Desert Dingo Racing

Category: Class 11

  • A new Class 11 video

    It’s been a while since we’ve seen anything new on YouTube.

  • Methelyne Chloride

    Since it was 110 degrees out and we weren’t going to be able to make it up to the surprise birthday party in San Francisco, I figured this would be a perfect day to start stripping 1117 in preparation for the art car contest.

    The guy at Felton Hardware recommended this stuff that folks use to strip paint off jets. “Should be plenty good for VWs,” I figured.

    Watching paint dry is the definition of boring, but watching paint eaten alive by methelyne chloride is the textbook definition of awesome. Either Charlie (from whom I bought 1117) used some really cheap paint or methelyne chloride is the most amazing chemical ever. It stripped the paint as quickly as I could roller the stuff on. It tried to eat a hole in the plexiglass windshield. It nearly ate a hole in my leg. And for the next couple of weeks, I’ll be driving the ugliest car in Santa Cruz County.

    Here’s a joke I made up while applying the stuff to the roof.

    “Knock, knock.”

    “Who’s there?

    “Methelyne Chloride.”

    “Methelyne Chloride who?”

    “I’m getting a little woozy. I think I need to sit down.”

    I’m off to Drew’s Used Tools tomorrow to pick up a rotary sander.

    A handful of photos here.

  • Work day coming up

    We’ve got another work day coming up this Sunday. Shawn can’t make it because he’ll be in Cozumel and other swanky places, but to get his fix he watched “Dust to Glory” and IM’d me.

    Shawn: “we are losing our dash board”
    Shawn: thats priceless
    Shawn: this is a frikken dream come true for me, i use to watch BAJA and dirt racing when i was little.
    Shawn: and always wanted to go and do it

    Jim: funny, and I just got the idea to do it from watching the DVD. “Hey, that would be a cool thing to do.”

    Shawn: i love racing, always have. I always dreamed about landing the contract.
    Shawn: like i would be out driving karts with friends, someone would be like “you’re a good driver, come and try out”
    Shawn: going around turns is fun, going around turns fast is even more fun
    Shawn: off road driving is a blast
    Shawn: i just like motorsports

    Jim:     I like the commercials they show when I watch NASCAR on TV

  • It’s a good day

    We just got word from the International Diabetes Federation that they liked our proposal to do a drive-a-thon fundraiser for diabetes research as part of our Baja 1000 race.

    Several Class 11 teams did fundraisers in 2006. Because diabetes is a factor in the lives of several members of the team, we felt we should look on the race as an opportunity to raise money for diabetes research and awareness.

    The first World Diabetes Day occurs November, 14, 2007, the first day of the Baja 1000. It’s a perfect synergy.

    More on this to come.

  • Word Day Three – Tinnitus


    Shawn shows off his handiwork on DS-1’s hood

    We met at sCary’s place today to continue work on the body and front suspension. Skid was off in some desert paradise sipping mojitos, leaving sCary, Shawn (who still owes me a team bio) and me to do the heavy lifting.

    sCary focused on gussets for the front suspension spindles – a tip passed along by Eric Solorzano, who we’re still talking about, starting sentences with “Well, Eric says…”

    Before we headed out to sCary’s workspace, we watched Charlie’s 14-minute uncut video of our trip to Mexico. I’ll post a brief, expurgated clip next time.

    Anyway, sCary worked on gussets. He’d already reinforced welds on other parts of the front suspension and is preparing to make some precision cuts that will allow him to adjust the front springs and buy us some front end ground clearance.

    Shawn, who is already practicing for the Baja 1000 by taking his high-performance Corvette into Santa Clara County hill country, focused on sanding down the hood. His technique is amazing. He was pointing out variations in paint height that I couldn’t sense with my fingertips.

    I got the coolest job – hammering out the curved lips on three of the four fenders. The issue with standard VW fenders is that, at the factory, they bend the metal under the fender. That’s all well and good for highway driving, but in a desert environment, the additional up and down tire travel means the tire can get gouged if it scrapes against the rough inside lip of the curved metal.

    The inside curve of a VW fender is a perfect resonator and I spent 20-30 minutes apiece hammering down the rough edge on each fender. My ears are still ringing.

    Here are a few shots from today’s efforts.