Thunderhill - 04 Dec 2009
What a difference a year makes. Last year's Arse-Freeze-A-Palooza at Thunderhill was a plague of full track yellows, heavy traffic and nasty chicanes. This year with the full track, no chicanes and awesome flagging, the 24 Hours of LeMons has really transformed into real racing, abeit still in jalopies. For the Sharks, our fifth race was another small step forward.
We arrived at 7am to find 40 other teams more organized than us already waiting for the gates to open - yet another sign that LeMons racing is now pretty serious business for many. As soon as we found a good paddock spot, the skies opened up pouring freezing rain on us as we set up camp for the weekend. With everything soaking wet including us, we retreated into the RV hoping the weather would clear. By midday, we were out testing on the drying track.
Racing started Saturday with Josh out first and after only 20 minutes, the car had stalled on turn 3 not wanting to come back to life. Once towed in, we found a vacuum leak resulting from my poorly positioned air flow meter. Fixed and put back out, we lost about 30 minutes to the repair placing us inauspiciously in 110th place out of 160 cars in the first set of results. But things improved after that. The rest of Saturday ran smoothly. The air flow meter was acting up causing the engine to buck but it was controllable and we could still get through traffic at a good clip.
Sunday, smooth and fast driver changes allowed us to continue gaining positions. After a complete driver rotation, each running through a full tank of fuel, I went back out to close out the race. The brakes were shot but the car was otherwise running in top form allowing me to pass most of the field. With only 20 minutes left in the race, we had climbed 89 positions to 21st place. And then smoke started to pour into the cabin. At first, I thought another car had blown up next to me, but after about 3 minutes, I realized it was our car. Shortly thereafter, we lost boost and I was being informed over the radio of the 30 foot long cloud of smoke blinding everyone behind me. I made for the track exit, light headed from all the fumes.
We finished 28th overall having lost 7 places in the last 15 minutes. And with only one black flag to our name due mostly to the lenient and overworked corner workers who handed out some 550+ flags to the field of 160 cars. All in all a good result. But, no longer satisfied with good, we have bigger goals for 2010. Stay tuned...
Sometimes Very Fast, Many Times Stationary
Buttonwillow - 16 Aug 2009
The Good: The Sharks set the fastest lap at the 24 Hours of LeMons Buttonwillow Histrionics. We won an award for being the "Most Loveable Pain In The Ass" team -- admittedly, we fit this description all too well. We were in strong contention for Organizer's Choice but Blanco Basura's swimming pool could not be beat. The BMW 528e handled like a dream and passed every car on the track easily either on or off the racing line. We could out brake, out accelerate, and out maneuver almost everything. We didn't crash (a big improvement from Reno). We received only a couple of black flags and minor ones at that.
The Bad: The junkyard pile of glued together car parts started to show their age. Two cooling hoses sprouted leaks. A fuel line split. The intake boot ripped open. The AFM died. Our brake lights were on all the time. Our mirror was pointed at everything except the track behind us. The telemetry didn't work. We panicked when we realized we weren't prepared and made mega stooooopid mistakes (e.g. letting the cooling fan ingest an expensive multimeter).
The Ugly: We came in 46th overall. Best selling novels were written in less time than it took us to refuel our car. We were disorganized. We were ready to race Friday as much as Stephen Hawking can slam dunk a basketball.
The Amazing: At the very end of the race, the Evil Genius Volvo and the Big Sausage Acura were neck and neck fighting for first place. On the very last lap, the Acura closely followed by the Volvo were closing in on Josh in the Shark just before the infamously dangerous Lost Hill turn. This is how we last saw them before they left our line of sight. What emerged on the other side was a big surprise. The Volvo emerged first. Shortly thereafter, the shark appeared with a newly applied red stripe down its left side. Then a bunch of other cars rolled passed. The Acura was nowhere to be found. What we didn't know was the Acura had tried to pass the shark on the outside of Lost Hill and made contact with the shark just before it lost control, went off the track and then flipped onto its roof in a giant cloud of dust. Little did Josh know but his position on the track changed the outcome of the race.
The Outlook: Most importantly, we had a lot of fun. But, now there is work to be done. The team debrief last night highlighted all the work that lies ahead on the road to Thunderhill. We've shown everybody that we have a fast car. Now we need to show them we can win as a team.
Los Angeles - 29 Jun 2009
Once the champagne bottles have run empty, the podium vacated, the press cameras turned off and the leggy pit girls long since vanished, the real work of a 24 Hours of LeMons team begins. This is where the glamor and prestige is replaced with wrenches and sweat. One does not exist without the other.
And so it goes for the Very Important Peasants. Their battle hardened 3 race veteran car is showing signs of age. The next race will be one of the most challenging for both man and machine. 100F desert heat will test the limits of reliability for two long grueling days. Serious labor will be required to keep their pedigree race car in top LeMons condition. Down in the depths of the Shark Pit, compression is checked, valves are adjusted, fluids are drained, bolts re-torqued, and surfaces machined. The Team VIP skunkworks is in a frenzy of activity in preparing for victory.
Buttonwillow - 13 Jun 2009
The sharks took to the Buttonwillow open test day this weekend as they threatened they would. Hopefully, it is the same configuration for the August 24 Hours of LeMons race. People at the track loved the shark in the paddock but somehow the esspensive race cars seemed to vacate the track whenever we took to it! Here's some lovely de-shaken video from the track in the turbo shark.
The video camera, other than shaking wildly enough to make serious post corrections necessary, made it sound like we were dragging a garbage skip behind the car. It wasn't so pronounced in person, but it did make some odd noises quite possibly related to the battered suspension that is in need of some serious repair. So when we felt the suspension was just too beaten on to continue without some revaluation investment budget from Jay, we jumped into the family Allroad 4.2 and tooled on the V8 and air-ride suspension mercilessly. Here's some footage of us flinging 5,000lbs of car around the track.
Quite a different experience from the shark. Again, the video makes it sound like there was a popcorn maker connected to an accessory belt on the engine. Sadly, no popcorn was ever found.
Reno Fernley - 30 May 2009
The sharks, as we are now most commonly known, bit off more than they could chew in our third 24 Hours of LeMons race. A late departure from LA combined with a scenic tour of the central Californian mountains put us at the Reno Fernley track at about 1pm (6 hours later than planned). The paddock was already full and we ended up in a dark corner far away from LeMons HQ. We thought the turbo shark was ready for the remaining half day of practice but after we were black flagged for spewing oil all over the place, we collectively scratched our heads wondering what we missed. Several red herrings later, Mike made the discovery that the turbo was in fact boosting the crank case pushing oil out of every possible crevice on the 25 year old engine block.
Long story short, only Clay and Mike managed to get time on the track on Friday. The rest of us would have to discover its 3 dimensional wonders and blind corners while fending off the barbarian horde. Saturday started out perfectly. After two hours, we were 4 laps off the leader and I was suiting up to go out. Just as I was about to radio Clay and tell him his lap times were exceptional and that he could back off to a comfortable pace, he radioed in that he'd been hit. Then the red flags came out and the entire track came to a halt. Rumors that the shark was upside down with its guts spewed all over the track were pouring in thick and fast. Fortunately, it wasn't THAT bad but bad it still was. The bull bar re-inforced DILLIGAF CRX, having gone completely sideways in the back straight, broadsided the shark as Clay tried to aggressively power through the mess. The result was less than pretty. Retrospectively, Clay realized that it might have been better to back off when faced with a windshield full of sideways cars rather than try to squeeze through it.
As the shark was towed in, right front wheel dragging on the ground, our hopes of a good result were dashed and many thought we were out for the rest of the weekend. We surveyed the damage and quickly agreed the plan of action. Off to the pick and pull we went for a new front sub frame, right wheel strut and related acutrement. Just as the checkered flag waved on Saturday's racing, the shark was back on all fours and ready to fight again albeit with some rather enormous dents. Chief LeMons perpetrator, Jay and his tech crew inspected the car and begrudgingly agreed to let the aggro sharks race again on Sunday. However, Clay was given a red card and was ejected from the rest of the weekend's racing for his role in the "all at fault" red flag incident. Jay was less than amused by our all too fast car and all too reckless getaway driving. We got a stern talking to yet again. We took shelter in our trailers, licked our wounds and drank the night away.
Sunday, the shark ran 100% of the race and was black flag free. Mike, Antonia, Manhattan and I put down clean laps until the checkered flag dropped at 3.30pm. Our morale was further boosted by the many compliments from fellow teams who were genuinely surprised to see the shark swimming on the track after Saturday's eventful crash. The mood was mixed at the awards ceremony having placed in the bottom quarter of the 102 car pack but valuable lessons were learned and the team will be back in Buttonwillow and Thunderhill with a new attitude towards ENDURANCE racing.
