Final Race Before Nationals

In grid, ready for action!

Final race before Nationals at Devens with NER! I got to test out quite a few new goodies this event, such as my new Series 2 RX-8 transmission, new matching lightweight flywheel and clutch kit, custom intake, and tune. I really was hoping to have the new brake pads in by this race, but unfortunately didn't get the chance to and fought with any sections I had to brake hard into.

Shakedown @ BMW with Amy

Photo credit to Jesus Mendez - Garage 15

Nationals is getting closer and closer, and I'm getting more and more ready for it this time around. I was fortunate enough to have Amy Dilks of Stripes Racing and EFI Logics come out and test drive the car. Amy is a phenomenal NASA TT and Autocrosser from New York, and I'm trying to convince her to come on out to Nationals with me this year and compete in DSPL.

Not So Well @ NER

Photo credit to Chang Ho Kim - FunPhotos

This was not a very good event for me unfortunately. Ironic because now that I have finally sorted out all o my problems and the car is at 100%, I drive as hard as I need to. That didn't seem to be the case during this event...

Renegade Miata Co-Drive

Red isn't my color, but I will admit this is a gorgeous car...

Brian was kind enough to let me co-drive his 2009 RX-8 R3 for this event, as I wanted to drive something a little different. Even though his alignment was very out of whack due to seized camber bolts, I still had a blast and it was great practice! Thanks Brian!

Devens Match Tour 2014

Photo credit to Chang Ho Kim - FunPhotos

Match Tours are seemingly losing their popularity due more and more as the 2014 season goes on. I can understand why, especially due to the format, but they are still fun to some respect in their own right.

Practice Before Match Tour

Photo credit to Chang Ho Kim - FunPhotos

Ben and I were originally aiming to try out the new rear springs I had picked up for the car for the upcoming Match Tour, but unfortunately I did not get them installed in time. Instead we just had fun and battled it out for top PAX for the day.

2nd Place in Pro @ NER

Photo credit to Chang Ho Kim - FunPhotos

My first race back with SCCA NER for this season, and it's a blast! A great course, paired with most of my problems finally sorted out, I was feeling pretty confident about the car.

Stirling Moss Finale

Photo by Michael Siergiej - Michael Siergiej Photography

This was it, the finale for the New England Region. Same as every year, it is also the Stirling Moss run offs. Now, as much as I wanted to compete for the Moss trophy, as mentioned in my previous post, my fuel pump was having issues. That being said, I unfortunately was not able to run my car in the Moss. I was willing to even risk the replacement pump as well and see if I could even manage a run or two, but the fuel pump ring wouldn't even stay on oddly enough. I still had a seat for the Moss though, as Mickle Motorsports came to the rescue and let me run in their ASP Subaru STi.

Aero Testing @ Renegade

Can't help but feel like the car looks more aggressive with the aero

It was one of those days that I could have lived without the other half of it. Yep. John and I had planned out to use this event to test out the new aero from Joefis Racing and to see how everything turned out. In return, we got to do that, as well as deal with a failing fuel pump. I was pretty upset when this happened, as I really wanted to focus on feeling out and learning the overall new characteristics of the car, but John and I only got a limited number of runs. Enough ranting about the broken fuel pump though, onto the data points!

S2000 Codrive @ NER

Photo by Michael Siergiej - Michael Siergiej Photography

Back from Nationals, and feeling better than ever! This is the last points event of the year for NER SCCA before the finale, and I wanted to have some fun this time around. It would be good for me, as I needed to clear my head of some negativity I still had from Nationals, and my car is still in Pennsylvania getting aero anyways. Nick Barbato was kind enough to offer me a seat in his B Stock Honda S2000 CR, so a huge thanks to Nick for the opportunity!

Last Race Before Nats @ NER!

Photo by Michael Siergiej - Michael Siergiej Photography

This is it. After this event, I have a weekend off, and then off to Lincoln Nebraska. John was unable to make it to the event, so I took this opportunity to really focus on getting more intuned with the car. Seeing how far I could push it through different elements, at what point I needed to dial it back, played with a few minor settings, etc.

Battle For The Top @ Renegade Miata

Ready for battle!

While everyone is in Toledo for the ProSolo, I stayed back at good ol' Devens for some more practice.

Ayer Match Tour 2013

Black Halo Racing in the house!

This weekend there was a Match Tour over in Ayer! It wasn't only great because it was a national level event, but I even got a visit to give some support by my good friends and sponsor, Black Halo Racing (BHR)! Charles and his wife helped me keep my head in the game, and got to hang out with everyone afterwards. Can't say the weekend could have gone any better. If you're unsure of the difference between a normal National Tour, and a Match Tour, check out the rules here on SCCA's official website.

Practice For The Match Tour

Photo by Ed Savage - NoWin Photography

Nothing like a good ol' practice race the weekend before a big one! Not only was this practice however, I had to test out the new helper spring guides, and it was a good excuse to kill the left-over Hoosiers I had on the race wheels currently.

Pro Class Mix-up

Photo by Michael Siergiej - Michael Siergiej Photography

This event was a little bit of a different story for me. Today, I decided to run in Don Kuehl's STR Miata and have some fun, while Ben and John run my RX-8 together. I guess that's one of the beauty's of Pro class is that you can hop into any other car and still compete for points!

Practice That Throttle Control!

Back up to my usual antics at the Renegade Miata Club; running on street tires and trying to see how far I can push the car even though it is definitely not setup for street tires! ah blah

Pro Class Comeback!

Photo by Ed Savage - NoWin Photography

Close battle, lots of fun, but I was pretty upset I kept messing up the last section of the course for whatever reason. Couldn't stay focused on the prize!

First BMW CCA Event!

Rachel's hot 135i with some fresh tires!

Today I got to not only try out the BMWCCA club, but I also got to co-drive Rachel's BMW 135i! Definitely a change of pace for me, but it was something I was looking forward to driving. Rachel was also sporting some fresh BFGoodrich Rivals for tires, so I got to try them out and see what the fuss was about (which they're pretty good!).

NER Pro Class Flop

Photo by Ed Savage - NoWin Photography

Cinco de Mayo! No better way to celebrate it than by racing, right? This was my second attempt at Pro class at NER. This attempt however, wasn't a very encouraging one for me. At least on the upside, the camera worked for the whole event finally, so hopefully no more of that!

Renegade Miata's Starting Up!

Lots of Mazdas, ready to race!

Perfect day to start off Renegade Miata's season over at Devens! Great weather and a good turn out. I figure that since it's the first event, I was going to use a set of used Hoosiers I picked up back in New Jersey. I need more seat time with the Hoosiers, no more excuses this year.