2014 25 Hours of Thunderhill- Part 2

56 Cars take the green flag on Saturday morning.
56 Cars take the green flag on Saturday morning. Our car is that orange streak at the way back and to the right.

At 10:50 all drivers are to be in their car, strapped in, and ready to go. The pace car leaves the grid at 10:55 and after 1 pace lap the green flag is dropped and the race begins.

There were a number a pretty fast cars (and trucks- see the video) that chose not to qualify in the rain. They started at the back of the field, but by Turn 4 of the opening lap they were coming up through the group I was racing with. It got pretty tight a couple of times.

We had a plan. Driver rotation and pits stop schedule for Saturday night.
We had a plan. Driver rotation and pits stop schedule for Saturday night.

After 2-3 laps I settled in and just tried to drive the car smoothly and consistently. Our goal was to make sure we finished, and I didn’t want to be stupid or break the car in my first stint.

All in all I drove 5 stints during the race, including the start and the checkered flag. It was quite an honor.

I had raced my 2002 at Thunderhill just a few weeks before this event, so I was very comfortable in the E30.

For the 25 Hour race they use a by-pass of Turn 5. It is a blind rise over the shank of the hill. There is quite a camber change as you go over the rise, and it gets worse the more you are to the right. The fast line is staying left, but when the fast cars come by we had to move right for them.

Just over the rise the track takes a hard, off camber, right around the base of the hill. It’s quite a handful, especially in the dark.

Night racing at Thunderhill.
Night racing at Thunderhill.

Our race went smoothly until my 10:00 PM stint. About 45 minutes into it morning. I was driving the car just shut down. The lights and everything stayed on, but the motor would not run. I coasted to a stop under the bridge on the back straight. Fortunately not to far from pit in.

After a short wait while the pace car picked up the field, I was towed back to the pits and the crew set to work diagnosing the problem. I went off to bed for a 4 hour sleep before my next scheduled stint.

The Racecraft crew working hard during the wee hours of the night.
The Racecraft crew working hard during the wee hours of the night.

When I got back to the pits the car was back out on track logging laps. The high pressure fuel pumped had failed, and it had taken about an hour to find the problem and fix it.

Mary had volunteered to act as cook for the team. She had prepared meals ahead of the weekend and warmed them and set them out for the team. We also had a table full of snacks, fruit, and drinks that she kept ready for the entire event. Her efforts were greatly appreciated by everyone on the team. What a gal!

Mary and I late Saturday night after one of my stints. Her help and support was invaluable.
Mary and I late Saturday night after one of my stints. Her help and support was invaluable.

Our race settled down again after the fuel pump replacement. We were able to do about 90 minutes on a load of fuel. The rules state that you can only change one tire during a pit stop unless you take the car behind the wall. We had developed a schedule of changing one tire about every 3rd or 4th stint. The system worked pretty well for us.

Everything was going great until our pit stop and tire change about 2 hours from the finish. Unfortunately one of the wheel studs broke off. We debated whether or not to fix it and continue. We were far enough ahead of the next car in our class to stay ahead of them even if we stopped.

At Mary’s urging the crew fixed the stud and I hopped back into the car and drove it to the finish. It would have been a shame not to drive the car under the checkered flag. It had taken about 30 minutes to fix.

The agony of post race tech inspection. The whole crew stood by and watched.
The agony of post race tech inspection. The whole crew stood by and watched.

We finished the race 36th overall, but 2nd in our class! To keep that finish we still had to pass tech. Seems like a no brainer, except for the fact that we had filled in a tech sheet that qualified us for our class and now those items would be checked thoroughly by the inspectors.

Fortunately we passed without any problems, so we got to keep our finishing position.

What a fun event! I can’t wait to run it again. It is the type of driving that suits my style and skills to a tee.

Following this event our trusty E30 was put up for sale. While it was very reliable, it was pretty slow. We got beat by a Honda Fit! We all want to run the event again, but with a better chance to place well.

Currently the team is looking for another, faster car.

Here’s the video of the event: