Iowa, 8 hours in

The eight hour mark has passed, only 16 left to go. We did have some issues to deal with.

The gearbox has lost 3rd completely. We can get by with just 4th and 5th, though it bogs a little in some of the slower corners. The tranny case has also developed a leak. It looks like it was patch with some kind of epoxy in the past and that is now leaky. We slapped some J-B Weld on it and hope that it holds.

The starter is toast after the ignition switch stuck on. We have to push the car to start it leaving the pits, but it starts well. It is also running well, with good oil pressure and coolant temp.

Tire wear is acceptable, though we did have one tire with a slice in the sidewall.

This photo was taken just after the re-start. We were ahead of the other Saab on the track, but about 30 laps behind. At the 8-hour safety break, we were in 9th position, 40 laps behind the leader.

We started with 1 hour 20 minute shifts so all six drivers would get track time in the first 8 hours. We are now going to 2 hour shifts, though Tim says one hour will be fine with him (the wuss!)

The Race is On!

A little over four hours into the Iowa race and our car is running well. No serious problems, but some minor ones. The transmission keeps popping out of 3rd gear, so we're driving mostly in 4th and 5th. Top speed is over 100 mph on the back straight just before turning into the infield.

So far the driver lineup has been Darrell, John, Tim and Greg, with Mitch and Jesse yet to drive. When John was driving, the ignition switch got stuck in the START position and the starter was burned out. He lost several laps when he spun and stalled the car. We now have to push the car to get it to start when leaving the pits. The team has decided to steal the starter out of Tim's street 900 and replace it during the one hour Safety Break at 7pm.

We are currently in 7th place. Greg set the fast time for the team, within the top five overall.

Iowa = Corn

If you're surrounded by corn, you're probably in Iowa. Either that or Darrell Peterson is in the vicinity.

Driving lights have been mounted on the hood, dash lights are supposed to be working (hard to tell in the light of day), the car is about as ready as it will get.

In addition to Darrell, John Hogdal, Tim Winker and Greg Wold, there are a couple more drivers this weekend. Darrell's son, Mitch, who has extensive kart racing experience and a championship or two to back it up, will get some seat time. Also invited to drive is our crew guy, Jesse Lang, who has done a lot of work on the car. That means about four hours driving time per driver; about eight SCCA Regional races apiece!

There were some nasty thunderstorms early this morning, but skies have cleared and temps are moderate. Unfortunately the weather forecasters predict "near record high temperatures" for this afternoon. The Heat Index is supposed to get to 110F. Thunderstorms are expected to return overnight.

It's running and on the trailer!

The engine was finished about 1:00 pm on Thursday. It was loaded into Tim's street Saab and delivered to the race shop just before 5pm.

All team members showed up to help with the installation. There were a few setbacks and corrections to be made, but eventually everything was ready to go. It fired up about 11:30 and the car was in the trailer before Midnight.

Engine update

The damaged engine was delivered to SVS last week, but the last of the parts didn't arrive until Monday afternoon.

Still not certain as to why our engine failed at BIR, but it involved oil starvation. The rod and main bearings are all scored. The #1 rod bearing looks like it spun on the crankshaft, leaving scratches on the journal. Hopefully it is deposits and not scratches so the crank might be salvageable. Pistons in the damaged engine look better than the ones from our donor engine, so Mark will probably use those instead. He said the cylinders on the new block look good and honed out nice and smooth. It all goes back together today (Tuesday). It needs to get to the shop in Maple Grove on Wednesday for evening installation.

It looks like it will be a hot weekend in Iowa, partly cloudy with daytime temps around 90F and overnight only down to 70F. The race course uses a lot of the oval, so wear on the right front tire will be unavoidable.

Another engine

Thanks to Mike Straub at Hanover European Auto Parts, we have another 2.1L short block for the Fart-hinder racecar. It will be delivered on Friday to Mark at SVS, Inc. in Duluth, who has offered to do the rebuilding for us. Thanks for all your help!!!

Update 6/12/10: I stripped the pistons and crank out of the "new" short block just after it was delivered to SVS. Took the crank to Midwest Engine in Duluth for polishing, and had the block washed in a dishwasher type parts washer. Adding a bit of paint to the block today (Saturday), while the other team members are busily removing the engine from the race car at the shop in Maple Grove.

2010 ChumpCar at Brainerd, by Tim Winker

A few of my photos from the race have been posted on Snapfish.
Click here to view photos