Author Topic: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event  (Read 494237 times)

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gkabbt

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #555 on: August 15, 2013, 07:33:18 PM »
JH.....Thanks for the update and glad to hear you're doing OK.
Sorry about the car but at least you can be thankful and proud of the cage you built.
Be sure to start a thread in the Build Diary when you start your new project!

Gregg

Offline Saltfever

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #556 on: August 15, 2013, 07:36:04 PM »
Welcome back, Johnny and wish you all the best. Always enjoyed your build threads in the past but definitely looking forward to another one with your new “experience” factored in.

Offline Frankie7799

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #557 on: August 15, 2013, 07:49:11 PM »
JH, glad to hear the update. Gald I got the chance to meet you and see the car on Friday. Sparky has an Opal GT at his place if you are interested. Not sure what he wants for it but I could find out.

Offline Tman

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #558 on: August 15, 2013, 08:02:04 PM »
(The Green Demon Sprint Car in Ray's photo above)

The Green Demon is Damion Gardner. T/O and he is trying to record 200mph which would become the world’s fastest sprint car. Licensing runs went fine but yesterday he spun near 200 . . . today same story. He says at the top end the front hooks a rut and then the rear hooks a different rut which starts the spin. I think it is the typical 410 SBC Sprint motor. One gear only with in-out box!  Will try again tomorrow morning.

Nice professional video.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omkB-79eW3o&sns=em



Uh, that's how they drive them things!

Offline Kansas Bad Man

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #559 on: August 15, 2013, 08:02:49 PM »
Morning all!
I just got home, had to come home to go to work but had a good time all things considered.

I had a close up view of both the Johnny Hotnuts and the Amo-Steele incidents. Both drivers are very lucky that the safety equipment the SCTA insists on did its job.
So glad to hear Johnny and Stainless are ok, I was really worried when I saw the situations unfold.

I personally embargo all crash related pictures except for the car owners and the technical staff from the SCTA, those crash images have already been passed on to the SCTA for their evaluation.

The following picture of the Amo-Steel streamliner was taken almost exactly 2 seconds before the car got sideways.

From my vantage point viewing the car directly from the side I saw no hint of a problem right up until the last moment, it seemed to be running "hot straight and true" as the old navy guys used to say about a torpedo.

It happened very fast and stainless got the chute out as quickly as any human could be expected to react when things went south.

If you guys want copies of the crash images let me know by PM and I will get you full resolution images for your analysis.

Larry


This is what Stainless told me.  He said that the run was straight and felt good prior to entering the five.  In a split second he saw a tire track groove going to his left.  He then felt the car following the groove to the left.  He had the car at full lock steering to the right.  The car didn't respond.  He hit the chute button.  He said that when he felt the chutes the car was already at a 45o to the track and too late for the chutes to prevent the crash.

                                    Max

Offline Dean Los Angeles

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #560 on: August 15, 2013, 08:08:08 PM »
Quote
the front hooks a rut and then the rear hooks a different rut which starts the spin.

I would assume that since it's a sprint car that he was going down the course sideways at full lock and the ruts straightened him out and spun him.  :cheers:
Well, it used to be Los Angeles . . . 50 miles north of Fresno now.
Just remember . . . It isn't life or death.
It's bigger than life or death! It's RACING.

Offline jl222

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #561 on: August 15, 2013, 08:34:20 PM »
 
 SCTA/BNI has all kinds of safety rules but runs cars down a loose rutted course.
 It would be good to let the driver and crew of a high speed car be escorted by an official to check out the course conditions before making a pass. Following right after a car making a pass wouldn't hold things up.

  BNI needs to come up with a fast way to improve the courses during the day.

  Don't no much about the drags or how many, do they need more of them?

  Also on the drags they have [made from railroad tracks I believe] have they ever been sharpened or replaced.

  Can better or more wheel packers be utilized.

   I asked about this in the past and been told everything has been tried but did notice a toothed blade had been welded on a drag last year.

     JL222

Offline Rcktscientist

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #562 on: August 15, 2013, 08:54:00 PM »
JH, Gonna miss seeing your car, definitely unique. Duct tape won't fix this one. Glad you're OK and have a positive attitude. I have a '79 280ZX I'm trying to decide what to do with..... :mrgreen:

Offline hotrod

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #563 on: August 15, 2013, 09:03:58 PM »
I think it is a bit more complicated that just a more aggressive drag to groom the salt.

Until the salt thickness improves, they will have to find a balance between grooming the salt to a flat uniform surface and scraping all the salt away down to the hard pan clay trying to improve the surface. Out at the return road this year for course #2 at 3.5 miles the salt is only 1/4 - 3/8 inches thick.

Not much you can do about the course if you have to worry about completely destroying the salt surface to get it smooth.

For the near term, car owners will have to accept as a fact of life in this sport that the track will never be really smooth but more like a dirt track surface and they will need suspension geometries that resist following irregularities in the surface and allow for other considerations like weight on the steering wheels at speed when aero loads may be making them very light on the surface and cause them have limited ability to counter steer against outside influences like wind gusts or track irregularities.

Offline javajoe79

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #564 on: August 15, 2013, 09:26:12 PM »
So they pumped alot of brine back onto the salt this year right? Is it possible that the "new" salt can seem really good but actually be less dense then salt that has been sitting there for thousands of years? Is there any sort of durometer for salt?
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Offline 1212FBGS

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #565 on: August 15, 2013, 09:58:45 PM »
well...... since we race on the "highest crown" of the evaporation basin, it is the first to dry out.... that's why we race there this early in the season..... that said, you should realize it is the highest point and it takes one crapload of salt to fill up the low spots before it will "ever" fill the area we race.... and since they don't pump it directly onto the area where we race, how long do you think its gonna take to put anything down? most of the area we race on out past the 3 has only had less than an inch of salt crust for many, many years..... Its funny how the pumps never break down when they pump the salt off the basin but fail when putting it back.... I think last year is the first year that the "pumps" didn't break down and stop the replenishing.... send your money to Save the salt !!!....
When I look at the SCTA-BNI run logs, it seems that lots of people made some pretty good passes, not as many records as previous years but I think every race vehicle that showed up had the same course to run on.......  Looks to me like cars that had questionable handling and steering this years surface compounded those problems.... if you had a good car you went good.... if your car sucked you got a spin pin..... I'm thinkin' the course was not 100% of the problem.....
Kent

Offline Freud

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #566 on: August 15, 2013, 10:06:49 PM »
Jonny, during the short silent interludes during the crash could you hear Segovia?

FREUD
Since '63

Offline trimmers

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #567 on: August 15, 2013, 10:30:45 PM »
It seems that - starting with Tuesday's results - SCTA/BNI edited out the "comments", such as "spin".  On the results for the first three days, I counted 34 spins/crashes, or about 11 per day.  Seems like a lot.

Some cars (e.g. Poteet & Main) seemed to have no course-related problems whatsoever, regardless of their speed.    While I certainly wouldn't go so far as to say the cars that spun or crashed "sucked", it would appear that some cars have been less affected by the marginal course conditions than others. 

I do think that the design elements (rear-mounted "tail-hanger" engine or relatively short wheelbase with narrowed front track) of the two cars that crashed hard may have contributed to making it extremely difficult for the drivers to recover once they got into a bad situation.

I didn't witness Jonny's crash, but I did look at what was left of the vehicle afterwards.  I was quite close to Stainless's crash, which I viewed through binoculars.   It was horrific to say the least.   From what I saw, I'm amazed and very relieved that no serious injuries were inflicted.  Hopefully, we'll all learn from what has been experienced at this meet.
------------- 1 of just 3 in all 3  -------------
USFRA 130 MPH Club 09/18/2008 136.757
USFRA 150 MPH Club 09/17/2009 152.162
Bonneville 200 MPH Club 09/15/2019 218.600
Best Run: 253.080 MPH 09/14/2019 #6556

Offline jimmy six

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #568 on: August 15, 2013, 10:43:12 PM »
I'm sorry to say what they call what Damion is driving a sprint car. We watch him a lot since Perris is his home track. I may be able to call the high sides OK for safety but will never be able to accept the nose. It does have a Shaver 410 and has the power but if it makes 200 (I did see a 196 out the back) but that ain't no sprinter ...JD. Leaving for home in the morning
First GMC 6 powered Fuel roadster over 200, with 2 red hats. Pit crew for Patrick Tone's Super Stock #49 Camaro

Offline manta22

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Re: SpeedWeek 2013 - the event
« Reply #569 on: August 15, 2013, 11:19:05 PM »
Jonny, during the short silent interludes during the crash could you hear Segovia?

FREUD

More likely the sound of a harp, Freud.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ
Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ