jacobcartmill

iTrader: (6)

very nice blog post.

i am jealous of your car BTW. wanna trade?

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Thanks! Nothing to be jealous of - just twelve years commitment



With the Ocean State being one of the only states in the country that celebrates Victory Over Japan Day (August 11th this year), and my wife's work not recognizing it, I decided it would be a good day to take the RX-7 out for a cruise. Brian, having an awesome teacher's schedule, was up for it as well. My sister Francesca tagged along with me and our friend Ted tagged along with Brian.


No sleeping in on my day off - 7:00am start with a meetup at the Hardwick winery


Pretty solid drive to start out: winery up Greeenwich Road to 32A, to 122, to 202, to Prescott Road to Leverett Road Shutesbury (best damn stretch of road in Massachusetts!), through North Amherst to 116, then on to route 9 Hadley for breakfast.

We then headed back onto 116 and followed it 46 miles northwest to Adams. It was my first time driving this route to Adams; I regret that it has taken me this long!

We were heading up to Mt. Greylock when something caught our eye - a 2008 Exige S240. Brian and I must be running on the same wavelength (I have considered the Exige my "attainable" dream car for quite sometime), so we pulled in for a closer look


We ended up talking to the owner for a bit. We'll have to give his shop a call next time we're in the area to see if he can come out and play


We headed up route 8 to Mt. Greylock (Walnut to Furance to Reservoir to Notch) and stopped at a few overlooks. I think my awesome co-pilot enjoyed herself!


To the top!

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Hiked a bit of the Appalachian Trail, had some much needed coffee, then began our descent to head back east



The fun wasn't over yet! We headed a little bit up route 8 to route 2 / Mohawk Trail - a wide road full of switchbacks and beautiful views. Just like 116, I regret that this was my first time driving Mohawk Trail. Definitely won't be my last!

Brian brought us to the Glacier Pot Holes and Bridge of Flowers in Shelburne Falls along the way. Pretty cool!





We headed back on the Mohawk Trail to 91 south to Northhampton. Grabbed some lunch, desserts, and some more much needed coffee and checked out Brian's new carbon fiber diffuser - looked sharp!


I unfortunately had to get the car back to the garage then head back to Providence, so we had to wrap up the cruise there. 250 miles / ten hours with the best company as always - such a great trip!

We'll be doing it again within the next few months before hibernation (well Brian's good all year 'round and regularly takes these roads with his family, not so much with the FD). Anyone interested in heading up north to peep some leaves and go for a crisp fall run with us?!



Cheers!

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

With hibernation around the corner for us New Englanders, we've been trying to get as much seat time in before we have to winterize and throw the car covers on. We decided to do another trip out to Mt. Greylock (counter-clockwise around the Quabbin from Hardwick to Shutesbury center to 116 to 8A to Mohawk Trail up Mt. Greylock to rinse and repeat in reverse with great times in the middle)


Jared, Brian, Tommy, Nguyen, Nguyen's brother Tommy, and Alex and I all met up at a Hardwick cafe (Rose 32) not far from our normal winery meet up point


Jared trying to wipe the sleep from his eyes



The gangs all here! I had only seen pics of Alex's grand prix white AP1 before, looked awesome in person



After breakfast and some much needed coffee, we stopped for some much needed gas


Pit stop 1



Pit stop 2


Nguyen got some new carbon fiber sideskirts - really ties the canards and front diffuser together


Jared's Miata with a tighter ride thanks to the roll bar and color matched fenders - lookin' good!


Onward and literally upward!

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Mohawk Trail

Pit stop 3




Heading up Mt. Greylock - the fog, rain, and bike race going both up and down the narrow road made for a gnarly climb


"Erin's going to love this one" - let me know how that goes


Coffee'd up, a little cold, and ready to head back down


The hills are alive with the sound...



We headed down Mt. Greylock back onto Mohawk Trail to 8A to 116 to Bub's BBQ in Sunderland. The early morning start (sorry guys) and BBQ had the itis kicking in much more than usual, but we pushed through Shutesbury's uphill to route 202 to route 9 and headed home.

All in all, another great cruise! It was 250 miles round trip for Jared and I, and even further for Tommy, Alex, Nguyen, and Tommy. Not our ideal driving conditions, but the AD08R's were predictable and very well behaved in the rain.

Thanks again gentlemen for another great event!


Such a great driving route! I'm considering hosting a Berkshire rotary run in the spring. I'll post up a thread to gauge interest over the winter.


We're looking to get another cruise in before fall's end. Not sure of the route yet, but I can't wait!




Cheers!

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Some more JDM greatness came in after a highly anticipated wait - Voltex Type 2 wing

The packaging piqued my wife's co-workers interest - "just a little something for our racecar"


We decided to skip our Sunday morning cartoons (usually past Tudor races we've missed, Venture Brothers, or Hot Versions) and took my wing and my wife's gear outside for a photoshoot. Nerdy? Definitely - but I know I'm not the only one who finds carbon fiber completely sexy

1700mm wide


Type B endplates


270mm brackets


18 angle of attack adjustment options


There are a lot of great wing options out there for the FD, but I'm pretty damn happy with my choice


That about wraps up my aero components - should have the FD in the bodyshop soon


Cheers!

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

A few more packages came in today...

...I believe I may have an addiction


Cheers!

tt7hvn

iTrader: (5)

I need your wheels in my life!

Can't wait to see that spoiler mounted

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Usually I'd say wait a bit Justin and the wheels will be in a F/S thread eventually, but these are definitely the keepers. Plus I'm not sure how many more sets I can get my wife on board with... I think I'm out of passes.

I'm loving how your brilliant black project has come out - that VR/BB chassis blend came out flawless. Kudos on pushing through it; you've come a long way and are just about there! Keep up the great work - I'm looking forward to seeing more updates

tt7hvn

iTrader: (5)

^ then perhaps you could give me a recommendation on the offsets? I'm not really a fan of rolling fenders; trying to maintain the stock body. But I'd like to go with 9.5" wide all the way around.

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

A squared 9.5 set up with around a 50 offset will work without having to roll your fenders. Are you looking to get a set that you can rotate? A staggered set would open up some more offset options for you.

Here's a pretty cool calculator that should help as you're looking for a set

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

My friend Jared and I woke up earlier then we needed to a few weekends ago and headed up to Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline for this year's Japanese Car & Motorcycle Day

The weather and turnout was great



I opened up the FD and checked out the gathering


We met up with Tommy, Nguyen, and...


John and his new 370Z. Can't wait to have it out with us for a cruise - so nice!



Had a good conversation with a fellow enthusiast with a clown shoe wearing a nice set of K27s

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Mia took best Mazda again this year

junkie81

iTrader: (8)

LOL... Small world. That White NSX you posted, thats my lil bro's car. Congrats on the best Mazda. You definitely deserved it!! Your car looks awesome!

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Awesome - your little brother has an amazing NSX!


Thanks for the compliment - hope to see you and your R1 around

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Remember how I said there would be more on that black S2000 from Thompson...


My friends Pete and Paddy McParland have been working hard (and spending a small fortune) in getting their race licenses and have since been campaigning their S2000 in sprint and endurance races for a few years now. When they told me they could use some trackside support at an upcoming race at Virginia International Raceway I knew I had to find a way to make it!

I slept over at the Le's house (thank you so much! also, someone may have a new set of shoes for their NA1... cant wait to see them on!) near the McParland's Wednesday night. Paddy picked me up early Thursday morning for the fourteen hour trek down to Alton, VA to run SCCA's Charge of the Headlight Brigade 13-hour enduro race!

All packed up with the S2000 in tow


How's that for a tow vehicle - Hugh's new Sprinter





We gassed up the van, the race car, and a 55 gallon drum outside of Roanoke and I drove the rest of the way - a short, but hilly stint


We arrived at VIR and met up with Dr. Mike Fries, our third driver, at the south bend studio/junior villa (!!!)



Anyone recognize this name? He has since moved from RX-7s to S2000s, but he his guides have come through for me many times through the years


We got some much needed sleep as the rest of the gang came in literally throughout the night. We woke up early to get some track and trackside practice in. Not a bad view with my morning coffee!
South bend

Uphill esses

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

We woke up and headed to the north paddock area to unload the car and get our day going


Pumped the Motons to 180 pounds


threw on a set of RRs for scrubbing (no, not like that Dan)



then took the rental car out for a recce session. Many, many thanks to Pete for letting me take a few laps. Paul Newman just about summed it up when he said if there is a heaven on earth, it is VIR. Such a fun track!


Pete getting reacquainted




Third room from the right on the balcony would be my room for Friday and Saturday night



Our crew chief Jon flew in to Raleigh and was a huge help throughout the weekend - great guy!



Mary, Pete and Paddy's mom, was amazing all weekend! Her response from moving from the south bend villa to the trackside rooms (pretty much a bare essentials room) was "do you think I can make scrambled eggs in the microwave?" The answer to that is yes, and a very good breakfast at that! Amazing meals all weekend long - your hospitality was much appreciated!



Tom went above and beyond and drove his S2000 all the way from Long Island to help trackside and to offer up his car in case we needed parts. Thanks bud!



Tom and I took a walk to see who the other 49 entrants were and to see what we were up against in STU. I immediately recognized this car (2013 GT3 R) from the GRM UTCC (1:52.067!) issue cover and got pretty excited when I saw we would be racing an old hero of mine - Randy Pobst

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Mike had never ran VIR prior to this weekend so they bought practice time for Friday



We were initially assigned the first pit stall all the way at the end of pit row well past the pit speed limit reader on a hill with no lighting (not safe!). We worked with the SCCA stewards to get a better spot in the middle of the pack. The NCR SCCA crew was top notch throughout the weekend; really great group of people



We ran through several practice drills while the drivers found their pace



Hugh and I were getting into a great rhythm with fueling, and Mike was loving every lap around VIR (except for the lap when he didn't realize he was on the pit limiter - that gave us all a good scare!)

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

We ran these pit stop drills and driver changes, then threw the RRs back on for qualifying. The plan was to have Pete set a few laps then have Paddy set a few more, but we miscalculated our time with qualifying ending during Pete's run. No worries though, he set a solid 2:15.4 to position us well in STU



Walked over to see how our neighbors to the right worked their pit strategy - I need a lot more practice!



We had stayed out after qualifying to give the drivers some night practice. We were running great until we received communication from Pete. "I was shifting into sixth on the front straight approaching turn one and I'm having issues" "What kind of issues?" ... radio silence. We waited a few minutes to see him come back around. No sign. We tried the radio again. No word.

Thirty minutes of radio silence.

A somber tone enveloped our pit box. My heart sank.

After the practice session ended we saw our boy and the car towed in


To no one's fault, we had dropped a valve and that's where our race ended


We decided our plan for the rest of the weekend and packed it in early

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

Good morning VIR! Although we were all pretty down, it was hard to stay sad with a view this beautiful


Unlike the villa, the pit lane rooms were right above active garages for the weekend. I was abruptly awoken at 6:30 by a team campaigning an E36 in the stall below. Best wake up call ever!

We had all traveled great distances to be here and decided to make the best out of an unfortunate situation. We packed up and watched some action




With a fourteen hour drive ahead of us, we decided to head out at three for the first leg of our ride home. We had drove through the evening and grabbed dinner and a hotel in Harrisburg, PA. We woke up early and drove the second leg to drop Pete off in Brooklyn.

After Hugh got us out of NYC, I drove the last stint through Connecticut up to Providence (door to door service - thanks Hugh!). I was eventually able to shake the nerves of having a small fortune and a few men's hopes and dreams behind me in tow, and then the Sprinter was butter to drive.



Although I wish our weekend had ended differently, I am very grateful to have been given the opportunity to join such an awesome group for the weekend. Thank you very much Paddy, Pete, Mary, Hugh, Jon, Mike, Tom, Tony, and Mr. and Mrs. Le



You can see the rest of the pictures from the weekend (as well as the other random stuff I do) on my flickr account here

We will see you at The Devil in the Dark out on NJMP in the spring!



Cheers!

tt7hvn

iTrader: (5)

That looks like an awesome experience man! Sucks that the weekend had to be cut short due to a dropped valve. I'm sure you had something to say about, "well, if it had a rotary we wouldn't have to worry about valves."

Still though, I'd love to run at VIR. I know fritz is up there all the time and has some pretty wicked videos of his track sessions.

On a serious note, do all of your friends have TE37s!? I swear I see them on all the cars now.

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

The McParlands have built and tracked a few LS powered FDs; we've gotten our piston v rotary talks out of the way years ago . Honestly, I don't even think my FD would have lasted a full two and a half hour stint running full bore; a thirteen hour endurance race would be damn near impossible for me.


As for VIR, it is nothing short of perfection in my opinion. I'll be back down with my car in tow one of these years. Definitely get on it if you get the chance. Fritz has some of the best videos in this club - hell of a driver! I think he'll be sub two minutes in the spring for sure


I'm the only one of my friends with these wheels, but we definitely seem to have a thing for Mackin Industries. Unfortunately the TE37 is no longer an original wheel option especially with all of the special editions, but it is still one of the best wheel options out there in my opinion.

They're gaining popularity in the european scene as well thanks in part to Rahal Letterman Lanigan

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

So with the FD back in hibernation, I've reverted to squirreling away parts for the spring (or to put it more realistically whenever I get around to putting them on)


My Sparco harnesses were expired, so it was time for an update. I went with a set of FIA homologated Schroths. Definitely some significant evolution in design to my almost decade old Sparco cam-locks, the Profi should be much more comfortable all around. Thanks Wine Country Motor Sports and HMS Motorsport

Schroth Clubman III



Schroth Profi II-6 HANS


I will need to update my turn signals to '99-spec combo lights once I install the TCP bumper, so I went with a used set of Stanleys that are going to need some cleaning up before install. With authentic lights increasing in price and rarity, I'm definitely going to wrap them in 3m to protect them from shattering at track days. Thanks Jesse (laujesse2)



Jesse was nice to save me some pigtails to help with installation


I had some significant blow-by at Thompson, so I decided to invest in a catch can. Thanks Hugh / Evasive Motorsports

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

My wife and I went from two cars (my TT and her Protege) to one a few years ago, and I've been itching to get back to having two ever since. I was pretty excited when I got the green light to get a little more serious with my daydream searches. My wife was thinking something along the lines of a Prius C, a Fit, or a Legacy, but I was thinking more like an Integra Type R, an M3, or an Evo IX.

I had always been interested in eventually getting back into a German car and mistakenly fell in love with all the E46 M3s at VIR. I eventually came to the conclusion that another high strung sportscar wouldn't be the ideal route, so I dropped the idea of an M3. With my neighbor ignoring my multiple offers on his cherry red E46 330CI ZHP, I had to go back to the drawing board.

My wife and I test drove a few E90 and E92s over a month before a well equipped, rare packaged, and certified E92 328i with a rare manual transmission popped up locally. I called the dealership in the morning and we drove away with it in the evening! Thanks BMW of Newport

Meet Bianca, a 2011 328i xDrive 6MT equipped with sport, cold-weather, premium, and convenience packages. Unfortunately the skies the limit as far as modifications go and Turner Motorsports isn't too far from me, but I'll do my best to refrain from being too distracted from the RX-7.

Please excuse the vignettes on a few of these pics - I bought my wife's oldest 5D and haven't upgraded my lenses yet

Alpine white (alpinweiß)

Style 339s with Michelin run-flats (the run-flats will be the first thing to get upgraded on this car - need to go to a standard performance all-season tire to add some feeling)


Naturally-aspirated inline-six N51 (230hp/200tq)


Black dakota leather interior



Not a huge fan of BMW's angel eyes, but I should easily get used to them from behind my steering wheel


My wife ruled out the idea of a few track days with our new car, but we should still have an exciting future with her!



Cheers!

ZumSpeedRX-7

iTrader: (12)

I'm slowly waking back up from winter hibernation, and finally got around to getting my Thompson HPDE footage off my GoPro:
YouTube


Best part of the video starts around 4'35" when Pete slows down to give me an education - well off the pace, but one of my fastest laps of the day:


Track season's finally around the corner, and April's looking good.

Best of luck and stay safe out there all!


Cheers!