Big Bend Open Road Race

[charliepmayer]

This is an interesting event - something we need to do. Met up with SammichLover in Sanderson yesterday. The drivers and crew were quite friendly to us - asked many questions and gave us many answers. All of the entrants that made it to Sanderson parked around the old courthouse before starting the return run. It appears that the only tech requirement for us (at entry-level speeds) is to install a fire extinguisher on a metal bracket within reach of the driver. The race is 59 miles each way, with a short stopover at the midway point (Sanderson).

A few issues:
Does anyone have first-hand knowledge that an S100D won't overheat a motor at 100 mph for 59 miles?
Anyone know a consumption figure for the scenario above?

Same questions for a Model 3.

The race is scored like a rally: the objective is to finish both runs with an average speed exactly matching your target speed.
(In 2018 one class winner hit the target speed perfectly. Other class winners were off my .001 mph or so.)
See: Big Bend Open Road Race - 2018 Class Results
Anybody have a Tesla app that reads out current average speed? Clock starts when the drag-style christmas tree goes green.

 

[charliepmayer]

First car to finish was a highly modified Camaro - unlimited class:

Cadillac engine in the Camaro:

 

[charliepmayer]

Most of the early finishers had a target average of 150 mph:

 

[charliepmayer]

And my personal favorite:

 

[SammichLover]

First car to finish was a highly modified Camaro - unlimited class:View attachment 401472
Cadillac engine in the Camaro:
View attachment 401474

Cool detail about this car. It was rebuilt from when it "burned to the ground" at the race 2 years ago. I think it was BBORR where it burned? Or at some race at least. Little more than the frame was salvaged.

There is a very good reason why the rules stipulate the high-end class vehicles must have a competition grade extinguisher system with nozzles in the engine compartment, the cabin, and I think also the fuel cell (AKA "tank") area.

-- -- -- --

BBORR doesn't have rules yet for BEV vehicles. I wonder if they'll adopt the Pike's Peak ones, or portion of those? 24 Hours of Lemons' has for their new BEV class, so there might be something of a standardizing around rules put together by competitions pioneering BEVs in races.

That's a ways out to think about though, it shouldn't be an issue down in the Touring classes (100 - 110mph target speeds) and that's the highest a first year driver can enter. Then you need to run a year in the Grand Touring (up to 120mph target, max peak speed of 140mph) that needs an aftermarket 5-point seatbelt system Rules also recommend an aftermarket racing seat, which probably would make it much, much easier to install the required seatbelt system in a Model 3 so you'd want that anyway.

Only then can you enter into the Grand Sport Division, where those fire suppression system rules are. Those classes are also probably out of reach for even the Performance Model 3, likely is it exclusively New Roadster territory. The lowest average target is "only" 130mph but realistically you need to reach higher than that fairly quickly. Vehicles in these classes were reaching 168mph in the "trap" portion, where teams try to get close to the number, for "style points" it seems. At least one exceeded it by 2mph accidentally, because of an inaccuracy in their own speedo.

You need to exceed 130mph to make up for the places where you have to slow down. However even 130mph without considering the impact of peak speeds beyond that is going to require roughly about 70% more kWh than say 100mph average. That means nearly a full charge required at the turn-around in Sanderson. Until Tesla ships Chademo or CCS adaptor support, or 3rd parties figure out how to emulate a Tesla SC cord to plug into your Tesla and make that publicly available, I don't think there's a chance to recharge fast enough in Sanderson to make the full round trip. Even though you've got about 2-3 hours in turn around.

 

[TexasTeslaRacing]

It’s been over a year and I’m injecting life back into this thread. Due to COVID this race is postponed until October 3. I believe I’m going to sign up soon and work out the logistics. 60 miles each way. SR3 or T1 class is fastest I would try in a MP3. Perhaps the new Model S could do GT2 or 3.

Big Bend Open Road Race

 

[charliepmayer]

Anybody know anything about the Teslas in the last two events?