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“I’m 21 years old now and I’ve been racing for 14 years.”
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INSPIRE
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“I’m 21 years old now and I’ve been racing for 14 years.”
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Tim Martens, Business Management student
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We had a Zoom chat with student Tim Martens, MX-5 Cup Series racing driver and passionate fan of Mazda.
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When did you work for Mazda? I worked for Mazda Netherlands from September 2020 until January 2021 as an intern in the Finance department, where I got to shadow the Risk & Compliance Manager and the Business Controller. I had the best time during my internship—I really felt part of the Mazda brand because everyone was so welcoming. And I was allowed to drive all the Mazda models there, so I got to know the brand even better. I would love to return to Mazda someday to actually work there, so who knows!
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How old were you when you learned to drive? I was taking part in car races by the time I was 15 and started proper driving lessons when I was 16. Of course, I passed the driving test first time around!
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Do you know your way around an engine? I don’t know everything, but I do have a fairly good understanding. With my dad and my best mate, we’re always tinkering with my MX-5 Miatas.
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What’s your favourite route to drive? I’d say the Nordschleife in Germany’s Eifel Mountains, but I’m sure there are lots of other pretty routes for me to explore.
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What’s your favourite soundtrack for a road trip? Sunset Lover by Petit Biscuit.
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“I grew up with racing and I can’t live without that kick; I need the sensation of steering into a corner at 100mph.”
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Tell us about your racing experience. How did you get into it? I grew up in the city of Apeldoorn, in the east of the Netherlands. When I was about seven years old, I went karting for the first time in nearby Deventer. I loved it so much that I started taking karting lessons to learn the basic skills. I went two or three times a week. At first, we rented a kart but before too long I got my own. After about two years I outgrew it and graduated to the next step: karting championships. There often were technicians at the track; experienced drivers who were only too happy to teach me a thing or two.
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So, really, you’re a self-taught racing driver? You have to soak it all up, listen carefully, ask for advice, but then you’re the one who has to put it into practice. You need to develop a feel for when to accelerate and when to hit the brakes.
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Some people are good drivers but are no good at competitive racing. What makes a good competitive racing driver? It’s a question of experience. I’m 21 years old now and I’ve been racing for 14 years. I can’t imagine life without racing—I grew up with it, it’s part of who I am. I do it intuitively, based on experience. It’s like everything in life: the more you do it, the better you get at it.
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When did you first hear about the MX-5 Cup Series? In 2014, a guy on my kart team told me he was racing in the Cup. My interest was immediately piqued, and me, my dad, and a technician helped this guy get better results, while he helped me get better at karting. In 2015, I first went with him to the Cup and that winter I decided to build my own MX-5 racer. By the end of 2016, it was completed, and I drive it to this day.
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What is it about MX-5 racing that appeals to you? The car is just so brilliant to drive. It’s a bit like a big kart: it has perfect 50/50 weight distribution, which means it’s very well-balanced. The best thing about this racing class is that all cars have identical specs and the same opportunities, so we’re all evenly matched; it really is all about what you bring as a driver.
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“Anyone driving an MX-5 knows exactly what I mean. It’s not a drive, it’s sheer delight. You feel at one with your car.”
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You were saying that you and your friend from the kart team help each other get better. Do you find that same camaraderie at the MX-5 Cup? Absolutely. Meeting the same guys at every race, you forge bonds with them. We’ll have a beer together after the race and when we’re racing abroad, we often rent a place together and have meals together. We exchange parts and tools just as easily as tips or advice. During the race, we battle each other as fiercely as anything, only stopping short of driving each other off the track. But when the race is done, we’ll hug, high five and have a laugh together. It’s really cool to race together in that way.
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Are you part of a racing team? You can’t race without a team. As the driver, I’m often the focus but I couldn’t do this without the people around me: my dad, my technician and the support. There’s my mom, who brings bags of food to every race and feeds virtually everyone on the track. Then there’s my best friend, who has been coming along for a couple of years as well; he helps tweak the car. And these days, our girlfriends come along too—luckily, they’re into racing. I do need them around and really couldn’t do this without them.
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What makes racing tough—the mental or the physical aspect? It depends. The cockpit can be boiling, but it’s predominantly a mental game. You really have to concentrate on when to brake, on how to drive your opponent crazy, on overtaking. And when you’re in front, you need to stay calm and not keep checking your mirror but focus on your own abilities.
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Why do you race? I grew up with it. I can’t live without that kick; I need the sensation of steering into a corner at 100mph. And then there’s the atmosphere, the fun, the whole experience.
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You own two MX-5s don’t you? Yes, my racing car and a 1991 road version. They’re both first-gen, which I just had to have. I was already racing in the MX-5 Cup, so when I turned 18 and could get my own car there was only ever one choice for me. I’ve never regretted it. It’s just really well-built. The steering’s super tight, you don’t need a lot of power and, hugging the road, it feels like you’re going really fast without having to speed. Anyone driving an MX-5 knows exactly what I mean. It’s not a drive, it’s sheer delight. You feel at one with your car.
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Are you a member of an MX-5 club? No, but I’m on various Facebook Groups and I know loads of MX-5 drivers that I occasionally meet up with. It’s a community in itself: with those pop-up headlights you wink at every other MX-5 you meet on the road. The MX-5 connects people.
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What other Mazdas do you like besides your own MX-5? I would love to have an RX-7 FD because of its beautiful, timeless looks and its famous engineering, which saw Mazda through. And it plays a part in the film The Fast and the Furious.
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Describe Mazda in three words Passion. Willful. Emotion.
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Interview by Chantal van Wees / Zoom photo by Fran Monks
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INNOVATE
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Design Without Compromise: Signals from the Heart
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Dimming Turn Signals (DTS) are a Mazda innovation that replicate the human heartbeat. Mazda Stories spoke to Mazda Designer and Lamp Development Leader Atsushi Yoshida to find out more.
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Why did Mazda create a new turn signal? We place great value on our human-centric designs and how people relate to the various aspects of our cars. A turn signal lamp must effectively communicate a driver’s intention and catch the attention of pedestrians and other drivers. I hoped that the feeling of a human heart—echoed in how the turn signal lamp instantly appears and then gradually dims—could reduce driver tension and create feelings of calmness and safety for the viewer. Overall, it took my team and me two years to create this feature.
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How did you recreate the human heartbeat in the DTS? Conventional LED lamps create strong digital images by turning on and off instantly, but this can result in a cold feeling. I focused on how a driver’s intention emanates from their heart, extending to their heartbeat and pulse. Using an electrocardiogram, I watched heartbeat waveforms undulate, linger and diminish, resulting in a turn signal that expresses the warmth lacking in LED lamps.
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“I wanted to infuse a sense of life into the turn signal lamp—a feeling that would manifest the concept of Car as Art.”
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What was one of your most difficult challenges? This had never been done before, and it took two years from concept to production. A big setback came when its first scheduled installation into the Mazda3 was cancelled because the light dimmed inconsistently. However, working with Mazda engineers and our supplier, Stanley Electric Co. Ltd., we repeatedly readjusted the signal light in 0.01 second increments, solved the problem and installed it successfully into the Mazda CX‑30. We achieved what was initially thought to be impossible.
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What experience do you want Mazda owners to have with DTS? I hope that DTS shows the level of attention and intentionality that goes into every Mazda car. This concept was born from the spirit of “breathing life into cars,” as well as a refusal to compromise Mazda’s design philosophy.
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How can we experience the “breath of life” in a car? Touching the various elements of a well-designed car—its shape, surface quality and light—allows you to experience the hands of its creators.
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“I wanted to embody Jinba Ittai—the intuitive connection between car and driver—so that even the act of making one turn of the wheel is a human-centric experience.”
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What Japanese design qualities influence your work? Focus and determination, an obsession with honing and refining, and a sensitivity of touch—these are qualities that have been embodied in Japanese crafts for centuries. They are very real to me, and I feel them even in the simple act of washing and wiping down a beautifully crafted car.
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What are your thoughts for the future? I want to help increase Mazda design value through lighting. Though competition is intensifying with electric cars and autonomous driving, I want to see outstanding car design continue without compromise.
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The CX-30 turn signal prototype.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Words Steve Beimel
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With some exceptions, DTS is generally available internationally in the CX‑30 and MX‑30 models, with plans in place for expansion to other models.
“My son loves driving in the MX-5. He calls it my race car.”
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Nick Beard, Digital Marketing Manager, Mazda North American Operations
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Nick Beard has worked at Mazda for 14 years. In our Zoom chat he tells us about his love of being outdoors, cycling, family, and driving a couple of hours to get some nachos.
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Do you have a favourite Mazda? The MX-5. When I was growing up, my dad had a Jeep and I always loved him driving with the top down—I remember how my scalp tingled. When driving an MX-5, I have a very similar experience, and this is also the car I learned to drive in.
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What’s your favourite drive? There’s a road by my house called Live Oak Road, which links with another road called Santiago Canyon Road. We do that drive about once a month.
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What’s your ideal road trip soundtrack? I listen to a lot of different types of music but it’s probably going to be some sort of country music: Garth Brooks, Luke Bryan, Zac Brown Band…
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What would your superpower be? A super-high metabolism—I love my food!
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You grew up in Orange County, California. Did you take advantage of the amazing nature on your doorstep? As a family, we’d go camping, and I learned a lot about “leave no trace”. My father belonged to the Jeep club and a big part of its mantra was to make sure members were taking care of the land that they were out enjoying.
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I hear you’re a keen cyclist? Growing up, I was always outside riding my bike. I’d meet up with my friends and we would go ride around the city or build dirt jumps. iPads weren’t around back then but we certainly didn’t sit inside and watch TV.
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“My mom and my stepdad used to work for Mazda, so I was lucky to see the cars before they were available to the public.”
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Do you encourage your son to play outdoors too? Absolutely. My son, Camden, doesn’t play video games. He would much rather be outside playing with his friends. He enjoys riding his bike on the street and we do occasionally go for rides together. My family is pretty big on getting out and exploring. We actually named my son Camden because it means “from the winding valley”.
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How did you end up working for Mazda? Both my mom and my stepdad used to work for Mazda, so I was lucky to see the cars before they were available to the public. I loved that. I knew I always wanted to work for Mazda, not because my parents worked there, but because I really enjoyed the cars and what the company stands for.
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What was your first job at Mazda? I was in the Customer Experience Centre, so I was taking phone calls on the hotline. Now I’m responsible for developing and implementing marketing strategy at the dealer level. This means helping dealers with their digital marketing—for example, their SEM (search engine marketing) or SEO (search engine optimization), their social media marketing, or website—generally helping them with their marketing efforts.
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What words would you use to describe Mazda? Never-ending passion.
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Has Camden shown any interest in Mazdas? He loves driving in the MX-5. He calls it my race car. On Friday mornings, we have dad and doughnut morning, so I usually take him out in the car and we’ll go get doughnuts before I take him to school. He loves the MX-30 too. When I brought it home to test it, he fell in love with it. I think it’s the way the back seat is designed—it’s a bit more cozy than the CX-9, which I was driving before. And then he has that little porthole window right by his head so he can look out.
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“When I was a kid I was always outside riding my bike. I’d meet up with my friends and we’d go ride around the city or build dirt jumps.”
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What do you get up to on weekends? I’ll do a two- to three-hour ride Saturday morning and then, for the past five months, it’s been baseball season for Camden. Then we’ll go out to dinner—and usually drive somewhere to a restaurant. My wife and I really appreciate good food, so we’re not afraid to drive 45 minutes to an hour to go to a place that we know is good or that we haven’t been to in a while.
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Are there particular types of cuisine that you seek out? Our favourite is Mexican. My friends make fun of us because, before we had Camden, we’d drive two hours to Santa Barbara for nachos and burritos from a place called Freebirds. But we also love Italian, Mediterranean… I’m starting to get my wife into Thai food, too. Or we’ll just go for a hamburger and a walk on the beach.
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Do you like cooking at home? My wife and I both enjoy cooking. I’m more into barbecuing and smoking meat, and my wife cooks pretty much everything else. She’s a fantastic chef. There’s no shortage of good food.
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What do you cook when you go camping? We went camping last weekend and grilled filet mignon.
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I was expecting you to say you heated up a can of beans! We did filet mignon, which I cooked on a charcoal barbecue with some wood chips to give them a smoky flavour, and then we roasted broccoli and made mashed potatoes.
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Wow. The night before that, we made grilled chicken Caesar salad.
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Your family trips sound wonderful. What’s next in the calendar? My wife and I are going to celebrate our ten-year wedding anniversary in July in Nashville. It’s going to be a lot of fun.
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Especially as you’re into country music. Exactly! We can’t wait.
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Interview by Helene Dancer / Zoom photo by Fran Monks
“I think I may have gasoline flowing through my veins.”
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Ángela Patricia López, President of Mazda Colombia
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In our Zoom chat with Ángela López, Mazda Colombia’s first-ever female president, she talks about her career, her family, and her passion for cars.
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What sparked your love of cars? My father worked in the automotive industry. I remember being very little—maybe six or seven years old—when my dad would take me to launch events for the latest car models here in Colombia. Going to the Bogotá auto show with my father to see the cars—at the time it all seemed to me to be such a wondrous experience. That’s why I say that I inherited my passion for cars from my dad. He would take me to racetracks to see tractor-trailer and touring-car races; it was all so spectacular. And he also really took great joy in driving. We would go on these long road trips; he’d pack us into the family car and drive 18 hours from Bogotá to the coast.
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So it’s no mistake then that you ended up working in the car industry. I actually ended up here by chance. When I completed my degree, my university called me up and told me that I had an interview at CCA with the marketing department. I was told to show up the next day at such-and-such place, and at such-and-such time. I had no idea what CCA was. I told my dad, “I have an interview at this place called CCA.” He gasped and quickly exclaimed, “That is the Colombian Automotive Company. It is Mazda!” He was so happy, so proud. In fact, he was so proud that it’s the only one of my internship interviews he accompanied me on. He went all the way to the front door with me. And it was there that I began my internship with Mazda in 2003.
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At that point so early on in your career, you could have chosen to explore other industries. Why do you think Mazda in particular had such an impact on you? It was love at first sight. My internship was incredibly enriching. In general, students completing internships don’t have much of an opportunity to gain in-depth knowledge about the company. But my Mazda internship in particular took place during a crucial time for the company, in which the traditional communication strategy changed to that of the Zoom-Zoom generation. We went from the Mazda 323 and 626 to launching the Mazda6. At the time, it was a revolutionary shift. I was there during that transition, and that transition made me fall in love. I realized how exciting it is to build a market for cars—cars generate passion, connection, affinity. It’s rewarding. There are so many stories to tell about a car, about how it was conceived of and produced. I always tell my friends who now work on marketing products like bread or face cream, that though their work is nice enough, those items don’t create devotees; they don’t generate passion. They don’t produce the effect that automobiles can.
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“I’m an optimist. I’m stubborn. For me, keeping my thoughts positive—facing challenges in an optimistic way—is fundamental in achieving any goal.”
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You began as an intern and now you are President of Mazda Colombia. That’s quite a trajectory! In fact, you are the first woman to head the office. What role models did you have who showed you that it was possible to achieve such a goal? The funny thing is that it was never my objective to become president. Rather, I just wanted to give the best of me and find the best opportunities for the company to move forward. As for a role model, the strong leader I’ve always admired is my mom. Her entire life, she’s been a hard worker. When my siblings and I were little children, we were looked after at home by a woman who became like a second mother to us. She lovingly cared for us and handled household tasks, so that my mom could go to work and strive to give us the best education possible. My mother has always been a very strong woman, and very organized. She was always conscious of our savings, always planning our family’s expenses, investments, so that we could all rest easy. The balance she achieved between working and looking out for us, making sure we got ahead and that we had a great quality of life, it’s something I’ve always admired so much.
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I can imagine she received a bit of push-back from those around her for making the choice to pursue her career. Though it’s not rare for women today to work outside the home, it must have been considered unusual back in her day.
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My father has always told us, “If it weren’t for your mother, there’s no way we’d have all the things we’ve gained.” Though it was difficult back in her day to climb the corporate ladder, Colombia has always been very matriarchal. The women here are of strong character; they make many of the most fundamental and important decisions in their households. So, I believe that, because of this past, in the new generation we have a sense of conviction that we are not weak or different when we come face-to-face with men. We feel totally empowered. At least in my case, I’ve never felt discriminated against, nor have I been made to feel that I’m somehow less able or less valued than any of my colleagues; this treatment, too, can help one feel motivated. Back in my mother’s day, though things would later change and improve for my generation, the women of that time already had a sense of empowerment. They were strong women who had to make important contributions to their households. Even further back than that, my grandmother, for example, worked as a trader. She would buy and sell merchandise across the villages of Colombia.
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“It was never my objective to become President. Rather, I just wanted to give the best of me and find the best opportunities for the company to move forward.”
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Colombia’s geography is spectacular, boasting Caribbean and Pacific coast lines, the biodiversity of the Amazon jungle, and a host of mountains taller than 5,000m. Are there any areas in particular that you would recommend exploring by car? One of the places I most love to visit is Boyacá—it’s about a one-and-a-half-hour drive from Bogotá. It’s a place that I have an emotional connection with because I visited the area with my parents frequently when I was a child. Boyacá is a beautiful region with spectacular food. You can find tropical fruits that are little-known beyond our borders, like feijoa, which is like a cross between a cucumber and a guava—it’s a bit strange, but I absolutely love it. We call the Boyacá region Colombia’s “agricultural pantry” because it’s a place where they cultivate crops like potato, cassava, onion. It’s wonderful during a journey through the area to see people harvesting typical local crops on major plantations; it’s also possible to buy their freshly grown products along the roadside. The roads take you through the mountains and past gorgeous lakes.
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What car do you drive? Right now, I have a Mazda CX-30 which I drive mostly for child-related activities; it helps us get our children around town. And my husband, who is very daring, bought himself an MX-5! That’s the family sportscar, which, of course, only has two seats, so I can’t ever ride in it because my kids are always taking turns as passengers. Clearly, my two sons prefer riding with dad, as he drives the sportscar, more than mom. On several occasions, I’ve had to serve as a sort of escort driver, with my husband driving out in front with one of the boys in the MX-5, while I tail him with our other son in the CX-30.
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That’s bold! Aren’t you ever tempted to sneak off with the MX-5? Perhaps on a girls’ trip with friends? My husband has told me that I can obviously take it for a spin. But we’ve only had the car for a month, so I haven’t yet had the opportunity to take it out. But it would be wonderful to go for a drive in it with one of my friends. I’m going to get that plan organized ASAP.
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Do you see the glass as half empty or half full? I’m an optimist. I’m stubborn. For me, keeping my thoughts positive—facing challenges in an optimistic way—is fundamental in achieving any goal. I’ve learned a lot from my children who have minds that are very open to learning. One realizes that one has accumulated a set of assumptions or mental blocks that lead you to believe that you know everything and don’t need to investigate beyond what you think you already know. Allowing oneself to be surprised by the smallest details, that sense of wonder so many of us have lost in adulthood, is a fantastic thing. We’ll be walking past a flower, a tree, and my little ones will stop to say, “Oh Mom! This tree has a mushroom on it. Look at this! It’s amazing!” Those are the details that truly make up the entirety of life, of happiness, and of the charm of living.
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Interview by Francheska Melendez / Zoom photo by Fran Monks
Chad Cottam, Learning Experience Specialist, Mazda Australia
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Chad Cottam is a Learning Experience Specialist for Mazda Australia. Before joining the company, he lived and worked in Japan. In our Zoom chat he told us about his passion for martial arts, being in a rock band, and the difficulties of moving back to Australia just as Covid-19 took hold.
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What are you driving at the moment? A Mazda CX-5.
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Do you have a favourite Mazda? My favourite Mazda would probably be an MX-5, although I’ve never actually driven one. A friend in Japan just bought one actually. I’m a bit jealous.
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Do you have a favourite drive? When I lived in Japan, I loved driving to Kyoto from my place in Kobe. There’s a really nice 150-200 km stretch of scenic roads.
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What is your ideal road trip soundtrack? A yacht-rock playlist with Toto, Phil Collins, Michael McDonald, Steely Dan, Hall & Oates…
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How did you end up in Japan? I was in a sales job in Brisbane and I’d been thinking that I wanted to do something with my degree, and also travel. I’d majored in Spanish, but I figured that I couldn’t really make a long trip out of going somewhere like South America—it would be more like a holiday. So I chose Japan, also because I wanted to study a martial art called Jodo. You use a stick and it’s quite complex—it has the most sequences of any martial art. I got into that through a friend and I was lucky to have some good training. But I didn’t stick with it.
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What happened next? I met my wife, Yukari, and, at around the same time, decided I wanted to focus on music and let go of martial arts. I eventually got into a band and grew more serious about music. As I was doing that, I also got a bit more serious about the English teaching that I was doing there. I did a masters in linguistics and then got into business training as well, and eventually became a researcher, lecturer and part-time musician.
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That sounds like a good balance. What kind of music did you play? Rock and pop-rock. I played the guitar. I was also a vocalist for a heavy rock band.
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“I wanted to study a martial art called Jodo. It’s quite complex and has the most sequences of any martial art.”
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Was your Japanese fluent by then? Japanese people tended to be very polite about it, but, yes, my speaking got a lot better.
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Why did you decide to move back to Australia? I’d always planned to come back, especially with my kids Ayumi and Kai. I wanted them to experience the other side of their culture. Yukari had always wanted to come to Australia. The move was challenging. We arrived about three months before Covid-19 hit, and we were in Melbourne, which was in lock down for two years.
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How did your kids manage? They were seven and ten at the time. It was tough for them to assimilate and get their English up to a good standard. They were really struggling. But they’re into sports and they’ve gained friendships through that, now they’re back at school. They’re moving ahead now. I speak English only to my children, and they respond in Japanese. But we have a rule at the dinner table—no Japanese, just to encourage better English.
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And your wife? She was also stuck at home and didn’t have much to do apart from shopping. Luckily, that’s her favourite thing! After that, she was able to find some part-time work and then get a dream of hers going – running a Japanese food business selling bento boxes. It’s cooking for delivery. She’s hopeful that it will be successful. I’m probably more hopeful because I can see the opportunities. Where my wife works is actually very close to where Mazda is, along with lots of other head offices.
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How did you then go from making music and being a researcher and linguist in Japan to working with Mazda? One of my research focuses was technology and technology in the classroom. When I came back from Japan, I got a job at Monash University, which is quite close to Mazda. I was teaching English there, but then Covid hit and I was told there were going to be no students for the next uptake. So I had to start thinking about my next career move, and I started a job where I was using technology to teach Chinese students coming to Australia. Then I moved into a straight learning design role that was fully online—no actual face-to-face teaching. Luckily for me, I got an opportunity with Mazda after that and, in the job that I do now, I get to use a broad range of skills. I’m not just designing online courses but also do videography and production, face-to-face presentations and training. All sorts of really interesting jobs.
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What sort of things are you doing at the moment? Right now, I’m designing a course on warranty, creating product articles for the CX-60, creating learning pieces for customer service, and I also just created a working-from-home course about health and safety.
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Considering your interest in technology, have you got any new innovations you’d like to introduce to Mazda? It’s just been approved that we can add some new software, H5P, which creates interactive videos. Different kinds of quizzes, and things like that, are embedded inside videos. That was one of my little wins.
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What sort of mark would you like to make in your work at Mazda? To know I’ve done everything I can to change perspectives when it comes to learning and development. To not just make learning a positive experience, but something that people really want to do and look forward to.
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Could you describe Mazda in three words? Exciting, empowering, and family.
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Interview by Helene Dancer / Zoom photo by Fran Monks
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Mazda CX-50: treasure on the road
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A family go on a geocaching adventure into the Canadian wilderness to discover both Mazda’s fascinating history and the nature of the first-ever Mazda CX‑50.
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Arriving in Gravenhurst, Ontario, in unseasonably warm weather, our Mazda CX-50 shimmering in the late afternoon sun, we are metaphorically dragging our feet to prolong a day that has taken us across one of Canada’s most beautiful regions.
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My name is Ravish. I’m a YouTube vlogger who travels the world with my wife, Sakshi, and our two kids, Sam and Preet, sharing our adventures on the way. We’re in Gravenhurst because Mazda has sent us on a geocaching experience in the first-ever Mazda CX‑50, a rugged car designed specifically with the great Canadian outdoors in mind.
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Rewind 12 hours and we’re in the car before dawn. With the Geocaching app loaded on Sakshi’s smartphone, we slice through the sunrise along some of Muskoka’s most incredible roads in search of our first cache. The CX‑50 clings to the road with a steely determination—it’s a riot to drive.
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A turning takes us down a section of unpaved road and, with the car now dialled into Off-Road Mode via Mazda’s new Mazda Intelligent Drive Select, or Mi-Drive for short, we edge into the saturated green forest on our quest, the car providing a great amount of grip on the slippery surface.
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The kids love the geocaching app and, using the compass feature, we soon find our first cache. Each one holds a treasure hidden by Mazda Canada, and this one contains a delicate origami paper crane. Like Mazda, the origami crane is synonymous with the city of Hiroshima. The crane is a Japanese peace symbol in remembrance of those killed by the atomic bomb dropped on the city in 1945.
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The outside temperature is climbing so we open the moonroof and enjoy the fresh air and light that flood the cabin, welcoming nature into the car as a fellow passenger. The kids love the panoramic, widescreen view of the scenery the moonroof provides.
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En route to our next cache, Preet considers the nature of the treasure we might find. Unfortunately for him, the PlayStation 5 his parents failed to source for his eighth birthday doesn’t make an appearance. However, the cork keyring we find hidden by Mazda proves a great distraction, telling the interesting story of the company’s 1920 formation as cork manufacturer.
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Geocaching is a global treasure hunt game. Using the Geocaching app over three million geocaches are available to discover across 190 countries. Many hold small, trackable items or treasures left by a cache’s creator and visitors.
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The last geocache of the day is hidden in a roadside model wooden house.
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Find number three is a diecast model of the Mazda MX‑5. The celebrated MX‑5 represents Mazda’s commitment to building superb driving machines.
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All the Mazda trackable items mentioned in this story are available to be discovered by geocachers. Sign up with Geocaching and visit geocaching.com/p/?id=40723570 to begin your Mazda treasure hunt.
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We make Gravenhurst with the late afternoon sun beginning to flare as it descends over the low horizon. Our final cache—a model wooden house—doesn’t take long to locate, and inside it sits a diecast Mazda MX-5 RF model. Arguably Mazda’s most famous vehicle, the MX‑5 represents the company’s commitment to building superb driving machines. Sam is charmed. “Can we keep it?” he asks, but in the spirit of the game we leave it for the next geocacher to discover.
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That evening we stay at a beautiful lakeside cottage and reflect on a fantastic day. As a family, we travel the world in search of adventure, but geocaching has opened our eyes to discovering the incredible country on our doorstep. The CX‑50 has been an excellent enabler in all this, able to carry mountains of luggage and offering a spacious, comfortable haven from the heat and mosquitoes—it’s also a complete blast to drive, on any surface.
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Story written by Tommy Melville / Images by Dan Froude / Film by Ben Cox
A family geocaching adventure in the Canadian wilderness highlights Mazda’s fascinating history and the nature of the first-ever Mazda CX‑50
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