First Supercharged autocross

[bogey]

I attended a casual autocross put on by the local Austin Healey club this weekend. This was the first autocross I have done since supercharging.

The car ran wonderfully. I was gentle as could be on launches because I am still running (or should I say ruining) my stock clutch. One launch I lost it and laid down a couple strips of rubber. I did find out that I could over power the clutches holding power.

Power was smooth and effortless, The car was well balanced and was very easy to control with the throttle. I "could" spin the tires at will and slide around the corners, do donuts, etc (Slower times but was sure fun!).

There were no separate classes, just a fun day. I was the fastest Miata, losing out on the fastest time of the day to a Noble M400. I felt pretty good about that considering it has 425hp and it should be in a "supercar" class. Plus I paid a whole lot less...

This weekend I am off to the Dragon with the Cincinnati Miata club for some excellent mountain twisties. I should log about 1000 miles this weeked. :driving:

[Race Grandpa]

Bogey,

What class are you in?

Other than the SC, what other performance upgrades can you make that are not allowed in CSP?

Do most of the Miatas in this class have SC or turbos?

In general how do Miatas do in this class?

:stuart:

[bogey]

This is not a sanctioned autocross, and cars are not classed. Just a fun day racing against friends.

I don't really know what is or isn't allowed in the different classes.

[Race Grandpa]

Bogey,

What type of tires were you on?

I would have loved to see that guys face when your time was announced!!

:rockon:

[bogey]

My car was on Toyo T1R 195/55/14s.

I would love to say that the Noble driver was shocked that I got so close to his time, but that might be a s t r e c h. My best time was about 58+ seconds. FTD (the Noble) was about 4 seconds faster! Not so close that he was sweating! But I did beat 4 out of 6 of his times.

Mods to the car include:
FFS Coldside, 110mm
Koyo 37mm
Koni Shocks, Lowered about 1"
FM Springs
JR Tubular ways
HardDog bar
plus lots of other odds & ends...

I just swapped wheels and tires with my other Miata. Now I have Koenig Holes 16x7.5 with Toyo T1R 225/40/16s. A much different profile with a lot more rubber. It really looks great. Wheel weight went from 27+ to 33.

I did this in preparation for my cross country trip in July. My 14" tires are pretty worn on the inside shoulders, and did not have enought meat left on them for the 7000 mile journey. I just got a fresh alignment and balance, so I am ready to go.

Wish me luck on the trip. I leave July 7th for 23 days.

[Tom @ Fast Forward]

Be ultra careful at the Dragon. Last time I was there (2005) I saw two head on collisions when I was leaving. Both were Miata vs. motorcycle. In both cases the motorcycle was on the wrong side of the road. The motorcycle riders were being hauled away in ambulances and the Miatas were in pretty bad shape (passengers appeared to be OK though). That was just as I was driving up to Tennessee on my way back. There were other accidents over the weekend. No more Dragon for me. Even driving slow and reasonable can have serious consequences.

Please get here in one piece.

[sbeck37923]

The dragon in only about 60 miles from my house. The weekends are just about too busy to have any fun. The best times for driving are during the week early in the day (Kind of hard to do and keep a job). Occasionally you can get a good run in very early on the weekend (as long is there is not a holiday or large group scheduled for the weekend).

[bogey]

Lately, driving the dragon is like being in a parade. Far to crowded on weekends.

We we go down there, we pretty much drive everything but the Dragon. The Cherohala Skyway, NC 28, and countless other roads are wonderful drives.

[maggie]

We had a blast at the Gap last year. I was wondering if anyone from the FFS community would be going up this year. I'm picking up a hardtop while I'm up there (any excuse for a road trip to the mountains.) First road trip SC'd and I'm looking forward to a change from the long, flat and straight roads here in SW FL. Agreed from last years run that the Dragon was a nice ride but quite a few crazies and a lot of traffic. I had as much fun running to and from home base in Franklin; to on 28 and coming back on NC1310. NC1310 especially :driving: I'm looking forward to going thru the gears (6 speed) and comparing last years driving experience. Most of all was the Miata community...it was overwhelming to see so many Miatae in one location...

zoom-zoom

[bogey]

I can't make it this year...

[Tom @ Fast Forward]

My experience at Miatas at the Gap in 2005 kind of turned me off. I was ther two previous times. However, on the way out in 2005 I passed TWO head on collisions between Miata's and motorcycles. The Miatas were not at fault in either case but............................

[maggie]

but...I can count the gravel chips and scratches on my car on one hand. A head on or other with a bike would be tragig. I do need to get that hardtop. :angelsad2:

[sbeck37923]

If I am not working, I may try to make it over this weekend. The best plan is to arrive early, park and hang-out. It will probably be too crowded to have much fun on the dragon. There are better roads in the area with a lot less traffic.

As a side note to anyone planning to go: Law enforcement over the last year has been stepped up dramatically. On the weekends you may see a patrol car every couple of miles over this 11 mile stretch.

Good luck...

[ThomS]

I just got back from the Dragon. It was almost empty. Left Saturday afternoon. Had a great time and did not see any accidents this year at all
Lots of new paved roads down there. But the most fun was on all the other roads but the dragon. 28 & fontana dam road and the cherohala skyway.

[Tom @ Fast Forward]

I think we will have a much better chance at solving this problem with that data.

[maggie]

Grandma always said to wear clean underwear in case you got sent to the hospital...If I had known how many people would be taking pictures of my engine bay, I would have spent a little time cleaning it up. Tom, the install really looks 'factory'. Every time I opened the hood cameras came out and then the questions. I hope you have a few new customers after this weekend as there was a lot of interest. FAQ's were; Where's the air intake? Oh, and you're not worried about it getting wet? (my belly pan is still off.) Wow, it fits under the strut tower brace, Who did the install? Etc, etc.

As Thom said there was about the same turnout as last year. It rained till 11 on Saturday but of course the most fun was getting there and driving back. :driving: