MP3racer
06-27-2009, 11:04 AM
http://www.msprotege.com/members/MP3racer/IMG_7363[1].jpg
The start to this season was much like our current economy--a bit of a struggle. In past years, development issues with the car held us back. This year it was me--the driver!
Prior to our first race of the year we ran the test day to evaluate our new suspension set-ups, designed to make up for lost downforce (2009 rules do not allow us to use the front splitter as in seasons past). The first test session went well with the new suspension working great. The only hitch was the car seemed to be jumping out of third gear so I had to hold it in gear in some of the corners.
The second session the car was running even better with some minor suspension tweeks. But around 20 minutes into the session, I began to get nauseous. I thought maybe "nerves" and brought the car in with not much concern. Third and final session I decided to run hard. The car ran great, but again, around 15-20 minutes in, extreme nausea hit. The races are 30 minute sprints, so I tried to push through it. However, I was out of commission for the next hour, trying to recuperate. The team held a meeting and we decided for safety's sake, it would be best to withdraw.
Our first thought was carbon monoxide, but no. When I got home, I underwent a full series of medical tests. Good news--no physical problems. Bad news--no reason for the nausea.
For the next race weekend, I tripled my water intake. I was definitely nervous during the tow to Mosport. However, sometimes things happen that make you think. We were listening to the comedy channel in the tow vehicle. A comedian was doing his act. I wasn't paying attention until he started to talk about an eagle he saw flying near an incoming storm. He was impressed that rather than turning around, the eagle used the storm to soar even highter. I realized I needed this adversity to up my game.
We arrived early on Friday at the track. Only a grassy paddock area was left for us to park and set up. It's been a long time since we set up on grass, but we took it in stride. Everything was going well until we tried to put the race car on jack stands. The uneven ground made things difficult. The car dropped onto one of the rear control arms and bent it. Worse, in the huge inventory of spares we carry, rear control arms is not included. We decided to leave the bent control arm and readjust the alignment to compensate.
The next morning was bright and clear. The weekend kicked into high gear immediately. The first session for our series was qualifying. No time to worry about bent control arms--just get to work securing a good time. I was tentative about the car and myself, but the twenty-five minute session past without issue. We secured the twelth spot on the grid in our class. Not great, but not the back of the pack either.
As I climbed out of the car, my son had a big grin on his face. He told me, "Dad, I think I figured out why you were sick at the last race." He showed me a bottle of water from a case we kept from last season, a case I drank from at the prior race. He shook the bottle and the water clouded with residue. The stored water had frozen over the winter and gone bad. I never noticed when I drank it, but it must have caused my nausea!
Quickly the first race came up. We made a few changes to the shock settings and readied the Protege. Starting toward the back of the pack is usually not a good thing. However, this time it wasn't so bad as cars tangled in the first and third corners, sending a car into the wall in turn one and a car sideways to block the track in turn three! Being near the tail of the field allowed me to get a jump on the car next to me as well as avoid the trouble.
http://www.youtube.com/user/DocBRacing#play/all/uploads-all/1/lpHrnHsqkP8
For a couple of laps, local yellow flags marked where the cars had gone off. My crew chief radioed that they were going full course caution to clean up the messes. We drove fifteen minutes in full course caution.
Finally we took the green flag for a sprint to the finish with only ten minutes remaining in the race. I was battling for position with the Toyota Corolla XRS from Media Racing. Flat out up the back straight in fifth gear, I noticed some smoke ahead. The corner worker wildly waved both the yellow and debris flags! The motor in the Betz Pools Acura Type R had blown, leaving a thick cloud of white smoke completely covering the end of the back straight. The scene from "Days of Thunder" came to mind. Also flashing through my mind was the video from the '07 season when the Mini entered a similar cloud, only to slam into a spun car inside! I didn't want to go into the cloud right behind the Corolla, so I moved to the left. In the video, you will see he is a few feet in front of me but the smoke is so thick, he disappears for a second or two.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPR7zgr-eOs&feature=channel
A few laps later I took the checkered flag in 10th place. A good starting position for the final race on Sunday. Even better, the car was in good shape and so was I!
Sunday dawned with clear blue skies. The team took the morning to relax and enjoy breakfast with the family who owns the Our Valley View Bed and Breakfast (www.OurValleyViewBnB.com (http://www.OurValleyViewBnB.com)). They have become extended family. It's a great place to stay if you are ever in the Mosport area!
Our race was scheduled right after the NASCAR race. Of course, during the NASCAR race, the usual big crash caused the race to stop temporarily while they cleared the mess and fixed the track. The delay pushed our race back 40 minutes--more time for pre-race jitters!
On the grid, the team gave me the usual good luck wishes. Martin Zinser, owner of Our Valley View B&B and recent new crew member, leaned in and said, "Remember, have fun!" Those were the words I needed to hear. I was ready to go!
The race started clean. I immediately got a jump on the Toyota Corolla XRS I battled in the previous race.
The car ran great and I was gunning for the Honda Civic just ahead of me. We battled nose to tail for several corners before I got a run on him in the corner coming into the main straight. I drafted him for abit and popped out to pass.
We drag raced up the straight with the power of the Protege pulling me closer to the pass. We hit the braking zone with me still slightly behind. I tried to squeeze him out, but he pulled back over just inches from my front bumper. I figured I could get him on the next lap.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2vd2muPwL8&feature=channel
Coming out of the last corner on the next lap, I tucked in behind the Civic to draft again when I realized I couldn't stay with him. I looked at the boost gauge and saw it was not reading. The hose must have popped off the manifold or developed a leak. Losing boost, I was down on horsepower. So the task at hand changed from aggressor to defender as I tried to hold off the cars behind me to keep my position.
The Acura and Toyota behind me took turns diving on the inside of me in the corners. For the next 20 minutes, I fought them off using everything I had--from using the faster super touring class cars as "picks" to throwing the Protege through the corners to maintain momentum. At the checkered flag, we took 7th place in touring class. It was high fives and jubilation!!!
http://www.msprotege.com/members/MP3racer/DSC01834[2].jpg
The start to this season was much like our current economy--a bit of a struggle. In past years, development issues with the car held us back. This year it was me--the driver!
Prior to our first race of the year we ran the test day to evaluate our new suspension set-ups, designed to make up for lost downforce (2009 rules do not allow us to use the front splitter as in seasons past). The first test session went well with the new suspension working great. The only hitch was the car seemed to be jumping out of third gear so I had to hold it in gear in some of the corners.
The second session the car was running even better with some minor suspension tweeks. But around 20 minutes into the session, I began to get nauseous. I thought maybe "nerves" and brought the car in with not much concern. Third and final session I decided to run hard. The car ran great, but again, around 15-20 minutes in, extreme nausea hit. The races are 30 minute sprints, so I tried to push through it. However, I was out of commission for the next hour, trying to recuperate. The team held a meeting and we decided for safety's sake, it would be best to withdraw.
Our first thought was carbon monoxide, but no. When I got home, I underwent a full series of medical tests. Good news--no physical problems. Bad news--no reason for the nausea.
For the next race weekend, I tripled my water intake. I was definitely nervous during the tow to Mosport. However, sometimes things happen that make you think. We were listening to the comedy channel in the tow vehicle. A comedian was doing his act. I wasn't paying attention until he started to talk about an eagle he saw flying near an incoming storm. He was impressed that rather than turning around, the eagle used the storm to soar even highter. I realized I needed this adversity to up my game.
We arrived early on Friday at the track. Only a grassy paddock area was left for us to park and set up. It's been a long time since we set up on grass, but we took it in stride. Everything was going well until we tried to put the race car on jack stands. The uneven ground made things difficult. The car dropped onto one of the rear control arms and bent it. Worse, in the huge inventory of spares we carry, rear control arms is not included. We decided to leave the bent control arm and readjust the alignment to compensate.
The next morning was bright and clear. The weekend kicked into high gear immediately. The first session for our series was qualifying. No time to worry about bent control arms--just get to work securing a good time. I was tentative about the car and myself, but the twenty-five minute session past without issue. We secured the twelth spot on the grid in our class. Not great, but not the back of the pack either.
As I climbed out of the car, my son had a big grin on his face. He told me, "Dad, I think I figured out why you were sick at the last race." He showed me a bottle of water from a case we kept from last season, a case I drank from at the prior race. He shook the bottle and the water clouded with residue. The stored water had frozen over the winter and gone bad. I never noticed when I drank it, but it must have caused my nausea!
Quickly the first race came up. We made a few changes to the shock settings and readied the Protege. Starting toward the back of the pack is usually not a good thing. However, this time it wasn't so bad as cars tangled in the first and third corners, sending a car into the wall in turn one and a car sideways to block the track in turn three! Being near the tail of the field allowed me to get a jump on the car next to me as well as avoid the trouble.
http://www.youtube.com/user/DocBRacing#play/all/uploads-all/1/lpHrnHsqkP8
For a couple of laps, local yellow flags marked where the cars had gone off. My crew chief radioed that they were going full course caution to clean up the messes. We drove fifteen minutes in full course caution.
Finally we took the green flag for a sprint to the finish with only ten minutes remaining in the race. I was battling for position with the Toyota Corolla XRS from Media Racing. Flat out up the back straight in fifth gear, I noticed some smoke ahead. The corner worker wildly waved both the yellow and debris flags! The motor in the Betz Pools Acura Type R had blown, leaving a thick cloud of white smoke completely covering the end of the back straight. The scene from "Days of Thunder" came to mind. Also flashing through my mind was the video from the '07 season when the Mini entered a similar cloud, only to slam into a spun car inside! I didn't want to go into the cloud right behind the Corolla, so I moved to the left. In the video, you will see he is a few feet in front of me but the smoke is so thick, he disappears for a second or two.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPR7zgr-eOs&feature=channel
A few laps later I took the checkered flag in 10th place. A good starting position for the final race on Sunday. Even better, the car was in good shape and so was I!
Sunday dawned with clear blue skies. The team took the morning to relax and enjoy breakfast with the family who owns the Our Valley View Bed and Breakfast (www.OurValleyViewBnB.com (http://www.OurValleyViewBnB.com)). They have become extended family. It's a great place to stay if you are ever in the Mosport area!
Our race was scheduled right after the NASCAR race. Of course, during the NASCAR race, the usual big crash caused the race to stop temporarily while they cleared the mess and fixed the track. The delay pushed our race back 40 minutes--more time for pre-race jitters!
On the grid, the team gave me the usual good luck wishes. Martin Zinser, owner of Our Valley View B&B and recent new crew member, leaned in and said, "Remember, have fun!" Those were the words I needed to hear. I was ready to go!
The race started clean. I immediately got a jump on the Toyota Corolla XRS I battled in the previous race.
The car ran great and I was gunning for the Honda Civic just ahead of me. We battled nose to tail for several corners before I got a run on him in the corner coming into the main straight. I drafted him for abit and popped out to pass.
We drag raced up the straight with the power of the Protege pulling me closer to the pass. We hit the braking zone with me still slightly behind. I tried to squeeze him out, but he pulled back over just inches from my front bumper. I figured I could get him on the next lap.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2vd2muPwL8&feature=channel
Coming out of the last corner on the next lap, I tucked in behind the Civic to draft again when I realized I couldn't stay with him. I looked at the boost gauge and saw it was not reading. The hose must have popped off the manifold or developed a leak. Losing boost, I was down on horsepower. So the task at hand changed from aggressor to defender as I tried to hold off the cars behind me to keep my position.
The Acura and Toyota behind me took turns diving on the inside of me in the corners. For the next 20 minutes, I fought them off using everything I had--from using the faster super touring class cars as "picks" to throwing the Protege through the corners to maintain momentum. At the checkered flag, we took 7th place in touring class. It was high fives and jubilation!!!
http://www.msprotege.com/members/MP3racer/DSC01834[2].jpg