If you are looking for a dry and sort of informative intro to the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) show, you have come to the right place. I am attending the show with a group of racers and I realize that a lot of you may not be familiar with PRI. Hence the preview.
The little 1.6-liter engine in the NA6 Miata moves too much. This engine movement, combined with soft factory differential bushings, contributes to a lot of drivetrain movement.
How’s that for a title? About as basic as I could make it. But that doesn’t mean this event was basic. In fact, through all the issues I endured this season, I still managed to capture the regional championship and reset a couple of my records in the process. But not without a little hardship.
The now ST6 Miata has had some serious electrical gremlins from day one. Intermittent starting issues, random fuel cuts, and erratic idling to name a few. I knew at some point I would rewire the car completely. What I didn’t anticipate however, is that I would give the rewire a first pass just days before the regional championship at Nashville Superspeedway.
It’s been hard sitting out part of the race season due to injury. Especially while transitioning the Miata to Super Touring 6. But I did my time and took it easy for 8 weeks to rehab the severely broken right big toe. Going full throttle at Barber Motorsports Park is not a bad way to return.
I spoke about this before in Trying Not to Finish Last at NCM. Although the budget Spec Miata is a blast to drive, it will never be competitive when the expensive equipment comes out to play. That is why I have decided to move the car to Super Touring 6 (ST6). The move to ST6 will open up the rule book and allow me to build the Spec Miata to a power-to-weight limit that will closer mirror the...
Apparently, I am not a ballerina. This profound realization came to me as I crawled across the living room floor while dealing with a very sharp and clarifying pain. Moments before, I was walking down my stairs, half asleep on my way to bed, and by some butterfly effect of miss position, I completely missed the last step. In fact, I was confidently stepping to a step where there was none, and all...
And why I need to implement them now. In past seasons, races in the rain were rare, with only a few to suffer through. But lately, it seems like every race weekend has weather looming over it. Half the races this season have been in what I like to call dynamic conditions. And with these dynamic conditions comes fog. Making what used to be a side note a big priority. Namely, developing a valid...
Last place, or almost last, we’ve all been there. At one time, it was a lack of experience. Other times I can point the finger at good ol’ bad luck. And now, it’s an issue I haven’t faced in a while, a lack of equipment.
I wasn’t quite sure what to say at the time. Memphis International Raceway is where I learned to race and was a fixture, on and off, throughout my childhood. It was a polarizing track. Home mostly to drag racers, but a few of us were proud to call the road course home.
I’ve moved out of the Mid-South to the beautiful ‘mountains’ of Northern Alabama. But, I’m still close enough to call the Mid-South region with the National Auto Sport Association home. Making the Nashville Superspeedway (NSS) event in … Nashville, TN … my first official event of 2023.
This is becoming a theme for me and one I am not particularly happy about. The last two years have been full of change coupled with excessive work. I left a job and business that I worked for nearly 20 years, looking to move into a career around my passion. And before I could execute any such plan, an opportunity presented itself that was too large to ignore.
Chris Simmons is a race car driver, instructor, business owner and all around gearhead. His passion for motorsport started in the drifting community and progressed into wheel to wheel racing of all kinds. When off track Chris can be found training and working on a myriad of projects. After a hiatus from writing, he is back to share his passion, knowledge and experience in regard to motorsports on and off the track.