Damper Tuning
My article in this month’s issue of NASA‘s Speed News e-zine is an introduction to one of my favorite complicated subjects: damper tuning. I devoted a whole chapter of Think Fast to dampers. This article was a great opportunity to write an introduction to the subject for a wider audience. I covered some of the basic concepts and a couple of simple examples in the article. If reading the article gets you interested in learning more, you can get that and a whole lot more when you buy your very own copy of Think Fast – The Racer’s Why-To Guide to Winning.
Thanks to Speed News for the opportunity to contribute one more article for your enjoyment. I look forward to every new topic, and every new challenge to communicate complicated ideas clearly. Let me know what you think of the article in the comments!
The Zones
My latest article for NASA’s Speed News expands on a topic that I have discussed small pieces of in prior articles: aerodynamic performance enhancements for production-based race cars. The title of the article is “Getting Into the Zones“. In addition to basic guidance on aero mods that have been proven effective many times, I added a graphic illustration that I have not seen anywhere before. It partitions a race car body into various color coded zones, with each zone having a different level and type of influence on the aerodynamic performance of the car. Some areas of a race car are highly sensitive to small changes, while others have very minor effects. Knowing where to make changes is just as important as what change to make to improve aero performance. The article describes each zone and some of the aero performance changes that can result from modifications in each zone. Check it out! You just might like it.
As always, I’m honored and humbled by the opportunity to contribute to NASA’s Speed News e-zine, and I look forward to future opportunities.
Making Tools
My latest article for NASA’s Speed News is a big departure from my usual coverage of complicated motorsports engineering concepts. It’s much more down to earth: Dirt Cheap Fabrication Tools. Having grown up learning from my father’s skills at creating amazing results with very simple equipment, I benefitted tremendously from his inventiveness, ambition, creativity, and craftsmanship. The timing of the publication of this article turned out to be a perfect opportunity to make this a Father’s Day tribute.
Happy Father’s Day, Dad!
In addition, this article was a fun family project since both of our sons contributed by taking the accompanying photos. Thanks, guys! Great job.
Splitters, Spoilers and Wings
My latest article in NASA‘s Speed News magazine is once again the featured subject on the cover! This article describes the basics of air dams, splitters, spoilers, and rear wings. Those are all practical and inexpensive additions with a good performance payoff in terms of lap time, and in terms of performance gain per dollar spent. It is an honor and a priviledge to be able to share my knowledge and experience with NASA’s racing membership. Many thanks to the staff and management of Speed News, and I look forward to future opportunities to contribute. Check out the article starting on page 34 by clicking here.
Speed Demon
Think Fast – The Racer’s Why-To Guide to Winning has been selected as one of Popular Mechanics “10 Racing Books to Channel Your Inner Speed Demon”! Here is what Phil Berg of Popular Mechanics has to say about Think Fast:
If you could tap the mind of a racer and engineer, you’d have a shortcut to learning all the different disciplines required to put together a well-rounded team from one point of view. Author Neil Roberts was an SCCA formula car road racer and an engineer for the Swift Indy car company. In addition to these accomplishments, in Think Fast Roberts translates engineer-speak to language the rest of us can relate to and apply to more of life’s tasks than just racing a car.
Not Fade Away
The March 2013 issue of NASA‘s Speed News e-zine features my article titled “Not Fade Away” as the cover subject for the issue. Many thanks to NASA and the Speed News staff for this honor. This article describes how and why air cooling of race car brakes makes a car with marginal brake cooling faster, safer, and less expensive to operate. It also describes how to add a brake cooling system to your racer. Click this link to read the issue, and stay tuned for more of my articles in future issues. I am honored and humbled by the opportunity to contribute to Speed News, and I look forward to each new issue.
Scratchin’ Faster
Paul Costas has done it again.
Two more Whelen US Time Trial Championship days at Texas World Speedway, two more wins, two more track records. He makes it look easy, especially considering that Scratcher is actually a simple, conservative, low budget track day car that is up against much more modern, sophisticated, and expensive machines. A big part of Scratcher’s performance is Paul’s driving skill and experience at TWS. The rest is a result of spending money on only the high-payoff performance items, clear thinking, and logical development. Paul and I have been educating each other for decades on our respective specialties, so it is especially gratifying to see him perform well on the race track.
This achievement has extended Paul’s win streak in Scratcher to a perfect 5 for 5: Five NARRA events, five TTU wins, five TWS track records.
Paul Costas’ 5 for 5 TTU trophy collection
I am sure that there will be many more opportunities to highlight Paul’s racing accomplishments as Scratcher’s development continues. For now, celebrating this win is great fun. Congrats to Witchdoctor Motorsports!
Big Goals, Thin Wallet
The February 2013 issue of NASA‘s Speed News e-zine includes my article entitled “Big Goals, Thin Wallet“. As you might imagine, it’s about how to economize your racing program where you can, but it’s also about selecting the few key items that you should splurge on. I have spent a lot of years and a lot of nickels and dimes shredding rubber into dust, and my results have taught me a thing or two about turning pennies into performance. I would like to thank Speed News for the opportunity to share what I have learned along the way, and I look forward to future opportunities to contribute.
Click and read! You just might like it.
Best of the Best
NASA‘s December 2012 issue of the e-zine Speed News is their “Best of the Best” issue, and it includes a reprint of my article “Crude Tactics” from the October issue. It is an honor for my writing to be included in a “best of” issue.
I would like to thank the National Auto Sport Association and the editorial staff at Speed News for this compliment, and I look forward to more opportunities to contribute to Speed News in the coming months. Stay tuned for more!
Fan Mail
Here is a recent example of the positive feedback that I get about Think Fast – The Racer’s Why-To Guide to Winning.
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I received your book yesterday and just finished what I am certain is the first of many more readings. It is an excellent piece of work that takes up from where Carroll Smith left off so many years ago. My editions of Smith’s works are so dogged-eared that further reading now requires a certain delicacy.
It’s not only the information you provide, but the logical progression through each area and from one area to next that is exemplary. I am not an engineer by training nor any stretch of the imagination. My understanding of race cars began the day I brought home my first Formula Ford in 1971 and began taking it apart.
To to tell the truth, despite many rereadings of certain concepts in Smith’s books, there were always several concepts that I had trouble getting my head around. In at least two instances, you have wiped away the lack of understanding and made those things easy to grasp.
Again, my thanks for your effort to put this work together and make all that very important information available to the likes of myself.
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See what I mean about positive feedback? It’s downright humbling.
You can check out Think Fast, read several excerpts and reviews, and order a copy for yourself or a racer you know by clicking here:
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