February 11, 2008
Oh Eloise, you're so sexy now! posted by Jess
Many thanks for the IM, emails, Facebook wall posts, and Twitter tweets about my birthday!
Today I spent sick on the couch with no voice, but yesterday was the real celebration!
Yesterday was a tech/detail day at DT Auto with the Mass Motoring Club. It had been so long, I missed it! And, it's been a long winter with Eloise, who was filthy and needed a wash anyway.
Tech days are great fun. Our MINI pimp, Pete is there, and usually brings his trusty sidekick mechanics. He sets up a bay and we all sign up for bay time - they'll do whatever we need. Installs, oil changes, etc. Pete also sets up a few empty bays where we can take turns washing and detailing our cars.
As for the downtime, when our cars aren't in the bay, we just sort of hang out, find out what everyone else is doing, and bring lots of food to eat. It's such a good time, and I'm always glad when we do this. There's always new folks to meet, and I usually end up learning a thing or two about the cars.
As for Eloise, she had some scheduled work, and there was a surprise! She was getting her white mirror caps swapped out for custom painted lime-green ones. Lime green and light blue is my favorite color combination. On EBAY, I managed to find some white MINI mirror caps up for sale. I gave Pete a sample of green I wanted, and he took it to his "guy" who painted them for me.
Here's the "Before":
She was also getting a new Detroit Tuned supercharger bypass valve, which has a tighter spring than the old one and will give Eloise more boost and a better throttle response.
These are both body and engine mods, so I was a little surprised when I drove Eloise into the bay and immediately the guys put the lift wings under her. I asked Pete why she was going on the lift, and he replied, "Because she needs work." I never question Pete, and someone else asked me a question after that, so I guess I forgot about it.
All of a sudden Pete pulls out this huge box and said, "Go give your husband a hug! He bought you a sway bar for your birthday!"
Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
I love my hubbie. I am now the proud owner of an H-Sport 25mm hollow competition sway bar, which completes my suspension upgrades (to go along with existing front/rear strut bars and lowering springs), which should make for a mighty fun autocross season!
A sway bar helps keep the car's body steady while turning. If you go around a curve, you'll notice that you seem to lean towards the outside of the turn. The faster you go, the more you lean. Well, your car, and all it's parts, are leaning the same way. There is less pressure on the tires on the inside, and more pressure on the tires on the outside of the turn. A sway bar (or stabilizer bar) forces weight evenly on both sides, helping the car stay flat and even during the turn. The bar I have has three settings, which I will have to play around with to find the best setting for my car. If it's too tight, the wheels lose their independence and work together a little *too* well, and I'll get oversteer.
Oh, they got me a cake, too, right there in the garage. I love my friends!
Zoë had a great time at her first Tech day. She hung out like a champ in the garage, liked looking at the cars, and didn't even mind all the loud noises. Everyone loved seeing her. In fact, everyone was laughing when I drove my car into the bay, because apparently a baby carseat was the last thing they expected to see in the back seat!
Here's Eloise almost finished. She's clean, has her new mirror caps, and has most of her decals removed. I took off every decal that's not white or lime green (and added a new lime green antenna duckie!). I say almost finished because I have a bunch of lime green "Pixie Posse Racing" stickers that Pete made for me and Audra. I just can't decide where I want them to go yet! The green is what he color matched the mirror caps with.
This shot is actually a pretty good angle to see how low Eloise rides, too.
She's got all the toys, now the only factor left in autocross this season is the loose nut behind the wheel!
July 17, 2007
My new nickname for the baby... posted by Jess
And how cool is THIS?
December 20, 2006
A very happy MINI Pimp posted by Jess
I've had Eloise for a little over a year now. Since then, she's undergone some - changes.
In terms of suspension, she has lower/wider tires, and front/rear strut bars installed. She has brand new shocks and has Eibach 1" lowering springs for improved cornering.
For performance, she has a JCW short shifter, weighted shift knob, 15% reduction supercharger pulley, Ram air intake, one-balled muffler, and to bring it all together - a custom-mapped Unichip.
In terms of "bling", Eloise has gone through some plastic sugery herself. She has an all-new chrome interior/exterior, including alloy pedals and a chrome exterior grille.
Finally, in the functionality department, she has an RCA adapter wired through my car to the CD changer for my MP3 player. The last thing she is waiting for is a CB Radio to be installed in her glove compartment (our MINI rallies have gotten so large that a two-way radio won't cover the distance from start to finish, and now that I'm helping keep cars under control on the drives, I need to be in full communication with the other organizers!).
Some parts I've been able to put in myself, but most things I let my MINI mechanic (aka MINI Pimp) handle. In his words, "Try it yourself - if it gets ugly, stop!" These were very familiar words, in which I have spoken myself to other people about fixing and upgrading their computers.
That introduction was a long one, but necessary. Pete belongs to our MINI club, and is also our resident mechanic. We've had "tech days" in which we go to the shop where he works, and wash our cars, get parts installed, and enjoy the company.
Pete's wife is a member of Pixie Posse Racing, so we've even been fortunate to have a real "Pit crew" when we autocross.
The bottom line is that Pete gives up a lot of his time to help us all out, answer our questions, and install things for us. It was time to say a heartfelt thank you!
Some members of our club felt that our very own MINI Pimp should not be riding around in stock rims. We all chipped in, and got him something to make him very, very happy!
Here's Pete, aka MINI Pimp, finally riding in style the way he deserves!
If you are in the MA/Worcester area and need a good mechanic, take your car to DT Automotive (508-754-1400). Your car will receive top notch service, and you will receive top notch customer service. Matt and I live an hour away, yet it's still worth the drive up there for the quality.
Three cheers for Pete and DT Automotive! Gold stars all around. Enjoy the wheels, Pete, you deserve it!
December 09, 2006
Pixie Posse Racing (photo-heavy, sorry) posted by Jess
When I registered at the gate for my first autocross event last May, the lady behind the counter was helping me make sure I was in the right class. One question that came up was whether I wanted to be in Open, Novice, or Ladies class. I was a novice, but I'm also a lady, and didn't know which to pick.
The woman said that there was no other women registered that day - if I wanted a trophy, compete in ladies class. If I wanted to be competetive, enter Novice class. I ended up going as Novice (where's the fun in no competition?).
(Of course, now I have so many modifications to the car that I'm bumped to the highest mod class. More on that later!)
The lady behind the counter shook her head, and said that in the eleven years she's been working the gate, she had never seen a woman go there on their own accord - they always came and entered because their spouce or partner did.
I then got to tell her that I was here by myself - she almost fainted! It was a nice moment. :-)
As it turns out, I was a bit of a pioneer for my local MINI club. There was one other girl who had wanted to do it, but just wasn't sure where to go, how to get started, etc. She ended up coming with me on my next event.
Note the "MINI" logo on my helmet, that sticker was a gift. Love it!
After that, we got a third girl. As the tech inspector for the cars announced, when we drove up for the morning Tech Inspection, "They're multiplying!"
Three pixies! Audra, me, and Becca.
Finally, the fourth girl came in her new MINI and had a blast, unaware of the driving potential of her car.
The fourth pixie, Sheena!
We had a blast on our first season together, and Becca even made it into a racing magazine when they took her picture at the line. The real irony is that her son is a championship autocrosser in the midwest. :-)
The cars, in order: Becca's 'Bonnie Blue', Audra's 'The Pearl', Jess's 'Eloise', and Sheena's 'Pi Rho'.
We finally wrapped up the season with a detail-day party to wash the cars (read: get the cone marks off!) and I gave everyone a CD of all the fast songs I listened to on the long drive to get to autocross to get psyched up! I made it complete with CD cover booklet of all the girls and the cars.
Season 1 is over, with a few medals I brought home, and a whole slew of new friends. Who knows what next season will bring? I can say, it will be a long wait.
Here's some samples from the CD cover I made. The rest of the season's album is here.
Becca driving Bonnie Blue, SM class means 'Street Modified'
Sheena driving Pi Rho. She's running GS class, which is G Stock. This basically means that she's pretty much the only one in our MINI club that still has a stock MINI. She's only had her MINI a few months, so we'll see how long *that* lasts.
Me (Jess) driving my beloved Eloise. I made the mistake of spending a day driving around in someone else's MINI during an autocross event once. Eloise let me know what she thought of that by breaking down twenty feet into driving home from the event and needed to be towed. Matt was considering renaming her to the more appropriate "Christine".
Audra, driving The Pearl. Pearl has since got bring orange mirror caps, and her orange flame is on order. STX class means "Street Touring Extreme", which doesn't have quite as harsh scoring methodologies as Street Modified.
December 04, 2006
Eloise is ready for Christmas posted by Jess
October 09, 2006
MINIs on three wheels... posted by Jess
MINI of Peabody held their second annual OctoberFAST event, which was a blast again. Great friends, great weather, great food.
Here's my autocross friend Audra tearing it up on the course who also happens to be part of Pixie Posse Racing with me (more on that later). That's me as a passenger, hanging on!
(photo courtesy of blalor)
Here's my friend's car on three wheels with tires smoking. I got a chance to drive this around the course, and got my best time with him. The license plate appropriately, "MR HYDE".
(photo courtesy of snid)
July 13, 2006
More autocrossing, this time a trophy! posted by Jess
I'm still WAY behind in my blogging, to the point that I've done a few more autocross events. In fact, my car has gotten "chopped" since this event, and I've had to move into a higher modification class.
But, I wanted to tell you about this one anyway.
This was my second autocross event, held at Devens, MA last May (yes, I am WAY behind, I know!).
The course was long, at least from the first event I went to. While my first event was in a large parking lot, this event was held at an old airfield runway, allowing the cars to get up to much higher speeds.
Devens used to be Fort Devens, and used to be a huge army barracks. It was later used only as a training facility, and now doesn't do much of anything, as far as I know. Which is good for the SCCA, as now there are these huge runways just sitting here, waiting for cars!
Here's Eloise, waiting to get into the grid (the main parking lineup to get ready for your heat). Right now she's in what's called "the paddock", in which cars line up, empty out all the contents, and get tech checked.
Yes, it takes awhile to empty out a car! Floor mats, loose change, wheel caps, they all have to be off the car. What's normally a basic luxury can become a projectile missile while cornering and braking at high speeds. When the car gets tech checked, the inspectors are looking to make sure the car battery is held down tightly, and everything looks in place.
The "NGS" in this stands for Novice, G-stock class. It's in stock category at the moment, as I haven't done any tuning modifications.
Getting ready to take my first of three runs on the course:
I actually came in third in Novice stock class, which let me take home a trophy that day! Considering it was only my second event, this was very exciting. I'll post pictures of my most recent autocross soon, now that I'm not in stock class anymore, I think my brief day of trophying is over, but we'll see.
June 26, 2006
Finding Solace on New Hampshire International Speedway posted by Jess
Literally!
Since I've had my MINI, I've been told over and over again how much fun autocrossing is, so I just had to try it. I'm hooked! I've since joined the New England Region of the SCCA (Sports Car Club of America), which does Autocross/Solo2 on a regular basis during the summer. (It's also called 'solo' because you are timed on the course by yourself, each car goes seperately.)
My first event was at New Hampshire International Speedway, in Loudon NH (of Winston Cup fame). After the event was done, we were given a special treat - the chance to do "touring" laps on the speedway. Touring laps means no passing, you can only go as fast as the person in front of you. Granted, we reached high speeds at some points... though it feels like you are going a lot faster in lower gears when the engine can really rev for a little bit! The MINI doesn't truly shine until 4-5,000 RPMs. I'd heard that, but now I know...
The following paragraphs are copied directly from the SCCA's website (they say it far better than I could)
"
An autocross is a skill driving event in which one car at a time negotiates a prescribed course, using traffic cones to define a variety of turns. The sites are usually laid out on huge, open parking lots, or on sections of airport runways. The course is set up so that you are operating in lower gears, with a top speed of no more than 60 mph or so, depending on the car. The average time of a run on the course is approximately one minute, plus a penalty of two seconds for each rubber cone (pylon) hit. During each run you operate your car at it's limit of acceleration, turning, and braking...and yours. You maintain complete control of your car while maneuvering through the course in the lowest possible time.
While driving on the street, the time span of most emergencies is only a few seconds. Thus the experience of maintaining control becomes a valuable training session. You will develop a sense of timing, judgment, and ability to interpret your vehicle's handling characteristics - at safe speeds and in a safe place. Your experiences at an autocross will enhance your driving ability on the street.
"
It's really fun, and really easy to get started. Cars are placed according to class, not driver, so you always have a competetive chance to take home a trophy. Anyone can do it with their street commuter car, or a suped-up hotrod. Great driving lessons in control, AND you get to really open up your car and see what it can do.
You can see why a MINI would be great fun. My problem when I started was that I never went fast enough... the instructors kept telling me "go faster, dammit! If the pedal is not on the floor through those slaloms, you're not going fast enough!"
Finally one time I took him up on it, sure enough - pedal to the medal while simultaneously moving the wheel side to side through the slalom cones. Sure enough, not only did I NOT lose control, but the car drove better because I WAS in control, and I knocked four seconds off my time. I saw a great quote in the signature file of another driver: Drag racing measures fast cars. Solo2 measures fast drivers.
To see exactly what I am talking about, here is a link to a video of a car having a good run on an autocross course (you'll see what I mean about the slaloms):
Autocross/Solo2
Here's me and my friend Maureen in a MINI in front of me. This wasn't an all-MINI event - we just clicked!
Find your local SCCA branch. It's the single easiest way for anyone to get started having a little fun with their cars - no performance parts needed. If you have them, great, but you'll get put into a different class than an all-stock car.
Entering NHIS "infield" to get onto the Speedway itself:
May 08, 2006
I got a tattoo, so Eloise wanted one too! posted by Jess
As a casual observer noted, "That stripe adds 10 horsepower right there!"
Whaddya know, he was right. :-)
The decal on the back is by happenstance... the vinyl was originally set for the window at my new place, however, it was much too small. A new one was ordered, and Matt said, "Well, I know a perfect spot for the old one!"
Whaddya know, he was right too. :-)
November 06, 2005
Burning Mini's II - Haverhill/Ipswitch, MA posted by Jess
I promise I won't talk about Mini's exclusively... well, I'll try!
This saturday Matt, Reboot and I drove up to Haverhill, MA, where another Mini run was taking place.
The weather was perfect, the foliage was on fire, and it was a great day for driving. We drove all around Haverhill and Ipswitch, stopping for lunch at Essex Pizza.
The first stop was at Mini of Peabody, where a shipment of Mini's was arriving just as we were.
Eloise finally got her Union Jack license plate frame.
The next stop was at Russell Orchards and winery in Ipswitch. What a day for the apple orchard! There was a marketplace, some farm animals to pet, free cider tasting, and a fantastic live bluegrass band.
The next stop was at Kimball Farm to visit the Llamas. Reboot really wasn't sure what to make of the llamas.
But then again, if I was a dog, I'm not sure what I'd think if I saw this towering in front of me. But what nice posture!
Finally, we winded back to the farm where we started for a nice cookout and bonfire.
Great people, a great ride, great scenery... a great day all around. Both Reboot and Matt were fast asleep the whole way home. :-)
View the complete day's album here.
There's some more great shots.
October 26, 2005
Haunted MINI's 2005 posted by Jess
"Something Mini This Way Comes..."
That was the theme of my first Mini Cooper event, from the Ocean State Mini Club last Saturday night. And yes, it was pouring and muddy. And no, I didn't really care!
33+ Mini Coopers and their owners gathered in Chepachet, RI to line up and go for a run. We made five stops that night to various haunted locations in Chepachet, consisting of old haunted factories, dams, and trees. Tom D'Agostino, a historian and investigator from the RI Paranormal group was our guide, and did a fantastic job of telling in-depth stories and answering questions at each stop.
Tom, dressed up and telling a story at a stop:
A nice touch for Halloween: costumes for us and the Mini's were encouraged. I decided to theme it this year (though Matt couldn't put together anything in time, this was short notice) - Eloise was Serenity, I went as Kaylee, the ship's mechanic, and Reboot, well, she was the good Shepherd, even though she didn't go on the run. :-)
The people that had organized the entire run gave us all goodie bags as favors for the run, consisting of a "Haunted MINIs 2005" window cling, and a CD of horror movie theme music. We were told to listen to the CD during the run, to add to the creepy atmosphere.
Once the run was over, we all gathered at the local pub for a buffet dinner.
This was me and Matt's first time meeting everyone, and they were such a great bunch of people. Everyone made sure I knew where I was suposed to go, and even let me borrow a two-way radio so I could stay with the group.
Oh, and did I mention it was raining and muddy?
Because it was night, the pictures are a little dark, but you can certainly see a small chunk of the total Mini's all lined up. It was definately a fun experience, especially seeing 33 decorated Mini's lined up on the side of the road at each stop! The reactions of the passers-by were nice to see, also.
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September 30, 2005
Meet Eloise - my 2002 Mini Cooper S posted by Jess
Here we are... me and Eloise. Well, and Reboot, of course.
Eloise is a 2002 electric blue Mini Cooper S. She only has 23,000 miles on her. As you can see, she's an adult, but has so far taken the gentler side of life. I think it's time for her to show the world what she can do... there's definately a party girl in there.
She's cute in a geeky, saddle-shoes sort of way. However, don't let the light-blue exterior fool you. Once you get behind the wheel and drive - there's SO much more going on behind the scenes and this girl needs to and should be taken seriously.
I think me and Eloise will be able to bring out the best in each other. Or maybe we already have?
I got to do my first "Mini wave" today. Matt and I saw the navy blue little guy zipping around town a few times this morning while we were doing errands. On the way home, there he was, a few cars ahead. We caught up, and zipped by and waved. He was already giving us the "thumbs up" as we drove past.
There's an Ocean State Mini club, and a few other local regional clubs. There's hardly a weekend where there isn't some sort of Mini rally going on. They get together, go for a nice drive, and usually end up having a picnic lunch somewhere and visiting a tourist spot.
How wonderful just to get out of the house and doing something fun with new people... I just can't wait. It just keeps getting better and better!
Oh, here's something funny, pointed out by Cindy.
Here's Cindy and Nate's 2002 mini Cooper standing next to MY 2002 Mini Cooper.
My 2002 Mini Cooper requires oil changes every 6k-10k miles or so. Cindy and Nate's 2002 mini Cooper requires changes also, though a little more frequently than mine.
So anyway, hopefully you'll be hearing more about some "Mini Adventures".
September 23, 2005
The automobile(s) saga ends with some new additions. posted by Jess
Yes, that's right. Additions. Two. As in, Matt traded his not-running-$3k worth of repairs needed Saturn. And, I traded in my lemon-no air conditioning-barely running-worth less than Matt's car Pontiac.
Here's the story. And it was meant to be.
Saturn of Warwick is, IMHO, the best car dealership I've ever been to. The salespeople are friendly, and salaried. They don't work on commission. They have a great selection of non-Saturn cars. You can even purchase 100,000 mile warranties on any used car. As far as Matt and I were concernced, there wasn't anywhere else we were going to buy a new car.
Anyway, on their website, we found a 2004 Mazda 3 with low mileage. It looked perfect, so we called. The car was in their Boston dealership, but that was no problem. Saturn of Warwick bought it, and sent it down to Rhode Island specifically for Matt to drive on Saturday. Seeing pictures, and reading the stats, both Matt and I had a really good feeling about the car.
Saturday came, and we showed up at Saturn, met the salesman Matt had been talking to all week on the phone, and walked to see the car. Because the car was there specifically for Matt, Bob (the salesman) didn't want anyone else to stumble upon it, and parked it in its own small lot around the dealership.
The Mazda 3 was beautiful. 4-door, and a nice silver/grey color. It's a really sporty looking car. It just screamed "Matt!" It also had a factory installed 6-disc internal changer, and a red-colored racing interior. Drove beautifully, we knew it was going to be Matt's.
A bright yellow Mitsubishi Lancer was there also for him to look at. The color definately put Matt off, but driving it put him off even more. It had that boxy-sedan feel to it, even as a 5-speed manual.
Here's the thing. Way back, in the farthest corners of the Saturn lot, yet 2 cars away from the Mazda, was a 2002 light blue Mini Cooper S (6-speed manual), with 23,000 miles on it. I went and peeked in the windows, but I didn't say anything - this was Matt's day.
Matt asked Bob if we could drive the Mini. He looked at me and said, "This car is YOU!" I drove it, and it was amazing. Again, Matt, being so great, said that we would do what we had to to get me in that car.
To make a short story long, in one of the more crazy things that Matt and I have ever done, two days later we left the Pontiac at Saturn.
Matt drove his Mazda 3 home, and I drove my Mini Cooper S home.
I'm sure Matt will blog about the details of his new baby. And I'll introduce you all to Eloise.
