So much stuff to catch up on!

I have been super busy with work and extra-curricular activities... I have a lot to say and often think about little things I want to put in the blog, but I just haven't taken the time to do it. Anyway, here is a bunch of random stuff in no particular order.

First, the photos I took at the rally in Barbados, in the order in which they were taken:

As previously mentioned, there were many typical rally cars, like Evos and WRX's, as well as a bunch of cool rear-wheel-drive Toyota's. The photos were taken on Alex's phone, so excuse the quality.

Lapping at St-Eustache

Monday night lapping (under new management!) began while I was in Barbados, but I only began attending last week. There was a mini-school last Monday and the Civic, fresh from its race at Mosport, saw a lot of action: Carl, JP and Pascal are all waiting for various items to have their cars ready, so we all drove the Civic. It saw lots of track mileage and all went well. We suspect that the program in the reprogrammed ECU is not optimal and it's possible that the car was down on power. Still, the Monday night drivers are getting faster, and I was passed by several cars: a new stock Evo 10 (wow, it's fast), a modified Integra GSR driven by Max-O, a fellow instructor, a Lombardi Racing K20-powered Civic... I also tried unsuccessfully to chase down a new Corvette Z06... that car is ridiculously fast in a straight line!

I grew more and more confident with the new suspension. I wish I could have tried it out before Mosport, I probably would have driven with more confidence. The car feels more planted now and when the rear breaks away, it does so in a predictable way. Last week, I got to try an RX8 on the track, which is one of those cars I've been wanting to try for a while. Verdict: very pleasant, like a less edgy S2000. I can see why they are so popular on the track and on the street.

Today I only got one 20-minute session. There was a vibration in the brakes, probably some crud on a disc. It got better as the session went on. The tires we were using are starting to get old, so I don't think I was doing great lap times. The car was more tail happy than last week. We kept switching back and forth with the ECU's to see if all was OK. JP is taking the car to the Spring Classic at Tremblant this weekend. I'm betting that the car will be fine (reliable and quick) and that JP will do great (quick and reliable). Good luck JP!

Tonight there was a 1994 Supra at the track. I was riding behind it in a student's car and could observe it in action. I like this car more and more. In the 90's, I thought it was too heavy for a sports car. Ironically, most sports cars now weigh as much as those Supras, if not more (re: GTR). It is simply a nice car and the styling is aging well. It also happens to be one of Alex's favourite cars.

Various thoughts on several new cars:

Hyundai Genesis Coupe: I like it. The wheelbase is a bit long, and the styling is not 100 % on, but it seems like a cool car.

New Mustang: I like it. They fixed most of what I didn't like about the rear styling.

New Camaro: I thought I would like it more... the Dodge Challenger looks better.

New BMW Z4: I only saw it from a distance, but I liked what I saw.

New Mercedes SL: I like the update, even though it's a bit boy-racer.

Cool cars spotted:

Barbados
EP3 Civic Type R
Lancer Evo 6

Mosport
Audi R8
Audi S6 V10
Lancer Evo 8
Ford GT
Nissan GTR
New Mustang
Lotus Elise
AE86 Toyota Corolla
Super clean EF Civic
BMW 2002

In general
AMG SL55 twin turbo
AMG C63
AMG G55
AMG E55
AMG ML63
Audi S5
Audi RS4
Audi S4 Avant
Audi S6 Avant
Fiat X1/9
New AMG SL
Rolls Royce Silver Spur
Ferrari 328
Ferrari F430
Ferraru 599
Bentley Continental
Lancer Evo 3
Lancer Evo 10
WRX STi
Mustang GT500
Lotus Elise
BMW M Coupe
Old BMW M6
New BMW M6
New M5
New M3
Lotus Elan (new one)
Lotus Esprit V8
Plymouth Barracuda
1969 Dodge Charger
Supra twin turbo
Maserati GT
Maserati Quattroporte
Porsche 997 turbo
Vegetable oil-powered Mitsubishi Delica 4x4
Subaru-powered VW Westfalia
11 Austin Healey 3000's driving together!
Lamborghini Gallardo
Nissan GTR
R32 Skyline GTR