Michigan State Formula Racing Team Blog

Logic Supply

2009-08-27T13:09:00.002-04:00

Big thanks to Logic Supply who donated the computer for Car 12! The computer is utilized as an on-board Telemetry Computer which reads in the data from our Data Logger and Engine Controller Unit (ECU) via the available USB ports. Utilizing the on-board system allows the team to increase the efficiency of testing sessions with the ability to review engine parameters and various other data channels in real, time via a USB radio modem, without having to sacrifice the conditions produced by simulated endurance sessions. Additionally, trackside engineers can diagnose any conditions or problems without driver distraction. This compact unit is light and easily packages into our chassis and electrical system, thereby minimizing the weight added to the car and demand on the electrical system. As an investment, the future of our telemetry computer will involve remote adjustment of control systems with prescribed parameters to help us understand how our car responds to our engine control systems and quickly determine how to adjust our control systems to give us the fastest times on the track. Our telemetry computer gives us the advantage we need to take home the 1st place trophy.

Go Green, Go White, Go Fast!

Josh Frontiera

2009 Traverse City Cherry Festival Parade

2009-07-11T11:35:00.000-04:00

Gorgeous weather, excited bystanders, and a very enthusiastic team of MSU students, alumni and supporters barely paints a picture of the kick of to the 2009 Cherry Festival Parade earlier this morning. The team joined the MSU Alumni Association, MSU Dance Team, and Sparty as we marched through downtown traverse city and local neighborhoods.

Car 51 ran perfectly all morning thanks to a strong effort from new team leaders who performed an clutch swap the week prior which involves removing the entire engine from the Car. Team members performed a "Nascar" like pit stop performance in the middle of the parade due to a faulty shifting bottle. Again, a big thanks to the guys over at Hagerty who were kind enough to let us use their facilities throughout the parade and helped organize the event.Go

Green, Go White, Go Fast.

Josh Frontiera

Hagerty Family Car Show

2009-07-05T23:35:00.004-04:00

Today the MSU Formula Racing Team attended the Hagerty Family Car Show in downtown Traverse City. Although the theme was UofM vs. MSU, it made for a fun and energetic atmosphere. Car 51 was displayed next to UofM's 2008 Solar Car, both of which drew a tremendous amount of traffic.

As always the questions came rolling in about the program, its affiliation with the University, and what exactly we do. Events like the Hagerty Family Car Show are exciting because it allows team members to talk about all the work they have put into the race car. More specifically, what they have learned from their experience designing, manufacturing, and testing the car.

After the show is over, the team will be rushing Car 51 back to the shop where it will undergoe a clutch replacement and have several of it's systems checked over so that it is ready to lay down rubber in the streets of downtown Traverse City as it partakes in the 2009 Cherry Festival Parade.

Big thanks to all of those at Hagerty who created the fundraiser for the MSU and UofM teams. We really appreciate all the help guys! Visit the Hagerty website for more information and check out the Car Show Video!

Josh

The meaning behind Formula SAE

2009-04-19T23:52:00.024-04:00

Normally, I try to blog from a central point of view of the team. However, I felt that this update would best be spoken from my personal experiences.

A couple of weeks ago, a few team members took Car 51 out to it's latest educational outreach event: a celebration signifying the end of Race for Reading month at Okemos, Michigan’s Edgewood Public Montessori school. During my tenure with the team, I've been privileged to attend several outreach events and to speak with many students about the importance of pursuing collegiate education and what role Formula SAE has had in mine. Bringing a race car along to visually emphasize the 'cool' activities available hasn’t ever hurt such a presentation.

Unfortunately, due to prior commitments, I couldn't personally present at this event. But I was able to help pick the car up, so I stopped by to do so.

Walking into the school library, I saw a very moving and quite adorable sight. Team members Ankit Mathur, Adrienne Burger and Lauren Heitzer were still in the midst of answering questions after their last presentation. This one happened to be to some first graders, and by the looks of them, not more than 6 or 7 years old. There were about 10 or 12 all gathered around Car 51, some with their hands raised, asking questions about the car and who built what on it. They asked about all sorts of things; the colors, what this piece did on the engine, why the tires didn't have tread, and what parts Adrienne, Lauren and Ankit personally made.

Since I am usually on the other side of the presentation, it struck me that I really didn't know what it felt like to just sit back and watch. There is only one word for it: inspirational. Team members have been presenting at schools and hosting work shop tours for quite some time, but I guess that being in front of the crowd much of those times prevented me from fully realizing (or forgetting over the course of time) what a direct impact these events really have on their audiences.

The importance of Formula SAE falls inline with the mission of it's sanctioning body: to educate today's and tomorrow's society about mobility. I think that when you participate in FSAE (or any one of SAE's collegiate design series competitions for that matter), you realize quickly the educational benefits to yourself, your teammates and your competitors. But it's easy to forget or simply overlook the importance that your team and your work play in your community.

This observation made me re-realize this. Those little kids, the future (hopefully) Spartans of our university...our team…our world were so enthralled in this piece of machinery that was, for all practical team-purposes, just a retired race car. But to them, the word 'retired' didn't mean a thing. They possessed an innocence that only allowed them to think about the possibilities that still could exist. They thought about things only in a current and future state of being, and in that sense, only what could be; not ever what would limit or prevent. They are the ultimate optimists.

This was an amazing experience, truly a moment that defined something great.

As I was only an observer here, the credit for this occurrence goes to those who captured the audience's interest, primarily Adrienne, Ankit and Lauren. Additional accolades should be paid to Car 51’s team. These people: team members, sponsors and the teacher's who invited us to Edgewood Montessori, are the facilitators of the young audience's questions that fascinated me that afternoon. I’d like to say thank you to all of you.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Car 12: it's COMING

2009-04-04T19:17:00.002-04:00

Team members continue to work hard to get Car 12 finished; relinquishing their personal lives in order to finish fabrication. Take a look at the various areas that are currently works in progress.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Aero Team Leader Jim Guitar sands one half of the molds for Car 12's rear chassis box

Powertrain TL Drew Darling welds part of Car 12's exhaust together.

Associate Member Adrienne Burger sands Car 12's radiator shroud

Car 12's side pod plugs after priming, sanding and the first half of the fiberglass molds being laid up.

Side pods are back!

2009-03-12T19:04:00.006-04:00

Tonight the plugs came back for Car 12's sidepods. Team alumni Jon Luckhardt's uncle was kind enough to offer up the services of his business to do the machining based upon Aero Team Leader James Guitar's design. In record time, the plugs went from blocks of Huntsman Corporation Renshape to the sculpted plugs that you see here.

Thanks to Huntsman Advanced Materials and Jon and his family for their generosity and support of our program!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Spring Break Team Dinner

2009-03-06T18:56:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, Cockpit Team Leader Hillary Gregory kindly made dinner for everyone who have up their spring break to work on Car 12. Thanks HIllary!

Adam

Foooood

This is one of those real world, less-than-flattering shots of someone. In this case, Powertrain Team Leader Drew Darling.

Associate Team Member Scott Smith enjoys some pop before he heads back into the machine shop.

Hours of Operation

2009-03-05T11:25:00.001-05:00

Team members continue to leapfrog from class to the race car shop each day to work on Car 12. In case some of you aren't familiar with the average work schedule of an MSU Formula SAE Team member, it goes something like this:

Monday, 5-6 pm: arrive at shop
Monday, 12-3 am: leave shop, barely still awake

Tuesday: Repeat Monday's schedule

Wednesday: Repeat Monday's schedule, include General Team Meeting at 7 pm

Thursday: Repeat Monday's schedule

Friday: Repeat Monday's schedule

Saturday, 10 am: arrive at shop
Saturday: 10 pm-3 am: leave shop, barely still awake

Sunday, 10 am: Team Leader's meeting
Sunday, 11 am: fabrication starts
Sunday, 10 pm-3 am: leave shop, barely still awake

Additionally, all procurement of supplies and sponsorship relations, plus any shipping and receiving of outsourced components, are handled during business hours each weekday.

Here are a few pictures of some of the fabrication that has taken place during these hours and more. Enjoy!

Adam

(L to R: Brakes System Team Leader Erik Stitt, Wheel Assy TL Steve Schofield, Chief Engineer Andy Rogers, and Associate Brian Smith working on the uprights for Car 12.)

Brakes System Team Leader Erik Stitt assembles one of the fixtures for Car 12's uprights

Chief Engineer Andy Rogers gives some technical directions to Wheel Assy TL Steve Schofield and Powertrain TL Drew Darling

Upright: A Work In Progress

Welding

Most Dedicated Team Members: January & February

2009-03-04T19:32:00.003-05:00

A tonight's general meeting, the first Most Dedicated Team Members 2009 were announced. As has occasionally happened in the past with this award, we had a tie. Both Scott Smith and Brian Smith worked extremely hard during January, seemingly never leaving the shop. Though this was the case with many people, it was felt amongst senior team members that both Scott and Brian had really distinguished themselves over and above everyone with the time they put into the team and their constant positive work ethic during this month. Congrats to both!

February was a busy month for the team and for Mike O'Brien, the March 2009 Most Dedicated Team Member. Consistently throughout this heavy build month, Mike was at the shop fabricating. His work ethic and productivity set a good example for both new and old team members alike and helped motivate others to work harder. A huge thanks to Mike!

Progress on Car 12 continues

2009-02-21T11:11:00.007-05:00

It's been a little while since we posted up pictures of what team members spend the vast majority of their time doing: fabrication. Here are a few pictures highlighting the many late nights that have carried through into early mornings for team members of the past few weeks.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Cockpit Team Leader Hillary Gregory and Associate Team Member Adrienne Burger work together to manufacture Car 12's all carbon fiber steering wheel.

Removing the VARTM material from Car 12's undertray (L to R: Brian Smith, Andy Rogers, Hillary Gregory, James Guitar, Jordan Smart, Jordan Guitar)

Associate Andrew Mozer works on some of the finishing touches on Aero Team Leader James Guitar's undertray for Car 12.

A few frontal impact attenuators, post testing. Physical testing of each Formula SAE entry's front impact attenuator is required by SAE. The design, manufacturing and testing of these pieces and the corresponding fixture to test them with has occupied many hours of Cockpit Team Leader Hillary Gregory and Associate Adrienne Burger's time since the late fall months.

Uni: Part V

2009-02-07T20:30:00.000-05:00

Car 12's molds are back from their second cure at Pratt & Whitney AutoAir's autoclave, and are currently being prepared for the third and final section prior to being able to being able to be used to actually manufacture Car 12's chassis. A huge thanks to Pratt & Whitney and team alum Kevin Mead for generously providing the autoclave usage to make Car 12 possible!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

North American International Auto Show

2009-01-27T20:55:00.004-05:00

The team just wrapped it's 4th time exhibiting at the North American International Auto Show; one of the largest and most prestigious showings of automotive design in the world. For the last two weeks, team members have road-tripped down to Cobo Hall in Detroit to show off the last three iterations of MSU's Formula SAE cars.

This year, we were proud to center our display around the team's Go Clean environmental campaign. Contrary to many of the questions that we received during the NAIAS simply surrounding biofuels, to Go Clean is about far more than just running cleaner fuels. To us - 'greening up' the automobile is about doing everything that we can to remove our team, our manufacturing, and of course the final product - Car 12 - from the environmental impact equation. Have a look at the Go Clean website and learn more!

The team would like to extend an extra special thanks to all of the companies who made our 2009 NAIAS possible. Without the help from all of the generous people at the North American International Auto Show, especially the dedicated Director of Exhibit Compliance, Marilyn Doebler, our NAIAS displays would never come to fruition. The team would also like to thank Eric Flynn and Paul Kokesh of EPJ Logistics and Tonic, for all of their help to sponsor and transport our display items. Additionally, we would like to thank Mike French of The George P. Johnson Company, Dan Reske and Colleen Weir of Motor City Electric Company, Ed Guile of ASAP Printing, William Van Cleve of Foto 1 Imaging, and especially the Tanari Family, Bobby Whiting and Chris Michelin of Convention and Show Services. It is because of all of these individuals and companies that our display in Michigan Hall was made possible.

If you didn't have a chance to see it in person, take a look at the pictures below for a tour!

Most Dedicated Team Members: November & December

2009-01-21T19:02:00.003-05:00

Due to the the two holiday breaks and final exam week playing havoc with our schedule, we got a bit behind in awarding the most dedicated team member award for November. As school just resumed, post winter break, we decided to kill the proverbial two birds with one stone and award both team members' awards tonight.

For November, the Most Dedicated Team Member accolade went to Josh Frontiera. Josh spent many hours handling and staffing outreach events for the team as well as playing an active role in manufacturing Car 12 all month long. Due to his commitment and abilities to put the team ahead of many things in his life, it was easy to see that he deserved this special recognition. Congrats Josh!

The month of December is marked by a strong push in manufacturing - something that is necessary to keep the progress of the car going and take advantage of the lack of schoolwork during MSU's winter break. Because of this, we knew that December's Most Dedicated Team Member was most likely going to be someone who literally lived at the shop over break. We were pleasantly not surprised when that person was Adrienne Burger. Adrienne spent almost more hours at the shop over break than there were in the break itself! The team is truly indebted to Adrienne and those who follow in her footsteps. She serves as an excellent ambassador to all who want to be successful in the realm of Formula SAE. Congrats Adrienne, you have definitely earned this recognition!

Uni: Part IV

2009-01-15T20:18:00.000-05:00

Construction of Car 12's chassis molds has begun with the first layer of pre-preg carbon fiber tooling, donated generously by the nice folks at Cytec Engineered Materials. Many thanks to Bill England for his help in getting us the material to make Car 12's molds possible.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Chief Engineer Andy Rogers and Aero Team Leader lay the Cytec tooling carbon fiber to make Car 12's chassis molds

Car 12 manufacturing

2009-01-14T23:20:00.000-05:00

Manufacturing for Car 12 has been going on for quite some time now, concurrent with the ending of the Design phase. As the spring semester ramps up, I thought it would be a good idea to highlight some of the hard work that team members have been doing at the shop.

Adam

Associate Team Member Brian Smith works on one of the manual mills

Cockpit Team Leader Hillary Gregory works on the mold for Car 12's seat insert

Associate Team Member Adrienne Burger and Cockpit Team Leader Hillary Gregory work on vaccuum bagging one of Car 12's many composite components

Associate Team Member Andrew Mozer turns down a steel piece on the LeBlonde lathe

Uni: Part III

2009-01-12T19:44:00.000-05:00

Progress on Car 12's monocoque chassis continues. Here you can see the plugs in their finished state, ready to be used for production of the molds.

Enjoy!

Adam

Uni, Part II

2008-12-14T22:56:00.001-05:00

Last week, we got a very exciting call from Ken Wallace at one of our Platinum Sponsors; Demmer Corporation. He called to give one simple message: the monocoque plugs were done!

Here are some pictures just after the plugs came back from being machined. Over the next several weeks, team members will spend hours sanding, priming, and sanding the plugs until they are smooth enough to lay up Car 12's chassis molds.

A HUGE thanks to the Demmer family and all of the people at Demmer Corporation, especially Ken Wallace, Jeane Royale, Justin Judge, Roger Smith and Mark Lehman for handling all of the work necessary to make this very important step of Car 12, complete. Below are some pictures of the plugs taken the day of pick-up.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Design Day

2008-12-08T19:47:00.008-05:00

At the close of each semester, the MSU College of Engineering hosts Design Day at the MSU Union. Over the years, Design Day has grown to a two-day affair where middle school students, faculty and industry representatives gather to hear and see semester-long design projects and presentations from MSU students. We bring our newest Formula SAE representation to these events to describe and show guests the tremendous experience that this competition plays in team members' educations. Here are some pictures from both days.

Adam

Team Member & Operations Guru Josh Frontiera talks with a guest about Car 51

As you can see from the next several pictures, Sparty had quite a good time at his photoshoot with Car 51...

Operations Team Member Josh Frontiera with Sparty

Cockpit Team Member Adrienne Burger with Sparty

Trip to Ann Arbor Pioneer High School

2008-11-30T20:35:00.001-05:00

Just before Thanksgiving, Chief Engineer Andy Rogers and I trailered Car 51 to Ann Arbor Pioneer High School to talk to teacher Bobby Klemmer's advanced mathematics classes about the importance that math and science plays in engineering. We presented to all five of Mr. Klemmer's classes about the team, Car 51 and specifically what the role of mathematics was in Team Leader Paul Strefling's design of Car 51's optimized chassis system. All of the students were very smart and had many intelligent questions for us; helping to again remind us of the importance of our role in encouraging post-secondary education, especially that of a technical nature, in our communities.

12/15/08: I've added Mr. Klemmer's very nice comments below. Thanks so much for having us, Bobby! Also thanks to Mr. Borovsky for allowing us to store Car 51 in the Auto Show for the day!

"I would like to send my sincere thanks and appreciation to the Michigan State College of Engineering and the MSU Formula Racing Team, in particular. On November 25th, Adam Zemke (Project Manager) and Andy Rogers (Lead Engineer) represented the team and Michigan State Engineering very well by conducting multiple presentations for my advanced mathematics classes at Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, MI. My Calculus and Pre-Calculus students were extremely interested and impressed with the possibilities that were shared with them about the practicality of high-level math and science. Adam and Andy were very informative and knowledgeable, answering many of the students' questions and enthusiastically presenting many details of the race car designed by the racing team. My students were inspired that day, and many having been talking about formula racing since then. As a matter of fact, a couple students mentioned that they want to consider attending MSU because of the Formula Racing Team. As a teacher, I am very grateful for opportunities to show my students the relevance of studying math and science. This was the epitome of such an opportunity. Thank you very much to Adam Zemke, Andy Rogers, the MSU Formula Racing Team, and MSU College of Engineering. Keep up the good work on the race cars, and I look forward to hopefully working with you again in the future. Go State!

Sincerely, Bobby Klemmer (1999 MSU graduate)"

Go Pioneers!

Adam

FIRST LEGO League Tournament

2008-11-17T18:31:00.001-05:00

Each November, the team brings MSU's newest Formula SAE car to the Michigan Regional FIRST LEGO League Tournament, held on campus at MSU. Anyone who is familiar with the concept of the FIRST LEGO program knows that these things are WAY cool and the kids who build them are really smart. The concept involves creating autonomous robots out of LEGO's that traverse obstacles on a course. The obstacle locations are fixed, but the participants don't know which ones await them until they get to the tournament. Each team is responsible for programming their robot to perform the course successfully. MSU has hosted the Mid-Michigan Regional Tournament for several years now. At this stage of the series, participants are only one step away from going to the Statewide competition.

We bring our race cars each year to show LEGO Leaguers and their parents alike of the educational extracurricular opportunities that are available at MSU. As I said, these kids are really smart, so the caliber of questions that we receive from them tends to be almost shockingly good. As in previous years, we had a great time and had some great conversations with (hopefully) some future Formula SAEers.

Adam

Competition Tables

October's Most Dedicated Team Member

2008-11-12T19:40:00.001-05:00

Tonight, we named the first Most Dedicated Team Member of Car 12's Team. This award is given each month to non-leaders/manager team member(s) who go over and above the duties of an Introductory team member. Jordan Kozelka, MSU Physics Junior, was the first recipient. Congrats Jordan!

Adam

YES! Expo

2008-11-08T18:15:00.001-05:00

Each fall, the team joins the MSU College of Engineering at the Youth, Engineering & Science (YES!) Expo at Ford Field in Detroit. This event is a lot of fun and allows team members to see the impact that a Formula SAE car and the FSAE concept has on America's youth.

Budding Operations Team star Josh Frontiera represented the team very well at this event and was kept busy with questions all day by the over 15,000 students who attended. Great job, Josh!

Adam

Formula SAE California Registration

2008-11-06T19:26:00.002-05:00

Today we completed registration for the 2nd of Car 12's Formula SAE Competitions, that which takes place at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. Due to Car 51's 4th place finish at this event in 2008, we were awarded the vehicle No. 4 for the 2009 event.

California poses different logistical and competition challenges from Michigan, but also allows us to experience racing under the hot (usually ~90 deg F+) California sun; just where it was meant to be done. It is here where, unlike Michigan, cold weather isn't the limiting factor for the cars...the upper echelon of temperature is. With late June temperatures as high as they are in SoCal, keeping the race cars cool is often our hardest challenge. But the ability to push the cars to the limits of the tires is well worth the trouble.

Competition dates are from Wednesday, June 17 through Saturday, June 20th at Auto Club Speedway. Each day is free and open to the public. As with Michigan, we'll be hosting a breakfast on Saturday morning for family, friends and sponsors at our paddock. Please let us know if you would like to attend!

Adam

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T19:20:00.000-04:00

From all of us on the team, please have a safe and fun halloween!

Adam

The beginning of the Uni

2008-10-30T21:41:00.002-04:00

Uni. Mono. One.

These words symbolize, among other things, the prefix to a singular body, or chassis, as in the case of MSU's newest Formula SAE car; Car 12. For the better part of a decade, MSU Formula SAE Teams have produced chassis based upon 4130 Chromoly Steel space frames; structures consisting of tubes that are welded together. Though the team has designed and manufactured some amazing chassis out of steel; due to rules changes for 2009, this style of chassis manufacture has become less advantageous to continue with.

For over a year now, Composite Chassis Team Leader Josh Heyden has been developing the design of what is now Car 12's full-composite monocoque chassis. By definition, a monocoque is a structural skin that supports loads that otherwise would be applied to an internal load-bearing frame covered by a skin, the latter being very similar to 2008 MSU Car 51. This type of design and manufacture, combined with modern composite techniques, allows for significant weight savings and the ability to locate inner suspension points essentially where ever best suits to generate desired vehicle dynamics performance. The downsides to this type of chassis are that it is significantly more expensive than a space frame, requires far more planning, more time allotted for manufacturing, and also the use of an Autoclave to cure. However, given some rules changes for the 2009 Formula SAE season, we felt long ago that this was a good time to transition to the monocoque technique.

Over the past few weeks, Composite Chassis Team Leader Josh Heyden has been wrapping up the design of Car 12's monocoque chassis and preparing the blocks of Huntsman Renshape that will become the plugs to make molds that will eventually generate the vehicle's chassis. At this time, thanks to long-time Platinum Sponsor Demmer Corporation, the Huntsman-donated Renshape blocks are being machined to create Car 12's chassis plugs.

Below are some pictures from epoxying the Ren-sheets together to form the blocks. We'll keep everyone updated as the most-exciting component of Car 12 continues!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Composite Chassis Team Leader Josh Heyden and Aerodynamics Team Leader Jim Guitar drill holes to center the blocks on their respective risers

A completed block

Sponsor Drive

2008-10-15T16:29:00.010-04:00

As the fall leaves began to change fully from green to orange and brown, we hosted one of the team's oldest traditions: the Sponsor Drive. Despite the name, the event is really a gathering for team member's families, alumni, friends, fans and of course, the people who make all of this possible; sponsors.

In some past years, the weather for the Sponsor Drive hasn't been very pleasant. Even rain and hail have frequented us. But this year, the only problems that we encountered were too much sun and too warm of temperatures. Below are some pictures of the event.

Adam

Team alum and Pratt & Miller Engineering employee Ben LeVesque with 2009 Powertrain Team Leader Drew Darling

Team alum and Pratt & Miller Engineering employee John Lankes makes the first laps of the day in 2007 Car 9

Brian Gruber (L) and Ken Wallace (R) from Platinum Sponsor Demmer Corporation take a look at the packaging on Car 51

Aerodynamics Team Leader Jim Guitar talks with his father; In-kind Sponsor Ralph Guitar from Performance Plus of Kalamzoo

Ken Wallace, Chief Engineer on our project at Platinum Sponsor Demmer Corporation

Friends from Sakor and PME

It was very sunny out

In addition to the sweet sound of the race cars, we listened to music from the Jukebox provided by Zemke Operated Machines

Thank you to all of the sponsors of this year's Sponsor Drive: MSU Pavilion, Michigan International Speedway, Zemke Operated Machines, MSU Landscaping, Foto 1 Imaging, The Center for Spartan Engineering, Mr. Craig Gunn, MSU Museum, and EZ Party Rentals.

MSU Homecoming Celebration

2008-10-08T15:08:00.016-04:00

The first weekend of October was marked with the MSU Homecoming Celebration; consisting of Friday's parade and a tailgate for Platinum Sponsor the College of Engineering on Saturday. As the homecoming parade is traditionally experienced in sub-40 degree F temperatures and rain; we were happy to welcome mid-50 degree F weather and an overcast sky. Enjoy some pictures of Car 51 and team; the former being piloted by 2008 Powertrain and Driving Team Leader Andy Gryczan.

Adam

2009 Team with 2008 race car 51 and GM-donated race support truck

Andy with Johnny Spirit

2009 Data Acquisition Team Leader Marshall Mendoza with Car 51 Cockpit Team Leader Elizabeth Carroll

Final preparation for the parade

Formula SAE Registration

2008-10-06T18:55:00.001-04:00

This morning, our 2009 Formula SAE Car and Team was officially named. As we completed registration for the 2009 Formula SAE Competition at Michigan International Speedway, we received our new vehicle numbers: Car 12. As is tradition at MSU, cars are named after the numbers for the Michigan event. This dates back to the days of Formula SAE where there was only one event in the United States, and as such, those numbers were what the car always was. Though the team now attends two US-events, we have kept the same ideology and remained true to the MSU teams of the past.

Competition dates are Wednesday, May 13 through Saturday, May 16, 2009. Each day is free and open to the public, and we'll be hosting a breakfast at our paddock on Saturday morning for friends, family and sponsors. Please let us know if you would like to come!

Adam

Fall Testing

2008-09-30T15:50:00.011-04:00

Always looking to get ahead in driver preparation, we spent some time over the past couple of weeks shaking in Car 51 with potential new drivers. This is very important this year as Powertrain and Driving Team Leader Andy Gryczan is graduating soon and may not be able to pilot a race car during the 2009 Formula SAE series. Thankfully, the turbulent Michigan weather cooperated for us for a few days; allowing many of Car 51's team to obtain some much needed seat time. The team would like to extend a special thanks to Scott Rancor and the MSU Pavilion for allowing us to use one of their large lots for testing. Below are some pictures from the testing sessions.

Adam

2009 Chief Engineer Andrew Rogers

Taking lap times

A close encounter with a cone

Flying down the front straight

Discussing driving

Gary 'Doc' Cloud, long-time Faculty Advisor and 2008 Carrol Smith Award winner, looks on

Last run of the day

Fall Recruitment

2008-09-12T17:38:00.001-04:00

Fall recruitment meeting posted a large number of attendees coming from a variety of majors within the university. As the team requires persons who are able to wear many different hats while juggling school and personal obligations with long hours on the team; large, well-publicized recruitment sessions are important to attract the right people. We are honest with potential team members during recruitment; telling them that Formula isn't for everyone and that in order to be successful, the will have to work long and hard. Since September recruitment, it is inspiring to see that we have retained many devoted, passionate persons who have and continue to work very hard to bring Car 12 closer to fruition. Here are some pictures from September's recruitment.

Adam

Sparticipation

2008-09-02T15:49:00.006-04:00

With the start of Sparticipation; the annual student organization gala at MSU, it is clear that the fall (and therefore classes) are once-again upon us. On Saturday, 8/23, the team trailered Cars 51 and 9 to campus and set up a small display. The cars received lots of attention and we were busy talking nearly the entire time.

Sparty stopped by again, and this time, as we had Car 51 on hand, we snapped a couple more photos of him. It was a fun time for all right up until the wind began blowing like crazy and starting to rain, thereby forcing us to head back to the shop.

Adam

Engineering Colloquium

2008-09-02T15:44:00.012-04:00

The arrival of students on campus each fall means one thing above all others: Recruitment. We know that recruiting new students to the team each year is absolutely vital to completing all that we set out to do each year and to the continued advancement of our program.

The College of Engineering invited us to have a display at the new Engineering Colloquium, held in the courtyard of the Engineering Building, here on campus. This introductory event for new students was no boring affair - complete with a rock climbing wall, a DJ and our mascot, Sparty.

Chief Engineer Andy Rogers and I attended and managed to coerce Sparty (carefully) into Car 9 for a photograph.

Adam

Safety Technology International Anniversary Celebration

2008-09-02T15:12:00.008-04:00

On Friday, 8/22, the team split up and performed double-duty with Powertrain Electrical Team Leader Leslie Hodges heading down to one of our sponsors, Safety Technology International, for their anniversary celebration, while Chief Engineer Andy Rogers and I took 2007 Car 9 to the Engineering Colloquium for a recruitment event.

Woodward Dream Cruise

2008-09-02T14:45:00.011-04:00

The second week of August was a busy one for the team. The morning after returning from the CAR MBS, we headed down to Royal Oak for the crème de la crème of car shows: the Woodward Dream Cruise. Held every August on a multi-mile stretch of the infamous Woodward Avenue, the Dream Cruise attracts hundreds of thousands of cars and millions of enthusiasts, collectors and curious passersby. The SAE Foundation invited the team to bring Car 51 to their display in Eaton Performance Park, located right in the middle of the mayhem at 13 mile and Woodward.

Though it was a typical Michigan humidity-enhanced summer day, team members had a great time talking with cruisers, staff and guests of Eaton Corporation. The Dream Cruise is very much a family-affair and we had the pleasure of talking with the old, the middle and the future of hot rodding in America; including many potential race car drivers.

Thank you to all of the folks at the SAE Foundation for sharing your day with us. A special thanks to Rick Rachner, Ginny Whipple and Nancy Lewis at SAE for all of the helpful direction and making arrangements for our spot at the Performance Park.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast,

Adam

CAR Management Briefing Seminars

2008-09-02T13:32:00.009-04:00

The first event of August is one that we had been looking forward to for quite some time: the Automotive Management Briefing Seminars, hosted by the Center for Automotive Research and held in one of the most beautiful areas of Michigan: Traverse City. We first began attending the MBS in 2007, and were delighted when CAR invited us back again for the 2008 event.

For those not familiar, the Management Briefing Seminars are a week-long series of conferences and talks where industry executives and insiders gather to discuss issues facing the automotive industry. Held every August at the Grand Traverse Resort and Spa, the conferences are a fantastic opportunity for networking and getting the inside scoop on what's going on with everything automotive. Even better, the up north atmosphere that Traverse City provides adds a relaxing breath from the hustle and bustle of the motor city.

We spent the week talking with executives and staff from several of our sponsors, our sanctioning body, and many others associated with the auto world. Additionally, at Wednesday's Industry dinner, Steve Hechtman of the UM Solar Car Team and I hopped on stage and gave a fun and humorous mockery of the MSU-UM rivalry.

Last year, I left TC feeling very impressed by a fun and exciting event. I didn't think that anything could top it. I was wrong; MBS 2008 was even better. A big thank you to David Cole, Kathy Watson, Debbie Schilz and all of the staff and attendees of this past conference for making our stay so enjoyable.

Adam

Make-A-Wish Heroes Hurrah

2008-09-02T11:59:00.010-04:00

At the end of July, the team was invited to bring Car 51 to the concluding celebration of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan's Heroes Hurrah bicycle race at the Chelsea Fairgrounds in Chelsea, Michigan. This was the first opportunity for many of the MAW staff to see Car 51 and the beautiful Make-A-Wish photograph emblazoned on her in-person, as a result of the team's partnership with MAW in our 2008 Race for a Cause campaign.

We had a great time at the Heroes Hurrah, spending the afternoon talking with hundreds of Make-A-Wish supporters and their families as they came cruising across the finish line. As is very typical with our putting cars on display, we encouraged many kids to sit in Car 51 and be a race car driver for a few minutes. It is always gratifying to see their faces light up as they grab the wheel.

Thanks again to Susan Lerch, Kedrin Gall and all of the fantastic employees of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan for welcoming the team so warmly and allowing us to be a part of your organization this past racing season. It is an honor to be a part of a cause that is so worthwhile.

Adam

Rolling Sculpture Car Show

2008-07-21T14:35:00.008-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, we trailered Car 51 to Ann Arbor for the Rolling Sculpture Car Show; an event that regularly hosts about 400 cars and a whole mass of enthusiasts and passerbys alike. Now...some of you may be wondering why we would dare venture into the middle of Wolverine country with our prized race car. I have to admit that, in driving there, I too was wondering how we'd be received.

This process all began several months ago when car show director Chris Finney had contacted the team about being part of an area of the show devoted to education; an area called "The Dream Arena." As he explained, his vision with this area was to "get the wheels turning" in the heads of the show's youthful attendees. As many of you know, throughout the year, team members regularly take our latest and greatest cars out to schools and groups of students to show them some of the opportunities that are available at a collegiate level. In talking with Chris, it was easy to see that his educational-vision was very similar to ours, so naturally, we were quite excited when he asked us to participate in the show.

I am happy to report that the show went very, very well. In fact, it was one of the most fun events that I've been to yet. The weather was perfect, the streets were packed with cars and enthusiastic attendees, and everyone who stopped by was really nice. Downtown Ann Arbor provided the perfect backdrop for the evening and there were quite a few comments on the Race for a Cause program. Hopefully, these comments came from donors to the 2009 Race-Cause initiative.

We've already spoken with show organizers about participating again, so if you live in the Ann Arbor area and missed us this year, be sure to swing by next July. Here are a few pictures from this year's event. Enjoy!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

*Photography credited to Hillary Gregory, Cockpit Team Leader

Post Comp Days: Santa Monica & a trip to see our friends Jay and Bernard.

2008-07-16T16:04:00.017-04:00

In the days after Formula SAE West, we had the pleasure of traveling around southern California, battling traffic and sun burns.

On Sunday, the day following competition, we were stuck in California (we know; we're suffering), awaiting our visit to the Big Dog Garage to show Jay and Bernard Car 51. As such, we decided a visit to the beach in Santa Monica was in order. Following this, we headed south to Long Beach for an evening of grilling at Cockpit Team Leader Elizabeth Carroll's apartment. Thanks for having everyone, Liz!

Monday morning, we were up early and (luckily) had little difficulty battling the traffic from Long Beach to Burbank. While unloading, Jay drove past us in the same yellow Hudson Hornet that he was driving the last time we stopped by. We rolled Car 51 up to one of Jay's multiple garages and, upon knocking on the door, were greeted by the big man himself, who opened a garage door and ushered us inside.

We introduced the team and with a quick showing of hands of new team members - it was apparent that over 75% of the team hadn't been to Jay's place before. Following introductions, Jay gave us a personal tour of the entire facility, stopping at over a dozen cars and telling us the history of the manufacturer, model and exact vehicle sitting before us. Often times, he even went into depth about the previous owners. It is really amazing at the wealth of knowledge that Jay has about his collection; I'm surprised each time we've visited.

Also impressive was that the Big Dog Garage went Green in a major way since last June. Reducing waste and using clean-manufacturing methods for fabrication of parts was cool to hear about, but even cooler was that through the use of a turn-of-the-20th-century electric generator and with the addition of solar panels, the garage is now energy independent of the City of Burbank (sometimes even feeding energy back into the grid). Congratulations on these great accomplishments, guys!

Arriving back at Car 51, Bernard and another employee of Jay's stopped by. I asked the man if he worked there and his laughing reply was priceless: "Yes, if you can call this work." All I can say is that it must be nice. We spent the next half an hour talking with Jay and Bernard about the evolution from Car 9 to Car 51, as well as letting them in on some secrets in-store for the 2009 car. The talk ended by giving Jay, Bernard and Bernard's wife, Rosalie, their own MSU Formula Racing Team Denim shirts. We know that Jay loves denim shirts, so we thought the gift was quite fitting.

Thanking them all for another great tour, we loaded Car 51 back into the semi, hopped onto the expressway and bid our driver, Darick, a fond farewell.

We spent the rest of the day walking around Hollywood, before heading to Hermosa Beach for dinner with team alum Mark Brown. Our final day in socal was spent relaxing and meandering around the Hermosa pier before making the short jaunt down Pacific Coast Highway to LAX and hopping on a plane to head home.

I think that I can speak for everyone who went when I say it was another trip of a lifetime. A second one, for some of us. We hope that you enjoyed the pictures and video; we certainly enjoyed your comments and emails. Reading them, it felt like some of you were right here with us.

I'll be updating the blog throughout the summer as we travel around the midwest exhibiting Car 51 at various shows, educational events, and Make-A-Wish functions. Just look in the Events column of our website to see where we'll be - many of these are open to the public and free of charge.

Finally, please don't hesitate to contact me if you ever would like any of the pictures you've seen here: zemkeada@msu.edu.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Southern California Coastline

Pier in Santa Monica

Another shot of the Santa Monica pier

Friends

End of the day

Our newest team members: Jay Leno & Bernard Juchli

Team @ the Big Dog Garage

As the movie Hancock was opening at the Kodak Theater the next day, the street was partially blocked off.

Hollywood Sign

Endurance!

2008-07-16T12:02:00.040-04:00

Pictures from the day of the Endurance race at Formula SAE West. Also included are Design Finals and a couple of the Awards ceremony.

Adam

Car 51 getting scaled prior to the race.

2009 Powertrain Electrical Team Leader Leslie Hodges fixes a last-minute pulled wire

Topside of Nosecone

Heading to the Endurance track.

And we're off with Andy Gryczan at the wheel!

Going through the first slalom

Mid-track

I believe this is Andy's last lap, signaling the mid-point of the race and time for a driver change

Driver Change successful - time for the Goad Show!

Brandon @ mid-track. I was close to the track here and remember hearing the engine absolutely screaming (due to being stuck in 1st gear).

Heading into the final S curve

Hi Goad!

Final lap!

Last round of Design: Powertrain was a hot topic for this event.

2009 Chief Engineer Andy Rogers discusses Car 51's Chassis optimizer, developed by Team Leader Paul Strefling.

Jordan discusses Suspension Kinematics with some of the best.

Chassis discussion

Cooling system questions

Getting tired towards the end of Design.

Note: Andy Gryczan is STILL talking about Powertrain. He talked for approximately 89 minutes and 30 seconds out of the 90 minute round. Fantastic job Andy!

Receiving a final critique from Design Chief Mike O'Neil.
3rd Place: Western Washington Univ., 2nd Place: Univ. of Washington, 1st Place: Michigan State!

Video of the Critique. Credit goes to 2009 Powertrain Mechanical Oiling/Cooling Team Leader Marcus McDuffie for the camera work.

Design Finalists (LtoR: W. Washington, MSU, U.Washington)
Photograph: Miki Hegedon, TU Delft

2008 MSU Formula SAE West Competition Team
Photograph: Miki Hegedon, TU Delft

A series of two: our dedicated Faculty Advisor, Dr. Gary Cloud, simply known as "Doc" to those of us on the team, receiving the SCCA Carroll Smith Mentor's Cup. Since 1999, the Mentor's Cup has been given annually to the most dedicated Faculty Advisor in the Formula SAE series. Congratulations to Doc - you definitely deserve it! We cannot say thank you enough for everything you do for the team.

Leaving Auto Club Speedway.

AutoX, Accel & Skidpad Pictures

2008-07-08T14:43:00.022-04:00

Just a few photos from the days of Autocross, Acceleration, and Skidpad at FSAE West!

Adam

2009 Brakes System Team Leader Erik Stitt tops off the brake fluid prior to Skidpad

2009 Financial Sponsorship Team Leader Corrie Zitkus served as the spotter for our friend Miki Hegedus from TU Delft throughout the dynamic event days.

Staging for Skidpad with Missouri S&T

Suspension Team Leader Jordan Smart on the Figure 8 Skidpad

Looking out to the track

Scott Williams heads down the backside of the Acceleration strip

Trying to sort out our traction control system problems, Part I.

TC problems, Part II. We eventually had to just turn the system off, preventing us from duplicating our 2007 competition record-setting acceleration run.

Andy Gryczan on his 1st Autocross run of the day

Andy AutoX, Part deux

Brandon's 1st Autocross lap

Brandon's fastest lap - plagued by partially-clogged fuel lines (and the associated loss in power)

4th out of 55 and we won design!

2008-07-01T03:30:00.004-04:00

Sorry about the delay here folks, we've been a bit time-limited recently and currently don't have a very fast internet connection. However, I wanted to let you all know about what's been happening so far. The Endurance Race in Fontana last Saturday was filled with lots of excitement and a bit of dissapointment. Driving Team Leader Andy Gryczan headed out for the first half of the race and was running fast for about 5 laps, at which point he discovered that he couldn't shift out of 1st gear. However, thanks to his driving experience, he continued his remaining 5 laps and brought the car in for the mandatory mid-point driver change, signaling to second driver Brandon Goad that he only had first gear to drive in.

Brandon headed out onto the track and ran his full ten laps in that one gear, passing multiple teams in the process. He brought Car 51 back into the pits to complete the Endurance race running, as we later found out, faster lap times that a lot of the teams at the venue. Combined, both drivers earned MSU a 5th place finish in Endurance.

Following the race, Chief Scrutineer Michael Royce directed us to bring Car 51 to a post-race technical inspection, to make sure that we weren't cheating. Car 51 passed, and we headed off to clean her up and prepare for Design Finals. Three hours later, finals were over and we had a brief chanace to relax. I say brief, because head Design Judge Mike O'Neil then called all of the finalists (MSU, Western Washington University, University of Washington) back to the garage for a public review. Mike first spoke about the importance of design and what the judges were looking for out of each team, and then hopped off of the table to announce the 3rd place team. He headed towards Car 51 and then turned around to face Western Washington. After he was finished, he then turned towards us again and followed this up by a 180 degree rotation to announce that University of Washington was the 2nd place finisher. Finally, he came to Car 51 and announced that by far, she was the best-designed car at the event, giving MSU our first ever win in the Design event. He specifically cited the team's advanced powertrain development as an extremely strong point. Powertrain Mechanical Team Leader Andy Gryczan beaming.

Later that evening, we sat through an outdoor awards ceremony in which our Faculty Advisor, Dr. Gary "Doc" Cloud received mention of his recently-awarded SCCA Carroll Smith Mentors Cup for the Best Advisor in Formula SAE. The title is named after world-renouned race car engineer and ardent FSAE supporter Carroll Smith and is given annually to the team advisor most-worthy of the title. It is a true honor and all of us on the team, past members and present, thank him for all that he does and congradulate him on this recognition.

We knew that the results of the competition were going to be close, but even we were surprised when SAE Collegiate Program Manager Steve Daum announced that we placed 4th overall. As much as we want to win, the cards just didn't fall in-line for us on this one, and 4th place isn't too shabby, especially considering that this event had 80 teams registered for it. Just for the record, we were only 20 points out of 1000 possible away from finishing in 1st.

Here are the results broken down by event:

Cost/Manufacturing: 21st
Presentation: 6th
Design: 1st

Acceleration: 11th
Skidpad: 14th
Autocross: 9th
Endurance/Fuel Economy: 5th

Overall: 4th

Addtional accolades were received by receiving the Honda Design Award and an honorable mention from Altair Engineering for the William R. Adam Engineering Excellence Award. This was given to us as a result of Team Leader Paul Strefling's Chassis optimizer.

It's very late as I post this and the internet connection here is quite slow, so i'll post some pictures and more updates tomorrow.

Adam

Friday's Events

2008-06-28T10:43:00.002-04:00

Friday was a hot smoggy day here in Fontana. The hard work from Thursday's events paid off as the team is one of three finalist for Design. Other static events scores include 6th in Presentation and 21st in the Cost/Manufacturing event. The dynamic events all earned top 15 placement with an Acceleration placement of 11, Skip pad placement of 14th, and an Autocross place of 8th setting us in the fast heat for endurance at 9 am Pacific time. The team is excited for Saturday's line up of endurance, design finals, and awards. That's all from California, pictures of the events are coming soon.

Race for Kristin's wish!

2008-06-27T16:15:00.008-04:00

Just a reminder that tomorrow, Saturday, June 28, 2008 is the last Endurance race of the 2008 season, and therefore will be the conclusion of our 2008 Race for a Cause campaign for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan.

But there is still time for you to pledge to help our wish kid, Kristin, fulfill her dream of being a zoo keeper for a day! We'll be accepting pledges through 11:59 PM Pacific time tomorrow (Sat, June 28, 2008).

To make help make this wish possible, just visit the Pledge Page on www.race-cause.com and make a pledge. You can choose to contribute either by lump sum or on a per-lap basis. 100% of all donations go directly to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan.

If you have any questions at all, please email me at zemkeada@msu.edu or post up a comment here; team members check the blog several times throughout the day.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Static Events

2008-06-27T02:36:00.019-04:00

Today was the first day of static events at Formula SAE West. As we don't have scores in yet, I can't comment for sure on our standing thus far in the competition. However, I will tell you that I saw all three events today: Presentation, Cost/Manufacturing and Design, and felt that they went very well. In fact, Design preliminaries went so well that we were asked back for semi-finals.

Additionally, we completed the final three steps in Scrutineering: passing the Braking, Noise and Tilt tests. Suspension Team Leader Jordan Smart completed the sufficient braking lock-up on his second try, and Car 51 blew 108 decibels (maximum allowable emitted sound is 110 db) in the noise test, thereby allowing us to obtain the other two parts to our three-part inspection sticker.

Tomorrow is the day of the first three dynamic events, or events where the car is in motion. These include Acceleration, Skidpad and Autocross. As Formula SAE is really an educational competition that tests participants and the vehicles that they've brought, each dynamic event poses a different test and reason for running in it.

Skidpad, consisting of a large figure-8 course, is designed to test each cars' lateral acceleration. The easiest way to think of this is that it tests how fast each car can travel around a corner.

Acceleration, consisting of a 75 meter inline sprint, is essentially a drag race that is meant to test each vehicle's inline acceleration from rest.

Autocross. Formula SAE cars are designed and built primarily for autocross courses; road-style race courses that feature short straightaways and very tight corners. The spirit behind FSAE has always been to create vehicles to own for an affordable racing endeavor; something the weekend 'enthusiast' can go out and use without breaking the bank. The most affordable type of road racing is, by a vast majority, autocrossing.

It's quite late, so that's about it for now. Below are some pictures from today. Enjoy!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Getting set up for Cost/Manufacturing

Scott Williams reviews the Braking system design with a judge in Design Preliminaries

Powertrain Mechanical Team Leader Andy Gryczan discusses his system with a judge, also in Preliminaries.

Car on stands in Design Semi-finals

2009 Powertrain Intake/Exhaust Team Leader Drew Darling explains the innovations to Car 51's driveline system to design judge Chris Weismann

Discussing Car 51's dual-radiator cooling system

Powertrain evaluation (Andy Gryczan, design judge)

Car 51's nose. A special thanks to Lindsay Exhibit Group of Whitmore Lake, MI, and to owner Scott Lindsay for kindly sponsoring us with the grey pop-up display wall that you see here for this competition. Also, many thanks to Foto 1 Imaging for their work in printing our display boards, especially in such a timely fashion. The combination have worked perfectly for static events thus far.

Happily watching Design Semis

Semi trailer in the evening California sun

Leaving the race track

Dinner with the team from Clemson and our friend Miki from TU Delft

Website problems

2008-06-26T11:25:00.006-04:00

Everyone,

Late last night, we realized that our main website (www.msuformularacing.com) and the Race for a Cause website (www.race-cause.com) were down. We are happy to report that both are back up and running, thanks to Fred Hall from the MSU Division of Engineering Computing Services.

We apologize for any inconvenience that this caused, especially if you were trying to access the Race for a Cause homepage to pledge for Make-A-Wish. If you would like to make a pledge to help Kristin, our wish kid, you still can (until Saturday morning) on the Pledge Page at www.race-cause.com.

Currently, the weather in Fontana is hanging pleasantly in the low 70's and very smoggy. We have Cost/Manufacturing in 40 minutes, and the team is busy prepping for the other events today.

Adam

Scrutineering

2008-06-26T01:39:00.013-04:00

Good evening from California! Today marked the first day of the 2008 Formula SAE West competition; being held at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA.

Arriving at the track this morning at 7 am, we spent the morning completing on-site registration and then began to unpack the semi trailer. The first, and only event of the day: Scrutineering, didn't open until 4 pm, and thankfully for driver Brandon Goad's quick response this morning, we reserved the 8th spot in line (out of 55 teams currently present at the venue).

Thanks to the streamlined processes of online SAE registration, and Steve Daum, Kaley Zundel and the rest of the on-site SAE staff, the paperwork that we had to complete in the morning was minimal and went quickly.

Following a quick registration, we spent our time preparing Car 51 (for FSAE West, the number on her is 10) for scrutineering, as well as prepping for some additional static events tomorrow.

Scrutineering was virtually painless, with the technical inspectors leaving us with only three very small fixes to complete on Car 51: some additional padding around the driver's compartment, a few more tabs to support the seat pan, and a small modification to increase the radius of Car 51's nose. We have already completed the last request, and expect to have the other two finished by the start of our first static event tomorrow at 9:30 AM PST.

Speaking of tomorrow...the events for tomorrow include all "static" events, or events where the car is not in motion. These include Design, Presentation and Cost/Manufacturing. I elaborated a bit about Design in an earlier blog post, so I won't go into it again.

The Presentation event helps participants learn the intricacies of product and vehicle marketing. Essentially, the event requires that each team research, build and prepare a presentation or 'pitch' for selling their vehicle in a unit-volume run of 1200 per year. Over the past few years, MSU has been lucky to have team members who are quite good at this event, winning it at Formula SAE Michigan in 2004, and placing 2nd at both in 2006 and 2007 Formula SAE West competitions. I 'pitched' our plans in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 at MIS, so I would really like to win one of these things before fully handing over the rheins to Ankit Mathur.

The final static event, and our first of tomorrow, is Cost/Manufacturing. In this event, we will be asked to present our research on the manufacturing processes of two randomly-chosen components (from a list of eight). Additionally, we will introduce our understanding of Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFM and DFA), and how they apply to this particular product in small-volume production. This event is especially fun, as it allows first-year team members to get involved in presenting at competition.

Well, that's about all for now, folks. I'll post up some updates tomorrow as events are completed. On behalf of all of the 2008 team and our faculty advisor Gary Cloud, who recently joined us tonight, we hope that you enjoy the pictures from today's events.

Talk with you tomorrow. Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Welcome to the paddocks.

Entire paddock area at Auto Club Speedway

Our paddock

2009 Chief Engineer Andy Rogers performing a few final checks before heading to Scrutineering

Waiting in line for Scrutineering. Car 51 drew quite a crowd wherever we took her.

Judges checked Car 51 thoroughly

Powertrain Mechanical and Driving Team Leader Andy Gryczan discusses the inspection with one of the technical scrutineers.

A series of three: Andy practices egress of the racecar. Formula SAE rules require that all drivers must do it in 5 seconds or less.

We're here!

2008-06-25T04:16:00.003-04:00

Just a quick update - as it is very late and we have to be up in just a few hours. I am happy to say that all team members arrived safely in Ontario, California today. We didn't experience any delays at LAX and coordinating the arrival of the semi with driver Darick Clemons of ATR was a breeze. Many thanks to Darick - he did a fantastic job of getting our things safely to California backing the trailer into the lot next to our hotel.

We leave for Auto Club Speedway tomorrow morning at 7:00 am, where we'll spend the day registering, unpacking and going through scrutineering. Check back tomorrow evening for updates!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Goodbye Detroit!

Somewhere out west

Arriving in Los Angeles

Our semi resting for the night. Don't the graphics look great? There is someone that we owe a huge thank you to making them possible - Brian Hodges, father of 2009 Powertrain Electrical Team Leader Leslie Hodges, and diligent employee at Safety Technology International. Not only are the majority of the graphics courtesy of STI, but Brian took an entire day out of his personal schedule to come up and help us put them on. Additional accolades go to Dustin of Ace Graphics & Signs for his quick work to get a couple of logos that we messed up printed before we left for California. A HUGE thank you to both Brian and Dustin - we couldn't have done this with out you.

Final competition preparation steps

2008-06-24T00:37:00.010-04:00

This past weekend involved both work and play for team members. For the bulk of the day on Saturday, team alumni and current Pratt & Miller Engineering engineers John Lankes, Paul Strefling and Ben LeVesque returned to the shop to go over a mock Design event with FSAE West Competition Team members.

The Design event, often referred to as just 'Design,' is one of the most prestigious events within each Formula SAE competition, at least for our team. It is this event where SAE procures the best industry professionals - from a variety of backgrounds encompassing both the production and motorsport arenas - to test, or "grill" each team about their design philosophy, how their objectives relate to the overall goals of the car, what steps they took to get to the final product (the race car) and each designer's understanding of fundamental principles of the design of each system. There are three rounds of elimination for Design, each of which poses more difficult, in-depth questions to each Team Leader. In total, the event allows teams to earn up to 15% of the total amount of points in each competition.

Due to the long amount of time that MSU Team Leaders devote to the design, analysis, manufacturing and validation of every system on each car, this event means a lot to us. Of course, we like doing well because of the additional points that can be gathered, but there is something special about placing high in Design that doesn't exist in the other two static events. Last year, Car 9 placed 3rd in Design at Formula SAE West - our team's highest finish ever, and also our first time in the final round of the event. It was quite an honor to make it that far and to discuss your philosophies and thought processes with world-renowned experts, while nearly 80 of your fellow competing teams looked on. We hope to be there again this week - and this is why Saturday's mock session was welcomed by team members. Thank you to Paul, John and Ben for driving up to help out!

Sunday was a reward for everyone's hard work all year long. When building one of these race cars, under a very tight time schedule with a group of volunteers, things can get pretty...well, let's just say 'crazy,' at times. Emotions tend to peak remarkably well at 4 am during your fifth consecutive all-nighter, and so taking breaks outside of the shop to build camaraderie amongst team members is very important to keeping everyone happy throughout the good, the bad, and the very stressful times.

So, as we're going into one of the most stressful times of year - a competition week - we took the time to have a relaxing day away for team members; spending the day at my parent's cottage on Portage Lake in Pinckney, Michigan; jet skiing, boating and discussing everything except for Formula. It was a much needed and very helpful hiatus before our exciting week of little sleep, lots of sun, and copious amounts of water in Fontana.

The first wave of people leave Detroit-Metro airport in 14 hours, so my next update will hopefully include a safe arrival of all team members, race car and trailer in the greater Los Angeles area.

Until then, here are some pictures from the weekend, we hope that you enjoy them.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

2009 Chief Engineer Andy Rogers and current Suspension Team Leader Jordan Smart review Chassis design with team alum. John Lankes and Paul Strefling

Jordan fields a vehicle dynamics question from John

Some of Sunday's crew on the sea wall (LtoR): Former Project Manager Jon Luckhardt, Body Team Leader Jim Guitar, 2009 Powertrain Intake/Exhaust Team Leader Drew Darling, Rachel Hall, 2009 Powertrain Cooling-Oiling Team Leader Marcus McDuffie, Corrie Zitkus, Suspension Team Leader Jordan Smart, Andy Rogers, and current Chief Engineer Josh Heyden.

Relaxing

We're off!

2008-06-20T12:57:00.010-04:00

Team members have spent the last three days driving to the shop after work to load the semi for the trip to CA, and at just past noon today, we bid farewell to Car 51...and nearly everything not bolted down in the workshop.

We would like to extend a very special thank you to David Menke, President of America's Transportation Resources, who was gracious enough to supply us with one of his drivers, Darick Clemons, to pilot our tractor trailer out west. We wish Darick the best of luck on his trip and look forward to re-uniting with him and Car 51 in a few days. Drive safe - You have the four-wheel reason that we don't have good grades or social lives resting inside!

Team members will fly out to Los Angeles next Tuesday, as Formula SAE West scrutineering beings first thing in the morning on Wednesday.

Don't forget - it's not too late to still make a pledge to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan through our Race for a Cause program. As Driving Team Leader Andy Gryczan and Brandon Goad gracefully pilot Car 51 around the Endurance track at Auto Club Speedway next Saturday, all of your pledges will add up to helping to make a wish come true for Kristin, the very special beneficiary of our 2008 Race for a Cause/Make-A-Wish campaign. It is her love of animals that you are supporting - and her dream to work with them by being a zoo keeper for a day. On behalf of all of the members of the 2008 Formula Racing Team, we wish Kristin the absolute best on her special day!

All that you have to do to help make Kristin's dream come true is to visit the Pledge Page on www.race-cause.com. 100% of your contributions go directly to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan.

Please remember to check back often on the blog as we approach the start of FSAE West; we look forward to sharing updates with you as often as possible.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast!

Adam

Team Member Rachel Hall is the main reason that there are so many logos all over the semi - she organized the entire operation

Car 51 leaves the shop

Thank you David & ATR - we are truly indebted!

And thank you to all of Car 51's partners - especially our Platinum Sponsors: GM, The North American International Auto Show LLC, The Center for Automotive Research, Demmer Corporation, The George P. Johnson Company, and last, but very not least, our beloved College of Engineering!

Enroute to California.

One last thank you - this one goes to Andy Powers and Brian Barnum of the MSU Service garage for their work to get the semi trailer DOT certified thoroughly and quickly.

On-campus testing session, our final one before FSAE West!

2008-06-17T00:40:00.009-04:00

Last Saturday, team members spent the day at Lot 89 on the MSU campus performing a final testing session with Car 51 before it leaves in the semi on Thursday. The main purposes of the day were to try to reduce a bit of oversteer that was detected by driver Brandon Goad last weekend, and to allow Driving Team Leader Andy Gryczan some much needed seat time in the race car.

The weather of the day was beautiful, albeit a bit cooler than the temperatures we should see out West in the next two weeks. Nevertheless, it was a good, solid day of driving for Andy.

Sunday was met with cooler temperatures - perfect for standing outside watching the car, but not as beneficial for obtaining accurate simulation of racing in the warmer Los Angeles-area climate. Although we were disappointed that last-minute transportation issues prevented us from bringing a car to Eyes on Design, we were able to make use of our last day on campus by practicing some Acceleration and Skidpad runs with drivers Scott Williams and Jordan Smart.

As I write this, team members are packing it in for the night - after spending the evening performing final maintenance procedures on Car 51. We'll spend the next two days cleaning the race car and packing the semi for it's journey west.

Here are a few pictures from Saturday to tie you over until our next update. A special thank you to the MSU Department of Police and Public Safety for blocking the lot off for us - it was a huge help.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Driving & Powertrain-Mechanical Team Leader Andy Gryczan navigating the North-central portion of Lot 89

Coming into the front straight away

At speed

This past weekend

2008-06-10T00:27:00.049-04:00

Team members spent last Saturday and Sunday testing Car 51 at a couple of places off campus, thanks to two great sponsors: Goodyear Tire & Rubber and Robert Bosch Corporation. Thank you to both of you for loaning us your time, facilities and personnel - we can't say enough how valuable they are to us prepare.

Saturday, June 7: Robert Bosch Corporation Proving Grounds, Flat Rock, Michigan

Thanks to an invitation by team alum Nick LaPlaca and Jon Denton and through the generosity of Paul Bacon and Gary Champine of Robert Bosch Corporation, we were able to utilize Bosch's fantastic surface at their Flat Rock facility to shake down Car 51 on Saturday. Eager to ensure that we have enough seat time for every driver, Driving Team Leader Andy Gryczan put Skidpad and Acceleration drivers Scott Williams and Jordan Smart in the race car for the duration of the day.

We are happy to report that Car 51 ran very reliably and each driver got some driving time. Thankfully, the weather cooperated and we had sunny and dry conditions, just as we expect to see in Fontana in the next couple of weeks. The track surface temperature was a little lower than is expected in California, and the wind a bit greater than we've experienced in the past, but never the less, the testing couldn't have been much more ideal.

Thanks again to everyone at Bosch for making this possible for us! Here are some pictures and a couple of short videos from the day.

Lifting the car onto stands

Acceleration & Skidpad Driver Scott Williams

2009 Chief Engineer Andy Rogers performs a pre-race fastener check

Driving & Powertrain-Mechanical Team Leader Andy Gryczan inspects the cooling system before the car heads to the track

TEAMWORK: Checking tire temperatures after a run (LtoR: Jordan Smart, Marcus McDuffie, Hillary Gregory, Marshall Mendoza, Andy Gryczan, Jon Denton)

Scott Williams launches for the start of a Skidpad run

Ready, Set, Go!

Team alumnus & Bosch engineer Jon Denton assists Andy Gryczan with some traction control tuning

Heading down the backside of the Acceleration strip

Sunday, June 8: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Proving Grounds, Akron, Ohio

Sunday began with a very early drive from the shop in Okemos to Akron, Ohio for a fun-filled day of testing at Goodyear Tire and Rubber’s test track. Upon arriving, we were greeted by Dan Alford, our Goodyear rep. for the day. Additionally, the University of Cincinnati, one of our FSAE competitors for the upcoming Formula SAE West event, was there shaking down their car.

The day at Goodyear was probably the most realistic simulation yet that we’ve experienced of the weather that we’re sure to see in California in a few weeks. It was nearly 90 degrees F outside, we experienced a moderate wind and the track temperature was 110 degrees F. This really helped us to get an accurate idea of how the race car’s cooling system will handle the hotter CA temperatures. This system is tested to its limits during the Endurance event in Fontana, as the cars really do take a beating when run that hard and long in the hot weather.

I’d like to tell you that Car 51 ran cool all day – but it didn’t, so we have spent the last few days working out the problems and figuring out a solution – which we think we now have. To aid keeping air entering the side pods from becoming stagnant before reaching the radiators, we are building a set of carbon fiber ducts that will run directly from the side pod opening to the front face of each radiator. Additionally, we are increasing the size of the lines in the cooling system and possibly going to larger oil cooler to ensure cool oil temperatures as well. We’ll get a chance to test these tools this Saturday, when we head back to Akron.

One thing that is absolutely essential to doing well at competition is having talented drivers that are well-acclimated with the car that they’ll be piloting. So, in addition to gathering data for the last several weeks, we have been getting all four of our FSAE West drivers; Andy Gryczan, Brandon Goad, Jordan Smart and Scott Williams, as much seat-time as possible. Brandon, our lead driver last year, and Andy, our Driving Team Leader, will pilot Car 51 for the Autocross and Endurance events in Fontana, as they are our quickest drivers and these two events are worth the greatest number of points at a Formula SAE competition. Jordan Smart and Scott Williams will handle driving duties on the remaining two events: Acceleration and Skidpad. For those of you who tuned in to Car 9’s blog last year, you may remember that MSU set a competition record at Formula SAE West 2007 when we won the Acceleration event with a time of 3.894 seconds. Unfortunately, Ben LeVesque, who drove that winning run, has graduated and moved on to bigger and better things at Pratt & Miller Engineering. Judging by the times we’ve seen thus far, and the set-up we plan on running with Car 51 at competition, it may be possible for Jordan and/or Scott to pull off another win, and hopefully, another record. However, there is always a bit of luck involved in racing, so we wish them the best!

As Brandon has limited times when he can drive the car, and has such a vital role in our placement during those two pivotal dynamic events in Fontana, he received the most seat-time of the weekend; driving all day on Sunday. We are happy to report that he ran 56 second lap-times during the course of the day – just where the top Goodyear-sponsored teams from the Formula SAE MIS competition were running. Below are some pictures of him piloting Car 51 around Goodyear’s great facility. Thanks Goodyear!

Until next weekend, Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Brandon Goad mentally prepares for the course

Heading down the front straight

I actually can't remember where this was on the track.

We switched directions and ran the course backwards with Cincinnati

Our cohorts from southern Ohio: The University of Cincinnati

Sideview of Cincinnati

And this is why we call him "The Goad Show": Brandon easily controls Car 51 through a slippery corner exit

Going over the final times of the day

Tired, hot, sunburned...and still excited. It was a wonderful weekend.

Review of Formula SAE @ MIS

2008-05-28T01:05:00.007-04:00

Below is a short video re-capping the Formula SAE competition at Michigan International Speedway and some pictures from Saturday's Endurance race. Please stay tuned in as we continue our pledge-raising Race for a Cause campaign for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan and send out updates from testing sessions and the trip out to California for Formula SAE West!

Thank you all for joining us for this past competition; we hope that you enjoyed the updates (though they've been a bit late...sorry!). Further, we would like to extend a special thanks to all of Car 51's sponsors and friends and family that were able to stop by and see us at MIS.

If you would like any high-resolution versions of the pictures seen here; please do not hesitate to email me at zemkeada@msu.edu.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast@FSAEWest,

Adam

The 2008 Formula SAE Endurance track at Michigan International Speedway

In line for Endurance

First Endurance Driver Andy Gryczan waiting for the green flag to head onto the track

And the competition is on! The University of Stuttgart chases Andy down

Andy Navigating a chicane

Our second driver, Brandon Goad, taking off on one of his first few laps

And the pushrod begins to buckle. Unfortunately, you can see the body start to drag here.

Brandon's last lap; traversing onto the flat section of the track from the banked corner, you can see the left front wheel over an inch off of the ground due to the right rear pushrod having yielded a significant amount.

A bit less somber of times; at the semi prior to Endurance.

On Friday; Andy and Suspension Team Leader Jordan Smart watch on as our first Skidpad runs were being run.

Hi Matthew, we hope that you're feeling better!

Pictures from Friday

2008-05-24T21:47:00.020-04:00

Below are some pictures of team members and from Friday's dynamic events: Acceleration, Skidpad and Autocross. Thanks to all those who came out on Friday to visit and watch!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast,

Adam

Braking System Team Leader Richard Hollern making sure that his system is ready to race

Driveline Team Leader Kyle Bateman receiving some tips prior to his first Skidpad

Waiting in line to race

Suspension Team Leader Jordan Smart at the front of the Acceleration line

...and the launch!

The field of cars at Autocross. When we say Formula SAE is big, we really mean it. 120 registered teams; 106 of which actually attended competition.

Lead Driver Brandon Goad helping Powertrain Mechanical & Driving Team Leader Andy Gryczan get ready for his first Autocross lap

He's off!

Andy navigating his way through a slalom

Just a nice shot showing Brandon's helmet and Car 51's beautiful body

Brandon relaxing a bit before MSU's 2nd Autocross run

Serious. Sort of...

Running a bit before us was long-time MSU ally: The University of Florida

Also a couple spots ahead were our new friends from TU Delft. They tested with us just prior to competition and were a lot of fun to hang out with.

Final wipe-off prior to Brandon's run

Brandon coming down the back straight away

Looking ahead to the next turn

...and taking it with ease

Brandon's final lap

Just a nice side-profile shot. Isn't Matthew cute? We received numerous compliments on the photographs on the sides of Car 51's nose.

A few pictures...

2008-05-20T13:46:00.009-04:00

I apologize; I haven't had time to post up the final updates on competition yet, so to tie all of you over, here are a few pictures from Friday and Saturday's dynamic events.

Adam

Driveline Team Leader Kyle Bateman on the Skidpad
**Photograph courtesy of Julian Choquette

Powertrain Mechanical & Driving Team Leader Andrew Gryczan during Endurance
**Photograph courtesy of Racing Maniac

Lead Driver Brandon Goad during the second leg of Endurance
**Photograph courtesy of Racing Maniac

A bit closer view of Car 51's nose featuring the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan pictoral
**Photograph courtesy of Racing Maniac

Design, Cost and Presentation

2008-05-16T10:07:00.008-04:00

Arriving back at the race track at 7:30 am on Thursday morning, team members worked hard to get the car cleaned and prepared for a long day of Static events. For those not familiar with Formula SAE, Thursday is the day that teams are grueled on the design of each car, the cost and manufacturability strategies and the marketing presenting. As I write this, the only scores that have been posted are the Cost/Manufacturing event. This event went very well for MSU; with team members Hillary Gregory and Jamie Yeung gathering 100% of the points possible in presenting their research projects on the manufacturing of oil filters and fuel injectors. Additionally, we earned another 100% point score in describing our lean manufacturing strategies to the judges.

Don't forget: tomorrow is the day of Endurance, so please join the team at MIS at 9:00 am for breakfast and a chance to see Car 51 run the endurance course. This is also the first time that Car 51 will be collecting pledge dollars as part of our Race for a Cause program to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan. So please come and join us for food, some racing and see Car 51 with her beautiful Make-A-Wish adorned body, featuring Matthew, a special wish-kid.

In addition to a few photos, we have uploaded a video to YouTube for your viewing pleasure. Thats all for now, as I am running really short on time. I'll post more updates as Friday's events; Autocross, Acceleration, and Skid-pad, go on. Also, a bigtThanks to SAE for the Wi-Fi access that makes updating from the track possible!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast,

Adam

Welcome!

Team at the Design Event

Cockpit Team Leader Elizabeth Carroll discusses Car 51's ergonomics with a judge

Scrutineering and Static Events

2008-05-16T09:48:00.010-04:00

Sorry about my delay in posting, folks.

Team members Hillary Gregory, Jamie Yeung, Marcus McDuffie and I arrived at MIS early on Wednesday morning to meet the trailer and our driver, Jerry Huehl, and get the paddock set-up. Cold and rain, typical of this competition, plagued teams yet again who arrived on Wednesday. Thankfully, the majority of our set-up took place inside of our trailer, so we only had to deal with damp, cold conditions, as opposed to drenched ones.

The racecar and remainder of the team arrived late in the morning, and we finished paddock set-up and headed to our first event: Scrutineering (also known as Technical Inspection). This event is the first event that teams must go through upon arriving at each Formula SAE competition. Essentially, Scrutineering is simply a check as to whether or not each vehicle is safe and compliant with the rules.

Thankfully, there weren't any big problems with Car 51, but we did have to modify a few small items. One did require some welding, and, as it was late in the day on Wednesday when we left the event, we decided to complete the changes back at the shop in Okemos.

Below are a few pictures from the first day, enjoy!

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.

Adam

Our home for the next several days: Michigan International Speedway

View from inside the trailer

A Good representation of Wednesday's weather

Start o' the Season

2008-05-14T03:34:00.004-04:00

Last year, I began Car 9's competition blog the first night of the Formula SAE competition. However, this year, my intention had been to begin it much, much sooner. Unfortunately, other responsibilities reared their heads and thus here we are. Even though I have to be up in a couple of hours to drive to Michigan International Speedway for the first day of comp, I wanted to begin this blog tonight - it's still the eve of our first competition, and thus, one night earlier than last year.

The last several weeks have been spent testing Car 51 to prepare for one of the World's most intense engineering competitions: Formula SAE. Over the next several days, the team will battle with other schools from around the globe at the wonderful track in Brooklyn, Michigan for the title that most competitors want more than any other, that of Formula SAE Champion. Colleges from all over the United States and nearly 15 other countries on our planet have sent some of their greatest collegiate talent to this competition, all of whom have (and this I can say from personal experienece) given up nearly all rememberances of socializing, and completing any classwork, in an effort to make their creation; their 2008 Formula SAE car, the best in the world.

I'll leave you with an open invitation to come and join us this week at MIS. The competition begins tomorrow, but the racecars don't actually start moving until Friday and Saturday. However, any day that you can make it, please stop by and see us and our fellow collegiate competitors; I'm sure they would be just as excited to show you their cars as we are to talk with you about Car 51.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast,

Adam

**Here are some snapshots to keep you occupied until tomorrow evening. All were taken during our recent testing at one of Car 51's Gold sponsors; Goodyear Tire and Rubber, in Akron, Ohio. A special thanks to all of the fine volunteers at Goodyear for having us down!

***Edit: Apparently blogger.com and Safari don't get along too well, as I cannot upload any pictures. Check back tomorrow night and I'll have them up by then.

Welcome!

2008-02-27T15:33:00.000-05:00

Welcome! The team is proud to announce the launch of Car 51's blog. Here, you can read about updates from the team regarding the manufacture of Car 51, upcoming events and daily updates as to what is happening at the Formula SAE VIR, MIS and West competitions. Please check back often.

Go Green. Go White. Go Fast.
http://msuformularacing.com/