Al N.

Running out of gas is only bettered by running out of gas on the Dragon in the middle of an Automobile Magazine photoshoot! (CHECK!) As for the hood...The order of the flying hood is a small, but very exalted subgroup within the brotherhood. I am unworthy to even discuss such matters. --- Don't be scared off by these true stories, GBOLT. They only make you/the car stronger.

Several coolant hose mishaps and at least one drive of over 5 hours in the pouring rain are also key to earning jedi status.:jester:

Bump, just because. I know I've been relatively dormant over here for the past few months. Kids started a new school in a fancy zip code about an hour away, my business needed attention that I hadn't paid to it while planning 7-7-7, I've trying my hand at blogging on a more public forum (Al's most recent Jalopnik post), and so on. But with Mike R.'s recent post on cold air intakes and all the subsequent feedback from all points, I wanted to once again say that I'm damn proud of the USA7s forum and its participants. I know there are other resources available to Se7eners, some of them very marque-specific, but I think this site — a relatively new entrant in the online Se7en world — has become a real "go to" place for Se7eners of all sorts, from all coasts and beyond. I'm especially pleased to see more input from the West Coast owners, who have had their own robust forum and network of owners for years now. Thanks guys! And finally, another hat tip to Mazda E. for setting this whole thing up in the first place. :cheers:

Mike...I forgot that in some configs you can use the stock ECU and not the Pectel T2 I wrestle with.... [CLARIFICATION: I was talking about non ITB configs...:cry: Sorry.]

Mike, would you consider switching to individual throttle bodies? I've seen some guys (don't know what engine or ITB config) use them without cutting a hole in the bonnet.

Thanks for all the suggestions, folks...FWIW, I like Gert's suggestion that the Track Day be thrown on the end of the meet. I don't know so much about the circular loop tour if we generate a similar level of participation as the Dragon meet...that's a very large traveling circus. Not to say that we couldn't pull it off given enough helpers. Not all of us want to track our cars, so having that appended at the end of the meet lets the less sporty among us start to head home a day or two early. I personally would be very interested in perhaps a track-based Time Attack sort of event in lieu of an parking lot Auto-X. Keep the suggestions coming all! We will get the East and West together eventually, I have hope!

Folks- Mazda and I had an club officers call yesterday. One of the things we discussed are the regional events happening in 2008 as well as the proposed national meet in 2009. We will reach out to the regional coordinators soon regarding 2008, but there seem to be several events in the planning stage you might want to put on your calendar for 08. May - MidAtlantic Region Meet at VIR (would probably attract folks from southeast and other locations) Summer - NorthEast Lime Rock meet (around a motorsports event at LRP, possibly Vintage over Labor Day...would include a group meal and drive in addition to spectating at LRP) Fall - SouthWest Se7ens Fest (assuming Bernie and crew continue their tradition) We assume that the California crew will have a few events throughout the year as well, and the Minnesota/Wisconsin folks will also have a few meet ups. We're looking to lock in some events in the Atlanta/South region, the Mountain states, as well as more in the great midwest. (Russ seems to be doing his best to rally the troops.) Perhaps something in conjunction with LOG (Indianapolis)? Chime in on the various regional threads if you have any thoughts. ---- The 2009 National meet site has been NOT* determined. There was some sentiment from people to have it more centrally located so perhaps the West Coaster could participate without making it a multi-week commitment/multi thousand mile drive. Below are some potential sites that have been tossed around. Please add any serious suggestions to this thread and we'll have a poll up in January. Based on past experience, it's safe to give the organizers about a year to make plans/reservations. Possible national meet locations for 2009 • Sturgis region, South Dakota • Montana & Wyoming (Beartooth Highway & Yellowstone) • St. Louis/Ozarks (including Gateway?), Missouri And the dark horse...another meet at Tail of the Dragon. Keep in mind that great driving roads, historic/cultural/outdoorsy tourism, facilities, and relative ease of access are all important factors when deciding the meet site. -Al *I corrected this glaring oversight...we do not have a location picked out and are looking for suggestions.

Is that anyone we know? I have 2 fire extinguishers in the car just in case, but probably won't go the full remote "fire supression systems" that you see on Miuras.

probably not a staff bag....a smaller softer one, yes.

If you've got the money burning a hole in your pocket, I say buy one of those Hartley V8s for the Caterham.... Of course, you can't get a car loan for just an engine...

I think Nick Mason of Pink Floyd fame has one like this in addition to his real GTO...for trackdays. Very cool.

Steve, is that a 250, a 275, or a 330? Looks like a LM style rear to me.

Steve- It's actually about one 30-something guy's obsession with the 32:07 coast to coast record after Brock Yates' Cannonball. The 32:07 run was done as part of something called US Express. Alex Roy's story is more singular. He realizes you can't actually make a good time under the umbrella of any event, because the media coverage attracts too much police enforcement (and with good reason!). So he plans (and a lot of the challenge of setting a good time is planning/logistics) his own independent run (with a co-driver) in the M5 he had built up for the various celebrity/rich person rallies he's run in around the world (Gumball, Bull Run, etc.). Reading the book, you don't get a picture of a guy who's reckless. He's deadly serious and seems to have made every effort to minimize risk to others. We all know of stretches of road where, given the right car and traffic pattern, we could do 150 without sweating. He just happens to string together a bunch of those stretches. I'm trying to get the producers of the film to screen it at my friends' shop in NYC. Open invite to all Se7eners if I can make it happen. -Al

Jeff, do you know what program that was on? I'm pretty you're talking about Alex Roy of Team Polizei infamy. His new book "The Driver" is a pretty good read. -A

FWIW, I think Killboy (who's pretty serious about the gear in his EVO "company car") uses the AIM. And I think Chet Galek might import that ETB unit. Chet does the Fisher Fury here in the states (out of NJ).

Then of course, you have Stack, the company that does Caterham's digidash... http://www.stackinc.com/streetdash1.html

I looked at Trailex units many years ago, but when you finish adding options, I think I had an open trailer at $8k (in fairness, it was a double axle)! Regarding Mike's (KitKat) comment....since I can't fit the wife and two kids and our stuff in the Seven at the same time, I've got no option! She much preferred riding with me in the tow vehicle for 12 hours down to the Dragon than watching me get rained on for 9 hours on the way to Skyline East in 2006.

The second link Loren posted is by Coveland....I think a few guys from the board have bought odds and ends from them and been satisfied.

Man, driving point on our various meetings/drives is tough! The only upside is that you can control the pace. I trust everything was fine with the driver and his car who had the off...I was very worried about having a similar incident on one of our early AM drives at the Dragon. It was damp and foggy, and I was constantly thinking (while chauffeuring a journalist) that I hope I don't crash on this first drive of the weekend!

Gary- I think I'm going to get the Tom Tom One XLS based on what I know about the Garmin vs. Tom Tom systems. The Nuvi 650 is a great unit though...but more $$$ than the Tom Tom. -Al

FWIW, if you have the 6 speed tranny, then I've been told that dyno runs should be made in 6th....it's direct then, with less loss due to gears.

I think JohnK brings up a great point: why do many of us care so much about the peak power? About getting a printout of our charts? I mean, if I didn't know my car was "down on power vs. the factory claim, even factoring in SAE vs. RWHP" (which it is), would I care? It's plenty fast for me, and feels like a rocket those few times I have the guts to really step on it. I'll never be able to keep up with a Super-Stalker on DOT slicks in the hills of Tennessee, but that could just be the difference in drivers. Regarding Brad's initial cold start/cut out issues...I do think that is a slightly different animal. And one that should be addressed by the dealer as a way of solidifying his reputation. After all, if he helps with the problem, then Brad is much more inclined to promote that dealer to people who ask where they can buy a car just like his. Right now, it sounds like Brad is feeling he didn't get the car he thought he was buying. That said, as much as we'd like to think otherwise, the whole warranty thing doesn't really apply here. As some of you know, I had several coolant hose issues in my first year of ownership (2005), but since my car was technically a 2003 (built in 2004)...any claim I might have had long since expired. When I got my car, USA7s.org didn't exist (that I knew of, at least)...there was just the email list that many here are still part of. And back then, there was definitely a sentiment of "the Cat distributor and dealers don't really care about owners after the sale...owners are on their own and rely on themselves and other owners to sort things out". I don't know what the sentiment is with other makes....Stalker & WCM owners seem to love Dennis and Brian. While I don't have any of these ill feelings about the dealer I bought from (Rex M. of Speed Classics) or about Cat-USA, I definitely think the onus is on owners to sort their own cars out. It's not a good thing or a bad thing, it just is.

I don't think I was high enough at the time to fully appreciate this film when I saw it.

Ahem, it's shots like this that put "Big Sky Country" very close to the top of the list for me in terms of "what's next" for a national meet. And besides, then Jon could personally inspect Gert's tire wear issue!

The former acting Club President's obligatory Thanksgiving giving of thanks... I wish I had the time and energy to thank all the folks from the forum and the club who've made the past year a truly memorable one for me and my family! Special thanks to Mazda and family, Bill and Marcy P., Steve T., Scott L., Jerry E., and the rest of the folks who helped get the club off the ground financially and here on the intranets. I think we've had a great run so far, raising the visibility of the cars perhaps higher than it's ever been. Keep up the momentum and blatting. Hope to meet you all in person someday. -Al