Normally all it needs is gas and tires. lol
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Track repair
 

Well, we have always done whatever it takes to keep the race cars running, but one weekend stands out!
A good friend and I built two race cars (Datsun 1200’s) for our sons
My friend was will his son at Blackhawk Farms for drivers school.
I was at home (1.5 hours away). I got a call that they needed a new starter as they couldn’t get the engine to spin
I loaded up a starter and drove to the track. By the time I got there, they had figured out the issue was a bit bigger than replacing the starter. Seems his son managed to shear the flywheel bolts on a missed downshift.

We figured it was Miller time and we had dinner at the track and were just sitting around when it dawned on me that I had a crankshaft and new bearings along with flywheel bolts at home. While I drove home to gather up the parts my friend took the engine out and had it upside down in the trailer by the time I got back. We replaced the crankshaft inside the trailer

The best part was that we finished up about 2:30am and I went to clean up in the bathroom, I’ll never forget, as I’m washing my hands one of or fellow racers (old guy) comes stumbling into the bathroom and mumbles something about his party going too late!

My friends son finished the race weekend!

i actually kinda had working on cars, but its the price you pay for racing them.

worst ive done is swap a transmission. but lots of little things, diffs, bearings, arms, pounded out a few dents for sure. the one time i did just put it on the trailer and leave was when i dropped a valve. the wildest thing i ever did was a water pump/belt on the lake.

74 plus or minus. Still a pup.

My only story was at the 2018 Targa Newfoundland. I put a makeshift collar on a failing chain tensioner on an 87 3.2.

It was on my back on the covered ice in a curling rink up there.

The engine bay was gutted for racing so access was a breeze.

Reminds me of the night before a DE at Road Atlanta My friends’ stroked mustang was overheating and we couldn’t quite figure out what was wrong with it after working on it all day Friday.

Long story short, we wound up pulling the heads and replacing the head gaskets. We finished up at about 3am, had a couple of beers, went to bed and got up at six to head to the track. The mustang drove great all weekend.

Another mustang story. My buddy spun somewhere at Road Atlanta and hit a wall with the front end. It moved the front end over three or 4 inches, so we got my truck perpendicular to his car and with some tie down straps, I accelerated with my truck and jerked the front and into alignment. Save the day and he was able to keep driving.

Yea, had my fair share of fighting out of a corner to keep the racing alive...

One was an emergency trip flying out repair parts for the McLaren F1 GTR teams which were fitted the night before the start of the 1995 Le Mans 24hr race. That mission worked out spectacularly well with McLaren winning the race and finishing 3rd, 4th and 5th

During the middle of the night of a 24hrs of Rouen endurance powerboat race on the River Seine in France repairing a badly damage inshore powerboat for the 2nd time using only what was around me ie a 5 gallon Castrol metal trash can, race tape, pop rivets and silicone. Made a bit more difficult by a live French TV film crew getting in my way. Disappointingly the 3rd time it was race over.

Back in the calm of the workshop is always easier but over seeing the repair of a badly damaged 1997 Gulf Racing McLaren F1 GTR longtail pushed my emergency race car repair MacGyver skills to the limit. 20 something man days of work in 3 days the car was patched up good as new with only hours to spare before being re-built and shipped out to the 1997 Le Mans 24hrs. I think the car either won the GT1 class or failed to start the race, can't remember but either way it was a fun experience

Another time in Japan at the Suzuka F1 race, Honda's home race, when we had a rear wing failure during Fri, practice on one of our Honda factory team car's. Was staring down the barrel of a big fat double DNS (DID NOT START) Needed the help of a Boeing composite ultra-sonic inspection specialist sent down on a Bullet train to fight my way out of that one. I really put the poor guy on the spot with a test to check his abilities, he passed, both cars passed our inspection checks, we went racing, no wings fell off so all was good

Had a few more long nights or weeks but that was just to get a car to the track or on the road so stories for another thread

You were straightening bent frames at the race track at age 24? Were you a pro mechanic?

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