A lot of changes upcoming in the 2015 season for HS – mainly, the addition of several new competitors, such as the Fiesta ST, Honda Civic Si, CRX Si, etc. Full list of cars can be found here: http://www.solomatters.com/street_category_moves_for_2015

The basic idea is to revitalize HS it seems, despite our strong numbers at the 2014 Nationals. While I’m not necessarily opposed to the general idea, things just got potentially far more difficult for HS. It’ll take a while to see if the Mini is still the top dog in HS, but whether it is or not, I have decided to stay in the car in one form another. Admittedly, my initial thoughts were to get out of these payments – hop into a 2015 GTI, maybe an old school Miata, etc., but after calming down a bit, I realized that, regardless, I have a long way to go with my driving, and it won’t really matter what I’m driving. Seeing how much distance there is between me and the nationals level drivers, there is still enough potential in the Mini for me to be able to be number 1 in PAX in my region.

If it turns out that the Mini is just not competitive any longer against the Fiesta ST or the Civic Si, both of which are packing about 200hp, then it will most likely be time to move to STF. The Mini’s proven to be more than competitive in STF, and the changes I would need to make are minor – staying with my Fat Cat struts, I would probably run stiffer springs, go with 15×7.5’s, get camber plates, and maybe a few power adders. I don’t need to go crazy with the setup, and I would keep it just as drivable as it is now. Not much else would need to be done then.

Regardless, my goals remain the same, as well as the timeline. No matter what I’m driving or what form I’m driving it in, a ton of work to be done with my driving!