MSOKC Race No. 5 – June 17, 2012 – Short and Sweet

NEWS – While Peter stayed home with as stiff neck a week ago Sunday, Conor had an excellent but abbreviated day for Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 5 at Circleville Raceway Park.  Peter’s stiff neck was the result of having ridden one too many roller coasters at Cedar Point amusement park earlier in the week. 

PRACTICE – It was cloudy but dry for most of the morning.  After his first practice session, Conor reported that the new spindle/stub axle assemblies we installed on his kart made the steering feel quicker but heavier, but that the handling was fine.  Just before the second practice session was about to start, it started to rain.  The second practice session was replaced by a track-drying session – first by anyone who wanted to go out on the track in their road car and then by whoever wanted to go out in one of the rental karts.  The driver’s meeting got underway about an hour late at 1:00 PM.  Because there was more rain forecast for the afternoon, the format was shortened from a normal 8-8-10 lap heat race/feature format to a 3 lap qualifying session, a six lap heat race, and an eight lap feature. 

80cc SHIFTER – There were nine karts in Conor’s class again for Race No. 5.  We were feeling pretty good about Conor’s chances when we saw that he was the only one who was on new tires – we had taken his two-race-old tires off to use on Peter’s kart, which performs better on slightly used tires than on new ones.  Lap times were down because of rain earlier in the day, but Conor managed a 45.817 second lap, which was the fastest of the qualifying session.  From pole position in his heat race, he almost bogged down at the start but managed to get away cleanly.  He led easily through the first corner, pulled away by three or four tenths of a second per lap, and won by just over three seconds.  He recorded a 45.526 second lap in the process.  As the other classes were concluding their heat races, the wind picked up, the temperature dropped by about 10 degrees, and the skies drew darker.  It began to sprinkle during the mandatory break to allow the corner workers a lunch break.  In the event of rain before the feature races are concluded, which ended up being the case on Sunday, points are awarded based on earned starting positions for the feature.  Since Conor would have started on the pole, he collected maximum points for the day.

NEXT RACE – The early conclusion to the day was a welcome development in what had been predicted to be an uncomfortably hot Father’s Day.  Peter was feeling better a day or so later, so he’ll be ready for MSOKC Race No. 6 on Sunday, July 1, 2012, which is a reverse-direction (clockwise) event at CRP.  This event features qualifying again, which suits us just fine.

Bill

p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found here http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=795904.

MSOKC Race No. 4 – June 3, 2012 – Peter’s Win Streak Continues

NEWS – Our win streak in Peter's Spec 100 Pipe kart continued, but our streak of races without a mechanical ‘DNF’ (did not finish) ended a week ago Sunday during Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 4 at Circleville Raceway Park.  Our last mechanical DNF was when Conor’s clutch broke during a Great Lakes Sprint Series race in April 2008.  Peter was back with us for Race No. 4 following the completion of his season of rowing with UA Crew.  Henry, who is home following his college graduation, also joined us as a member of the pit crew.   Race No. 4 followed the normal heat race format except that all classes used standing starts (like the 80cc Shifter class) instead of the normal rolling starts.

PRACTICE – About the only thing we did between Race Nos. 3 and 4 was to flip tires around and make a few repairs to the seat in Peter’s kart, to which we had to bolt an additional 20 lbs of lead to bring Conor up to the minimum required weight when he used it for Race No. 3.  I also adjusted the brakes on Peter’s kart, which almost came back to haunt him later in the day.

SPEC 100 PIPE – Peter’s class was comprised of five karts for Race No. 4.  He started his two heat races from the fourth and second positions, respectively.  I thought that the three-disk dry clutch that we use would have an advantage during standing starts over the wet clutches that others in this class use, but this did not turn out to be the case.  In both heats, everyone maintained their position at the start.  In fact, everyone maintained their position throughout the entirety of both heat races.  The karts in this class have become so close in lap times that there was no passing – the winner of the first heat finished last in the second and the last place finisher in the first heat won the second.  The only drama in the heat races was when Peter had a half spin entering Turn 3 about midway through the first heat.  It turns out that his chief mechanic forgot to tighten one of his brake pads, which caused the spin.  The kart behind Peter had had a half spin while avoiding him, so no positions were changed.  A fourth and a second earned Peter the second starting position for the feature.  With everyone running lap times that were so close, we decided to make a pretty radical change in an attempt to give Peter an advantage.  Everyone maintained their position at the start again.  Peter got a good run through Turn 4 on Lap 2 and was able to make a pass for the lead entering Turn 5.  The change we made had the desired effect, as Peter increased his lead slightly on nearly every lap and set the fastest lap time of the day (46.389 seconds) in the process.  Peter is now three-for-three in feature race wins in this class this season with Conor having won the fourth.

80cc SHIFTER – There were nine karts in Conor’s class for Race No. 4.  He drew the second starting position for his first heat race.  One kart was slow to leave the formation grid in the pit area, which meant that the other karts had to sit on the starting grid for an inordinately long period of time before the starting procedure began.  This seems to have caught Conor off guard, as when the green flag did fall, he made an uncharacteristically poor start.  By the time he got fully up to speed, he had dropped to the tail end of the field.  It turns out that his poor start didn’t make any difference.  As he was working his way back toward the front, his right front wheel became detached in Turn 7 on Lap 6 and went rolling into the grass.  When we got his kart back to the pits, we discovered that his right front stub axle had broken (see pictures here).  This is an item for which we do not have a spare, so Conor’s day came to an early end.

NEXT RACE – Peter’s kart is ready to go for MSOKC Race No. 5, but finding replacement parts for a 10-year-old chassis from a kart manufacturer that is no longer in business was difficult.  I ended up finding a pair of new spindle/stub axle assemblies for a similar chassis that, with a few modifications, seem to work on Conor’s kart.  We’ll find out how well they work soon enough, as Race No. 5 is this Sunday, June 17, 2012, at CRP.

Bill

p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results from Race No. 4 can be found here.

The Bad with the Good

Peter got another hard-earned win yesterday, but Conor had a rare (for us) mechanical DNF (did not finish) - see pictures below (click to enlarge).  A full race report will follow.

Bill

MSOKC Race No. 3 – May 20, 2012 – Solo Double Win

NEWS – For the second time in 2012, Bruce Brothers Racing scored feature race wins in both of our karts on the same race day.  Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 3 was a reverse direction (clockwise) event at Circleville Raceway Park.  Conor qualified on pole and led every lap of the feature in his 80cc shifter kart race.  Peter was in Cincinnati with his UA Crew teammates competing in the Midwest Junior Rowing Championships, so Conor did double duty.  He qualified Peter’s Spec 100 Pipe kart on the front row and won the feature in it, too.  Peter's 4+ boat won the gold medal at the Midwest Juniors, so it was an excellent day of racing for the Bruce boys.

PRACTICE – During practice, we had lots of changes to check out on Conor’s kart.  After his flip in Race No. 2, we replaced his broken seat (an integral part of the chassis on a racing kart), repaired various bits and pieces, including the steering wheel and the radiator supports, and performed a wheel alignment.  We also repaired a leak in his radiator.  The only changes we had to make on Peter’s kart was to add weight – about 20 lbs – to bring him up to the class minimum and change the gear ratio to account for the reverse direction.  Conor acclimated well to Peter’s kart, which is the same chassis he won the Yamaha Junior championship with in 2008.  Conor had new tires on his kart and used tires on Peter kart.

SPEC 100 PIPE – Conor started the first heat race in Peter’s kart from pole position (of five).  He led through the first turn, pulled away a bit, and won comfortably.  From the rear of the grid in his second heat, he improved two positions at the start.   He made another pass on Lap 2 to bring him up to second.  He nipped at the heels of the leader on several occasions, but settled for second knowing that would put him on the front row for the start of the feature.  At the start of the feature, he went side-by-side with the pole-sitter through the first four turns.  He settled into second and pressured the leader for the first few laps.  Conor’s opportunity came on Lap 4 when the leader made a small mistake entering Turn 5 (the turn before the long straightaway during reverse direction events).  Conor was able to pull alongside and out-brake the leader going into Turn 4.  He pulled away slightly and maintained a comfortable margin to the finish.  This was Conor’s second win in Peter’s kart – he also did it last season during MSOKC Race No. 5 (June 25, 2011) while Peter was in Italy.

80cc SHIFTER – Conor started the first heat race in his own kart from the seventh position (of nine).  He made a good start and was able to pick up a few positions on the inside in the second turn (Turn 9) by using a wide exit from Turn 10.  He got bottled up while trying to make another pass on Lap 3 and lost two positions.  He gained both back in the next lap and improved one more position to third on the following lap.  The leader had gotten away but Conor was able to catch up and apply pressure to the second place kart.  He got a good run through Turn 5 on the last lap and was able to make the pass for the win going into Turn 4.  Starting from third in his second heat, Conor gained one position at the start and another in Turn 4 on the first lap, after which the first two pulled away from the field.  Conor managed the gap and won comfortably.  A video of the start and the first three laps can be found here. A second and a first earned Conor pole position for the start of his feature race.  While he led every lap for another feature race win, it wasn't easy.  While Conor recorded some amazingly consistent lap times (less than 1/4 second difference over 10 laps), the second place kart would draw near and then drop back as the result of pushing too hard.  This happened twice before the gap opened up and Conor won by just over a second.

NEXT RACE – Peter’s rowing season is over now, so we’ll be back to full strength for MSOKC Race No. 4, which is Sunday, June 3, 2012, at CRP.  This event will feature standing starts (like the 80cc Shifter class) for all classes.  Henry will be home by then, too, after having graduated from Brown University last weekend.  Hopefully he’ll be rested up enough to join us at the track.

Bill

p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found here.

Video and Pictures from MSOKC Race No. 3

A video of the start of Conor's second heat race in the 80cc Shifter kart can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sExW8UC5dDQ

Conor did double-duty - raced his own kart and filled in for Peter in our Spec 100 Pipe kart.  Some pictures are shown below.

A full race report will follow.

Bill

MSOKC Race No. 2 – May 6, 2012 – A Frightening Moment

NEWS – Bruce Brothers Racing had a number of first-time visitors a week ago Sunday for Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 2 at Circleville Raceway Park.  Just that morning, I had explained to one of my college classmates that, while there are some inherent dangers in kart racing, it’s a relatively safe sport.  This is the 10th season of kart racing for Bruce Brothers Racing, and in the previous nine seasons, about the worst injury any of us has ever received is a burn from a hot exhaust.  I went on to explain that, about once a season, someone from our club gets upside down as the result of wheel-to-wheel contact on the track.  These karts do not have seat belts or roll bars – that would make about as much sense as seat belts and roll bars on a motorcycle.  The idea is to get thrown out and away during a flip.  Well, Sunday was Conor’s turn to get upside down.  It was a frightening moment, but he was only slightly banged up and was able to make it back to the starting line for the restart.

PRACTICE – For Race No. 2, Peter had a rebuilt carburetor and Conor had fresh gear oil, re-bled front brakes, and tires that had been flipped on the rims.  We also made a gear change for Peter’s second practice, which seemed to help, so we decided to stick with it for the day.  There were five karts entered in Peter’s class and a near-record 12 karts entered in Conor’s class.  The weather for Race No. 2 – sunny and warm – was a welcome change to what we had for Race No. 1.

SPEC 100 PIPE – The random draw for starting positions had Peter starting from pole position for his first heat race.  He timed the rolling start perfectly and led easily through Turn 1.  He pulled out to a two second lead over the first four laps and backed off just enough to hold on for a comfortable win.  Starting from the rear in his second heat, he made one pass at the start and another entering Turn 5 on the first lap.  He made another pass on Lap 2 to bring him up to second.  He was right on the tail of the leader entering Turn 9 on Lap 4 when he inadvertently gave the leader a nudge in the right rear corner.  This allowed Peter to get by in the next corner.  He knew there would be repercussions for his indiscretion, so he wisely conceded the lead back to his pursuer on the following lap (see link to helmet-cam video below).   He stayed right with the leader until the end and finished second.  A first and a second earned Peter the second starting position for his feature race.  We pay a lot of attention to tuning his clutch and that paid off at the start of Peter’s feature.  When the green flag waived, he motored right around the outside into the lead in Turn 1.  Much like his first heat, he pulled out a lead and then managed the gap for his second feature race win in a row.

80cc SHIFTER – Conor lined up for the standing start in his first heat race from the fourth position.  He made a pass for third on the first lap, got bottled up and lost a place on Lap 2, but managed to gain it back on Lap 5 and finished third.  With Conor starting from near the rear of such a big field in his second heat, I should have taken a closer look at who was starting in front of him.  The very new guy elected to start from the rear all day, so he wasn’t an issue.  The kart on the outside of the front row was a younger guy who had raced with us before, but it was only two races back in 2010.  There were a couple of retirements in the first heat, so Conor lined up on the outside of the third row.  When the green flag dropped, Conor got away very quickly, the kart in front of him got away well but a bit more slowly, and the kart on the front row bogged the engine down and got away very slowly.  Conor went to the inside (left) of the kart in front of him, that kart went to the inside (left) of the kart in front of him, and for whatever reason, the kart on the front row went the same direction.  I’m not sure if he was trying to get out of the way or was trying to block – I hope it wasn’t the latter.  By the time Conor got alongside the kart in front of him, there was nowhere to go and these two touched wheels, which sent the right side of Conor’s kart up in the air.  It came down sideways on the right side wheels which sent the left side not only up in the air, but up in the air and over.  The stills from the video I was shooting (see pictures in an earlier post and links to the video below) show him crawling out while the kart is upside down and still in the air.  He landed on his right forearm and face.  When I got to him, he was sitting up in the grass catching his breath (see link to helmet-cam video below).  All of Conor’s protective equipment – full-face helmet, neck restraint, gloves, and abrasion-resistant suit – did its job.  Well nearly – his right sleeve did ride up on his arm, which left him with a pretty healthy dose of road rash on his forearm.  The visor on his helmet took a beating, too.  When it became apparent he was going to be okay, I asked him if he wanted to continue.  His immediate response was ‘yes’.  While the track medic turned her attention to Conor, I turned my attention to the kart.  The head flagman had turned it back onto its wheels just after the incident.  I could see that the steering wheel and radiator were both a bit askew, so I did what I could with my bare hands to straighten them up.  I could also see that the seat was broken.  After we replaced Conor’s visor and the medic had given him the okay, Conor hopped in and we proceeded to give him a push start.  On the third try, after finding and reconnecting a loose lead from the coil, it fired right up and he was on his way.  To add insult to injury, the race had been red-flagged because of the incident, and the rules state that the karts causing a red flag have to start from the rear.  Both Conor and the kart he had contact with lined up for the restart on the back row.  In retrospect, the kart on the outside of the front row should have been sent to the rear, also.  Conor wasn’t quite so anxious to charge through the field at the restart.  From the ninth starting position, he did make two passes on the first lap.  He made another pass on the second lap, another on the fourth, and another on the seventh.  He finished fourth and recorded the fastest race lap in the process – quite a recovery.  A third and a fourth earned Conor the fourth starting position for his feature race.  He again took it easy at the start and held his position.  He made a nice pass on Lap 3 and set out for the second place kart.  While trying to find a way to pass, the kart behind managed to sneak back by Conor.  That kart couldn’t get by the second place kart either, and Conor was able to return the favor and reclaim third position just before the checkered flag on the last lap. 

NEXT RACE – Motorsports can be dangerous, but so can lots of other sports.  We are counting our blessings that Conor was not injured any worse than he was.  He was a bit sore Sunday evening and when I checked on him Monday morning, but otherwise he is doing fine.  He has since been to Brown University in Providence to visit his brother Henry, who is graduating later this month.  Peter competed in the Midwest Scholastics Rowing Championships in Cincinnati last weekend where his pair (two-man boat) finished second.  Peter has another regatta next weekend – Midwest Junior Rowing Championships – so he will miss MSOKC Race No. 3, which is a reverse direction event at CRP on Sunday, May 20, 2012.  The necessary repairs to Conor’s kart have since been completed.

Bill

p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found here.  The helmet-cam video of Peter’s second heat can be found here.  Normal speed video of Conor’s flip as seen from the observation tower can be found here and the slow-motion version can be found here.  Video of Conor’s flip from his helmet cam can be found here.

Stills from Video of Conor's Flip

He's okay.  A full race report will follow.