The Missus has fallen ill with a nasty cold, so nasty that she’s actually staying home from work today to sleep/recover. This meant that she was in bed around 8:00 or so last night, allowing me to work on New Blue (we need a better name for this car — Blue 2? It does have Electric Boogaloo as the paint job) without pangs of guilt. I also finished the last half of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy on DVD whle working on the car. Alec Guiness is masterful as George Smiley. More car details after the jump:
Read more…
MR2, Tear Down
Author: Pat
I’m going to start a new category of posts here with the inventive title “Advice from Other Teams.” I’ve noticed that many other LeMons teams have websites/blogs on the intertubes; many of them have some instructive things to say. I haven’t collected many of them so far, but this entry can be a starting point for their collection; please feel free to add more other team websites in the comments. More after the break:
Read more…
Advice from Other Teams
Author: Pat
Brad here.
According to LeMons, this is the goal of the essay portion of the application: “Use this space to tell us why your team will be so much cooler than all those other lame-o’s who want the same spot on the grid.”
Working off of our TARP theme and everybody’s driving stories, I’ve come up with the following. Have at it. If you see a typo or an inaccuracy, tell me. If you think an example or turn of phrase is lame, say so. If you don’t like the whole thing, I can start over. But please fire away today, so we can send this in pronto.
Thanks! (ed.: essay text after the jump)
Read more…
Logistics
Author: Brad
So I wondered if Google Maps had a good close-up of MSR Houston. Turns out they do. I decided to try to match the YT videos of people doing laps at past YEE-HAW Lemons with the map image. As I thought, the entire race track is not used for Lemons–they cut out the 2 longest straights. I’m sure MSR Houston required that, as they aren’t too keen to have their tarmac gouged by a handful of driveshafts busting out of their transmissions. And if not a wrecked tranny in that ‘88 Crown Vic, there would probably some stupid number of blown engines brought on by that extra 4000′ of straight track.
Also interesting is that Lemons races backwards/clockwise. Here is the MSR track layout. You’ll notice that the “standard” Turn 1 is our (last) Turn 11. But, on the MSRH Videos Page, click the “SCCA SM 1 of 3″ link and you’ll see some “real” racers in Miatas run the track, in the same direction that we will (although they run the front and back straights). I’ve found it helpful to write down the course (T1-hard right, S-curves, hairpin, etc.) on a piece of paper then follow along as you watch someone’s driving video. I figure if I do this enough before the race rolls around, I’ll not be seeing/learning the track the first time I’m behind the wheel.
Back to Google maps: I’ve made my own map (first time) of the track, and put my best guess at the racing line on there. Thoughts? Don’t know if others can edit/add to it or not; I added as “collaborators” those of you whose email addresses I know. Last thing–you’ll see that the Google image doesn’t show the larger turn-out of Turn 11 onto the Pit straight.
Driving Tips, Knowing Is Half of the Battle!, Team Strategy
Author: Matt
In racing, “adding lightness” is a time-honored tradition. Here at TARP Racing, we’re nothing if not traditionalists. And so it was that we gave our most recently acquired MR2 a reverse makeover. As chronicled briefly the other day, Dave and I worked the car over on Sunday. I worked it a little more last night, finishing the heater removal and removing most of the front firewall padding/insulation from the area where the heater used to reside. And although I haven’t weighed them up yet, I would bet that we have taken at least 7 pounds of screws, nuts, and bolts out of the car, all of which were holding in pieces that do not contribute to speed or safety. In other words, 7 pounds of fluff. Photos after the jump:
Read more…
MR2, Tear Down
Author: Pat
Congrats on the new MR2. I’m glad to hear at least one of our cars runs.
Now, for this race entry, I need to know an embarrassing driving story about all of the drivers. (You’ll see why when I circulate a draft.) I know my story. Dave’s will be that he doesn’t know how to drive a stick. Other drivers, what’s your story?
Please send me something today, and I’ll get cracking.
Thanks.
Logistics
Author: Brad
I’m going to keep this short tonight because I’m whipped right now. I started dismantling the MR2 on Saturday night to drop unnecessary weight. My basic rule is that if it does not make the car either go fast or be safe, then it’s unnecessary. Between what I pulled off the car last night and what Dave and I junked today, we easily took more than 100 pounds off the car. The seats are 60+ pounds together and I’d bet that the 5 pieces of glass (both side windows, both quarter windows, and the rear window) probably weigh another 30 or forty. We also stripped out the carpet, the firewall carpet/insulation, the center console, the door panels, window regulators, a ton of interior trim pieces, and a bunch of rubber seals. I’d bet that the door seals alone were 5-6 pounds of unnecessary rubber.
Dave did yoeman’s duty in fighting the heater core today. He broke out the sawzall to cut the dashboard in half, then he took on some vicious white plastic. There were a lot of hidden screws and bolts, but Dave was their master. He got most of the core pulled out. I haven’t weighed it up but it the heater core section is probably 7-8 pounds alone.
The end result is that the car is much closer to race condition than it was just yesterday afternoon. And it really, really looks like crap.
In other words, perfect.
MR2, Tear Down
Author: Pat
To her credit, the Missus heard me out. Either that or she was just polishing her halo and didn’t completely get what I was saying.
Regardless, the end result is that I bought the much ballyhooed third MR2 today. And, as you will see below, it is a beaut. It is easily the worst looking of the three MR2’s currently parked at Casa Mulry. It does have the advantage of a very sun faded pale blue paint job that is eerily similar to a blue roofing TARP. See that? Pun. Pun! What can’t we do here at Team TARP World HQ and Crepe Warehouse? Photos after the jump:
Read more…
MR2
Author: Pat
I was watching a repeat episode of Top Gear the other day and came upon some useful road racing driving tips. The challenge was to send Captain Slow to the road course and see if Sir Jackie could make him drive faster. I don’t remember what car he was in (a TVR?), other than it was a 2-seat convertible.
It worked. Stewart’s advice took about 20 seconds off May’s lap times. It was impressive. I’d like to hear more of Stewart’s advice, but here are the two things that I was able to write down from the three-time world driving champion:
- In regard to smoothness, the exit of the corner is more important than the entrance; and
- When exiting, do not put your foot on the accelerator pedal until you are sure you do not have to take it off again.
The episode featured a line graph of the telemetry from Stewart’s accelerator pedal application versus May’s. Whereas May’s line graph looked like a mountain range with foothills gradually building into peaks, Stewart’s was almost a square sine wave. When Stewart got on the gas, he got on the gas. Smooth enough to manage the weight transfer, but there was no hesitation.
Driving Tips
Author: Pat
Gentlemen, you may have seen a certain “stevo” posting a comment here or there. I think it’s time for a proper introduction before things get much further along.
Mark “Stevo” Stevenson is one of my best friends from my college days. He’s a tooth doctor in Indianapolis. When he heard about my TARP plans, he went ballistic. I suspect that his wife is very, very, very happy that I live a thousand miles away, preventing him from too much active engagement in this project. As I told Stevo years ago, if I lived in Indy now, we would probably both be broke and single, but covered in grease with workshops full of destroyed battlebots and wrecked cars.
That said, Stevo is all on board for TARP, albeit as a non-driving member. It would be a one-man clown car if he tried to fit his 6′9″ frame into an MR2. That said, he’s planning to come down for the race and help serve as pit crew/onlooker/spotter/groupie (although not a groupie in that kind of way, if you know what I mean).
So, without further ado, I give you Stevo. Mark, take a bow.
Tomfoolery
Author: Pat
Recent Comments