Kitcat

As a 64& 1/2 y/o, I can relate. I can never find my cell phone. Just call it you say and listen for the ring? I wld, but the battery is always dead or the phone is off, or it's set on vibrate, is miles away, or in the trunk of my car, etc., etc. Now my pocket knife, I actually seem to need it and its always handy (old dudes...).

YellowSS/Tom: I have been practicing my point-by all winter! Karl's discarded engine made 2x as much power as mine, the new one makes 3x. And it looks like Croc has that covered. Love the CosworthFord cam cover. Everytime Alaskossie offers up a tidbit abt his car, I am more impressed. Mike M.

I can't wait to see the airport:)!

Jack: I dont know what happened to Bluegrass other than they ran out of $ and closed, with the track 9/10ths done. I was really looking forward to having a nearby track for trackdays. Some folks bought those $100K memberships-they cant be too happy! Who knows, maybe it will be resuscitated at some point? Mike

Mike: The article I read said they owe $10-15M more than they have. The trigger event was they owed .5M to the ambulance service that is at the track on standby at every event, even track days like ours. Without that, they were unable to function. Restructuring requires the cooperation of the creditors (better to get 50 cents on the dollar, than nothing), but sometimes a creditor believes the assets can be sold for more (55 cents on the dollar) and liquidation results. I am crossing my fingers that this works out. From what I can glean from the news articles,it looks like it will but someone is getting stuck holding a worthless $10M IOU. A similar situation didn't have a happy ending at Bluegrass Motorsports Park across the river from me. Mike M

Tire life: I can't imagine how long a street tire wld last on a se7en, given my super sticky race compound RA1's have 12K miles on them (tho little visible tread).

All nice cars. Don't see a bad decision, whatever you do.I wld probly choose the Boxter (or Cayman?). I have toyed w/selling my '08 M3 because there is simply no way to exploit its potential away from a race track. So I have a large investment in a car that I can only really use a few times a year. And I get lousy gas mileage all the time.

And RA1's w/o tread are seconds better than treaded RA1's. (Mechanically or naturally shaved). Unless it is wet(:.

They recently filed, per a post on Lotustalk. Those of us planning on attending the se7ens trackday there this summer will need to keep an eye on this.

All I can say is that when it comes to cars-and women-4 father is one lucky dude:)!

Thx Steve. I have had lots of people on my rear bumper (Sadly!), but no one has noticed a wheel lift. But I do spin the inside wheel a bit on "Dead Bear" curve at Putnam (motor rev's up). So I am putting some sky there under that wheel. Seems to help the car rotate and its only for a 1/2 second. IF I had more power it wld be more of an issue. I like the comfort the soft suspension provides and since 95% of my miles are street miles, I will probly keep it as is. I like your solution. I know I have the stock Caterham "street" suspension, so 150 lb springs is probably right. Mike M.

And into your lap, bouncing off your face, etc. And wait til you see what that little sand blaster does to your paint job!

I am really surprised at the amount of sway in my car.If you had asked me, I wld have said my car cornered totally flat. It was a memorable morning and loads of fun. Dean's 7 looks even prettier than I had remembered.

My low pressure problem turned out to be an inaccurate gauge: it reads 10-25 lbs low.

The photo makes me sick. I feel your pain. Curbs and auto-x are never a good combo. As others have said, TG you are ok (But the photo still makes me sick).

Google Sevens and Elans. Chris T has supplied most of the consumables for my X-flow. What he didnt have, Ben at Caterham USA did (Pn: Kate-rum, btw).

As usual, stunning photos MoPho! Half are easily "screen savers" And Skip, whilst folks were not IN the road the sure were lining it. And if you want to see evidence of just how far off the track a race/rally car can get, maybe MoPho will re-post the legendary footage of him running for his life when being chased down by an errant race vehicle:).

Yeah, good old DB6, he invites everyone to dinner, makes a number of great meals then, every so often, gets up and takes a crap in the middle of the table. The viciousness of his posts is really off the chart. I have seen a few of the banned ones and the degree of hatred is limitless.

I am shocked at the lack of crowd control. Hundreds of people right on the edge of the road-just seems like a matter of time before there is a tragedy and the whole thing gets canceled. But, yeah, he does an incredible job of threading his way thru the human pointer cones to the top.

We also have a top, "doors" and even "windshield washers/wipers", and a heater, unlike the X-bow and Ariel. I have to admit the differences are pretty small, tho, since I try to avoid the rain/cold in my car and most of my gear goes into the passenger space, wh/the comparo cars have also. Similarity includes that the "thinly disguised race car" description is apt for all.

Tom: Your car may be fairly competitive w/Mike and Karl's cars if the 197 hp was at the rear wheels. Your car weighs 150lbs+ less and really is a track spec car. Plus "old age and treachery" etc. Of course, the short right foot cld be an issue:).

Tom: Did you buy your se7en before, during or after the trip? How does your car compare to the ones you rode in? The variety of Caterhams produced over the years is somewhat mind-boggling, it would be hard for a car-mag to sample them all.

In Car and Driver's "Lightening Lap" issue at VIR the Ariel Atom did a 2:57.6 and the X-bow a 2:52.3. As a point of reference, the Nissan GTR did a 2:55.6, and a BMW M3 ran a 3:05.4. I suspect the current Ariel wld be a bit faster given its ongoing development. I don't think either car qualifies as a se7en since you'd be hard pressed to pack your luggage in one and take a 5 day road trip, as I have done. It wld be interesting to see how one of the high-end Caterhams compared on the Lightening Lap.Maybe someone can volunteer their car for this year's test:).

Brunny1. So you have contempt for Al for rarely participating here, and also for those of us who do ("the same old handful who keep up the incestuous banter")? I find your post and its hostility ("frats that smoke each others dick") to the folks who built and sustain the club and this site to be pointless: No one makes you visit here. Why not start your own se7ens club, do it the way you believe it should be? Your negative attitude and general nastiness are out of place here. Mike Mooney

Thx for the update Al. I gotta say, based on what I have read here from Bessie, it's more likely that she will be changing your moniker:)!