Mazda

I didn't go to H20i again this year, no excuse really, I just plain couldn't afford it due to recent purchases and trip to Vegas (read: SEMA) at the end of this month. So similar to last year I did a quick perusal of photo threads and compiled a short list of cars I liked.

As I mentioned in part one CSCS finale events are always some of the most exciting to attend and heading into this rounds CSCS I had visions of shooting the track coverage from different locations than I had at previous events. Sadly, a bum (fractured) foot, and a disturbingly cool breeze, put a bit of a damper on those plans and I spent most of my time camped at familiar corners. I'm still pretty happy with most of these shots though and shooting from on the track as a whole.

The CSCS season finale is always an exciting event to attend because while some are gunning to set records on the track others are looking to secure year end awards in the show and shine. For myself and several others the excitement began on the way to the track with a surprise emissions/safety spot check by the Ministry of Transportation right off the highway.

Remember two years or so ago when an x5 owner from Thorn Hill went 4x4ing all over two innocent cars at the gym? Hilarious right? Well that scenario is slightly less hilarious when one of the cars used in the makeshift monster truck rally happens to belong to your better half.

When I heard the 2012 Toronto Subaru Club was hosting their annual HyperMeeting the day after Importfest I wasn't entirely sure I would end up to attending because historically in addition to not having much of a voice, and full capture cards I've generally been exhausted the day after IF. However the last Hypermeeting I had been to was in 2009 and this year my friend and previous featured ride owner Tim Neil let me know he was bringing out his Bat-Berry project so I sucked it up and headed down to Subaru Canada Headquarters.

To me the most important thing about being a part of Importfest this year was bringing together a group of cars that not only looked good but also represented the audience this site is aimed at. Looking back I think the 4 vehicles (plus mine) that came out did a perfect job of that.

Picking right back up where we left off here is the second batch of the show day coverage from Importfest. I actually didn't intend to do two separate posts but once I started going through the photos I realized that there was no way I was going to be able to keep things in and around the standard 40-50 photos.

I've heard people grumbling on message boards that car shows going the way of the dodo due to people showing up to parking lot meets in record numbers but anyone who was at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on Saturday knows that is simply not true. Meets will always have their place but shows like Importfest are not going anywhere. Proof of this was that at any given time there was a huge line of people waiting to get inside to check out the show.

Due to M.O.M. you already know I missed both CSCS and Vagkraft this year but before making the commitment to M.O.M. I reached out to Scott Holmes once again to see if he could snap a few photos. Like always he came through and thus I've got some photos to share from one of the biggest Euro events in the area.

On Sunday I skipped Vagkraft, Torque Modified, and CSCS to attend the 2012 Meeting of The Mazdas. Last year, despite being basically a zombie from Importfest the day before, I had a good time and liked the vibe of the event so I made a point of being available for 2012.

Sunday was one hell of a busy day here in Ontario with four events occurring simultaneously, which is actually something that has been occurring more often than not this year. The first of event getting coverage this week is round fourth round of the 2012 Canadian Sport Compact Series which was back at Toronto Motorsports Park Cayuga.

When the second generation Mazda 3s came out I wasn't really the biggest fan of the Cheshire cat grill and bumper combo but when I saw a few modified I warmed up a little bit. Then when Steve -aka 'Aitch'- sent me a Photoshop of what he planned to do with a 2012 SkyActiv Sport my opinion changed almost entirely.