I have to fight back the crocidile tears today as my wife made it clear that I had to unpack everything from the trip and I had to give up hope of returning to the desert in the next weekend(s) and I would have to wait until the next race is announced.

I have some pictures and some in-car video I can try to post soon.

Clutch cable, huh, I would not have guessed

smartass 

Quote from: wildgoody on July 18, 2011, 10:37:23 PM

Clutch cable, huh, I would not have guessed

smartass 

This is way after the fact, but what I meant is I would not of guessed that
a clutch cable would be so much of a problem that it would take 2 of what
4-5 vehicles out of the race, I would of thought other factors like shocks
tires suspension and stuff would of been the DNF issues, not a cable

If my brother and I get to do a racer, I think we might go with an auto trans 

I think we have worked out a lot of the other weaknesses and its coming down to the little stuff. We are also pretty hard on these cars and I have noticed some stuff that I would never think about has been failing. A example is my steering box came loose. I had never touched it, still had factory loctite. I am making a list of things to check before and after each race.

Have you looked into a 4 link yet or are you going to just build up a new 3rd member link?

If my brother and I get to do a racer, I think we might go with an auto trans 

I would like to see the two of you there.

Quick question, how long did it take the other teams to hit Pit 1?

I dont remember exactly.  I beat my pit crew.  Maybe 45 minutes to an hour.

Ok.  It took me just over an hour of actual driving time without pushing it as I was already 2.5 hours back.  I was wondering how my pace compared to everyone else.

So what do you guys do? do you loose time? can you service your own vehicle?
or do you just hang out for the support crew?

If your at the pit you work with your crew.  Or if your far enough in you sleep in the desert overnight waiting for the course to open so someone can come pick you up. 

We were lucky at the beginning we broke down on a section that was not part of the loop.  There was a 40 mile opener, the loop, then an exit track. So they let BRD HNTR run up the course to get the broken parts so we could get back into the race.  But safety is first.

As far as "serviceing" your own vehicle... If you have a codriver (not essential, but helpful) , and you select enough (or the right) parts as spares (and tools) to stash on the race rig a repair can be made almost anywhere. Of course no one knows just exactly what parts to carry. So you guess and go.  

I'd recomend getting the McGyver box set and watching every show before the race. From what I gather the way the planets , moons and stars are aligned when something breaks you must scan the area and there will be something you can use to fix whtever broke. I'll never forget the episode where a critical set of car keys were dropped down a storm drain. To retrieve them, McGyver found a pipe and beat it on a lamp post to magnitise it. Whalla instant key retrieval.   

Ya, I'm a McGyver man, in fact I catch him in the shows doing stuff that will not work,
like the keys one, keys are made of chrome plated brass, both of which are non magnetic.
Unless the keys are very few, the steel ring might work but it would be better to hook them
instead

Wild

I had to ratchet strap my rear end in place(calmini rear upper link broke) and idle 25 miles to the next pit. Took me over 5 hours. Otherwise my car might still be out there. My truck and trailer would have never made it to where I broke. I also had no idea if anybody knew I was broke. the other racers told the officials, but no one ever got back to me. I couldn't just sit there, so I rigged my car to get it back.

Another racer sat in the desert for 6 hours before being picked up. This is just the way racing works. We were told to take plenty of water and food, and I had, but I hate relying on other people to rescue me.

 Funny story, I had battled my way the last 25miles to get to the pit. I had just passed the sign saying I was entering the pits when my right rear tire blew. It felt like the car just gave up. The tire had been rubbing on the spring perch and cut a groove in the sidewall. A bunch of people,including Drone's mom and sister?, to help but my car was done. Drone's crew sat with me and made sure someone was coming before they took off. I really appreciated their concern and helpfulness.