Color me intrigued about the idea of racing a competitive Spec Miata but luckily I'm old enough and smart enough to understand that there's exactly zero chance that I'm going to find all three of those seconds in one weekend, in a car that's so different from what I've raced almost exclusively since I last had any serious seat time in a rear-drive car (an SSA Mazda, by the way) in 1987.
I'll check my calendar though.
That mental masturbation out of the way, I would HOPE that everyone notices that at no point did I ever invoke relatively competitiveness between me in a particular Civic (or anyone/anything else) and "sports cars." Never. My argument is strictly about the physics of the two broad chassis options, and I've frankly not heard anyone make any substantive case that my principles are flawed...
Now, I did point out a few observations from the NJMP Majors weekend this spring. First, that I was still leaving at least a second on the table, relative to what my experience tells me I should be doing. Second, Farbman only went as fast as he needed to in order to win; which was 2 seconds off the pace he accidentally set in P1. In race 1, I did a 34, he did a 33. In race 2, I reeled him in, caught him, then he drove away from me. I did a 33, he did a faster 33. That is NOT about how fast the car or the driver really is; that's about managing the competition by sandbagging, which is only possible with a car that's substantially better than the competition.
I didn't just fall off of the sports car turnip truck. I KNOW that's how the National/Major (and especially "pro") programs work. I know that you know all of that but I just want to make sure it's in the record, because frankly, I think that's the game you're playing. I don't have any confidence that you can actually take your STL driver hat off when your making CRB decisions, and - if it's possible - I believe even less that you are operating in good faith with the STAC (a la the restrictor example that Greg shared). That's based on my firsthand experience watching you operate when I was on the ITAC. You're too hooked into the game to stop playing it. If nothing else, you might solemnly believe that you're' "doing what's right for the class" but from the outside looking in, it simply looks hinky.
But equally, I know that vehicle dynamics says that a car with the qualities of a Miata is going to be faster than a car with the qualities of a Civic, given the same power, level of preparation, and driver skill. NO QUESTION. Tell me I'm wrong if you dare, but do *not* play the results comparison game and tell me that I'm whining because I'm getting beat by any particular EXAMPLES of car/driver combinations. I'm not. Get over that. Further, arguing that's what I'm doing, without addressing my actual proposition, is disingenuous and only reinforces to me that you aren't willing - or able - to look objectively at the technical aspects of the issue at hand.
I also know that it's a fool's errand, trying to fix that problem with competition adjustments when someone moving the levers of the process - and more importantly, controlling the flow of information to the CRB - has an interest in, and the ability to manage, the outcome.
K
