Pumping for the Masses: Autocross, and a Stingray.

When you think of a fun time in a car for a cheap price, autocross is hard to beat. It costs less than a full tank of gas to participate in, and it's one of the safest ways to quench any need for speed you might have. The culture these drivers make at the event is kinda like a recovery group for some illicit drug. Its just one way to come clean without getting any lights in your rear view mirror. I recently went to an autocross event and drug along my camera to document the trip... The cover photo is of the very first 2014 Corvette stingray I saw in person and got a ride in. It was a blast, even sitting in such a cutting edge vehicle, at least for America, was a real treat!

 

This was my first autocross event and seeing cars shed tires and flip sideways like they were was a breath of fresh air from the very strict guidelines set on government roadways.

 This little Fd rx-7 was tearing it up with the original engine I was surprised to hear, and was competing with the W10 Toyota Mr-2s in a street class.

 The MazdaSpeed3 has always been a car I thought looked great, and would look even better running through its paces at an event like this. Unfortunately this one was having some turbo problems and was spitting black smoke all day, but sounded pretty mad even still.

 There were about 372 Subies at the event, and most of them were setting respectable times through the gates.

 This old  De Tomaso Pantera was another exotic out there with the Stingray and was giving free rides all day.

 Some older gent brought out this German gem, it always nice to see something like this get to stretch its legs a bit.

 Another creative shot of a subie. To my surprise this and another Subaru like it were driven by females! There needs to be more of this.

 Here's one of those W10s that competed with the Fd rx-7. The Mr-2s were a bit quicker but seeing the two 80's geezers on course was a joy.

 This M3 was another Monster on the track. The car was sporting a Nürburgring decal, which says something about its history, and showed with the fastest time of the day. I got a ride in this feller too and it was another set of firsts for me, first time in a cam-lock five point harness, sparco racing seat, and first time riding in an M3.

 Another shot of this Beaut'

 Here's another Subaru that caught my eye, maybe it was the fact the the driver put on racing shoes before he started, or the mean look of the blacked out headlights.. Turns out it has a '06 Sti swap in it, pumping large quantities of air through an Invidia exhaust system with a whole jumble worth of suspension upgrades.

 This was one of the Female driven Subarus. I got a chance to talk to her dad at the event, and she has been doing these events for a couple years now and was beating most of the other street prepared Subarus.

Here's another shot of this massive pump. Hearing this beast's exhaust note and seeing the exhaust pipes shimmy when on throttle had me grinning like a fool every time it passed. Autocross has started to quench my thirst for speed, especially when I took my car there later last summer. I will admit when I drove, I had one of the slowest times, but improved from around 80 seconds to a less embarrassing 68.624, still one of the slowest was a great learning experience. But I had an absolute blast! And highly recommend it, even if your driving a 48 year old tin can... Have you ever autocrossed before? I'd love to hear about it below.

Here's a link to the website for these autocross events if your dying to take your daily driver to the limits.

Joshua Sewell.

Instagram: josh_sewell_photo