Entered XU

[pethier]

After recent discussions and revelations about "eXtreme street Unlimited" (hereafter XU), I decided to enter my Caterham 1700 Super Sprint in XU at my club's first timed autocross of the season on Sunday.  The chilly morning was forecasted to turn into a warm sunny day.  XU ran in the first heat.  The class made with three entrants; me, a Honda Beat, and a Camaro with gutted interior.  First run went OK;  I didn't get lost.  That has been a problem for me because not since 2010 have I had a car this low.  Second run was faster, but I clicked a slalom cone with the right rear.  Third run was faster still, and clean. A check of live timing showed that I had a good lead on the Beat, which was in turn ahead of the Camaro.

I was looking forward to turning up the wick in Heat Three, where we expected to get 3 more runs.  In my club, being on this planet for 70 or more years earns you a "get out of work free" card.  I was tired of sitting in the car in the sun, so while they started up Heat Two, I unfurled the awning that I had put on my trailer last September and enjoyed the shade whilst I erected the hood, unzipping the rear window.  

I figured I would go put the car in my grid space and maybe see if I could get any reasonable pix with my new iPhone, since I had left my real camera at home.  To get to my grid slot without interfering with the operation of the 2/4 grid, I had to drive all the way around that grid.  While doing so, I stepped on the clutch pedal.  With no resistance whatsoever, the pedal went directly the firewall and stayed there.  A friendly passer-by helped me push the car mostly out of the traffic pattern.  I briefly considered starter-launching the car for my remaining runs.  After all, it seemed to be a 2nd-gear course.  This would only require me to make one shift whilst on the clock.  Then I suddenly remembered that I am not Rick Mears.  I went and got my rig and winched the car into the trailer.  This was a lot of fun since the remote had packed up the previous day so I had to keep running back and forth between the button in the front of the trailer and the steering wheel on the car.  First-world problems.  Canterbury Park is far enough from my house that I really couldn't come back to run my Cayman.  Went home and watched recorded footie (Not F1 or IndyCar yet, SO DON'T TELL ME ANYTHING).  

Checked the live timing.  They did get 6 runs.  Hurray for Minnesota Autosports Club with 162 entrants.  The Beat did not improve, but the Camaro did, climbing into 2nd place.  My 3 runs held up against their six and I won the class by just over 2 seconds.  Trophy time.  My overall standing was not that impressive.  Mid-pack.  We have some good drivers here, including some SCCA National Champions.

Went to bed at 9:15 which is so not like me.

While I was troubleshooting the car (still in my trailer) Monday morning, I decided to call my friend Brian to see how long he thought it would be before he could start on the 1700-to-Zetec swap I planned.  He answered the phone,

"Are your ears ringing?"
   Why?
"I was just talking to my crew and we are ready to take your Seven.  I was just about to call you."
   OK.  It's in my trailer.  I will be there shortly.

I knew by that time that the problem was not up top, and that the cable did not break.  The problem thus had to be in the area around the bellhousing.  But I no-longer cared.

Phoned my friend Steve, who is taking his Birkin electric.  A year and a half ago, I paid him cash for all of the gasoline bits from the Birkin.  He has been very patient with me taking up space in his loft.  He has a full-coverage winch setup.  Soon we will winch the Zetec engine, 5-speed gearbox, Mikuni fuel injection, plus all associated bits and pieces, into the bed of my F-150 for a trip to Isanti.

I'll be running XU in the Cayman for a while.