I've been around Miata circles for a long time. I was on the Big List (pointy board to the whippersnappers) back in '94 or so.
My first Miata was a '92 Sunburst that I got in August of '95. I bought it in Odgen UT, flew out and drove it home. In the 3 1/2 years I had it, I added suspension, roll bar, turbo, etc. Then I got rear-ended and the car was totaled.
My next Miata replaced that one and it was also a '92 Sunburst. I found it in Minneapolis MN, flew out and drove it home. In one loooong day, I transfered all the best parts to the "new" car, stripped the old one, and then let the insurance co. tow it away. After about 5 years with that Miata, it was rear-ended and totaled. I sold off most of the goodies and sold the remainder and what was left of the car to Merv in 2003. (Sharpie bought my old clutch from Merv, IIRC).
At that point, I needed a car with more than two seats so I've been driving one CR-V or another since. Even then, I've stayed plugged into Miata stuff and kept up Miata friendships. Six years is a long time though. I haven't been able to justify a spare, fun car for a while but I finally got to the point where I could, so I've been keeping my eye out for the right car.
As you might guess, I like yellow Miatas, but I also like BRGs (both of them) and I could even just drive a red one if the right one (R Pkg?) came along. I wasn't set on a particular search, but the right Miata presented itself.
I actually saw the car at FM's open house last year (yes, I went without a Miata) and shortly after that, the Peak-to-Peak Miata Club president sold the car to Skip Cannon, who I "met" on the Big List back in '94. About a month before MWII, Skip decided he wasn't driving the car enough to keep it, since he had 1.8l FMII '92 Sunburst and a 300hp Caterham already, so he put the car up for sale. We emailed a bit and he had a few buyers bite and then back out. When I saw Skip at MWII (yes, I went without a Miata), he still hadn't sold it. I finally realized that I wasn't going to find another like his *ever* so I called him up and we struck a deal. This past Tuesday, I flew to Denver and drove home my new '02 Vivid. It's got a black interior/top, sport suspension, and no body add-ons (just the way I would have ordered it). Since there were only 239 total, I figure mine is one of only a handful configured like it. It also came with complete documentation since new and Skip even met me at the airport with the car waxed and filled up. Before I headed home, I installed my first mod. I found what I believe to be the very last Voodoo Knob and Brake Handle set in polished titanium and the knob was on before I hit the interstate.
It's great to be "back", especially in a car such as this one. If I can keep from being rear-ended again, I plan to keep this one a very long time.
Curtis
