Spotlight #12, Surprising Buying Poll Results, August Events

Hey there!

I hope you are doing well! It's the first month of the new "twice monthly" newsletter publishing, with an edition on the first and third Tuesdays of the month. Thank you so much for being here and making this work! Here’s what’s coming up in this edition:

• Adventurer Spotlight #12

• Results of the “Which Subaru Would You Buy Now” Polls

• August Events

• Subie & YOU! Podcast Monthly Rewind

• Quick Hit Items in the Wrap-Up

Adventurer Spotlight #12 with @texas_tiggeru

Welcome to the Adventurer Spotlight, an interview series with Adventurers from our newsletter about their life with their Subaru. Here, we find out more about the person behind the wheel and get inspired to embark on new adventures.

Before we get to this month’s feature, I’d like to thank Eric (@eggcellentvp) and Kristin (@kristin_guajardo) again for being in last month’s Spotlight. Now, on to our 12th edition!

Introduction

Howdy Y’all from Texas! My name is John, but I go by Jonathan, thanks to my wonderful wife! Tigger and I can be found on Instagram under texas_tiggeru. I retired from the Army after just over twenty years and now I am doing computer aided drafting for an Architectural Limestone Company here in Texas!

Which Subaru do you own? What do you like most about it?

Tigger is a 2018 Crosstrek Limited and I would have to say the thing I like most about the car itself is the Sunshine Orange color. I owned a silver Pontiac Vibe prior to this and felt like it was the Invisible Car! As soon as I saw the Crosstrek came in orange I HAD to have it!

Why did you choose a Subaru? How many have you owned?

Tigger is my first Subaru and honestly, I had not even considered Subarus when it came time to buy a new car. My wife is a massage therapist and she said that many of her clients swore by their Subarus and suggested that I check them out. I immediately felt the Crosstrek was the perfect size and fit for our lifestyle and of course had to have it in ORANGE!

Have you made any modifications?

Tigger has been mostly modified by add-ons. I really am trying to stay true to the original body style and don’t want to get into cutting bumpers (yet). I would be well over my word limit here if I tried to list them all, but Tigger has been built to be a “Rally Inspired, Soft Roading, Daily Driver”. Skid plates, rock sliders, light bars, lots of Diode Dynamics lighting, roof rack, cargo box, etc., etc., etc.!!!

What would you like to add to your setup?

I am looking to add the Ironman 4x4 ATS Spec C suspension kit, and will be installing Diode Dynamics RGBW Rock Lights in late summer.

Favorite road trip? Or favorite thing to do in your Subaru?

I really enjoy attending Subie-centric events. Whether it is with Mountain Roo Texas, off-roading events, or even car shows, the Subaru Community has been a truly wonderful discovery!

Have a favorite picture of your car?

Wow, Tigger is so photogenic that it’s hard for me to pick a favorite. I think right now, it is probably one of the 4th of July shots that I recently posted.

Where would you like to travel to next with the Subie?

After I retire for good, I would like to attend every Wicked Big Meet, Boxerfest, Flat4Fest, SubieFest, and other major Subaru meets in one year!

What, if anything, would you do differently, or change, about your Subie?

I seriously researched the car before buying it and got 95% of the options I wanted. The only thing I might want that was not available in 2018 is the 2.5 Liter engine!

Thank you, Jonathan, for being in the Spotlight! You have a very unique Subaru and I love how you’ve completely embraced the orange!

🗳️ Results of the “Which Subaru Would You Buy Now” Polls

In last month’s newsletter, I ran a poll asking which Subaru you would buy now if you were in the market. There were 26 voters (thank you!), and the Outback grabbed the top spot, with 12 votes, followed by the Crosstrek (8 votes) and Forester (3 votes) rounding out the Top 3.

After seeing the results, I decided to ask the same thing on Instagram, with a larger audience, and here are the results.

Something to consider with the Instagram poll is that there weren’t enough options to list all the models in one poll. To work around this, I split the poll into three different Story posts, which may have impacted how viewers voted. But, I think it’s no surprise that the Outback, Crosstrek, and Forester received high numbers of votes, but the WRX pulling 116 was a bit surprising. The number of responses that wouldn’t buy another Subaru was also higher than I expected, but there’s no way to know if the voter has one now, so we should take it with a grain of salt.

Regardless, it was a fun little exercise. I’ll run the poll every six months, and we’ll see how things go. Thanks to everyone that participated!

📆 Events This Month

A couple of notable, family-friendly events are going on this month:

FL4TFEST Celebration is on August 12th at Madison International Speedway in Oregon, WI. There will be an autocross, car show, off-road zone, and more. Get tickets and more details here.

Thousands of Subaru enthusiasts will descend upon York, PA, for the annual Boxerfest event. It goes down at the York Fairgrounds on August 20th, and tickets are on sale now. All the details are at boxerfest.com.

🎧 Subie & YOU! Podcast Monthly Rewind

Here's a recap of last month's guests on the show:

E131 - URKSPLORING
Erika was on the podcast to talk about her solo camping adventures, her Subaru journey, and places she has explored over the past couple of years. She also gives some great tips and advice for those who are interested in solo camping and how to get started.

E130 - Inpulse Designs
Nik joined the podcast to talk about Inpulse Designs and the trading cards he has come up with for all of us in the community. Also talked about his Subaru journey and his 1st Gen Crosstrek!

E129 - Big RSJ 83
Slavomir (Slav) joined the show from the U.K. to talk about his love of Subarus and how he came to finally own not one, but two!! He talks about his Subaru journey, some events he participates in, and how owning his Subarus has helped him with his personal life.

E128 - Trail WREX Colorado
Tully was on the show to talk about his trail ready Bugeye WRX, what he did to get it trail ready, and about his overall Subaru journey. He also talks about some of the people he has met along the way..

Remember, you can subscribe to the show in your favorite podcast app, or listen online here. My thanks to Rafael for his ongoing support of the newsletter!

🎁 The Wrap-Up

⚡️ Thinking about an EV? Subaru’s Drive magazine wrote a bit on life with EVs, with input from owners. You can read that here.

🧵 Reminder: Give me a follow over on the Threads app, where I’m posting more random shots of my Crosstrek, and having some good discussions.

👕 Pick up a shirt! A fine collection of Subie Adventures T-shirts and more is available if you'd like to grab one to support the page and newsletter. Thanks!

That’s all for now!

Tom Anderson
Subie Adventures