces twonew Special Edition (SE) models. Both are lim-ited-production versions of the world s mostpopular sports car and come equipped with ahost of features that make these the "raciest"SE models to date. For starters, both Miata SEs wear exhilarating paint jobs: one is TitaniumGray Metallic, the other Blazing Yellow Mica.The Titanium Gray SE model comes with a deepsaddle brown leather faced interior and doorpanels and the Blazing Yellow SE has, for thefirst time in the Miata s 13-year history, a blackleather interior. The seats on the black leatherSE even carry the Miata logo embroidered intothe seat back.
Our informant was told that "each deal-ership will probably get one yellow and onegunmetal, so place your orders NOW!".
Pictures of each color are at miata.net(http:// www.miata.net/news/editions.html)and more information can be found on Mazda’sofficial web site. Just surf over to http://www.mazdausa.com/miata/ to get the wholescoop.
Is it finally time to satisfy that hungerfor a bright yellow roadster?
2002 Special EditionMX-5 For North America
6 Open Road March 2002
I’d suggest starting out at first light (or, a bit earlier if you have to drive a ways to the good roads). Head East, if possibleand, as soon as you get the first blast of gold on the horizon, hit the play button and crank up Selection #1; Beethoven’s“Symphony No. 6.” Loud.
By the time you hear the Pastoral’s ring-out, it should be fully light and you should be in the mood for Selection #2;Antonio Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons.” If you’re in a hurry, you may want to celebrate only the season you happen to be drivingthrough. This is okay, as each is a more-or-less complete work unto itself. I can’t do it, though. Once the Vivaldi starts, I’mcompelled to listen to the entire year. Oh, what the hell. Kick it off with “Spring” and let it run. It’ll only take you about 43 and ahalf minutes if the CD was recorded by a reasonably efficient orchestra.
You’ll be glad you did because you should be wound out in fifth bynow and the fullness of the morning is just perfect for #3; Carl Maria VonWeber’s “Concertino for Horn and Orchestra.” The sweetness is goldenjust like your day is about now. You may want to punch right through to thesecond movement, though, as the first (Adagio) may be a bit morose foryour current mood. Come to think of it, you may want to go right on to thethird (Polacca) as the second, while lots more uplifting than the first, is stillnot all that lively. It’s the third that’s really the famous and most melodicpart, anyway.
By the same token, you may want to just touch on the Allegro of your#4 selection; Haydn’s “E-flat Trumpet Concerto.” Even, if you’re not aclassics geek, you’ll recognize and like it. And, it will set you up perfectlyfor what should be the next selection. #5: Handel’s “Water Music.” This isenough to make you celebrate life even if you hear it in a stone cell some-where in the bowels of Equatorial America. Listening to it whilst doing what*you’re* doing may cause sensory overload. It may be advisable to have aresponsible adult in your passenger seat about now. Although, I supposeshe would be part of this kind of a Miata drive’s basic equipment, anyway,eh? Be sure to invite a lady with a really great set of — uh — ears.
By now, you should be in really great tune with both the car and theroad — you know — that magical-rapport-between-man-and-machine thing.It’s time to head for the tight twisties (preferably with some really goodhills) and so some spirited, aggressive driving. And, what could be betterto accompany you in thi s pursuit than #6; Mozart’s “Eine KleineNacthmusik?” By the time Herr Mozart shakes hands with the First Violin-ist, you should back down out of the hills, and ready for lunch. Or someother adrenaline-absorbing activity.
Right after lunch, I’d recommend a straight run through #7; “TheBrandenburg Concertos” (or, concerti, as some of those veddy Britishwannabe radio announcers are wont to say). On further consideration, youmight want to omit the Third. Why ruin a wonderful sensory experience byhaving William F. Buckley, Jr. poke you in your mind’s eye? I’ll bet J.S.B.spins like a pigeon on a rotisserie every time “Firing Line” comes on TV.Besides, you’re out on the flats now and it’d be hard to resist the naturalurge to gnash your teeth and mash your loud pedal. Who needs a ticket for120 in a 65?
Well, it’s really bright and hot by now. And especially, if you’veworked your way into a relatively featureless landscape, you need some-thing big to take up all that space. Fortunately, if you took my advice for #8;Rachmaninoff’s “C-Minor Concerto for Piano and Orchestra” (the big No.2) fills your cockpit. Overfills it, in fact. Since you have your top down (youDO, don’t you?), you’ll be blowing crescendos all over the landscape and
leaving a trail of hemi-demi-semi-quavers down thedouble yellow line.
To stay in a similar vein for a bit, #9 shouldprobably be Beethoven’s “Concerto in D for vio-lin and orchestra.” I enthusiastically recommendItzhak Perlman, although there are those — per-haps even on this very list — who might preferother soloists.
Selection #10 could be a bit of a problem ifyou’re the kind of guy who is embarrassed to cryin front of a woman. Beethoven again. “The Em-peror Concerto.” It always makes me tear up, any-way. Doesn’t matter where I am or what I’m doing.If that sucker comes on, I’m gonna turn on thewater works before it’s over. It’s that freakin’ beau-tiful. What a piece of work. It’ll probably make youtemporarily feel like you’re driving a 300SL GullWing Coupe.
By now, the day is getting golden again. It’scooling down. Getting quiet., and you’re still tool-ing along. Probably on your way back now, fol-lowing the Sun. Gonna need a transition piece toget you ready for the evening. Two words; “SwanLake. Selection #11 could’ve paid homage to TheTchai Man with almost any of dozens of his worksbut he just happened to fall into this time of day.
Starting to get dark now. It’s time to look fora place to make another pit stop. By the time youfinish filling up, emptying out, and wiping downwith one last pass of Final Inspection, the last ves-tiges of purple sky are gone. You pull out of thePump’n’Pay and point your toilet seat (if you’reunfortunate enough to have one in the middle ofyour front bumper cover) toward the loom of thecity lights which are now apparent. Run it upthrough the gears. Changing at six or six and ahalf. Never get tired of that sound, eh?
Music For A Great All Day Miata Drive, Pt. 1by Phredd
Editor’s note: Phredd is a prolific poster on the Miata.net mailing list. A question was posed recently about what would be good driving music.Phredd responded and has graciously given us permission to reprint his remarks here. Look for Part 2 in April.
Tune in next month for the stirring conclusion of Phredd’smusical suggestions...
Open Road 7March 2002
I have the following for sale!1990, 5-speed trans, 84,000 miles,Make me an offer!Trailer Hitch for 1990-1997, $50.00Manual mirrors off 1990, white, 30.Call Don Weiler at 317- 862-2473 or
email [email protected]
Miata Named Best-selling Sports Carby Guinness World Records™
Joining the ranks of the oldest living man (112-years old), tallest living woman (7ft. 7 in.) and coldest place on Earth (Vostok, Antarctica), the Mazda MX-5 Miataroadster has been named the best-selling sports car by Guinness World Records™.More than 600,000 of the popular sports car have been produced since it was intro-duced in 1989. The Miata is world-renowned as a pure sports car and has a legion ofloyal followers.
Autocross Season Starting SoonThe Indy SCCA has released a tentative schedule of autocross events for 2002.
Coming up first is their “Test and Tune” on Saturday, April 6 at 16th Street / BushStadium. This event will be open to both experienced autocrossers interested in clear-ing the winter cobwebs from their vehicles (and minds) and anyone else with thedesire to try autocrossing. While not a formal (or even informal) school, they will haveexperienced drivers available for some one-on-one coaching of novice competitors oranyone else that would like some pointers (or to simply get lots of ride-alongs!)Registration and tech starts at 8:00AM. Fees for SCCA members = $15.00, $25.00 fornonmembers. Contact Steve Linn at (317) 297-4814 [email protected] or ChrisMcGuire at (317) 577-2518 [email protected] for more information concerning thisevent. The Indy SCCA’s website is http://www.indyscca.org
Sunday, April 28th at 16th Street / Bush Stadium will be the Indy SCCA’s firstpoints event of the season.
All Miatas are invited to The Buckeye Miata Club's scheduled autocross events.Their first event is April 6th at Hilliard Davidson High School Stadium in Hilliard,Ohio. Course set up starts at 8:00 a.m. Tech and registration closes at 9:30 a.m. Thedrivers meeting begins at 9:45 a.m. with the first car off at 10:00 a.m. They’ll also berunning an event on April 21st. Visit their website at http://members.aol.com/buckata/or contact Matt Collins at (614)471-7482 or [email protected] for more informa-tion.
For those interested in autocrossing, a good handbook on this sport can befound at www.tirerack.com/features/solo2/handbook.htm.
On March 24, there will be a lap-ping day sponsored by PredatorMotorsport at the Putnam Park Raceway(www.putnampark.com). Cost is $200 perdriver. This is a lapping day only, no in-struction is provided. All forms and in-formation are available atwww.predatormotorsport.com. Miatasneed to be equipped with a roll bar (stylebars do not count) or a hardtop. Driversand passengers need helmets, whichshould be rated Snell 95 or newer.
There are currently about 10 Mia-tas registered, along with a variety ofother cars. $200 buys track time from9:00am to 5:00pm, although groups doalternate, at least in the morning. In theafternoon it's typically an "open track".
Lapping Day AtPutnam Park
Classifieds
Museum Tour - March 30th
March 30th - Indy Museum TourMarch Mingle - Slippery Noodle
April 20th - Post Tax Blues Rally.Event with the Lake Effect.ClubApril 27 - AIM Open House
May - Open Event DateMay Mingle - Open
May 30th - Windy City FrenchLick Tour
June 15th - Peach Cobbler Rally -Rally Masters - Morris and mcBrideJune Mingle - OpenJuly 20th - 9th Annual
2002 Club Event ScheduleFussin’ and Cussin’ Rally! RallyMasters: Bob Wiley and SteveJacobsonJuly Mingle - Open
August - Open Event DateAugust Mingle - Ice CreamCruise and MingleEvent Master: Bob Wiley
September - Open DateSeptember Mingle - Open
October 19th - Huber Wine TourEvent Masters: Chuck & TurboTeresa WillsOctober Mingle - Open
November - Open Event DateNovember Mingle - Open
December -Annual Holiday Party
Miata Kart MastersFront: Shane B, Chirs P,Melissa F, Dave WBack: Rick M, Joe J. Chuck W,Brian L, Rich D, Eric D
Bonus Photos for our web friends!
