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Posted by: SirAndy May 31 2008, 07:36 PM

we've been running here at PIR in portland all weekend and today we had a rather unusual incident on the track.

after qualifying yesterday we got on grid 2nd for the race today. everything went great, we were leading the race, tom was consistently running low 124s and pulling away from the competition by a 1/4 second each lap.

this was a 20 minute race and we shared the track with another (faster) rungroup, mostly 911 Cup Cars.

in lap 8, tom came up on a cup car on the back straight and was about to pass him when he suddenly lost all power to the car. the electrical just shut off and the engine died. tom rolled off the track and onto the green and waited to be towed after the end of the race.

back in the paddock we looked over the car and noticed large rubber markings on the front hood and drivers side fender.

turns out, a big chunk of tire rubber came off the cup car and hit the wire loop for the kill-switch and shut off the car!!!

opened the front hood, flipped the switch back and the car came back to live!

i looked through the in car video and there's a frame where you can clearly see the rubber chunks flying through the air right before they hit the kill switch.

we were on our way to win this race and we got taken out by some piece of tire rubber.
what are the odds of that happening?
Andy

Posted by: RoadGlue May 31 2008, 07:48 PM

Holy crap, that sucks Andy! Talk about bad luck.

Posted by: r_towle May 31 2008, 07:50 PM

Sounds like a fluke, but it also it a learning experience.
I bet you have already redesigned the kill switch a few ways.....

Good luck for the rest of the weekend.

Rich

Posted by: SirAndy May 31 2008, 07:54 PM

you know me well ...


quick fix for the weekend is a strip of ductape.

we'll be adding a stiff spring to the wire at the switch meaning you'll have to pull fairly hard to flip the switch. so a rescue worker can pull it, but tire rubber won't ...
Andy

Posted by: r_towle May 31 2008, 07:57 PM

Where the hell is the switch???
Mine was up at the engine lid area...the little spare black piece of grillwork...nice and safe and hidden.

Others I have seen are on the cowl...

Sound like yours is down low and out front????

For the wiring...use SS brake tubing... (think trucks for diameter) and you can run a nice rigid pipe with fittings etc...nicely bullet proof.

Rich

Posted by: SirAndy May 31 2008, 08:02 PM

9eleben ...


the switch is under the front hood and has a wire attached the comes out from under the hood on the drivers side cowl. the wire end is a loop you can grab and pull on ...

you can see the loop in the pic below.
Andy

Posted by: r_towle May 31 2008, 08:06 PM

cant see it, but duct tape sounds like the right idea.

Move the damn switch before the next event...

Rich

Posted by: SirAndy May 31 2008, 08:16 PM

big red arrow added for the retina challanged members ...

the switch is *not* your typical outside cutoff switch with a removable lever. this car will never have a outside switch. the current setup is very common for newer racecars and perfectly legal and functional.

just never heard of a piece of rubber hitting the wire and activating the switch. that was a first one for me ...
Andy


Attached image(s)

Posted by: r_towle May 31 2008, 08:29 PM

I was looking on the front bumper....

How about a piece of lexan....kinda a half sphere to protect it, yet still give easy access...

Hmmm.
A stout plastic coffee cup (modified) from the local walmart...

Rich

Posted by: bryanc May 31 2008, 09:30 PM

Mine is similar.... wire hoop to a switch on the inside.... The hoop is just behind the driver side mirror, so less chance of it getting caught.

http://www.clingman.org/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=840

The P.O. did it, I've never had a problem. I have been hit in the helmet by a few chunks of rubber and it's definitely possible for that to happen.

as they say 'that's racing'

Posted by: r_towle Jun 1 2008, 03:14 PM

I saw a car today with a similar version, but better execution.
they has a small plastic pipe with a red handle (knob) on the end...all of this was aimed at the driver, so if anything was to hit it, it would not open...

Rich

Posted by: Lavanaut Jun 1 2008, 06:44 PM

Hey Andy is this Tom that sold his oh-so-sweet silver Six last year?

Posted by: championgt1 Jun 1 2008, 11:32 PM

Freak accident quick fix. We saw the car in action in the afternoon. Man this is one fast car, and very nice as well.

Going through the festival curve.



Another!



Andy, how did you guys do on Sunday?

Posted by: rhodyguy Jun 2 2008, 12:24 AM

for those that have never been to PIR, those tires in the lower right are turn #1. at the end of a 1/2 mile+ front straight. that orange car can haul the goods and loose speed in short order. those cup guys dice it up. the track has some great view points.

Posted by: SirAndy Jun 2 2008, 01:50 PM

yepp, that's him ...
Andy

Posted by: SirAndy Jun 2 2008, 01:52 PM

well, we had to start in the back of the pack due to our "rubber" incident the day earlier.

the track was wet, it was drizziling (sp?) all day, and we didn't have rain tires with us.
we managed to move up through the ranks nicely but about half way through the race we got black-flagged for sound.

so we called it a day ...
Andy

Posted by: ericread Jun 2 2008, 01:57 PM

Black-flagged for sound??? Where were you racing, through a new residential neighborhoor? Or maybe Palmdale???

You know better than to down-shift in a hospital zone!

Posted by: helios Jun 2 2008, 04:35 PM

It was something else watching Tom divebomb some of those GT3 Cups at the end of the front straight. I can only imagine what was going through their minds as they were being passed by a "stock" motored spec car under braking.

Thanks again Andy for letting me hang out in the pits w/ you and Tom for a while Saturday afternoon. Had a blast. Can't wait until the Historics later this summer. Hopefully we'll see you and Tom up our way again next year.

You weren't the only one w/ sound issues (though I'm surprised you did, your car really didn't sound that loud to me). I heard the orange GT1 Corvette was getting measured at 111dB down the front straight. Don't have any pity for him though. The guy drove like an ass for a while after he spun in the festivals at the start of the race.