[squall leonhart]

Had a relatively in-depth reply typed out last week. When I went to post I had been logged out (not that it took me THAT long, but sometimes I get logged out very often...then again, I am longwinded).

Anyway, TSD road rally doesn't seem that fun to me, the GTA ones just seem more fun as there's little pressure, and I see it more as a way to discover fun roads and interesting sites in a way that my wife and I can enjoy together. Certainly I don't see it as something that I could push the limits of the FR-S...but at least might be more enjoyable to drive (going the speed limit) than a straight/flat road is (even if speeding). And again, being unfamiliar with the area, I just don't know where these roads are...and figured this would help me know where to go out for a drive in the future...not necessarily as an event.

Time is another issue. A GTA road rally I figure I can probably show up with little/no prep and do one time a season...whereas autocross I'd want to probably prep to some extent, maybe even go once just to spectate and get the lay of the land, and then want to do more than once to improve. I generally have few open Saturdays and zero open Sundays (we are very involved in our church).

If I had more free time, I'd probably be more open to autocross - and may still try it sometime (basically what I mean by "maybe one day"...not that it's a big dream...just a possibility). But since I don't get a lot of free Saturdays I tend to like to spend them with my wife to some extent - and I doubt she'd enjoy autocross as much as say a scavenger hunt type of road rally.

Track days are probably mostly out, other than maybe a one time thing to help get a feel for the car in a more controlled environment. But I don't think I could justify the cost of doing it very much at all.

Rallycross is the same issue as autocross, with the added issue of not wanting to beat up the car. I didn't really push my Celica All-Trac when I took it, as I was driving it home 3+ hours and didn't want to hurt it too bad in the rutty old farm fields where the event was held.

Not sure if that makes much sense, but that's the gist of it. That said, I guess I'm wondering about member experiences because my assumptions on this subject could be totally wrong.