Sadness at FSAE

"whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU" (whiskey-business)
05/15/2016 at 10:11 • Filed to: None

I must say I’m disappointed by my school’s performance at FSAE Michigan. We worked so hard on our car, it did reasonably well all week, but the endurance race was a punch in the gut. It was no one’s fault, just a perfect storm of bad luck.

We ran out of fuel with half a lap to go. Half a kilometer left. One more cup of fuel in our tank and we would have finished, and not DNF’d. It was hard, but we know what needs to be fixed, and this year went so much better than before that we can’t be too upset. All in all, a great expedience, and we are looking forward to our next competition where we can fix the issues we had and be competitive in all events. Anyone else on here involved with FSAE? I’d like to hear how it went for you all.

DISCUSSION (23)

Flyboy is FAA certified insane > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/15/2016 at 10:36

Bunch of my friends/colleagues are in FSAE at ERAU. Not sure how they did yet.

I wanted to get involved but ended up starting a Chumpcar team at the school instead.

tromoly > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/15/2016 at 10:59

Atleast your school competed in events, my Alma didn’t turn a wheel in any Dynamic events....

dsigned001 - O.R.C. hunter > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/15/2016 at 11:31

Sorry about the anti climax. It happens to the best. Audi, Ferrari... they all run more than one car because shit happens, and even then...

So just keep in mind that you guys built a fucking racecar.

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/15/2016 at 12:16

What team ended up winning?

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > dsigned001 - O.R.C. hunter
05/15/2016 at 14:40

True, just hard to see so much effort thwarted by a couple tablespoons of fuel. . .

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > Flyboy is FAA certified insane
05/15/2016 at 14:40

Sometimes I wish we went that direction, I love Chumpcar! However it seems to have a lot less networking opportunities than FSAE.

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > tromoly
05/15/2016 at 14:41

What school did you attend? I saw a lot of teams struggle with tech and noise this year.

Flyboy is FAA certified insane > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/15/2016 at 16:33

Yea it’s not as much. I’m not an engineer, so I’d have a tough time fitting in anyway.

Santiago of Escuderia Boricua > Flyboy is FAA certified insane
05/15/2016 at 19:08

Probably not well. From what I remember, only the team captain gets to drive. Driver selection is not skill-based

Flyboy is FAA certified insane > Santiago of Escuderia Boricua
05/15/2016 at 19:11

I know the team captain. He’s a damn good driver. Especially for a kart-like car.

NoahthePorscheGuy > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/15/2016 at 19:32

Had the worst possible Friday (tied for last in autox), but turned it around a won fuel economy. Sorry about your endurance.

Santiago of Escuderia Boricua > Flyboy is FAA certified insane
05/15/2016 at 19:33

Fair enough. Most of what I have heard was shit talking from one of my friends who did Baja back when they had two teams

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > NoahthePorscheGuy
05/15/2016 at 20:44

It’s all good, just hoping Lincoln will go better since we’ll have time to tune. Awesome you guys won fuel! I’m guessing you have a single?

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > Flyboy is FAA certified insane
05/15/2016 at 20:45

That’s sad to hear, my school welcomes the new perspectives of different majors. . .

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > Santiago of Escuderia Boricua
05/15/2016 at 20:46

A terrible way to do drivers. I understand waiting a while to make sure people don’t join just to drive, but any skilled member should be able to drive.

Flyboy is FAA certified insane > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/15/2016 at 22:10

It’s a little different here haha.

I’m just a pilot.

Santiago of Escuderia Boricua > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/15/2016 at 22:12

I wasn’t in it, this is just what I’ve heard. I got to play with robots

Rock Bottom > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/16/2016 at 00:21

I know them feels. I was our engine time lead in 2008, second driver for the enduro, and in the saddle when my engine destroyed the half shafts (pride of the weak-ass drivetrain team), forcing a DNF on the last lap. We all went back the camp site where we got blind drunk with Stuttgart and Wisconsin... which should be your next move.

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > Rock Bottom
05/16/2016 at 07:38

Sounds like a reasonable way to deal with the disappointment, though our faculty advisor allows no driving of any vehicle for two days after drinking. . . so we’d probably be at MIS for a while.

Rock Bottom > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/16/2016 at 10:57

2 days??? That’s a little extreme... If you’re aware that you’re hung-over, then you’re not drunk anymore.

DrJohannVegas > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU
05/16/2016 at 13:54

It’s a heck of a way not to finish endurance, for sure. Just bear in mind that conditions this year meant that most cars ran with much better fuel economy (ie. less full throttle) than normal. Might be something to consider for the future. Your car looked good when I saw it, so I’m sure that with some tuning/revising, you’ll do well in the future.

It looks like you did well in some of the events (including business presentation, well done!), so build off that strength and come back stronger for next year.

As for me: I’m just one of those old farts who comes out to make sure you college kids can have all the fun. Besides some battering from the elements, had a great time as always.

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > Rock Bottom
05/18/2016 at 22:15

Trust me, you’re preaching to the choir here. I guess several students died in a wreck involving alcohol while pulling the SAE car on a trailer many years ago, and the faculty advisor is making sure that doesn’t happen again.

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > DrJohannVegas
05/18/2016 at 22:18

Thanks for the kind words, we believe the only reason we didn’t finish is some unexpected air pockets in our tank. Additionally, our tune was almost nonexistent everywhere on the fuel map except full throttle, so we were pretty hosed. Our drivers cannot sgift anyway, so banging the limiter in second probably didn’t helpnl either. Anyway, I’m proud as hell of our whole team, especially marketing, for doing what they do.