Taking the Long Way … By Ken Rabbers, President The Official Newsletter of the Indy Miata Club How many of you are genuine car guys/ car girls? I know a lot of you are and I also know that I definitely am. I’m not quite sure when it all started but I can remember lusting over a rubber toy car that was given to my then baby brother when I was just 3 years old. It’s just gotten worse ever since, can’t get enough of cars, or for that matter, pretty much anything with wheels. My first “new” car was a spiffy 1956 Ford wagon that I received on my 4 th birthday (see photo), yes it was small and plastic but it was still a car. I can’t remember who gave it to me and I have no idea whatever became of my first new car, but I’ll never forget the joy of opening that special package! It seems that a lot of my childhood free time was spent playing will all sorts of toy cars and trucks with my younger brother and my best friend, Bradley. There was a lot of time playing baseball as well but the cars were still the dominating preference for non- active free time. As I grew I always seemed to be aware of whatever cars my relatives were driving at the time and could instantly tell anyone everything there was to know about those monsters on wheels. None of the cars were anything fancy or significant from an automotive standpoint but they were significant to my desire for anything to do with cars. My first “real” car was a 1966 Datsun 410 with an anemic 4-cyl engine, a three on the tree and faded orange paint; purchased for $100. It ran and got me to my summer job and back home but was anything but exciting. Thinking back on that experience, I wonder what I was thinking other than it was cheap, ran, and got me where I needed to go. Not exactly a car that caught the attention of anyone and certainly not a power house that could get me into any trouble. Still, it was a car and it was mine. Several years later another first; my first “new real” car, a 1973 Toyota Corolla. Again, not real fancy but it at least had a decent 1600 cc engine, 4-speed transmission and eventually, radial tires. It was a fun car and one that I used for my first venture into competition – autocross. Luckily, with the various classes, the car was actually very competitive and I was able to capture the second place trophy for the Tri-State Motor Sport Council, K Stock class. I met some great people during my years of autocross and eventually took the next step in competition with a good friend. We found a 1969 Triumph GT6 at an auto body shop that had apparently been abandoned by the owner. The body shop owner wanted to sell the car but didn’t have title, not a big deal since we didn’t want to license it anyway. We bought the car, finished the body work ourselves, and painted it a nifty chrome yellow with black racing stripes; Magnum Racing Team was born! Luckily the car already had a good The Official Newsletter of the Indy Miata Club Volume 23 Issue 2 February 2013 What’s Inside Page 2 Taking the Long Way cont. Page 3 Inaugural Car Club Challenge Upcoming Events Post Tax Blues Rally Membership Deadline Page 4 How to Wash your IMC Shirts Page 5 Club Classifieds Mingle Coordinators Needed Crossword Answers Page 6 Meet the Officers Luncheon Page 7 Advertisers Page 8 Advertisers
Transcript
Taking the Long Way … By Ken Rabbers, President
The Official Newsletter of the Indy Miata Club
How many of you are genuine car guys/ car girls? I know a lot of you are and I also know that I definitely am. I’m not quite sure when it all started but I can remember lusting over a rubber toy car that was given to my then baby brother when I was just 3 years old. It’s just gotten worse ever since, can’t get enough of cars, or for that matter, pretty much anything with wheels. My first “new” car was a spiffy 1956 Ford wagon that I received on my 4th
birthday (see photo), yes it was small and plastic but it was still a car. I can’t remember who gave it to me and I have no idea whatever became of my first new car, but I’ll never forget the joy of opening that special package!
It seems that a lot of my childhood free time was spent playing will all sorts of toy cars and trucks with my younger brother and my best friend, Bradley. There was a lot of time playing baseball as well but the cars were still the dominating preference for non-active free time. As I grew I always seemed to be aware of whatever cars my relatives were driving at the time and could instantly tell anyone everything there was to know about those monsters on wheels. None of the cars were anything fancy or significant from an automotive standpoint but they were significant to my desire for anything to do with cars.
My first “real” car was a 1966 Datsun 410 with an anemic 4-cyl engine, a three on the tree and faded orange paint; purchased for $100. It ran and got me to my summer job and back home but was anything but exciting. Thinking back on that experience, I wonder what I was thinking other than it was cheap, ran, and got me where I needed to go. Not exactly a car that caught the attention of anyone and certainly not a power house that could get me into any trouble. Still, it was a car and it was mine.
Several years later another first; my first “new real” car, a 1973 Toyota Corolla. Again, not real fancy but it at least had a decent 1600 cc engine, 4-speed transmission and eventually, radial tires. It was a fun car and one that I used for my first venture into competition – autocross. Luckily, with the various classes, the car was actually very competitive and I was able to capture the second place trophy for the Tri-State Motor Sport Council, K Stock class.
I met some great people during my years of autocross and eventually took the next step in competition with a good friend. We found a 1969 Triumph GT6 at an auto body shop that had apparently been abandoned by the owner. The body shop owner wanted to sell the car but didn’t have title, not a big deal since we didn’t want to license it anyway. We bought the car, finished the body work ourselves, and painted it a nifty chrome yellow with black racing stripes; Magnum Racing Team was born! Luckily the car already had a good
The Official Newsletter of the Indy Miata Club
Volume 23 Issue 2
February 2013
What’s Inside
Page 2 Taking the Long Way cont.
Page 3 Inaugural Car Club Challenge
Upcoming Events Post Tax Blues Rally
Membership Deadline
Page 4 How to Wash your IMC Shirts
Page 5 Club Classifieds
Mingle Coordinators Needed Crossword Answers
Page 6 Meet the Officers Luncheon
Page 7 Advertisers
Page 8 Advertisers
engine, transmission and the desirable 3:89 rear end. The picture is from one of our shake down runs at a local autocross event but the car would eventually run in MCSCC (Midwest Council of Sports Car Clubs) events at Black Hawk Farms, Gratton and Road America. After a year of road racing, both my partner and I agreed that we had better things to do with our hard earned money and sold the car to another duo who continued to race it in MCSCC. No idea what became of my first and only non-street legal race car.
I temporarily lost the itch when I moved to Colorado, and my focus was driving up in the mountains to get my friends and me to the trail heads for backpacking trips and conquering 14,000 foot peaks. Even though my Colorado cars were nothing other than just transportation, I still seemed to have motor oil running through my veins.
After moving to New Hampshire, I found that I could still get my kicks on a race track without having to spend the money on a race car, enter High Performance Driving Events or HDPE. I spent many a day at tracks such as New Hampshire International Speedway, Lime Rock Park, and Watkins Glen driving my daily drivers and getting my heart pumping. The 3 tracks were all unique and all had some great corners and straights that I’ll never, ever forget. I drove my VW Passat, Saab Viggen, and a couple of MINI Cooper S’s for the HDPE’s during my years in New Hampshire. Although my first Miata was purchased in New Hampshire, it didn’t get to experience the rush of a race track. I’ve had my current 2006 MX-5 on the track at Putnam Park for an HDPE and really enjoyed that experience as well. I was surprised at the complexity of Putnam Park and the nice mix of tight corners, sweepers and the long, long downhill front straight.
I miss the thrill of HDPE’s and would like to participate in another but right now have no immediate plans to do so. One of these days the itch might possibly become unbearable and I’ll have to resurrect my helmet and give it another go.
In addition to the “real” cars, I also have an extensive collection of 1:43 scale model race cars, a majority of which are hand built. The focus is on race cars but I do have copies of a couple of my own street cars; one is a Saab Viggen, the other is a 2006 Copper Red MX-5, just like the one in my garage. My favorites are the Ford GT40’s from LeMans, Daytona and Sebring; the Mazda 787B from 1991 LeMans (1st and 2nd place cars); Mark Donohue cars from Indy, Formula 1 and Can-Am; and my Lotus collection covering Indy, Formula 1 and sports car racing.
From a birthday present to the present, that’s a brief summary of what makes me a car guy.
Miscellaneous Ramblings
The Board of Directors met for the first time in 2013 on January 9th with several members joining the Board for dinner before the meeting. The Board passed a budget for 2013 (yes, we’ll once again be operating in the black), established a committee to organize the 2013 Holiday party, and dealt with some other club business. Meeting minutes for this and all Board meetings are available via the club website. Future Board meetings are tentatively set for April 17, July 17 and October 16. Exact times, dates and locations will be listed on the Events page of the website.
26 club members attended the Meet the Officers Luncheon on a sunny, windy January 19. Birthday boy, Gerry Breedlove (70) even drove to the event “top down”. We all had a great time catching up, sharing stories of our Miatas, and dreaming of the days ahead when warm weather will prevail and send us all down the road with tops down.
I’d like to wish a warm welcome to our most recent members: John Reyes & Carla Thomas who have a 2012 red MX-5 Grand Touring; and Brent & Cheryl Lykens who have a 1996 red Miata. The ranks of the red are growing once again! We’re looking forward to meeting all of you at a future Indy Miata Club event.
The Last Word… --I have a recurring dream about an overweight man dressed like a chef with a two day growth of beard, standing at my overflowing desk, brandishing a sprig of parsley and saying in a threatening tone of voice, "I've come to garnish your wages!"
The Open Road is published monthly for the members of the Indy Miata Club. The Indy Miata Club assumes no liability for any information contained herein, or injury or damage resulting from the use of this information. The ideas, opinions, maintenance or modification tips expressed are to be used at the reader’s discretion. Individual contributors and/or the editors express no approval, authentication, or endorsement.
Page 3 Open Road February 2013
Now celebrating 40 years!
Exclusive Discounts for Indy Miata Club Members
Tom Roush Mazda, Indiana’s first Mazda dealer established in 1972 has not only the most experienced sales and service staff in town, but also is the highest volume dealer in Indiana. We hope to serve you in our next 40 years as Indy’s premier Mazda dealer. In support of the Miata Club member’s we would like to offer the following benefits:
15% off regular door labor rate
15% off any accessory purchase
S-Plan pricing to eligible customer’s
Extended Saturday service hours 7:30—3:30
US 31 North @ 169th Street Westfield, IN 46074 800-891-3056
INDY MIATA CLUB UPCOMING EVENTS
Check the Events page of the Indy Miata Club website for additional details and to sign up for all events. If you have the desire to organize an event or just have a good idea, please contact the Vice President at [email protected]
04/20/2013 Post Tax Blues Rally
Mark your calendar for this event and watch the website for additional information as it becomes available.
04/27/2013 Leavenworth Inn Miata Weekend Retreat
Once again Bob & Steve are planning a weekend of merriment, driving & dining in the southern Indiana community of
Leavenworth.
Check the website for other events already posted
INAUGURAL CAR CLUB CHALLENGE By Gary Weidman
While I encourage everyone to attend the Leavenworth trip, there is a non-IMC sponsored activity that should be of interest to members like me who can’t get away for the whole weekend. The Indy Region of the SCCA has invited the Indy Miata Club to participate in their Inaugural Car Club Challenge on Saturday, April 27, 2013. Numerous central Indiana car clubs have been invited to this Time/Speed/Distance rally, so it should be a fun and interesting day. If you’ve never participated in a TSD event, don’t worry. Novices are welcome, and most of the advanced electronic devices that are used in many rallies are not allowed in this one. Also, unlike some TSD rallies, this one will be entirely on paved roads. The organizers are asking for a minimum of 2 cars from each club, with no maximum. Complete details are available on the “Non-IMC” events page of our club website. I will be organizing our club’s participation, so if you are interested, please contact me through our club website.
DON’T FORGET TO PAY YOUR DUES FOR 2013 Membership forms are available on line.
http://www.indymiata.org/
POST TAX BLUES RALLY By Gary Weidman
Our annual event with the Lake Effect Miata Club is scheduled for April 20. We need someone from our club to work with a member of the Lake Effect club to set up this event. While anyone who is interested is welcome to do this, it is an ideal opportunity for IMC members who live in northern Indiana, because the event is traditionally held in the north west or north central areas of Indiana. Please let me know if you are interested.
At the “Meet Your Officers event, a discussion came up on club clothing and the digitally printed shirts. Our VP, Gary Weidman had a long sleeved T-shirt on and the IMC logo was quite faded. So, how to wash a T-shirt so it continues to look good? Shirts printed with the digitally printing process are going to be more sensitive to washing and fading than shirts printed with the screen printing method. That is because while the digital technology has made many improvements in recent years it still has a long way to go before it is up to the same quality and durability as screen printing. Screen printing is the better option, but expensive. Some fading and wear will naturally occur over time with digitally printed clothing and it is accelerated with washing. That makes proper care and washing even more important. Ann Cole shared a secret that she uses to keep her digitally printed shirts looking good a bit longer. Wash it first in salt water! In food, salt acts as a preservative, extending the shelf life of many products. Similarly, when used correctly, salt can maintain vibrant colors in clothes. So here are Ann’s instructions: “Turn the shirt inside out and soak in sink or pail for about two hours in cold salt water (1/16 c to 1 gal) before washing inside out in cold water in your washer. I have found this to be successful. This seems to ‘set’ the printing before the first wash. I just wash inside out the rest of the time in cold water.”
When it is time to launder a digitally printed shirt, as Ann says, it’s best to always turn the garment inside out to keep any unnecessary friction from rubbing the design. That’s another reason why digitally printed shirts fade. It should be washed either alone or with other clothing that is of a very similar color. Another step to consider when washing is to wash your item on a delicate cycle and in cold water. By using cold water, there’s a bonus, you’ll save money by not paying to heat the water!
It is also very helpful to make sure to use a safe, non-harsh laundry detergent on your digitally printed shirt. Of course regular laundry tips like not bleaching your digitally printed T-shirt and not washing whites with colors is also relevant in this situation. Another straightforward step that is very important is to make every effort to avoid getting tough stains on the shirt in the first place! If they do occur, then try to get them out before they set.
Once your shirt is washed, it’s time to dry it. As discussed above, heat is notorious for leaching color from clothing. Because of this, it is important that clothes are dried without the use of excessive heat. Air dry your clothes as much as possible, either by placing them on a drying rack, clothesline, or simply by hanging them on a shower curtain. If you must use a dryer, put the setting on tumble dry. This will limit the amount of heat to which your clothing is exposed. Then hang the clothing immediately when the dryer finishes the cycle.
I’ll admit, I rolled my eyes when I researched the drying tips. I’m lazy and will just dry my T-shirts as I normally do.
These gentler washing techniques can make a big difference. Of course, it’s not recommended to dry clean any digitally printed or screen printed garments.
If you have any questions about clothing in the IMC stores (http:indymiata.org/store/, contact me at [email protected]
For Sale—16 inch wheels- Good condition --could be used for extra set of winter wheels. These were replaced by RX7 8" wide wheels. Make me an offer I can't refuse! I will deliver. Bill Frisbie, Plainfield, 765 721-1500
For Sale - IMC Windshield Banner—Banner-style vinyl windshield stickers now available to order. See classified section of club web site for photo and more information. Cost is $11.00 each. Contact Gary Weidman 317-709 or at [email protected]
IMC Clothing—Looking for something with our logo? The IMC stores can help you fill that need. See the website for more information. Clothes can be purchased through Printfection or Lands’ End.
As in the past, we have three “mingles” scheduled for this year. These are held on the Saturday evenings prior to the major racing events at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. All that is required of the organizer is to find a convenient location (with ample parking) where we can get a soft drink, coffee, ice cream or some kind of snack and spend a couple of hours socializing. One option is for the organizer to add a short drive of 20-25 miles, followed by time to socialize. As the organizer, you also have the opportunity to be creative and develop some other variation of this activity. The dates of this year’s mingles are shown on the “Events” page of the club website. If you are interested in signing up to organize one of these activities, please contact me. I will be happy to answer questions or assist you in planning your event. This is a great way to support the club if you have a busy schedule and don’t have time to set up one of our regular drives.
MINGLE COORDINATORS NEEDED by Gary Weidman
CROSSWORD PUZZLE ANSWERS . . .How well did you know your clolors?
Across: 1. Royal 4. Brillant 5. Montego 8. Competition 9. Sunburst 11. Two 13. Vivid Yellow 14. Crystal 15. Grace 16. Pure 18. Mahogany 26. British Racing
