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Good Times at the Big Bend Open Road Race

Part XII - Race Day Prep

Morning definitely came too early. This is what I call dark-thirty.

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The hotel staff already had coffee going and breakfast goodies out in the lobby (they're used to the race day schedule) so I had some coffee and a muffin on my way out. Friday I bought a sandwich and some chips to take with me (nobody is going to come by with food) and made sure I was stocked up with drinks.

Steve and Dabney were up already getting the timing equipment synchronized with the GPS signals before they hauled it out to the track.

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The gear stowed in Dabney's rental minivan.

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Wildflowers aren't the only thing that look blurry in the morning. I think Dabney does the whole weekend on about 6 hours sleep.

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Finding the starting line in the dark was a challenge but I eventually located it and waited for Ed's RV to show up. He did arrive a few minutes after 5:00, but came from the wrong direction. He couldn't sleep so he'd already been up, had driven to the speed trap location and set up the displays by himself. Rats. I hate it when that happens. We made sure the start line had the timing equipment they needed, set up the lasers for the return finish, then drove down to the speed trap to set up the lasers there.
 
I have considered doing this sometime, we have talked about running my Z4 in T1. My friend in Denver (would be co-driver/driver splitting the runs) has been building a SCCA GT1 Camaro that would probably be eventually run in it. My father-in-law lives in Monahans, so we would have a pretty close base of operation.

So how does one get to be a course worker. That sounds like a fun weekend.
BBORR - How to be a Course Worker
 
So how does one get to be a course worker. That sounds like a fun weekend.

It is a fun weekend and they always need a few more. Just be prepared for a long day in the sun.

I'm trying to get this never-ending post finished, but I'm dragging.
 
Part XIII - The Race...Finally!

As one of the spotters for the speed trap, my job was to sit by the side of the road about 1/2 a mile from Ed's RV and call out car numbers to him as they came past. Going down, it was pretty straightforward because I had the gridsheet with the cars' starting order and we were too close to the start for any passing to take place.

The trap was located in a nice straight stretch of road. This is looking south toward Sanderson. The two cars belong to course workers who are there to watch a gate.

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I got my chair out and settled in to wait. The spotter plane flew down the course, everything was ready to go but, no cars. One of the radio repeaters was out and race control didn't have communication with the south end of the race. That took an hour past the 8:00 start time to sort out.

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Finally the race was underway. This was my first customer, Charlie Friend in No. 7 approaching at speed.

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I soon gave up on trying to take pictures. The cars were going by so fast, I couldn't get them in the frame and while I was dealing with the camera, I didn't have time to check the car number as it went by, which was my whole point of being there, so I put the camera away.

The day started off brisk and windy and ended hot and windy. The crosswinds were keeping car speeds down. We did have several delays; one due to a dog wandering out on the road near the start line, another when the Dodge circle-truck (see post #20) left some pieces at the starting line and they had to chase the truck down and red flag it off the course.

Bud Powers' granddaughter, Lee Ann, drove his El Camino in the race. The family had Bud cremated and the container with the ashes was tie-wrapped to the roll cage in the car. I guess you could say Lee Ann was really hauling ash.

When the team came by in the Cobra, I wanted my camera back. The two fellows looked so cute in their white helmets sticking up out of the top of the car with their helmet cams mounted on top of them. It was great.

Eventually all the cars were past. We were running about 2 hours late by then, but we had a break before they started coming back the other way. Ed and the other spotter team ran back up the road to the original start line, now to be the finish line, and made sure the lasers were set up and properly connected. When they got back, we took down the southbound display to make it a bit quicker packing up.

With the cars coming back, I decided to try taking some shots with my camera in video mode. I don't know how to embed the video's, so you'll have to settle for the links.

Charlie's Corvair in the Unlimited class:

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An original Ford GT40 also running unlimited:

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Corvette 206, the third unlimited racer was the fastest in the class.

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On the return leg of the race, the 44th racer, a Corvette, spun out and went through a barbed-wire fence, winding up in a field. The pickup behind him also went off the road, blowing a tire. The race restarted, but then some cows turned up on the highway that had escaped from the field. It took a couple hours to return the cows and mend the fence. Then another cow appeared on the highway about 10 miles further down the course. Either it was a fast-moving cow or it had been lurking all morning.

By 5:00 only about 80 racers had started on the return leg and about 10 of them had been red flagged when the livestock showed up on the course. By 5:30 the Highway Patrol reopened the highway and the 2010 BBORR was over. We packed up Ed's timing gear and headed back to Ft. Stockton.

A racer's wife watching the race from near where I was parked said she wondered how I was going to take my chair with me on the bike, then saw it folded up and strapped down on the back of my seat. I told her she should see what it looked like when I carried my surfboard. I assured her I was kidding but said I have ridden around with crutches strapped to the bike after a knee operation.
 
Part XIV - Race Banquet and Awards Ceremony

Though the race ended with more of a whimper than a bang and had to be aBBORRted, it definitely wasn't BBORRing. We packed up Ed's timing gear and headed back to Ft. Stockton. Dabney collected the data from the ladies working the finish line and headed for his hotel room with his team to try to sort out the mess. I stayed out of their way and got ready for the Race Banquet. I wasn't going to waste the $35 ticket Dabney had given me.

Things were all decorated for the dinner and we were served steak and shrimp.

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I didn't stick around too long. I figured if I waited till Dabney showed up with the results, I'd long since be a pumpkin, so I headed back to the hotel and soon to bed. I had a 500-mile ride to do the next day.

As it turned out, everybody in the 130 and higher classes ran both ways, so Dabney scored them both ways. Everybody in 125 and below was scored only on the race down. Makes the case for doing your best both directions.
 
Part XV - The Ride Back to Corpus Christi

I took the time Sunday morning to lube and adjust the chain on Rocinante. It had a tight spot in the chain and I could hear it every time it came around. When that happens, I tell people my bike is running like clockwork. As it goes down the street, it says, "Clock, clock, clock."

I said good-bye to Dabney and Steve, Lee and Mary Joe (my favorite racers from Hatfield, AR) and headed off down the highway. Rocinante just eats up those miles and I figure you all know what I-10 looks like between Ft. Stockton and San Antonio, so I didn't take any pictures. Even though it was nice and green.

I was trying to decide if I should come home through the hill country or stop and see the kids in San Antonio, but I hadn't been able to raise my daughter on the phone. While stopped for gas in Sonora, I called again. No answer. I flipped a coin and it came up heads, so I went to San Antonio and was glad I did after having lunch with family.

The town names along I-10 always amuse me. At one point, I'm between Comfort and Welfare. I always wind up thinking that's where I've lived most of my life. At least it's better than the ride up Hwy 59 to Houston which puts me between Hungerford and Needville.

So much for the 2010 Big Bend Open Road Race. As always, it was a blast. Thanks for coming along for the ride. If you see Rocinante in Ft. Stockton next April (or anywhere else for that matter), stop by and say "Hi."
 
What kind of speeds where the cars running when they went past you?

I couldn't see the display from where I was parked, but the fastest was about 180. The slowest was 80 or so.

Of the three unlimited racers, the Corvette averaged 163 mph down and back, the GT 155 and the Corvair 146. Last year, Charlie averaged 166 and went through the trap at 200 mph, so the crosswinds were holding speeds down.

The 2010 results are now posted and can be found here: http://bborr.com/2010/2010results.html.
 
Wow, I'd love to run in a race like that.
Your report makes it look so fun!
Seems like a friendly, safe and fun event.

Guess I better build a car first huh...
 
It is a fun weekend and they always need a few more. Just be prepared for a long day in the sun.
Sounds about like a day or two cornerworking for the CMRA. Working for the racing organizations always gives you the absolute best seat for all of the action. :clap:

Thanks for the pics and the story. Looks like a fun tiring weekend.
 
Great report - thanks for putting that together.

That GT40 pass makes me kind of tingly. :trust: :lol2:
 
Re: Part IX - Timing Equipment

Here's a shot of the starting tree and the finish-line laser set up last year. Once all the cars have finished the first leg and are in Sanderson, somebody loads up the start tree and hustles it down to the other end to start the racers on the way back.

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Actually, the laser is on the far side of the road. The receiver is in the picture. Don't ask for too many details or I'll be out of my depth in a hurry. I'm just the gopher.

Dabney pointed out to me that the doohickey shown in the foreground of the picture is actually the laser and the receiver. The doohickey on the other side of the road (out of the picture) is just a reflector to reflect the laser back across the road.

Got all that? The test will be tomorrow.
 
Great report - thanks for putting that together.

That GT40 pass makes me kind of tingly. :trust: :lol2:

+1 On both.

My neighbor, another member here, (WaylandC) has been a course worker for the past couple of years, with his uncle or cousin, and says it's a good time. I may have to see if I can tag along next year.
 
+1 On both.

My neighbor, another member here, (WaylandC) has been a course worker for the past couple of years, with his uncle or cousin, and says it's a good time. I may have to see if I can tag along next year.

No
 
I have been in Sanderson when they cross the finish line, and this last year I worked a gate with my brother. Had a good time both times. I actually have some pictures and video I will try to post later.
 
the race is a hoot, my uncle actually won his class one year in buick sedan ... LOL
the really serious drivers have a race computer to keep them from breaking out.
 
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