This is the year that the magazine was transitioning from a quarterly to a bi-monthly publishing schedule, 1997 had five issues. This is number two because they counted the mid-winter tech issue as volume one. So for volume numbers two through four of this year I’ll stick to the spring, summer, fall and winter dates and next year I’ll do it this every other month, probably mid-January, mid-March, etc.

Back To Today

– by Vince Tidwell
   President
   Miata Club of America

I remember well the two weeks every summer I spent with my still very close friend Jimmy Wilson. We were young — blissfully young — and his parents had a cottage on the lake where they would take us for 14 days of cookouts and swimming off the dock. When a boat passed by we would ride the waves of its wake as they rushed to the shore. The dock would rise and fall and the water lap the bank’s Georgia red clay. It was always with great anticipation we’d spy a cabin cruiser or house boat. Big waves. No homework, no girl problems (yet) except his younger sister, and no financial concerns. Nope, just a few rules that were decisively and lovingly enforced if we decided to explore the limits of behavior as pre-adolescent boys are wont to do. The smiles never stopped. Oh, stepping on a pinecone barefoot didn’t bring much pleasure but it was amazing how even if the boat ran out of gas or if you bruised yourself silly it didn’t matter but for a few moments. Our life’s paradigm, indeed our whole attitude, was “maxed” out. In short, it didn’t get any better than that. I realize now I have Jimmy’s parents to thank. It was their effort and, mostly, their attitude that provided the environment for both of us to grow.

What does this have to do with Miatas? Thanks for your patience; just ruminate whilst I illuminate. I liken the Miata to Jimmy’s parents; particularly his father, Dewey, who seemed to always have a smile on his face and a proactive philosophy. The Miata can, time after time, if but a few short moments, make lemonade out of lemons. The top down, the lifting of the clutch as the engine growls and propels a foam-filled seat into the small of your back. The wind rustling through your hair as the steering wheel has just the correct resistance in your hand to navigate the curve. The reassuring click/click of the shifter as you ask for more thrust. A touch of a but-ton and your soul can soar to the music of your choice.

Did you ever notice that as you squint from the sun’s glare you bring a smile to your face? Incredibly, there are people who are totally numb to the aforementioned. They have someplace to go. Tomorrow, perhaps. The Miata is a time machine for me, if not many of you. It destroys a lot of the past that is best forgotten and annihilates the concerns/fears of the future. It can bring you BACK to today, this very moment. How many times have so many of us escaped from whatever may plague us only to realize that it can’t bother us if we don’t let it? How many times have I come to that realization behind the wheel of my Miata and not my family sedan? How can a product planner possibly design this utility into a marketable good?

When I drive out to the roads that Robert Frost prefers, I open up every sense of my body and seize the day. Easy to do, but what about traffic, you ask? That’s when I think of that cabin cruiser boat. Huh? Traffic? I must be joking! Every fiber in my body dislikes stopping on an interstate (no stop signs; how’s that possible?) or waiting in line on a side road. I know that everyone else around me has an agenda and sitting in traffic is NEVER on anyone’s agenda. But here’s my chance to shine. If someone lets me into a coveted slot, I wave thank you. If I need into a slot I smile into another person’s eyes, point and ask politely if I may merge. Works every time. If someone needs to merge in front of me — sure. If the Z3 wants to challenge me for the first hundred yards off a red light, well, there’s that kid inside again. I smile, wave and point down the road. If weather permits, the top comes down and I make gracious eye contact as much as possible.

Convertibles are wonderful for that and the Miata even more so due to people’s familiarity of it. I’m riding down my road of life, each milestone but a moment in time and each to be anticipated, remembered fondly and then replaced. Maybe I can leave a big wake for each of those people I meet. If they smile as much as Jimmy and I did, then my Miata is indeed a time machine.

Copyright 1997, Miata Magazine. Reprinted without permission.