12/02/09

Our Weekly Exploits

   More to come. Pictures too.

   Weather was better then it has been in a while.  Altitude below a thousand feet corrected most of the day.  Had a haphazard
day, but it was just a tune up for next weekend's Division Bracket Finals in Maple Grove.  First run, we tried something different
to see if we could hook the car up a little more.  Not so good.  Went back to square one between rounds.  Burned out and
staged when the battery shorted out.  Killed the car on the starting line.  Pushed it back and switched out batteries and had it
running in time to make up a time trial before first round.  Car hooked good in the left lane so we stayed there.  Ran an 8.11 so
we just brought it back to the lanes and put an 8.11 on it for round one.  Ran someone with throttle stops; was well in front of
him most of the way even through he was running a little faster at top end.  Tightened it up on the top end by getting off the
gas, but still ran too fast.  Sixty foot time was unreal.  Bought back to get another run.  Should have been no big deal to pick
an 8.08 on the car and run it again.  Not sure what went south or why.  The car lost time the whole way down the track.  Made
 the last three runs all inside the space of an hour - hard to believe it ran an 8.11, 8.08, and then an 8.14.  Not very consistent.      

  Good to win a round finally.  Hot day for racing, but looked a "teen" day on paper.  Lost traction on the first and last run.  Lost
power as well second round.  Found out that we will be going to Maple Grove after all.  So in the playoffs for the national
championship.

   After several bad weeks, nothing changed to make it better.  Got crossed up when staging for round one and did recover
before the lights went green.

   Hard to be positive when winning runs aren't coming our way.  Car is repeating with some consistency, yet nothing seems to
be going right on the track.  Having too many red light losses.  Should not be seeing more than 2-3 red lights per season.  One
more week of Summit Points for this year.

   Back to Sunday racing and very hot weather.  Altitude above 3000ft with lots of humidity.  Did not do well and lost in the first
 round to last week's winner in Super Pro.

   Its just a beautiful day in the neighborhood!  Made it two rounds this week.  Wish things had gone better, but that's how
things go.  Weather wasn't that much better then most summer evenings.  Time trials were made in hot conditions and it
cooled off fast with rising humidity.  I didn't change the delay timers from last week, stayed the same all night.  Figured
the first and second .017 reaction time were normal and others I was late.  Round one was a tight race out to 1000ft where
I made it past the door car and pulled off the throttle.  Computer said the car would have run a high 8.14 with a mid-162
speed and looking at all the incremental times, the computer was correct when comparing the qualifying run.  Second round
I ran my racing partner again.  His package shows why he was the track champion last year.  I had only one way to beat him
and I blew it on the starting line.  If I had been in the teens with my reaction time, he wouldn't have been able to put his
nose in front of me and hold it without breaking out.  He was running a low 7.84 on that run based on the amount of time he
had to lift. 

   Went to get some testing time at Cecil County on Sunday.  Poor weather - rained several times and then some sun, but so
humid you broke into a sweat drinking ice water.  Another poor showing just the same.  Rained out the second time shot,
so going to round one with only limited data.  Once again, 60ft times killed the prediction, this time going to the poor side. 
The reaction time were actually the same in both runs; didn't change the box because I thought I had a poor cut on the lights
during qualifying.  Guess not.  Long shot to be consistently poor to the thousandth of a second - likely reacted to the top light
correctly both times and the box should have been changed. 

   Rained out last week, so no time to think about opportunity lost and on to double points event.  This was a critical day if we
were to have a good chance of going to the division finals at the end of the year.  Its been a constant battle to deal with 60ft
traction which makes bracket racing a tough proposition.  Looking at the 60fts from Friday nights, it next to impossible to dial-in
for eliminations when they are not consistent.  Took into account the traction would be better, but not a full 24 numbers
between qualifying and round one.  Dialed down to 8.13, but that was no where near enough if I hadn't settled the race at the
starting line.  Have to take into account that the car is quicker to leave when horsepower is up.  Had good weather for summer;
can see the horsepower in the finish line speeds - all above where we have been running.  The next four weeks will tell if we
can get to the finals. 

   Won a few matches this weekend. Weather wasn't all that great.  Lots of humidity when the sun went down.  Very
uncomfortable to race.  What continues to be the most critical thing is finding a way to make it through the first round; when
you can do that, the car will continue to repeat.  First round was against the person we were to run when the car broke a couple
weeks ago.  Had a terrible reaction time - the only thing that saved us was running within 0.008 of the dial-in.  I didn't see him
until the last second; at the finish line, only ahead by 0.0094 of a second.  Round two was against my neighbor who I lost to last
week.  He was late at the light and that caused him to stay on the throttle all the way and he broke out.  I had lost traction in
sixty foot and it showed in time.  Round three was against another door car.  He usually runs well - I remember running him
several time before.  He dialed well below what his car would run and was on the brakes it seemed from my view.  Went on the
ladder for round four and was paired against my friend - last year's track champion.  He and I run one another usually once a year
or so, and I try to run above my normal performance.  I probably should have pulled some time out of the box, but I thought my
reaction last round was due to missing the light.  Not so; the car ran exactly the same in reaction time, 60ft, within a thousandth
at 1/8 mile and 1000ft.  Tucker had a 0.019 package and went on to win the race.  Final round against another friend, pulled off
a 0.006 package.  Tough to beat. 

   July heat and humidity cut the horsepower by a large number.  Most racers were down on their speed and ET.  Threatened rain
most of the evening so the air was thick with a headwind for most of the trial sessions.  Altitude was around 3000ft again.  Car
ran its slowest all year during the warm up, but its also wasn't hooking up and running side to side, as the 60ft times indicate.  It
was a guess as to when it would finally go straight.  Wind was dying out while we were waiting to run first round.  As luck would
have it, I was paired against my neighbor and friend for round one.  I knew generally what he would do since he runs slower.  I
just ensured I didn't get too close to going red and followed my normal routine.  He left plenty on the tree, the car went straight
when it left, and I caught up quickly.  I backed out of the throttle before passing him, and he hit the brakes when I passed.  I
probably should have been a bit more aggressive with my brakes, but I didn't think it would be that quick since we were running
slow.  I was wrong and lost again.  Try again next week.

   Another chance to excel passed with little movement in points.  Better effort with slower cars.  Weather was better than most
days in July.  Temps were in the high 70's before sundown and the humidity picked up after.  Another string of good reaction
times.  The red light during qualifying was due to rolling in too deep.  If I had been in eliminations, could have solved this before
launching.  The first round was against a slower door car (yes their is a faster door car who runs high 7's @ 180mph).  Most of the
time I can get a better reaction time than door cars, so I have some time in the bank at the top end.  Getting to the top end, I
was catching up quick with a 20mph advantage, so I pedaled it to cut it closer and then drifted.  Luckily, I passed and stayed in
front by one foot (says the computer) at the stripe.  Two race days in a row by this margin - different situations - overtaking and
being overtaken.  The computer said we would have run an 8.073@164.88 had I stayed with it all the way, so there probably
wasn't a chance of breaking out.  Next round, the weather was still changing, but probably bottoming out for the night at low
8.06, at least that what it looked like.  Had issues at the starting line.  They shut us down after the burnout and back us off to
clear the top end.  When we re-fired a minute of so later, didn't feel like we needed to re-heat the tires, so just pulled back up
to the line.  In the abbreviated approach, either the shifter stuck in high gear or the transbrake didn't get power.  The transbrake
worked later when putting the car in the trailer, so the shifter is the likely reason.  If the transmission isn't in low gear, the brake
doesn't work and you squirt through the staging lights before the tree activates and lose because you didn't remain staged.  As it
turned out, my opponent would have broke out trying to catch me - his car ran faster and he stated so later.  Missed another
opportunity to gain position. 

      Long holiday weekend of racing.  Started Friday at US13 and traveled to Hagerstown for the Firecracker Classic.  Had great
reaction times all weekend.  Friday night was disappointing and started a trend for the weekend.  Had a great light on one of
our leading points people who drives an S-10 pickup.  Had him reeled in by speed cones and dumped, but not enough.  He was
on the brakes already.  We both would have broke out, but he was quicker. 

   Saturday at Mason Dixon, great lights once again.  The red light is typical of what one quarter inch difference makes in the
staging lights.  One quarter inch too far in yields a 0.010 to 0.015 second leaving too early.  Saturday ended when I got too
intent on hitting the tree twice and didn't rev the engine high enough before the green activated.  Because the engine was not
up to speed, the car left late and didn't run the number.  Sunday I had a lot of company at the track.  The first time trial, there
was something amiss in the timing system at the track.  I hit tree just as quick as any other time and the car launched normally,
but the slip said something different.  The second trial run, I was late releasing and knew it/felt it.  Round one, I didn't change
a thing in the box or car and had the best run of the weekend.  This was one of the tightest run of the day for the track.  He
did get past me but after the stripe, but he was on the brakes based on his speed being off a bit for running as quick as he did.
Won by a foot with 0.005 to spare.  Round two was the same result as Friday night.  Door car, slower, two hits, and the car
hooked up like crazy.  Had to be traction, because the weather was worse.  Tough to judge the finish line with 22mph
difference.

   Racing in the heat this week.  Altitudes above 3000ft DA when we started and lots of humidity.  Switched out a set of lifters
of the week and needed several runs for them to settle in and allow for setting valve lash properly.  Also made it tough to
predict what the car would do on the track for timing, which is the whole point in bracket racing.  The initial runs were so-so
and adjusting the lash between runs made things tight for time.  As always, we also had to deal with a cooling track.  At US13,
when the track cools, the car hooks up a little better (and makes more horsepower).  Both runs in eliminations were shut-off
runs which is what the speed shows.  In round one, the car bounced when going on the trans-brake so there was a real chance
that you could go foul (red) because the car may not be in the staging lights properly.  So I added to the delay while the lights
were dropping.  In all the effort and two hands coming off the steering wheel, foot work, and two hits at the tree, I missed
getting a good light.  An 0.043 second reaction is usually not good enough to win; however, the car picked up traction and
speed above what we predicted and I passed the other driver before the finish line.  Got off the gas and pedaled it a little
just enough to stay ahead of him.  If he had been closer to his dial, I wouldn't have had a chance.  The software said it would
have run an 8.27 so that's the reference we used for the next round.  As it turned out, it might not have been correct. 
Weather improved some more and traction picked up.  When the car launched straight for round two, I figured I had several
hundredths better in ET than predicted.  Since he was chasing, I kept looking for him to catch me, but I waited too long to
get out of it.  I never did see him, because was getting out of the gas as well.  Guess he knew he wasn't going to get to me,
so he dropped out.  His speed was probably off by 10mph.  I should have used the brakes.

   Back in the money again.  Best finish all year!  Wasn't a great showing, but it was good while it lasted.  Really missed not
having my good friend still in the running at the end (he lost first round), but my neighbor and also good friend went to the
semi-finals.  Was hoping to meet him in the finals, but ran into a little bad luck.  The track at Delmar really only has one good
lane for consistency and depending on how you end up for lane choice, you sometimes end up in the other lane, which is what
happened in the quarter finals.  Shame that both lanes aren't the same.  Would have been a very close race - within a ten
thousandth of second.  Well, the day started odd - I met the the person I would eventually race and lose to at 7:30 in the
morning pumping gas at a local service station.  Good racer and someone who understands the issues at Delmar.  At the track,
we were chasing issues with valve lash again.  The sixty foot and top speed indicate how the lack of horsepower in the initial
runs (sixty foot also influenced by traction issues) most of which were loose valve lash.  We fixed some of them by first round
where we ran a street car w/NOS set up to run Super ET.  He had something going wrong about mid-track and when I blew by
I had the hardest round won.  Out of it at 1000ft and coasting - 140mph shows how far out of it I was.  Round two was repeat
of a previous race several weeks past.  Turned the score around this time.  When it was apparent I wasn't gong to catch him,
I back out, coasting to a double breakout win.  The 160mph speed was well below the 163mph I could have run.  Round three
was a classic and shows what two outstanding competitors can do.  I have faced this Mike before.  I think we're about even in
wins/losses.  He knows how to dial his car.  It was all won on the starting line; we trade off on who loses like this.  He was
dead on and lost; we were +.004, but had a better reaction time.  The next pair, I did not have lane choice, so I had to go into
the left lane and were running another Mike.  We contemplated dropping our dial-in to compensate for the poor quality of the
first 60ft in the left lane, but held to what we thought might work.  As it turned out, we were on over the track in the first
several seconds of the run, lost all kinds of traction on the shift to second gear, and didn't run the number.  If we had been in
evenly match lanes, it would have been extremely close.  Both reaction times were even and based on the computer
predictions, we would have run a 8.15 with a 2 or 3.  Given we were running what the computer suggested most the night, it
would have been extremely tight.   

   Still not 100% with the rear suspension setup.  Works better when the track is cooler, but when we pull hard and bring the front
end off the ground, its a guess as to what will happen.  Also discovered an other factor that causes a loss of horsepower - which
creates variability and changes how hard the tires hook, pulling the front end up.  Its a complicated balance of horsepower,
weight, and timing.  Changing the delay times in reaction to horsepower changes is another factor.  Didn't go red, but it causes
doubt.  In any case, the car likes to run about 8.17 it seems.  We dialed down to 8.20 for first round after the first two trips down
the track were really questionable.  Our first round opponent changed about two sets before crossing the line when someone
broke in the lanes.  Luck was not on our side as the person we ran was someone we always run - usually splitting wins.  As it turned
out, a slower than normal reaction time, coupled with a very good run prediction on his part meant I only had a 0.005 second
opportunity to squat into at the top end.  If I had better reaction time, and had put the 8.17 I wanted to put as my dial-in, it
would have been a very close race.  Try again next week.

   Not doing to well at figuring out the suspension on the altered.  Its suppose to have the most effective and tunable system to
get you down the track correctly.  So far, its not proving to be very good for us.  Normally, changes in engine horsepower
should only affect the suspension setup in minor ways.  For the altered, its driving it toward the wall which isn't normal.  Still
trying to fix what its doing with changes in weight distribution.  Adjusted valves between last qualifying session and first round. 
Knew it would pick up horsepower and took this into account for dialing in.  Didn't take into account the large change in
reaction time.  More horsepower and the car launches quicker - and in this case, drove to the right, scared the cameraman on
the right guardrail, and I had to get out of the throttle.  Way out.  Fishtailed all over the track and finally got it straight. 
Bought back in to see if we could fix it and straighten it out.  Added some weight to the right but didn't solve the right turn
the car makes on launch.  Also didn't get a clue to add to the delay box time.  If I had, I would have won.  Car didn't run
straight, but was straight enough to be closer to the dial than my opponent.   

   Tough luck continues at US13 on Sunday.  First run was slower than expected by a few hundredths based on the weather. 
Should have been around 8.13 all day, and the 60' times looked wrong.  First run was straight as an arrow, but slow.  Run
two, the car headed straight toward the guardrail on launch so I had to lift.  Round one, we thought run two was due to lining
up outside the groove, so no changes to the car.  Wasn't the case.  Car again went straight for the guardrail and because it was
a round of competition, stayed with it a bit longer before pedaling just a bit.  Still not even close enough to win.  Was hoping to
push my opponent to break out, which he almost did. Good driver, checked his mirrors.

   Two Division 1 races and not even a run down the track in competition. Drive a long way just to break.  This time, shut us
down after the burnout for water leaks.  OK, probably the safe thing to do but they could have noted it on the morning
qualifying session in time for it to be fixed.  Disheartening considering my opponent didn't run the number and could have
been beat.

   Well the weather was crappy all over this weekend, but we managed to get several runs in over at Capital Raceway on
Saturday.  They had an exceptionally low turnout - lots of other things going on and the bad weather.  Ended up running a
Gamblers Race for $700 to win/$300 to runner up.  Not that it mattered, but we planned to run at US 13 on Sunday, so when I
managed to go red (-0.004) it was time to head for home.  Could have bought back in, but also could have broke more parts. 
Not worth it for $700-800 dollars and no points.

    Not a good weekend in Virginia.  Ending up breaking one of the two brake calipers on a second qualifying run on Friday.  Lucky
it broke on the burnout as it would have had a much different ending had it happened at the end of a 158mph run.  Would have
ended up in the sand trap at the very least and maybe worst.  Will try to qualify yet again at Maple Grove on the 22nd.