There was a guy that had the really nice blue car at the AX that the canopy blew over on and broke his side marker lens. I talked to him at the swap meet and he found a new lens for the left but wanted a new right one to match it. I just by chance nappen to have a brand new right side here that I am not going to be using since I did the Chalon conversion on mine. I cant remember if he needed the right or left side. Anyway, if he is lurking, contact me.

Pics too.

nuther of the back, with tag

He lost the driver's side one.

--Royce

Well...I'm the guy who's canopies hit both Jeff Keyzer's and Chris Beeson's cars in the Candlestick parking lot. Chris is the one looking for the drivers side marker and found the new one at Parts Heaven. I'll give Chris a call tonight and see if it's okay to pass along his number to you. I'm sure he'll be interested in the passenger side light as well.

I haven't heard back from Chris yet on what it will cost to repaint his car, but I know Jeff has his going in this week for a repaint. Unfortunately for me, the WCC doesn't quite have the fond memories that it holds for most of the people. I feel especially bad for Jeff and Chris having to deal with the winds blowing my canopies into their teeners....ruined my WCC experience not to mention having to think about repainting TWO cars at what was supposed to be a fun event.

That's why next year I ain't going to the WCC......

I'll get back to you with a PM after contacting Chris.

Thanks for helping with sourcing the parts.

Bill P.

Well, it is unfortunate that it happened. Who would have known the wind would blow so hard. I myself, would have just filed a claim with my insurance company and got it fixed. Natural disaster type stuff or something. I am just guessing, they may not have covered it anyway. It was still a fun weekend, I dont think I would not go to another one because of it. Shit happens and there really isnt anything you can do about it but learn and try to avoid things like that in the future. I am sure, you did not go out there and say I think I will set up these canopies and maybe they will get caught in the wind and blow over and take out a couple of teeners. Yeah, that will be fun. I have had worse things happen driving down the freeway. At least nobody was injured, that is the important part.

Speaking of canopies and wind. The last time I was out at Laguna Seca I saw a million dollar Ferrari used as a tie down for a canopy. Man that was a funy site... They had tie strings tied to the rims of the car... Seemed to work perfect in the wind they get out there.

Being the engineering type I am, I did an Failure Analysis on the canopy. The tie down "D" rings cracked and the actual "D" ring loops pulled out of the fabric stitching on the canopy.

It would appear that I could have mitigated some of the damage to the cars by anchoring both the aluminum frame and the canopy fabric instead of just relying on the fabric tie downs. I'll definitely do that next time, although for Auto-x's I may not put them up anymore. At track events in the summer, they really do help.

I've never had one do that before.

Bill P.

It's truly unfortunate what happened out there. The wind didn't seem to be any stronger before or after the incident. In a blink of an eye, the canopy was up in the air. There was no time to stop it from hitting the those cars. Luckily it was contained before it jumped to the next row of cars. Not that this helps the current situation but some comfort maybe found knowing that more damage was avoided.
Thanks to Allison Baker who was the one that yelled "ahh bloody hell!!"

I would think comprehensive insurance would cover the damage minus the deductible, assuming the owners are covered. They were not damaged while competing but while sitting and watching.
My car was close by. Do I have Alison to thank for saving my car?

Being the insurance type, Bill, if you have a homeowner's policy the damage caused is covered by your Liability coverage. There is no deductible, and it won't affect your rate.

It is also covered by the car owner's comprehensive coverage, but that is usually subject to a deductible, and you feel responsible anyway.

Call your agent, and come to the next event.

Will it cover the bugs that imbedded themselves in my new paint job on the way up and the chip on the hood from the gravel the guy in front of me kicked up?

I don't think Chris is on the BBS. His car had one of the wheels that were holding the tent down (!!) run into it. My car took most of the damage, and is going in for body work/paint on Monday. The driver's side door, fender, and hood took most of the damage.

It was an unfortunate event, however Bill P. has been *extremely* accomodating in getting my car fixed. Bill, I am sorry to hear that the tent incident ruined your weekend. I hope that you will reconsider coming to the WCC next year. And thanks Bill for being so considerate and helpful, we will get all of this straightened out.

I also want to thank the 5-6 people who spontaneously rushed over to the car before I had even made it over there, and helped me pry the tent off the car without further damaging it. In the heat of the moment I did not get to thank anyone and in fact I do not really remember who was there. I do know that it took all of us to keep the tent on the ground until I was able to remove the canvas from the frame. Thanks guys/gals!

watched the whole thing happen in terrified awe! i was just glad we were all there to stop the carnage! CCL was another guy on the scene.

jbb

Bill, you and Doris are two big reasons Cheryl and I are still involved in 914 AXing. We've followed the progess of your car and your driving. You are the 914 force on the scene right now. You're also great people.

Its unfortunate and hard what happened, but you'll get over it and someday you'll look back on it and it won't mean a thing.

After grad school, I want you to help me build a car like yours.

Its really simple Bill and Doris...leave the canopies at home and come to the WCC...

You were the heroes in 2004...bet you would be good for a repeat performance...