Hey guys: I wanted to let you all know that a few weeks ago I sold my WRX to a member here. I know it will have a good home but I do miss it. That car had a lot of nostalgia for me. It was my first new car and also helped me fulfill some of my life’s goals, namely; amateur racing, working in the auto industry and writing for car magazines. The WRX first came out the year I moved to Colorado Springs, CO. As you can imaging, Subaru's are quite popular there (they have a 10% market share, which is huge!) My wife and I were pretty poor then and as much as I wanted one, we couldn't afford it. I'd go test drive one every couple of months just to make sure I still really wanted it. Then my wife's job got transferred to Atlanta. I sold my rare green Vtec Del Sol (#15 of 500) in CO because I didn't want to drive it across the country again. They are terrible road trip cars. I needed a car in Atlanta and I thought I wanted a RSX. My wife had her Integra and we enjoyed that car so a Type S seemed like a nice choice. I was all set on color and pricing when I drove past Classic. Back then they didn't have the Subaru showroom, just a sign. I wasn't even sure they sold Subaru's when I walked in the door. I bought my Silver WRX in March of 02 and was ecstatic. I started meeting lots of great people through the community. It was the Subaru challenge that changed the course of my career, however. One of my goals in life was to write for car magazines, the other was to work for a car manufacturer. I was able to do both soon after the challenges. As a subscriber to Grassrootsmotorsports Magazine, I was disappointed they didn’t have coverage of the event since it was in Jacksonville, FL. So I offered to write a piece about the event and they actually published it! I showed the article to Randy Reinhart from the Subaru Southeastern Region at one of the Subaru Warehouse meets and he was impressed. I left him my resume but nothing came from that meeting for a couple of years. It was at the challenge that I met and got beat by Tom Hoppe in D stock. I thought his national level autocross and One Lap efforts had appeal to Grassroots so I wrote a “Boy and His Car” story for the magazine. Again they published my work and I was hooked. I went on to write several more stories like that, one for a Corvette racer, Nissan 200SX and RX-7 racer as well. I stayed in contact with Randy over at Subaru. He got me in touch with the publisher’s of SubieSport. I was asked to write a story for their first issue. After that I became a regular contributor and even had my own column on Autocrossing. I was glad to bring the spotlight onto my friends in the Subaru Community in the South East. One day I was looking for a career change and contacted Randy again. They were hiring a Management Trainee at Subaru and I was offered an Interview. After months of not hearing from Subaru I got a phone call on my 5th wedding anniversary. I took the job without hesitation. There was a conflict between my writing and working for the industry so that part of my life went on hold. After a few years of working for Subaru I made a personal decision and left for another company. All the while I still enjoyed autocrossing my WRX along with mountain runs and track days. The car was a big source of enjoyment for me as I got to tinker with, improve and enjoy driving it. Thanks for reading guys.
Oh noes, patrick is gonna leave us. Hope the WRX went to a good home. Does the guy live in northen Gwinnett? I keep thinking I see your car around...
Yes the guy lives in Gwinnett. Super nice guy and I am sure it has a great home I will let him post his name. Nice write up.
No that is just my Ghost!! lol Yes, the car is where Matt said it lives. I'll let the new owner come forward if he wishes. I don't plan on leaving the community any time soon. Thanks for the confirmation though. When is the Gun meet?
Your car has a nice home...I met him just the other day. Gun meet will happen, do you have a Tuesday that you prefer?
Do you still write for subiesport? I can't find any local places that sell it, I guess I'll just have to get a subscription. So what did you get to replace it?
got any left-overs for a poor auto-xer? i'm still sliding on your old wheel/tires. just need a nice, used front-sway
umm, you could get the Tribeca front bar NEW from Subaru for like $80. It's a 27mm and will bolt up to your car
Patrick, Neat story! Wish I had the balls/motivation to put myself out there like that. There are lots of other things I would like to try in life...
You want my Rota's with R-comps? Matt, I work about 8 miles from the range in question BelvnAWD: Life is all about networking and being bold. LSNaple: The last story I wrote for Subiesport was for the Topspeed Time attack car from two issues ago. I've kind of moved on with my writing. I think I'm done for now. I drive a 08 GTI for now. It is a really nice car. I am saving for a Boxster though
You're not gonna write much now? That kinda sucks, I enjoyed your articles. How much do you want for them Rotas?
I remember this story Congrats on selling the carski though, I am sure you'll have fun with what's down the road for you :bigthumb: