Woot! Not only did I figure out my HD GoPro Hero, I also figured out how to get it on YouTube. This is the video of my best run from Saturday 3/13/2010 at the Oregon Region PCA "Spring Break Out" autocross. I placed 13/35 in "Non Porsche" and 30/65 Overall. It's still on Kuhmo Ecsta AST's!
So, Linky for the video. I thought it was a cool angle. I'll put the "normal" GT4 Top-of-the-windshield view up tonight when I get home.
What do you think?
Good view of the action and happy camper of a driver 
Very cool viewpoint, much easier to see the course ahead and see the driver inputs.
that was an awesome video. Sounds deep the way the microphone is picking up the noise... 
2 hands on the wheel at the start!
How did you like it coming from the RX-7? I autocrossed my stock '92 once late last season with the local corvette club and had a pretty good time.
I like that angle too. I tried outside on the driver side with my old GoPro and got too much wind noise.
+1 on the angle. I like it.
Put your headlights down...you're creating extra drag! 
The angle makes it look like your headlights are a million miles in front of you - it's the world's longest Miata. 
Pretty neat, though - I like being able to see both the course and you driving the car.
But the big question is how did you like autocrossing the Miata?
Some guys autocross with the lights up to promote cooler air underhood. Honestly, I think it would be more effective to keep the hood up until you're about to start the run.
Nice job! Obviously you enjoyed it, the fist pump at the end kinda tells the story.
That looked like a fun course. Now i must have one of these Hero cameras. I've been thinkning about i for a while.
Thanks everybody! That angle was slightly skewed (/Lewis Black Voice) and I'm uploading the same spot from "straight ahead" right now.
I'm a loooongtime drag racer so 1-handed starts are just how I work And yes, even in the P71 (launch in "D" and downshift to "2" to make it hold 2nd instead of up-shifting to 3rd short).
cghstang, I loved the RX-7, but the Miata is much quicker. The powerband is a lot different, which will take some getting used to. The rear end actually acts very similar (minus the snap-oversteer when the Watt's Link binds), it's the front grip that's dramatically different. It feels like the RX-7 was an older Miata if that makes sense.
dyintorace, the headlights up makes the intake temp lower which = more powah! It's also a great why to see the corners of the car. I raced headlights down in Blinky though, so who knows.
Keith, I do that anyways ;) Every little bit will help though, and it's "free" so what the hey.
f86sabjf, (cool handle btw, I love Sabre's, saw one "dogfight" a Mig 15 at Sun-N-Fun once) You must get the HD GoPro. It's miles better than the regular! I love mine!
PS - The "starter" is Tom Kotzian, multiple time National Champion.
I like the video! You reaching back to turn off the camera at the end makes it feel like I'm a bad kid getting whacked in the head. 
Keith wrote: Some guys autocross with the lights up to promote cooler air underhood. Honestly, I think it would be more effective to keep the hood up until you're about to start the run. Nice job! Obviously you enjoyed it, the fist pump at the end kinda tells the story.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but opening the lights adds an extra bit of opening that feeds into the intake area.
P71 wrote: Moar! "Straight Ahead" "GT4"
Videos are private 
However the first video looked amazing! I've been kicking around getting one (or a few ) of those GoPro cameras. Are they really as easy as they claim? They make it sound like you put the suction cup on, turn it on, and then pull the video off just like a normal camera. Confirm or deny?
autoxrs wrote:Keith wrote: Some guys autocross with the lights up to promote cooler air underhood. Honestly, I think it would be more effective to keep the hood up until you're about to start the run. Nice job! Obviously you enjoyed it, the fist pump at the end kinda tells the story.Correct me if I'm wrong, but opening the lights adds an extra bit of opening that feeds into the intake area.
That's the theory, but without some sort of airbox I don't think it's going to make a measurable difference. I've been playing with this exact thing on the way to work, watching the intake temps from the unboxed throttle bodies. Lights up, lights down, makes no difference at autox speeds. When I used to run a setup that put the filter directly behind the headlight in an isolated airbox, I would see an immediate drop in temperature by popping the lights at 70 mph. But based on my current experimentation, popping them on a stock Miata at an autox is superstition. It does help you spot the front of an unfamiliar car though :)
Underhood temperatures do spike up amazingly fast when you're parked or (worse) idling, though. That's why keeping the hood up until you're about to start would be far more effective.
Whoops! Fixed the videos plus added in one of my early runs (2 of 6) where I got my dorifto on (by accident).
The GoPro HD is exactly as advertised. I attached it to the car, shot video, plugged the memory card right into my PC, and voila! Even I figured it out and that's saying something with technology.
Keith, you'll notice that I had my lights down with the early runs. I think I did 3 and 3. I seemed to place the car better but I don't think it was any faster. I could do some back-to-back-to-back drag testing though...
If that's the excuse you need, go for it I'll bet there's a crossover speed where the drag from the lights eats more power than you gain. Although with a stock 1.6, you might need more than a quarter mile...
Too bad our Miata isn't an OBDII car. I have an AutoTap setup on my laptop that car read IAT's (among other stuff) real-time and could have done some cool autocross testing.
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