The next New England RX-8 club meet will be held at Devens Commerce Center in Ayer, MA. The highlight of the day will be the SCCA sanctioned AutoX. It should be a good time. Plan on being there all day and bring enough food and drink to get you through from 7am to 5pm.

Cost
$20.00 for SCCA members
$25.00 for nonmembers

Directions to Devens Commerce Center
From either direction from I-495 take exit 30 (2A/110) and turn toward Ayer (that's to the NW). From either direction, you will make a left turn onto Rt 2A.

Follow 2A all the way to the Devens Commerce Center entrance.

You will go through a rotary about 5 mi from I-495. Continue on 2A which is the second exit in the rotary (straight across, just past the McDonalds).

You will then go about 1 mile and be in the center of downtown Ayer. 2A will take a right turn just past the main business district; there will be a Mobil station on your left at that corner.

Travel about 1/2 mile. About 3/10s of a mile after Dunkin Donuts (and just past a power transfer station), take a left onto Bishop Road.

After the cemetery (on left) go through the first gate. About 1/2 a mile after this gate, bear right at the 'Y', then turn right at the 4-way intersection, and proceed up the hill, through the gate. This will take you on to the site.

Stop at the gate to sign the waiver and get a wrist band.

What to bring
• Registration form
• Tech inspection
• Helmet (Snell 90 or better) A few loaners will be available at the start line.

Plan on spending the entire day with us. You will be at the site from about 7am 'til 5pm. Pack a cooler with food and drink for the day. We don't allow any drugs or alcohol at the sites. Since you will be out in the sun (or rain), bring clothing that suits the weather.

Schedule
• Registration is open from 7:30am to 9:00am*
• Tech inspection is open from 7:15am to 9:15am*
• Course open for walking at 8:00am
• Mandatory Driver's meeting at 9:30am
• Novice Course walkthrough at 9:45am
• First car off at 10:00am
• Plan on being there until 5pm

*These times are firm, NO Exceptions.

More info
Visit New England Region SCCA Solo II for more information about the autox.

 

So who wants to AutoX? :D

1. markh711
2. Speed Racer
3. Spin9k
4. RPIRX8

 

Do they allow spectators?

 

Yeah spectators allowed.....

 

Looks like a strong possibility!

 

Cool!!! Let's see if we can get everyone from the last meet to come to the autox. :D

 

I just want to ask everyone to do the speed limit, and be a courteous driver when driving through the town of Ayer on the way to the site. The Ayer police station is on the way to the site, and they know when the events are. They don't hassle anyone, just make sure you are going 25 through town. We want to be good neighbors so we can keep this site ( it gets more difficult each year to acquire good sites ).

To anyone that has not been to an Autocross, you do have a work assignment during the day. There are 4 groups that run based on car class. So if you drive in the 1st group you will have to work when the 3rd group is driving. Work usually consists of standing off course and resetting any cones that have been hit.

I can't remember everyone that had mods, but exhaust after the cat, intakes before the throttle body, shocks that mount in stock form, and front sway bars are all allowed in stock class, so we would be running in the same group.

I think most of this information is on the NER website.

Thanks,
Mark

I'm usually one of the first people there, and will probably be working the registration desk in the morning, so if there are any questions that day ( where to go, who to see, what's going on ) I should be around.

 

Yep...what Mark said.

 

does the 25 dollar charge apply to spectators?

 

No, non-participants ( spectators )are free at this location ( Devens ). However, they will still have to sign the insurance waiver at the gate.

Mark

P.S. If you go to an Autocross at NHIS there is a $5 entrance fee for non-participants.

 

If we want, I can get paddock space marked off for us. All I would need is a count of cars that will be there. I will need to know on Saturday April 3rd if we want to do this.

I will be out of town from 20 March - 1 April, so I won't be able to respond during that time.

 

I forgot to mention about minors if they are comming. They must be accompanied at all times, and they are not allowed in the "hot areas" ( see below ). So someone will have to be with them when you are running or working.

They are allowed ( with supervision ) in the paddock and spectating areas.

Mark


"Hot areas" are:

Grid - where your group parks when it is there turn to run.
Course - where the cars run.

 

Mark,
That would be great if you could get an area of paddock marked off for us. I'll keep a running list of who is interested in coming at the top of this thread. Thanks!

 

No problem.

 

Mark,

How many timed runs are you normally able to get in and are there any "fun runs" at the end of the day?

 

With NER there are usually 3 – 5 runs depending upon turn out. We usually have 150-200 entries, so if the workers get out on time, we can get 5 runs. But there are some days where it takes a while for worker change over and those are the days you only get 3 runs.

By the way the Devens courses are over 60 seconds long for stock cars, low to mid 50’s for A Mods.

So 4 Devens runs are about 6 – 8 runs on a smaller course.

Mark

 

I might be able to make this event. It will be sort of a last min decision. Do we drive our own cars if we do the Novice thing?

 

Yes you drive your own car.

The novices run with their group ( all stock RX-8's would run together ).

However you would be scored against all the other novices for trophies. This increases the chance for a trophy because trophy are handed out to the top ~1/3rd of the class. There are usually only 4-5 cars in BS ( the RX-8 class ), but there are usually 20 - 30 novices. So to get a trophy in the open class, one would need to place 1 or 2, but in novice class you could place 6th and get a trophy.

They have a multiplier that more or less equalizes the difference between the classes, so all the novices would be on an equal playing field.

78 HS 121 Benjamin Avant Black Saab 900S 39.787 *0.778 = 30.954
79 BS 82 Mark Hoffmann Black Mazda RX- 37.628 *0.825 = 31.043


In the above example Ben is driving an HS car with a 0.778 PAX. The RX-8 is in BS with a 0.825 PAX. I got the faster raw time ( 37.628 to 39.787 ), but after the PAX is taken into account Ben beat me.

The open ( non-novice ) class only compete against cars in their class, therefore PAX is not used.


Mark

 

I can't wait...this will be the first time autocrossing my 8. I used to autocross a modded AE86 Corolla....

 

The 1st event of the year generally sees high attendance as there is much talk about the event during the winter.

Don't expect more than three runs as there's someties kinks that need to be worked out too.

But it's still the most fun you can have in your car legally. :D

I'll be there in my Wagon... but you don't need to reserve any spots for me.

Hopefully I'm not breaking any vendor rules here... new for this year I'll have 12"x16" magnetic number panels on site for those that want to buy them for $14.00. 1, 2 or 3 numbers, white on black, with class. Numbers can be specified at the event after you register. (They'll look something like this: http://www.rallydecals.com/ner/numberpanel1.gif)

Looking forward to seeing some RX8s out there! (Been thinking about one for a little while now). Can I take one out for an 'instructor run'? :p

There will be insturctors (for free!!) on hand that will happliy ride shutgun in the car to show you your way through the course and help you work on your driving technique... all you have to do is ask.

--Keith Casey

 

Hey Keith,

I'm interested in picking up a set of numbers from you and having you give me some pointers around the course.

I'd probably even let you take the Red Sled for a spin.

 

I won't be able to make the event. Sorry guys. I was sooo looking forward to it, but I have some family issues to attend to.

Maybe next time.

 

Hey I know that plans change. We will catch up with you next time.

 

Ok, I think i will be able to make this event, but only until prob 1-2pm. I might just do the spectator thing since I've never AutoXed before. Although the op to have an instructor ride shotgun sounds tempting as I prob have a lot to learn. What time is everyone getting there?

 

I should be there between 7:30 and 8:00.