I've thought about filling a tire with silicone. Or maybe expanding foam.
Maybe injecting the inner tube with silicone. That would make changing the tire easier.
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I've thought about filling a tire with silicone. Or maybe expanding foam.
Maybe injecting the inner tube with silicone. That would make changing the tire easier.
Very cool to give back to the schools, both from a career teaching and as a fellow electrothon racer/designer!
Very good on you! It might delay the 32 frame, but at least you are getting some good out of it too.
I've been very remiss in my reporting... I missed the season opener (September 24) at Hillsborough Community College because I was in Indiana for my class reunion.:rolleyes:
Then I missed the race at Tampa Bay Tech (October 22) because I was at the Daytona Dream Cruise.:(
Finally, I made it to the race at Middleton High School (November 5) and my car won my class (Open, Standard Battery). I say my car won because I wasn't driving it! The week before the race, on Sunday morning, I text-messaged an old friend from Indiana and asked him if he'd like to fly down and drive for me. Sunday evening he called and said they (he and his wife) would be here!! So.., Jerry Bristow drove my car in both races and won both races. The only problem all day was a flat rear tire. Just as they were calling us to line up for the second race, we discovered the rear tire was flat.:eek: We did a record fast change (the rear tire is difficult to do quickly) and Jerry joined the race just as the rest of the cars were completing their first lap. He soon made up the lost lap and went on to win our class. I got to watch for a change and really enjoyed it; Jerry got a first place trophy and I bought pizza dinner for us and our wives.:3dSMILE:
That's so cool, to come from a lap down and then win the race!!
Thanks for the update tho'.. LOL..
I ventured into the world of Electrathon again Saturday (Dec. 10). This was a new venue this year, our first race at Lennard High School in Ruskin, Florida. The course had one rough turn, but otherwise was a fast and fun track. It was .4 mile long which is about twice the length we normally race on.:D
If I may digress for a moment.., At the last race we discovered what I thought was a small problem. The car's throttle acted a little erratic in the first race and then the throttle wouldn't shut completely off in the second race.:HMMM: I assumed it was a faulty potentiometer and I changed it when I was servicing the car after that race. Something told me I should test it one last time before I loaded up Friday, so I dropped in the batteries and discovered the throttle still wouldn't shut off completely.:eek: I even disconnected the potentiometer completely and it still wouldn't shut off! That means the motor controller is malfunctioning internally... I had another controller, so I changed it and everything seemed OK.
In the first race Saturday the car would shut off occasionally when I would hit the bumps in that one rough turn. I would reset the "dead man" switch, throttle up again and all was OK. It did it maybe 8 or 10 times. I won the first race by about 2 seconds over the second place car.:3dSMILE: I checked all the connections between races and found nothing wrong or loose. I thought maybe the "dead man" switch was faulty and was losing its connection on the bumps. Oh well, I can't fix it at the track - deal with it and drive!
Everything started off OK in the second race, but after a few laps the problem returned with a vengeance. It was shutting off 2 and sometimes 3 times per lap! Finally, 26 minutes into the race it quit completely. I was done for the day.:( I tested the "dead man" switch when I was servicing the car Monday; there is nothing wrong with it. The problem is the controller... again! Two races, two controllers. Well, they were both old, but this could get expensive...
At least I turned enough laps to get the 2nd place trophy. Apparently the other teams' luck was worse than mine...:p
Nice up date. Sometimes Murphy's law throws multiple twists to keep us wondering what the hay? Glad you figured it out.
I guess that old saying is true..
Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good! 8-) Thanks for the update and the win.
Extenuating circumstances kept me from making it to the January and February races, so nothing to report there.:rolleyes: In March we had our "Speed Races" at Middleton High School in Tampa. I did a write-up on it, but when I posted it, it went into the great unknown and never showed up here!:mad: I was too disgusted to rewrite it then and since forgot about it. So.., we call that event Speed Races because we set aside the usual one-hour enduro style racing and shorten the races to 20 minutes. It is run on a quarter-mile track around the football field. The short duration race time allows us to dial the throttles up and let 'em fly.:3dSMILE:
Since my original controller had malfunctioned back in December I needed a different one. I tried a borrowed one and it didn't work either.:HMMM: By the time I discovered the problem, I didn't have time to buy a new controller. The only option I had was to put in the one that was acting erratically at the Middleton race back in October. In the first race I took off, eased up to full throttle, and was doing fine for about 3 laps. Then the car started slowing down!:eek: I got lapped once by my closest competitor (in my class) and after he gained about another half lap on me, my car started speeding up again. That's how we finished - me in 2nd place 1 1/2 laps behind first place.:confused:
I loaned my car to pit steward and flagman, Mike Frederick, for the "Sponsor's Race". He ran it wide open for 15 minutes with no problems and finished 2nd behind one of the Lithium battery cars.:)
In my second race of the day I was running good, leading my class... for the first six minutes... until my rear tire went flat!!:mad: It takes more than the 14 remaining minutes to change the rear tire, so I was done for the day. As it turned out, my good friend, Rodney Schreck got first, I totaled enough laps in the two races to get second:3dSMILE:. The only other competitor in our class had worse luck than me; he ended up third. There were only three in our class at this race.
I didn't race in April. I skipped the race at the Hillsborough fairgrounds because last year the track was so rough it caused problems with some of the cars.:HMMM: There were some big races held at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola and Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama, but they're too far away for me to want to go.:rolleyes: I took the time off to buy a brand new controller and check all the systems in my car.:cool:
The last race of the season was at the Florida Solar Energy Center in Cocoa, Florida. It's just 20 minutes from my home, so I was looking forward to it (most of our races are in the Tampa area 2 hours away). The course was challenging and highly technical. Unfortunately, between the time the organizers laid out the course and the race actually took place some weeks later, some big construction trucks had been using part of the course to get to and from their work site. The course was so rough it broke the end off my main power fuse (a big 200 amp bar fuse) about half way through the first race.:eek: I replaced it, got back in the race, and finished second in my class.**)
For the second race we went the opposite direction. That's pretty much normal operating procedure. The bad news is, it made the track even rougher!:( I was already beat from the pounding of the first race (remember, at 69 I'm one of the oldest regular competitors in Electrathon) and the continued bumping and jostling became downright painful. At 18 minutes into the hour I drove my car into the pits and quit. I do this for fun and I wasn't having any!:mad:
Even with all my missed races and DNF's I managed to end up 3rd in points for the season.:D:D This coming season, which starts in late September, I will hopefully have fewer DNF's and fewer schedule conflicts. Only time will tell.**)
Congrats on the season Mr. Jim!
Sorry for the difficulties but, that's racing right?!?!
Despite the malfunctions and breakages you did pretty damn' fine.
Congratulations!
Ditto Congrats Jim, how is the new controller working so far?
Thanks, guys. Yes, that's racing.:rolleyes: I managed third in points mainly because a couple of other teams had a worse season than I did! I expect competition will get tougher this coming season as they figure out their problems and become more competitive. I have a sign in my shop that says "Race it, break it, fix it, REPEAT". I think that applies here.:LOL:
I'm getting old and have a shelf full of trophies and ribbons; I should probably give up competing and retire... again. The thing that keeps me going back is pure ego. I have developed a chassis design that is competitive and reliable. Since 2003 I have built 14 cars and sold 13 of them. Any one of those other 13 can show up and win their class any time. The car that has finished first in points in my class for the past 3 years is one I built.:3dSMILE: It's fun to see cars that I designed and built running up front most of the time and it's fun to be in the top 3 in almost every race I finish. I guess I feel like Frank Kurtis or AJ Watson must have felt when they saw their race cars racing and winning. Anyway, it's still fun most of the time, so I'll keep on for a while.:)
Steve - The controller is a brand new Alltrax. I've had a couple of Alltrax controllers in the past and they were super reliable. Unfortunately, when I sold out all my stuff in January of 2016 with intentions of retiring, they went with the cars.:HMMM: I finished the rest of that season and began the last one with some old controllers out of golf carts. They were doing fine for a while and then suddenly went haywire. I finally "bit the bullet" and blew $350 on a new Alltrax. It's one of their new design controllers with molded polymer case and cooling fins. It should be good to go for several years. The new season starts September 23rd.:cool:
Keep at it Jim!
Well, I missed the season-opening race on Saturday, September 23rd. I had planned to be there. My car is ready, but...:HMMM:
My son and I were up on the roof of my back porch Friday, replacing the roofing that had been removed by hurricane Irma. About the time we were situating the last piece of roll-roofing my back decided I had bent over one too many times. I had the old tell-tale shooting pain across my lower right side and it was suddenly very painful to move and straighten up.:( This has happened to me before, so I knew what it meant - I was done and I wasn't going anywhere for a few days!:rolleyes:
My son finished the last piece of roofing without assistance from me and I struggled to get down the ladder. Since then I have done very little but sit in front of the TV in my recliner. Not sure how long this will keep me down; time will tell.:o
Those twinges are important. They will allow only so much insolence.
Mean while enjoy the boob tube for a couple days.
Take it easy Jim.
We've been there and know that pain.
Jim, sorry to hear about your back. Take it easy and don't hurt it worse.
Jim,
I'm no doctor, and I'm not giving you any advice but I will tell you that after many, many years suffering with that type of back pain I bought an inversion table, and it changed my life for the better. My last visit to the chiropractor was something like 25 years ago.
I hope your muscle spasms ease, and your back starts feeling better.
x2 on the table. my doc made the suggestion 25 years ago . without it i would likely gone under the knife. it takes a few weeks to really see results but it will give some relief right away. best 200 bucks i ever spent.
Thanks, guys. I actually have an inversion table and I'll be using it again soon. Right now it's in the garage, folded up against the wall. As soon as I'm able to wrestle it in the house without re-injuring my back I'll be on it. I'm doing much better today (Wednesday) and should be functioning pretty normally by tomorrow or Friday... I hope.
My brother has had chronic back pain, until about three years ago he started taking I believe it is called Yin Yoga classes for peolple like us who are older, It's mostly a series of stretching exercises and non of the crazy stuff you see on tv. I recently felt like I was losing my flexibility and started taking a local class by a lady who works with us older crowd. I have to say it has helped alot, even more so she is very carefull to make sure we aren't injuring anything in the process. I probably think most people here would think "Yoga, are you nuts", but like all things there are apparently a million different styles, the one I take is also for back pain and mobility. Just a thought(I do 1 hour, once a week)
5 min a night on the table works wonders. right before bed so your spine stays relaxed during the night. at my size i tend to settle so only stretching my spine will help. my bone cracker even said it was the best for me. but i dont spend the 120 bucks to lay on his rack :)
Well, I've really been slack at reporting this season.:( I missed the September opener because of my back (see above). Then I missed the October race because of a prior obligation. In November we ran at Middleton High School - it's a tight road course in the school parking lot. I generally do well at this race and my luck held again this year, but it was a rather funny circumstance. I won my class in the first race of the day. In the second race, with 14 minutes to go, my seat bottom broke loose and my backside was suddenly dragging the ground!:eek: With only .040 inch aluminum between my arse and the asphalt, I knew I couldn't make another 14 minutes. In fact, I figured in another 3 or 4 laps/minutes the aluminum would wear through and my backside would meet the pavement in a somewhat painful state. So.., I had to quit. The good news, for me, was that everyone else had lousy luck, too, and I turned just enough laps to win my class!:)
The December at Lennard High School race was rained out. In January I was sick with a sinus infection and couldn't go to the race at Wharton High School. No big loss there; I don't like that track.:p
February's race was at University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa. This is one of our most challenging race courses and most popular races. Eighteen cars lined up for the first race including two cars from Alabama and cars from both coasts of Florida. I get to brag here - six of those eighteen cars were built by me!:3dSMILE: I finished 2nd in the first race. Jerry Bristow drove my car in the second race, but had trouble with the "dead man" switch. He came into the pits with 22 minutes remaining. I grabbed my helmet and gloves and jumped back in the car and went back into the fray. I managed to finish 2nd again and we got 2nd place for the day.:rolleyes:
I skipped the March race at St. Petersburg College - it's just farther away than I wanted to go...:HMMM:
April 14 was our annual "Speed Event" where the races are run on a quarter-mile track and the time is shortened to 20 minutes instead of the usual hour-long Enduro races. The short time allows us to gear the cars up and run wide open.:D:D
Back in December I started building a new car. The physical beating I took at the Cocoa race last year prompted me to build a car with springs! Also, I had a pair of 16 inch wheels in the shop that I wanted to use somewhere, so I designed a new car with independent suspension on all 3 wheels and the fronts are inside the body. The rear is similar to what you would find on a motorcycle - a swing arm with one small coilover shock. This also necessitated making a spring-loaded chain tensioner. Up front I built a split tube axle and used a coilover shock on each side. The coilovers are made for mountain bikes and quite small.
I'm happy to report that the debut was successful. I won my class in both races of the day.:3dSMILE: The car handles really well and is really smooth. My only complaint - it sucks all the dirt up off the road and deposits it in my lap! Before the Cocoa race I'm going to put a full belly pan on the car and maybe some inner fender wells. Cocoa is the race that beat me up and inspired this car, so the suspension will get tested extensively.:HMMM: I'll let you all know how it goes.:)
Incidentally, cars that I built won the Advanced Battery class, finished 1 - 2 in my class, and took the first 3 positions in the high school division.:3dSMILE::cool:
WOW, that's great success! Congrats.
And the new car looks great too. Love the flames.. 8-)
Great deeds Jim. Glad to hear that you are still at it. Send me a PM if you would please. Perley
we need some more photos please of the new car design
That's awesome! The new car looks great and I'm glad to hear it's doing so well right off!
I'll get some more pics and post them soon.:) Meantime, I ran the last race of the season on Saturday (May 12) at the Solar Energy Center in Cocoa, Florida. As I said in my last report, I have installed a full belly pan and some inner fenders. I must report that... it didn't help!:HMMM: I still got a lap and face full of dirt!
The good news is the car performed very well.:D As I said above, I built the suspension in this car because of the beating I took at this race last year. I quit that race early because I was so beat up that I was physically in pain. I do this for fun and I wasn't having any! This year it was a completely different story. After two 1-hour stints in this car I was normally tired, but not in any pain anywhere. I thoroughly enjoyed driving the two races.:3dSMILE::3dSMILE:
I would like to say that I won..., but not quite.:rolleyes: Actually, I did win the first race (my class) by one lap. I caught and passed my good friend Rodney Schreck for the lead at about the 47 minute mark and finished almost a full lap ahead of him. In the second race I took the lead (in my class) at the start and put Rodney a lap down at about the 16 minute mark. I virtually dominated the entire race until... with less than 3 minutes remaining my right front tire went flat!:eek: It happened suddenly and caused me to brush a curb when the car wouldn't steer to the left at speed. I limped into the pits and stopped. Rodney took over the lead and turned 3 more laps before time ran out. So.., I ended up in second place for the day; Rodney won by 2 laps. The other two cars in my class were several laps down, having suffered mechanical problems in both races.
After the race trophy presentations, the awards for the season were given out. I got the trophy for second place in points!:) I thought I might be in the running for 3rd place, but was surprised to receive the award for second. I only ran 4 of the 7 races this season, but my finishes were high enough in points (all first or second places) to garner 2nd place.
I have all summer to make repairs and/or improvements for next season. After the success of this new car's handling and drivability, I'm looking forward now to next season. Some years ago I said I'd probably quit when I was 70 (I was 70 in March). Maybe I'll push it to 75..?:o:LOL:
way to go Jim! I say keep on racing as long as it's fun and you can. Glad to hear the suspension worked well.
Sorry to hear about the bum tire but congrats to your accomplishments! Going out to 75 doesn't sound too bad if the car isn't beating you up anymore!
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Times 3! It'll help keep you young at heart! 8-)
Congrats on your points race finish too.
This is a neat thread to watch, we don't have anything like this around here.
Thank you all for the compliments and encouragement.
Seth - How far is Doon from Cedar rapids? There are some big Electrathon races in Cedar Rapids at least once a year.
The University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls (not much closer) used to host a big race, but I don't know if they still do. You could check the EA schedule next Fall when school starts up and see if/when there are races in Iowa. It's possible there may be something closer to you. From the race results I've seen from Iowa, there must be other teams and other races. If I can find anything I'll post it here for you.
A warning to anyone who attends an Electrathon race the first time: It's contagious and highly addictive! I went broke three times racing stock cars over the 35 years I was involved in it. This is the cheapest racing I've ever done.:D
When I was in high school we did mileage cars with small gas engines. we did go to Cedar falls 2 years for races. Hopefully our school still competes. They have nutted the automotive program so bad it's unthinkable.
Ryan - I know what you mean about nutted programs. The ugly hose bag that was head of Technology Education in this district didn't like anything "dirty" so she went through all 12 high schools in this county and systematically eliminated all the wood shops, masonry programs, and about half of the automotive programs.:mad: All she wanted was more computer labs and "clean" subject matter. The auto shops and construction programs that are left are painfully underfunded.:(