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2008 became a season to remember for many things.  Experience, Patience, Safety and Rewards.  One of the great things that has become a very rewarding thing for me was being given the opportunity to Instruct entry level drivers in the NASA HPDE program.  Watching the reactions of new drivers as they learn the art of driving a car on the track seems to always distort thier faces into these huge smiles throughout the course of the weekends events. 

Another thing that I have learned is the vast importance of safety and safety equipment.  During the winter of 2008, the planned suspension swap to MAZDASPEED Spec Miata coil over kit was put on hold to upgrade safety for me and the car.  Other things that were done, such as the braking system, recieved close attention and a return to the basics for reliability and effectiveness.  I returned to the stock OEM rotors available at any NAPA store since they are reliable and affordable as well as very effective.  I also asked the help of Andrews Racing on choosing the right Hawk Brake Pads for me.  I ended up going with Hawk HT-10's in the front and Hawk Blacks in the rear.  Simply incredible stopping power that nearly caught me by surprise. As you can see below...this is what came off this winter.  Powerslots in the rear of the car are gone now.

SAFETY FOR THE DRIVER

Now that the miata has been completely teched and imspected for safety and reliability, next comes me and my safety.  Since the budget this year was down over 1/3 we had to be as creative as possible to instal as much safety equipment as possible on a limited amount of funds.  Since a new FIA approved seat with a head halo system was out of the question at this time we opted for a standard seat back brace to help support the structure of the seat in the case of a rear end impact.  A right side drivers net was also installed to help contain and limit the movement of the head in a right side impact.  Shown below is the right side net.  Please note it was later secured to the roll bar in the proper places.

A number of drivers including myself also sought out the help and expertise from OG Racing regarding Head and Neck restraint systems.  We never knew how important it was to choose the correct device for your application.  What might be perfect for one person may be the wrong one for someone else.  We all went with the HANS Device.  OG Racing demonstrated the applications of the different models and explained how and why each one is made the way it is.  After that I went through several different new helmets to find one that supported the HANS Device anchors and was a correct fit to protect my noodle.  After 2 hours in the OG Racing showroom with expert help, I headed back home with my safety gear.