Kitcat

So I guess you were actually going 50% faster than 145 mph! Not sure you can trust Suave, you know he was raised by, and imprinted on, Caterham owners Tom and Croc:).

Amazing performance! And you almost never got to 4,000 rpms (redline is 8,000), even doing 145 mph down the straight, you are almost idling the engine. You enter the straight at 120 mph, my top speed at the end of the straight.

Last set, again from awards night. And to summarize the 3 day event: Thursday night: outdoor barbeque/dinner/beer, socializing; Friday nite: Ditto Saturday night, indoor dinner, drinking, socializing AND awards for being there and for drinking, socializing and eating. Apparently there was even some racing squeezed in somewhere along the way. #1-Other Jeff (Hey there were 4 Mikes at my table alone that nite, it gets confusing), accepting his hardware (plastic ware?) in the spirit with which it was given. #2-MichaelD with Croc (Michael J), joining Jeff2, and Tom being photoed by me (Michael M) in the awards line. #3. Now it gets wild up there: Scott on left and Pete, on right join the other honored award recipients up front and they and the crowd goes slightly crazy. #4. Tom presents Nancy (Hands clasped, Klassic69's wife) with the good-sport award for coming to this event with her husband (yet another Michael) on her 45th wedding anniv. What you cant see is the wedding type bride/groom arrangement on the token award. Tom's lovely wife, Kathy, looks on at the left, no doubt thinking: Tom better not try this with me:)). #5. Time for some bench racing and general revelry. I slept 10 hours a night for the 2 nights following this event. What a great time!!!!!! Thanks again Tom (Yellow SS) and Mike (Croc).

Next set from the banquet/awards night: #1-Tom in blue shirt giving Jeff an award, #2-Croc in black shirt giving Dave his award, #3-Croc giving Roman an award, #4-Steve and Tom #5 Tom, Croc giving Shane his award (A soft, plush stork:)). All photos via my I-phone and it was challenged in the low light.

They keep coming: #1-Group photo at the barbeque on July 4. Note the weather change! This is at a track owner's place near Millville. It includes everyone at the 2 day event, not just the USA7s folks. #2 is the view from our outdoor barbeque/group photo on July 4. All the folks in photo #1, below, were seeing this view. #4 so much food, so little time....

Yet more shots: #1, Rain in the paddock on Lightening, the nite before the July 4 event. #2 This poor guy misunderstood the event concept and brought toque, not torque. #3, July 4. #4 Rain in paddock July 4, a.m. It was into this lovely mess some of the more foolhardy of us ventured. #5 Tom's front tire, my front tire.

Some shots from the weekend: # 1 is on the road to NJMP. Also serves as sort of a visual representation of what its like to be on the track in a Caterham between 2 V-8 Stalkers! #2 is BBall's ultra-shiny Caterham, sitting in its ultra-cool trailer. #3 & #4 are details of the Stalkers of Shane and Mario. #5 is Michael D, showing just how confident we Caterham owners are in our inherent manliness.Beside him is Mario (I think his Rottweiler is chained to his Storker).

SK400. After reviewing your list I wld agree with the areo screen idea. A Brooklands screen is more expensive, but is also an effective solution. As you know, I chased you for a coupla laps (and visa versa). The only place I thot you cld get speed was the entry to the bowl, where it seemed thet you were overly cautious. Everywhere else, it looked like the hammer was down! And, a trailer upgrade mite be in order:)! Talk to Karl?

OK, my turn: Just back after 1700+ miles. Some shout-outs are in order: 1] Croc (Michael Johnson) and YellowSS (Tom Gavel). Wow, epic event. I know I am just another voice in the chorus at this point but terrific work putting this together, herding cats, fighting weather, herding more cats, dealing with schedule changes that threw all plans off, herding yet more cats....The "banquet/awards ceremony" Saturday night was unforgettable. So was the 4th of July dinner on the water at Don Fehrbach's place. I would return next weekend if there were a repeat tho happy to wait til next year. 2] NJMP. What a place! Everyone one was so nice. No frowns, no attitude. The whole philosophy of this world-class facility was: How can we make you happier, your experience better? The food was incredible. If you ever have been on a cruise where you have almost too many choices of fabulous food, you have some idea of what we experienced. 3] The wives and girlfriends: what women! Not a fluff chick in the group. Maybe they have to be special to put up with us and our cars/hobby? 4] The USA7s gang. Everyone one was friendly/helpful. I had a dodgy hydraulic clutch and was ready to trailer home. MichaelD, BBall, Pete, George Alderman and others descended on the car and trouble shot the problem, had the fluid drained and replaced, and the clutch operational in 30'! Thx guys! 5] The weather gods. Yes, the a.m. sessions of the first day were rain-filled or wet/drying but it soon cleared and turned into 2 of the most perfect track-weather days I have ever had. Hurricane Arthur threatened, but a run-of the mill Jersey storm showed up and kicked Arthur's butt out to sea (Lesson, dont mess with Jersey!). 6] Pictures? That will have to wait as I left the camera cord in the trailer. 7] I did download the one session of video where I actually remembered to turn on my GoPro. It includes a big "off" at turn 7 where I was focused on Mario's Storker bumper and forgot to drive. Other highlight of the video is Shane's Storker doing a "warp speed" past me in the bowl and onto the straight.

Thx for the update George! Very impressive to beat Ian Prout, he is an experienced and accomplished racer. Maybe time to start a new thread? This racing themed narrative doesn't really fit under parts for sale/half-shaft. Mike M.

Thx, Shane, I had printed it earlier and lost it. I have spent the past day loading up, making preps. As I did so, I thought, Jeez, I kinda wish I had a bigger tow vehicle and a bigger trailer. Then I remembered that the first 2 USA7s events I attended, one of 800 miles, the other 1200, I did in my seven itself. Hauled everything in the passenger seat and in the small boot. Ran with the top up, doors off. Packed light, had a blast.

I am using reverse logic here: IF we all prepare for rain, it wont happen. I added an irrigation system to my yard this year and it has rained every other day as a result:). And rain in Millville can be very localized. We have had huge storms skim by us in other years there that were supposed to cause havoc. Besides, rain and wet track driving are excellent for teaching car control, as long as slicks aren't involved. So bring your "street tires".

What's the weather looking like for Fri-Sat, Tom? Seems like rain is a possibility so I will bring my rain gear/tires.

BEC consideration: does it have reverse? Many don't. I sold my '98 Xflow here to a resident of Ontario. As I recall we had to find proof of mfg date and with the serial #, got Caterham to confirm mfg date in writing. Altho built and registered as a '98. it was mfd as a '97 and I think that earlier date, was used to satisfy the 15 year rule.I know it was successfully registered in Ontario where it is licensed and driven.

I took the tow vehicle out on a deserted road with trailer and car attached and did some high speed panic stops to see how the Prodigy braking system worked. In a word: flawlessly. Defensive driving and moderate speeds are still the order of the day but I have cut a ton of distance off my braking zone. Croc: speaking of balancing 13" wheels, I discovered the weights have to be added to outside of the wheel. If they are placed inside, they hit the brake caliper on 1st rotation and go flying. Sure glad I did a test drive. Enjoyed your Mustang vid: your car is still my favorite Mustang of all time. The white 'Vette driver had clearly superior "straight line driving skill":). It was fun to see you catch him in the 2-3-4 sequence where he drove a pretty uninspired line. Shane: one of my first Caterham adventures was getting upside down in my Caterham's passenger seat so as to stick my head down in the footwell where the fuse box was and check for a blown fuse. I wiggled into it nice and tight and then set off the portable fire extinguisher that was strapped down there. I couldn't see, couldn't breath and couldn't move. Ahhh, the memories....

See the active thread "Caterham running hot" at the tech section of this forum. My Caterham X-flow did what yours is doing when I had air pockets in the cooling system. Once burped, it ran all day, even on hot summer days, at 75-80 mph on the interstates. Of course the driver overheated, but that's a different discussion:).

I had that problem 1st time I changed coolant on my X-flow. Turned out that my heater system was not getting filled if the car was level. So I parked it on a modest incline, nose up, and added more coolant. Quite a bit more, then ran it w/radiator cap off and heater on, added yet more and all was well.

Looks wonderful, great cars, great people, tacky Rt 66 tourist destinations=perfection:). And so is the butterfly shot, wow!

I loop tie downs over A-Arms in front and frame in back in a criss-cross pattern. That prevents forward and aft moment as well as lateral. I am pretty sure if my trailer ended up on its side, the car would not move. This is a subject of some debate as some say it is best to use the wheels to tie the car down so the suspension can work and to relieve stress on A-arms etc. Best to ck straps after abt 50 miles and at every stop thereafter for tightness, they can work loose. Also-be sure to shift into neutral after your car is in place:no need to batter the transmission with any rocking/lurching that may occur.

Great to hear you have taken this to heart Tom! Now for phase II: You know those tire-warmer covers they sell at Tire Rack that fit over the tire to keep in the heat between runs? Just leave them on when you return to the track! That way your tires will really heat up....AND they wont wear out thanks to the warmers and the wax interface between your tires and the harsh track surface:).

Tom: To extend the life of those Hoosiers, Tire Rack recommends 2 coats of wax on them too, all around, especially on the contact patch. Forget heat cycling, this is a new technique, so don't be surprised if you haven't heard of it. The wax compound really helps the rubber molecules cure. Best to apply before every track session for maximum effect!

Lightening both days. I use mostly 3-4-5th. Occ 6th. But, an experienced instructor there once told us we'd learn to be better on that track if we just selected one gear and did it all in that gear. I guess it wld simplify things? I think you will be ok jumping from 3rd to 5th. It's not that much different than 3rd-4th on the 5sp T9.

Pretty epic! No fenders on car or trailer and no weather protection. Must get pretty wet in foul weather. Makes my Caterham seem like a luxury car. Kudos to driver and daughter for making their dream happen together.

150 mph on T-bolt, in a '68 Stang, I am impressed!!! I do love Croc's Mustang, the photo doesn't do it justice.

I just spent some quality time on a large empty parking lot synching up my Prodigy remote trailer braking system. Looks like it is now working. All I can say is you stop a lot faster if 8 wheels are braking than if just the 4 on the tow vehicle are. Tom, my trailer is so basic it doesn't have a skylight to wear out(:.