[Finnegan]

Met Todd (Black 3.0si) and another forum member (black Z4Mc) at Thunderhill yesterday. There was a very fast Z3M there as well. What a great day! Skelekitty will post pics in the photos section later.

I took the STI as I wanted to see what it was like on the track. Lots of fun on the street, but no where near the Z4M on the track IMO. I am no expert (first track day LOL) but the STI loves to push and was a real PITA on turn 3 (off camber). All around the track it was nowhere near as stable and confidence inspiring as the Z, especially at higher speeds.

I only had the Z for the last session of the day (light rain too, the other sessions were dry) and it was an absolute joy to drive. Turn 3 was a piece of cake relatively speaking, and I was faster in the wet in the Z4M than the STI (and no, I wasn't pushing it). Of course, it might have helped if I could find someone locally that will align the damn STI with more than the stock -.3 front camber. But it just doesn't feel as stable/confident at speed as the Z4M at over 100 MPH.

Well, I think we're hooked. This first day out was great to learn the ins and outs of the track (passing, flags, basic lines) with NRCAracing. Next things to get are a CG lock, and some solid instructor time. Now that I have the "rules" down I think I could actually focus on listening to the instructor. There's a lot to keep in mind on the track and I doubt I could have "heard" much my first day out while trying to learn the rules of the road but YMMD.

BTW, NRCAracing puts on a very well run and organized event (I totally agree with Mfanatic). The communication was excellent up to the event and right through it, everything ran like clockwork, and it was a very fun day. While they don't offer instruction for the 125 track fee, the "driving school" will provide your with basics such as the lines for the track, basic passing skills (and communication), and flags (including "drills" to make sure you are really paying attention). You get a lot of track time and there are plenty of experienced guys that will let you ride along and offer a lot of tips on driving the track. If you've got some instruction under your belt I don't think you can beat it for getting in track time to put into practice what you've learned.