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  Hi everybody, I'm Yojiro Terada. I'm at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, located just two hours' drive from San Francisco, California. There are lots and lots of classic race cars, F1 cars, with owners that come from all over the U.S. The town of Monterey has come alive as a result!
I arrived yesterday, Tuesday, and took a walk through the paddock. The Mazda North American Operations' (MNAO) restored 1991 model Mazda 787, which I drove at the Le Mans 24 hours, is here. The car brings back some special and nostalgic memories. There's also an RX-7 GTO, a Lola T616 Mazda, and an RX-792 - which looks to have already been restored and is ready to be driven hard!
Anyway, I came to the race track and drove one of the Skip Barber Racing School Mazda MX-5s. I ran about 7 or 8 laps and, of course, drove the famous Corkscrew. I felt it was a little bit of a challenge as the camber of the road changes within the corner itself. However, it's always a lot of fun to drive on a race track! I'm really looking forward to driving the Mazda 787B tomorrow. Oh yes, MNAO invited me to attend this event. To my surprise, they made a 1991 Le Mans' racing suit replica and presented it to me. I'm deeply impressed!
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca is around 600kms from southern California and places like Los Angeles. I'm not sure if it's because of its location close to the ocean, but even in midsummer, this is a very cool place. The temperature is a little low at 17-18 degrees Celsius, and in the shade of the trees I need a jacket. Sometimes fog sets in under the clear skies, a characteristic of the weather in this area. The town of Monterey was also wrapped in fog yesterday. The fog at the racetrack cleared up during the daytime, therefore it was no problem driving on track.
I'm going back to San Francisco to have a dinner party with the members of the media. I'll make another report tomorrow. See you then!
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