pethier

Mind? Heck, no! Thanks! Everyplace I go online seems to do things differently and I am not a computer professional. I only have a computer to play with cars; and more-recently, genealogy.

I have started posting pix from the Monday track day at LOG. Sorry, no Sevens were running in the event, but a lot of Lotus cars and some others. https://www.flickr.com/photos/pethier/albums/72177720320968006/ My cellphone stuff is at https://flickr.com/photos/pethier/albums/72177720320569205/ I am no longer a working professional. I do not charge for pictures. My photos are by law copyrighted. You may download photos in the full resolution I posted. Basic registration on Flickr.com is free. The number of pixels will vary because even though Flickr labels them as "Original" they have been cropped to look good on a computer screen. If you have trouble figuring out how to download the full-rez photos, please let me know. If you publish them online anywhere, you must give the photo credit "Phil Ethier Photo" and email or Flickermail the URL where they appear. If you publish them in print, you must give the photo credit "Phil Ethier Photo" and email or Flickermail an image (cellphone is OK) of the page where they appear and the cover of the publication.

BMW carried it off well a few times.

I'm packing up. 74PHIL is in the basement here. when I get things organized in the hotel room where I have been for 7 nights, I will put me and my jump-box (I use it for my trailer winch) in 74PHIL for the trip around the big block to Dick's Sporting goods. The hotel has a standing agreement with Dick's for guest trailers; this was not a special deal just for us. its a short walk on Market Street to or from the hotel to Dick's. It is a longesh drive to Dick's, and a short drive back to the hotel. The hotel exit from the basement ramp ("ramp" is Twin-Cities-jargon for "parking structure", not just popular slang; it is used in signs displayed by outfits that own such structures) dumps you onto the divided Bee Cave Parkway so you can't get onto Market Street. Load 74PHIL into its mobile garage, drive the rig to the hotel forecourt, stuff all this impedimenta into the F-150, and head north. I-35 the whole way this time: no reason to go to Neosho MO. I'll take a first crack at the Harris HIll real-camera photos and maybe some of my cell-phone stuff from the rest of the LOG wherever I feel like stopping tonight.

I checked my notes. Fastest Seven was a Caterham 420R. There were 32 entrants. I believe I was 13th OA. I'l post the whole thing when I get it discombuberated from the PDF.

That was a parade. If you wanted to let it all hang out, you had to pay considerably more to run the track day in progress. I am told that 9 conventioneers entered the that event, which may have been available both Saturday and Sunday. Both the parade and the track events were run by "CHIN" which does this sort of thing at several tracks. LOG had our own "unofficial" track day at Harris Hills, a membership track in San Marcos TX. Today (Monday). I shot a LOT of photos, which I will paw through soon. No Sevens. There were three Sevens at the Saturday autocross. Yeah, I came in third. First, and damn close to FTD was a 2021 model with Duratec power and Avon tires. Next was a Superperformance with IDK what engine. It had Yoko 052 tires, but larger than my 185-50-15 Yokos. I was a lot closer to that one.

IMG_6805 On-Track At COTA

IMG_6797 COTA static

IMG_6781 Waddaya mean this isn’t really a parking space?

Half of that has been accomplished.

Awards happen to those who show up

Oh, yeah.

Guess which one is on the way to LOG. IMG_6730 Is this non-Lotus here for LOG? I made it to LOG Yeah, that's my truck. My trailer is in the designated off-site location. Using their clock to power my clock

After watching the Drive video, I am reminded of the jolt I get at an autocross when I let the clutch out on a full-power 1-2 shift, even with my 135-HP 1700 pushrod. The 185-50-15 Yoko 052 tires really stick and the car would snap my head back if i didn't wear a kart-racing collar (I have 2 bad disks in my neck).

I had throttle-shaft leaks on the SU carbs on a 1275 Spridget. I finally got it running well but could not get it to idle below 1500 RPM.

I went a little further with the blocks. Since I didn't have a lot of time, I did just lie down on the asphalt, so I am not sure how far I really moved them. The course was very-similar to the day before. The car was better-balanced. I again got six runs with no real break between them. I wound up in the middle of the pack overall. Every run was clean and every run was faster than the one before it. I believed that FTD was 53:9xx and my best was 57:1xx. Did go to third gear more, was still pretty-clunky about it. The car was just a little loose in the fastest parts of the course. It should be just about right for the LOG autocross.

My friend has a Birkin. It came to him with a Zetec engine. Some time back he sold off the Webers and replaced them with Mikuni* injection throttle bodies "for a Japanese motorcycle" and adaptors, controlled with Megasquirt. Now he is building his Birkin into an all-electric car. He sold me all the gasoline equipment: Engine, 5-speed, fuel tank, fuel pumps, radiator, the works. Just about all of it is still in the loft over his machine shop. * Actually Suzuki Hayabusa Keihin/Denso injection.

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It's the driver. I had trouble seeing a few spots on the course and didn't have the confidence to stay on the power.

Cat is turning in much better now I moved the slider blocks about 40mm closer to the bar. I think I will try another 10mm or 20mm at tomorrow's autocross. I hope the layout is easier to follow tomorrow. I had a few DNFs. In some of those same spots on my clean runs I hesitated there and slowed out. My best (I hope clean) time was 60.xxx and I know that there were some other cars that did 57.xxx and 58.xxx. Part of if may be that there were places I should have gone to 3rd gear, but I am still not that confident in fast left-hand shifting. I used to toggle back and forth between 2nd and 3rd all the time in my Europa, but I using my right hand. I'm pretty profoundly right-handed. Every club is different and has different culture. These folks had a very-light turnout. They elected to do 6 runs in one heat for half the field and then six runs in one heat for the other half. This didn't give enough time between heats for sway-bar tinkering. The good news though, is that if I lie down on the asphalt. I can reach the single hex bolt that acts as a setscrew on each block. I had been looking forward to a practice day with my club to do this sort of thing, but I tested positive for Covid the Wednesday before the event, and missed the practice day. I wanted to be more-prepared than this for the LOG autocross next Saturday. C'est la Vie. I have to remember that this is a totally-stock 1700 Super Sprint and I can't expect miracles.

I used Kroil and an 1100-degree-F heat gun to free corroded steel slider blocks on a Caterham adjustable 1/2" sway bar. I think a heat gun and the candle-wax trick might work for your Heim-joint problem.

Find an autocross club with open practice days! For essentially autocross fees you can be driving for hours. Worst bang-for-buck with most bragging rights: SCCA National Championships. Three runs on each of two days.