A Successful Weekend at Road America

Photos by Tim Winker, Alex Bellus and Optima Batteries.

After our DNS at Brainerd, Fart-hinder Racing (a.k.a. Vintage Ice And Gravel Rally Racing Association / VIAGRRA) was looking to get some track time to make up for it at the Road America "Drift Into Winter" ChumpCar race.

A test session at Brainerd six weeks prior had revealed a few areas that needed attention, most notably the brakes. It turns out that when the anti-lock brake system was neutered in the first racing season, it de-activated the ABS pump which acted as a power boost for the brakes. As a result, the pedal was very hard, and the rear brakes were not working at all. They had not worked since the Saab's first race in 2010! A few hours of study and it was determined that the ABS pump could be activated by re-connecting a few wires that had been clipped out. Sure enough it worked. A few other minor details were cleared up, and we even had time to add a front air dam. With two weeks before the race, the car was ready to go!

The two-day, 16-hour race was primarily the Central Region Chumpionship, but there were only 27 cars entered for that, with teams from Minnesota to Texas participating. An additional 60 cars made the green flag on Saturday morning for a total of 87 cars on track. Fart-hinder Racing was grateful to be among them.

In addition to the usual drivers -- Mark Fitzpatrick, Mike Mandy, Travis McCormick and car owner Tim Winker -- John Stiller from Detroit would join us again. Our primary goal for the weekend was to drive fast and spend as little time as possible in the pits. Finishing in the top half would be a bonus.

Tim was the first on the track, taking the first few laps to get comfortable behind the wheel again and taking no chances. After passing a couple of slower cars, it wasn't long before the front runners were putting the Saab a lap down. Tim's early lap times were over 40 seconds per lap slower than the lead group. He picked the speed up a bit, but the bone stock, 200,000 mile Saab engine provided by Hanover European Parts didn't have the snort of the freshly built, higher horsepower engines in the BMWs. Tim's fast lap was 3:29.07 for an average of just under 70 mph on the 4.1 mile track. With the speedometer working again, it showed over 100 mph at the end of the main straight and as much as 110 on the slightly downhill straight before turn 5.

Collapsed front suspension due to ball joint failure.

The 9-hour session on Saturday was divided into five driving stints of an hour and 45 minutes apiece, with a little time left over for pit stops. Tim came in after his full stint and handed over to Mark. On his fifth lap, the Saab's suspension failed in turn eight, the Carousel. The car was hauled back to the paddock on a flat bed and deposited in our stall. It was quickly obvious that the lower left ball joint had failed. The tire was pushed back against the fender, the inner axle joint was pulled out, and the shock absorber had separated from the lower A-arm. Among the spares we had suspension uprights for both sides, so set about removing a ball joint from one, while we also removed the ball joint pieces from the car. The upper A-arm looked a little twisted so we tried to tweak that back into shape before installing the lower joint. It all went back together with little difficulty, but we didn't have the proper sized nut for the lower shock mount. Since were were parked next to the other Saab 900 team entered, Team Failcar, we raided their spares for a nut, only to find that the threads on our car had been stripped. We contemplated drilling a hole in the stud to pin the nut into place, but eventually just pounded the end of the stud flat, like a rivet.

Mark went back onto the track after nearly two hours, 40 laps behind the lead car. It wasn't long before he trusted the car enough to give it his full effort again. He came in at his specified time and turned the car over to Mike.

Mike had never driven the Road America course before, so spent the first few laps getting used to the course and the car. His stint behind the wheel was uneventful and he came in after a little over an hour.

John was up next and also had an uneventful ride, other than besting Tim's so-far quick lap. His time was 3:27.89, for an average of 70 mph.

Mark and Travis prepare to check under the hood,
while Mike helps John get strapped into place.

John turned the car over to Travis, the most aggressive driver on the team. It wasn't long before his lap times were quicker than the rest of the team, eventually turning a 3:20.97! With a little over a half hour remaining, Travis brought the car in for Mark to get some more laps before the end of the day. The checkered flag was given at about 5:40 pm, nine hours after the green flag was dropped.

The team gave the car a once over, checking for loose nuts and bolts or anything that looked out of the ordinary. Mark reminded Travis to check the ball joint bolts that had been replaced. Good thing because they were quite loose, apparently had only been put on finger tight and not snugged down with a wrench. They were tightened properly before the car was lowered off the jack. Tires were swapped front to rear for the second day's action.

It should be mentioned that the weather was a little cooler than normal for late October, and there was frost on the cars when we got up on Sunday morning. There was a bit of fog in the air as the cars took to the track but it quickly burned off into a lovely autumn day, though it remained cool.

Mike heads into turn 1 on the first lap.

Mike was first up for Sunday's 7-hours of racing, and other than having to stop in the pits for a loose wire to the ABS pump, had no incidents. John, Mark and Travis each took their time in the racing seat, each besting their previous day's fast lap. Once again Travis was quickest of the team with a 3:17.50, an average speed of 73.7 mph.

By the time Tim got aboard for the final hour and a half, it was starting to rain. After a few laps the rain came down harder and several cars spun on the wet surface. A full course yellow was declared so safety crews could retrieve the broken and damaged cars. More than a few had gone off and impacted a barrier, and would not make it back to the race. Tim spun once in turn 12, and got quite loose in 14, prompting him to pull into the pits to see if maybe a rear tire had gone flat. All tires looked good, so it was back on track. Lap times were much slower due to the rain, but Tim was passing cars that had drivers apparently being extra cautious to finish the final hour.

The checkered flag was dropped at the appointed time and it was over. Another BMW had won overall, and the first place trophy in the non-Chumpionship category went to a BMW from Duluth. The Fart-hinder Saab was unofficially classified in 44th place overall.

We toasted the weekend with a selection of beer from Lake Superior Brewing Company, who had kindly provided us with a couple of cases of their product.

Our primary goal had been achieved. We finished with little difficulty and every driver got a load of track time. The car came home with no body damage, only a crinkled front spoiler from the ball joint incident. We finished ahead of the BMWs Tubby Butterman, British-American Racing, Cheap Shot and several other top teams that did not make it to the finish. Smiles all around.

Thanks to our sponsors: eEuroparts.com, Hanover European Parts, Lake Superior Brewing Company and Airport Signs and Graphics.

Tim, John, Travis, Mike, Mark, and a rather twisted air dam.