There was a date listed on the flyer of July 11th, which was the last day of closed registration (MINI of Towson owners only), after that date it was open to everyone. The actual dates of the driving school are Sept 10th and 11th (I'm going on my b-day, the 10th).

You have to get your car inspected 2 week prior to the event (if I remember correctly). Two weeks prior to those dates would be August 27th.

 

when i picked up my brand new car today,
i was told there were plenty of spots available for MM2.

supposedly, there were only 11 spots taken on saturday
and 9 on sunday since mini of towson had problems getting
the word out on this event.

they mentioned if the turnout were poor, they probably wouldn't
do another summit event.

the new car is a blast even in the torrential rain.

i did miss one shift from sixth to fourth (ended up in second).
bounced over the breakin rpm there for just a second

i was pretty surprised to see steam rising from the intercooler duct!!

 

I'd like to come to this - I just need to ensure there are no schedule conflicts. Ideally I'd like to go when the highest # of DCMM people are there... so I might have to do a tally soon. :smile:

 

I signed up for Saturday late last week, and there are still spaces available. Price for one day is $160, which also gets you a tee shirt. You will need to take your car by Towson in the 2 weeks before the event for a quick tech inspection.
The contact to make arrangements is:

 

I just registered for Saturday with Gina.

She said a pre-race inspection is required, and that we're charged labor for that.

I am taking my wife up in that area for business this Saturday, but she said service 'does not do any work on saturdays'.

I work in DC, and live in Bowie. Towson is quite a drive away for a Monday-Friday, especially since I work M-F, and I'd have to make the trip during the afternoon rush hour in an attempt to make it.

She transferred me to 'Dwayne' after hearing my dilemma, but he didn't answer, and I ended up leaving the service department a voicemail. Bleh.

 

Lemme know what he says because I'm willing to sign up for the class and do the inspection next week, provided that I don't have to truck all the way to Towson during the week and risk taking leave that I don't have.

 

supposedly towson has very limited service hours on saturday.
maybe they can do a tech inspection then.

(they waived my tech inspection since the vehicle was brand new
and delivered on tuesday)

 

They've got to do work on Saturday (in the AM's only), as I hauled by butt up there from Centreville to get my dang DRL's turned off back in March.

If they give you a hard time about bringing it in on a Saturday I'd suggest going right to Chuck Joffe...

 

That's some serious BS if they are charging for the tech inspection for the driving school after you've already given them $160. The class fee should have included EVERYTHING required for the class.

I have to call up Wayne sometime to get them to take a look at my fuel gauge (it's acting wonky) and get my car "inspected" for the class. You can guess I'm going to raise a serious stink if they charge me for the class inspection.

 

they didn't charge for the tech inspection last year


BTW, with v42 my fuel gauge is all FU as well...what the hell?

M

 

James and I would have love to come, however, the way this thing is set up is way too expensive and makes very little sense. I am not surprised that they have plenty of spaces..

I just spoke with Gina:

1) Inspection labor is not free and takes approx. 1/2 hour - but she is not sure - when pressed about " How much are talking about?" " I am not sure" after I spend $320 ($160 per person) I want know how much extra " I am not sure" is not the answer I like to hear when I need to pay a BMW tech.
2) "They cannot do the inspections on Saturdays... maybe a few .."

I LOVE really love to have the opportunity to participate but it's way too expensive..

$160.00 event
$ 40.00 ? labor
loosing about 4 hours of work to get car inspected ..
gas from DC to Towson (plus traffic) and from DC to WVA

I could hire a private instructor and pratice @ FEDEX Field for half of the price .


MD STREGA2

 

I've just gotten word from Gina at Towson, there is NO CHARGE for the inspections for cars registered for MINI Mania.

According to Gina the primary focus of the inspection is your tires. They want to make sure that they are in good condition before you arrive at the track.

 

Very odd. She told me completely the contrary over the phone, and I even asked 'Really? I have to pay labor?' and she said 'Yes, but it should only be about a half an hour or so...'.

No worries though. I'm not worried about it, I just thought it a little odd after giving her my CC information over the phone.

 

I have no idea if this is a sudden reversal or if there wasn't a charge and there was just a general misunderstanding.

However, I contacted Gina this afternoon to let her know that people were upset about having to pay for the inspection and she told me that there was no charge...

 

Just a question for those of you that did this last year. What is the split class/track? Are any of you taking significant others to spectate? It is my wife's car, she doesn't want to do it, but said she'd love to watch me beat on her car.

 

my wife and i are taking turns being driver/worker.

(i think i get to drive on saturday and she drives on sunday)

 

I am not sure what is going on. This afternoon, about 4:15 pm she told me that there is a charge for inspecting the car. She did not know how much only that it takes about 1/2. I repeated the questions asking " I have to take the car in - not on a Saturday- get it inspected, paying for the inspection - how much we don't know- and then pay for the MM2 event?" The answer was simple and clear " Yes ."
"I am not interested then, thank you"


I even mentioned her about the NAM posting. Unfortunately the inspection at Towson during the week makes too costly.

Hope you guys have fun - don't forget to take pictures !!

MD STREGA2

 

How can 1 person change their mind depending on who calls?

 

She's just a receptionist/whatever. Something tells me she relayed the outrage to whomever is in charge and they made a command decision or supplied her with the appropriate information.

 

Called to negotiate a Saturday appointment, and Gina picked up. I said who I was, and she immediately went into 'I'm sorry, it's free...' and I explained that wasn't why I had called, but thanks.

I talked to Dwayne (Wayne?) in service, and he says there are no service technicians in on Saturdays, so there is no work done in service on Saturdays. I explained my dilemma with getting up there during the week, and he said 'well, you can risk getting your inspection they day of the school. They'll be looking for good brakes, tires, steering, no leaks, and nothing loose in the car.'

I asked for clarification on 'loose', and he said 'No CDs in the doors, or basketballs rolling around in the trunk' and that type of stuff. Good thing they told me now, or I'd have a fairly large pile of bat-junk on the side of the track.

 

shouldn't that all be on your utility belt?

 

Can't fit 200+ CDs, gym bag, radar detector, PSP charger, cell phone caddy, 3' umbrella, window cleaner, tire foam, detailing/wash rags, spray bottle of detergent, and other miscellaneous articles, on a utility belt.

My utility belt does hold other cool things though, such as a nice new gerber, pager, cell phone, geek goggles, 4Dcell maglight, shruikens, a 1gb Lexar jump drive, Rio mp3 player, climbing spikes, periscope, Oakley Cwires, and a parachute... to name a few...

RAWR!

 

Gina contacted me about this. She was extremely sorry about the confusion regarding the inspections. Apparently she was originally provided with some incomplete information.

She had been told that a 30 minute inspection would be required and nothing more, so she assumed that there would be a charge for inspection because she hadn't been told otherwise.

Please go easy on her, she's extremely sorry about the confusion...

 

Also wondering which circuit they are using for this? Main, Jefferson, or Shenandoah?

 

'well, you can risk getting your inspection they day of the school. They'll be looking for good brakes, tires, steering, no leaks, and nothing loose in the car.'

At the SOLO class before we begin running we do same kind of inspection. Each driver MUST remove everything that is not "nailed" down from the car - including floor mats - usually we end up with piles of stuff on the curb, lock the glove compartment , check tires, battery, loose cables and the like.

If Towson refers to this as inspection then .. it's not a big deal.

I have to take Streghina in for her 10K check up maybe that could be part of the inspection... I will call Wayne on Monday.

MD STREGA2