Formula D Pro/AM Round 2 - Texas Motor Speedway - 4/28/13

This event will be otherwise known as the one that got away. What a week, and subsequent weekend! At this point it's even hard to remember the details given how terrible things turned out, but we learned a lot and I'll try to summarize what went down...

Team MSA had just returned from a demo event at Import Face Off in Ennis, TX. We gave 64 rides to very very happy passengers that day and had some amazing runs with the Fabricated Motorsports crew.

Following Brad Burnett in his 1UZ powered AE86

 Sadly 34 hotlaps + 20 minute lunch + 30 more hotlaps equals a blown stock turbo. We knew it would have to go at some point, luckily it decided to exit stage left at the end of the day. This meant we only had a few weeks to pull together a new setup for round 2 of the Lonestar Drift series. A few weeks may sound like a lot of time, but in our world of full time jobs and other responsibilities its barely enough!

Assessing the damage

We set out immediately researching and ordering the parts for our upgrade. Because the Fabricated Series largely centers around low to medium speed courses and close tandem battles we chose a Garrett 2860RS ball bearing turbo for its fast spool and broad powerband. To support the larger turbo we installed 550cc injectors, and moved to a Z32 mass air flow sensor. Engine management was handled with a plug and play RS-Enthalpy ECU. We also upgraded to an Apexi headgasket and ARP head studs. Helping this power to the ground is a new Competition Clutch Stage 4 clutch and lightweight flywheel setup. Many of these products were not in stock or were delayed in shipping, causing the final pieces of this puzzle to arrive only 3 days before our event. A mad rush ensued, with help from many friends and one too many nights going to sleep as the sun came up.

This was the view at 11pm the night before the event. I immediately went into coma status as our fearless leader Bryan Lin set out for Texas Motor Speedway. The events that followed are so frustrating I can only barely stand to put them in chronological order...

50 miles outside of Texarkana - One trailer tire delaminates, replaced with spare, I'm so tired I don't even wake up
10 miles outside of Texarkana - Second trailer tire delaminates, no spare available, limp trailer to truck stop

Spend next few hours searching, unsuccessfully, for replacement tire/trailer, commence to sleeping in truck

Wake up at 8AM day of event still 3.5 hours away. Find out Wal Mart doesn't have tire we need. Unload car from trailer, put on set of tires and tools in car, leave for Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth at 9AM. Drive to Fort Worth with no license plates, manage not to get pulled over. Arrive at Texas Motor Speedway 30 minutes before qualifying.

Hit the track for our first practice lap, mind you i've never driven this course, shift into second and BAM, no second gear. Transmission stuck in second gear, get towed off course without making a lap. Find a transmission from someone in the crowd. Half the team pulls the bad transmission out while the other half head to unnamed persons house to buy overpriced transmission. Manage to swap transmissions in 40 minutes with the help of some very dedicated friends and family...

Hit the track as the last car to attempt qualifying, and I cant link the course, I don't qualify. What a crushing blow, to break through all these obstacles and let myself and my team down! It was a terrible feeling indeed. I can make all the excuses I want, but it came down to preparation. If I can help it I will never be caught in this position again.

I would like to give a huge thanks to my sponsor and team members for all the hard work they put in. It's because they believe in me that I keep fighting.

Special thanks to:

Bryan Lin
Lindsay Riser
David Byrd
Tommy Sanders
Joe Lacy
Daniel Haselton
Charles Woodruff
John Snider
Moetan Thrall

Photo Credits:

Sy Pham
Bryan Lin
Lindsay Riser

Alexander "Axle" Riser

Driver, Team MSA | MSAStore.com | BCRacingDirect.com