Made it to the IRCC practice today. They laid out a very short course — best time was in the 29s — which meant we got to run 6 laps in the morning and 6 more in the afternoon. I’m becoming a bit worried that my front tires won’t last me through the next six weekends.
During the lunch break we tweaked my tire pressure, going from 42psi front / 38 rear to 50 / 42, and they let my brother ride with me for the remaining laps. The change in handling was amazing, by the second or third run I’d shaved another second+ from my best time. The extra weight on the right side of the car probably helped some — all but one of the sharp turns on this course were rights. The final three runs pretty much sucked, some combination of fatigue and feeling like I’d already done well enough for the day.
Overall… I was about 1s behind Jorge’s WRX in STX, and he’s got pretty much every allowable mod for that class (and maybe one or two that aren’t). I trounced an SRT-4 with a Stage III suspension kit (coilovers) and a lightly modded Porsche 944 (that guy was NOT happy). I believe I even beat a few Miatas, which is probably a testament as to how screwed up this course layout was.
Continuing our tradition of breaking something at these events (two pairs of sunglasses and one canopy) we pulled a double this time out. First, my brother busted the socket from the impact wrench. Every time I tell him to lay off once the lug stops moving. Every time he ignores me and pounds it five or six times until I start screaming. Four corners separated, a fifth fractured, one unharmed. We got a replacement from Sears on the way home, along with a $25 torque wrench from Pep Boys. As soon as I can pick up a half-inch drive adapter for my Dewalt that impact wrench is trash.
Second, I nailed a cone and it busted off a small panel from the underside of the car. Chewed it up real good. Haven’t looked underneath the car, hopefully whatever it attached to is alright. I’ll let the dealer take care of that at the 15K service. I’m just under 10K now so that won’t be long…
Not going to post video until the actual times are up on the Central Florida Region SCCA web site. I did remember to tape some foam over the microphones on the camcorder this morning and that seems to have solved the wind-noise problem.
Fresh car mods: CF-looking STI plate / frame to replace lame dealer’s plate / frame on the front, chrome STI frame on back, You just got beat by a wagon 
decal on rear window. Everyone loves that decal, I’ll get pictures up later.
Not so much looking forward to tomorrow. I’m tired, I’ve got a mild sunburn, and I suspect that once again I’m going to get bumped into E-Stock. Hialeah in two weeks is the real test. By then I may also get the front swaybar upgraded, which they tell me will help in the transitions and could be worth another half- or full-second off my times.
I’m thinking about going to a Mazda “Zoom Zoom Live” event next Saturday. They seem to do this sort of thing twice a year around here — rent a facility, set up a few types of courses, and charge folks $40 to beat on some fresh Mazdas. I love watching the Miatas autocross, getting to actually drive one ought to be a blast.
One more thing: Always wear your seatbelt when autocrossing. I accidentally left mine off during one lap today and could hardly believe how badly I was bouncing around inside the car. It cost me more than a second from my previous lap.
