September 7, 2016
Stephen Cox Blog Presented by McGunegill Engine Performance
(Read Part 1 by clicking here) Ken Wallis was running out of time. Both of Carrol Shelby's turbine-powered cars were now at Indianapolis but they were nowhere near race-ready condition. His drivers, McLaren and Hulme, had only a six-day window before they returned to Europe for the Spanish Grand Prix.
In a desperate bid to make the cars competitive, Wallis used a liberal interpretation of USAC's rules to design a new annulus (the engine opening that fed air to the turbine). When measured by technical inspectors, the annulus was under the legal 16-inch limit. But at full throttle on the race track, a variable valve system opened to permit greater air flow into the turbine. At best, this was a careful translation of the rules. If they were caught there was no guarantee that USAC wouldn't immediately disqualify the Shelby/Wallis Turbines. Such a move would be an unmitigated disaster not only for the team principals, but also for Goodyear, their drivers and their sponsors.
STEALING THE 500: The Story of Carroll Shelby’s 1968 Turbine-Powered Indycar, Part 1 of 2
August 26, 2016
The Stephen Cox Blog is presented by McGunegill Engine Performance
PART 1 of 2
He wasn't the first to try, nor was he the last. Armed with a huge budget, a massive turbine engine and two of the finest drivers on the planet, in the spring of 1968 Carroll Shelby was ready to steal the Indianapolis 500.
INDYCAR: Catching Up With 4-Time Indy 500 Starter Darren Manning
June 28, 2016
Stephen Cox Blog Presented by McGunegill Engine Performance
“When I was doing it, I got paid to drive. You were judged on your merit as a driver... not the check that you brought,” Darren Manning said while sipping an after-hours beer and relaxing in the lobby of his company's new facility on the west side of Indianapolis.
RACING SAFETY: F1 Believes It Can Defy the Law of Unintended Consequences
May 11, 2016
The safety cult storm troopers continue their assault on auto racing and this time, even Formula One cannot escape their regulatory clutches.
In reference to the current effort to mandate either the Halo or Aeroscreen head protection safety gadgets for the 2017 racing season, F1 race director Charlie Whiting said, “If we eventually need to add a couple of seconds to the time required to get out (of the race car), I think that would be a small price to pay.”
The Risks of Racing: Maybe We Need Them After All
December 7, 2015
I began driving race cars in 1985. In the thirty years since, I've had a total of one (1) serious neck injury while racing. It was at Plymouth Speedway in the summer of 1995. I have not had another neck injury since.
INDYCAR: What Jack Hawksworth Means for Open Wheel Racing
October 26, 2015
The Stephen Cox Blog is Presented by McGunegill Engine Performance
Jack Hawksworth is a nice kid and a good Indycar driver.
Some will take this column as a knock on Hawksworth, which is a complete misunderstanding of every word. It is no such thing. Ultimately, this is really not about Hawksworth at all. But his meteoric rise through the ranks exposes Indycar's gravest weakness and tells us a great deal about the inner workings of the series.
Ban Indycar Forever, Says Associated Press Writer
September 10, 2015
“After the latest tragedy in Indycar... it's time to shut down this ridiculously dangerous form of racing,” says Associated Press writer Paul Newberry in the wake of the tragic death of Indycar driver Justin Wilson.
E. J. Viso Finds New Life in Stadium Trucks
April 7, 2015
A few years ago the late Mike Stephens, then owner of the Hallett Motor Racing Circuit in Oklahoma, helped me find a ride in an open cockpit Toyota World Sports Racer. I had no experience in the type and missed the podium in consecutive races.
Indycar’s New Aero Kits – Is Faster Better?
March 23, 2015
Indycars will be faster this year. Recent testing at Barber Motorsports Park demonstrated that the new “aero body kits” generate far more downforce, which resulted in nearly every car in the field beating last year's pole time.
News & Notes: Kurt Busch, Brian Vickers and Indycar
March 9, 2015
Brian Vickers is back. Again. After being forced out of NASCAR racing for the third time with a major medical issue, Vickers has returned to Michael Waltrip Racing after a successful heart surgery. I remember Brian well from his days in the Hooters ProCup Stock Car Series, where I was SPEED's pit reporter for nine years.