Flyin' Miata at Targa Newfoundland, Part 1: Meet your classmates

While the 2011 Targa Newfoundland doesn't officially kick off until Monday, a handful of competitors have already arrived in St. John's to take advantage of the Open Road Motorsports Targa School. Operated by veterans of the event, the school gives novice competitors a little taste of the days to come. Glen Clarke, our instructor, routinely pilots a Porsche 911 to accolades and glory, so his word is worth pure gold to our motley crew. Over the course of eight hours, the Grand Touring Flyin' Miata team was introduced to the basics of navigation, ran a trial stage and generally sorted the roles of driver and co-pilot.

Our class included targa competitors from years past as well as newcomers like ourselves, including racers piloting a Ferrari Enzo, a delicious Porsche 914 and a completely sinister Audi 200 Avant Turbo AWD. A few additional racers have also set up camp at the local Holiday Inn, including a Maserati MC12, a Ferrari F430 Spyder, a Lamborghini Murciélago Super Veloce and a Saleen S7 from ZRAuto.ca. We can't wait to see how those bruisers fair on the demanding roads of Newfoundland.