We wont make competition

[IsheeM]

Hey guys,
I just wanted to let you know we will be unable to make it to the competition this year due to an unfinished car. I want to thank you guys for giving us advice and assistance, especially Auburn and Univ. of Washington. Only about three people designed our car, and since I have been co-oping since January, that only left two main people to build the car. Despite our best efforts, we just ran out of time. However, we will complete the car and get much more testing and driver training completed and be competing next year. We fell this way we will better represent MSU and our engineering capabilities. Goodluck to all those teams who will be competing, and we will see you next year. Or I am still going to the Motec seminar so maybe I'll see you around.

[IsheeM]

Hey guys,
I just wanted to let you know we will be unable to make it to the competition this year due to an unfinished car. I want to thank you guys for giving us advice and assistance, especially Auburn and Univ. of Washington. Only about three people designed our car, and since I have been co-oping since January, that only left two main people to build the car. Despite our best efforts, we just ran out of time. However, we will complete the car and get much more testing and driver training completed and be competing next year. We fell this way we will better represent MSU and our engineering capabilities. Goodluck to all those teams who will be competing, and we will see you next year. Or I am still going to the Motec seminar so maybe I'll see you around.

[BStoney]

Michael,

Will you/some of the team still be coming to competition in order to check out what was done this year? If you had not considered this up to this point, I would highly recommend it as it is one thing to learn here on the forums from our peers, but it's a completely different ballgame when you get to Pontiac and can see things in person and talk first hand with guys from all the different schools. I am sure many people would agree with me here....

[IsheeM]

A lot of us went to competition last year to observe. However, I dont think we took the right people as most of those guys disappeared from the team or it didnt really seem to get their enthusiasms up. Several of the team members are coming up again this year, unfortunately I will be at Mid-O that weekend. However, I think we have a lot better group coming this year and we know more what to look for since we have all the designing under our belt. I definately want to hear what the Presentation Seminar has to offer as I was lost trying to put the Presentation Event together.

[Denny Trimble]

Michael,
That's too bad, but make sure you get that car done soon over summer, so you can do a few cycles of drive / break / improve.

[XtremeDream]

Man, I am sorry to hear that dude. Sucks that you had all those guys bail on you but look at it from the bright side. Now you will have testing on the car that will rival the australian teams. That could be good.

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

I would also really suggest going to competition as a "spectator." There is tons to be learned just in the Paddock area. Most teams are anxious to answer questions about designs and allow pictures for R&D. We did not make registration for this year but are still taking 5 guys out there. oh, and if you have never been to a competition, it is vital that you see how the events take place in real life!

[Sam Zimmerman]

That sucks, Michael. May I recommend that you stress the importance of leaving behind your documentation (formal or informal) over the coming days. I assume some of your team will graduate, and it will be very important for next year's team to understand the design goals, math models, fabrication methods, test results, etc. of the people who are leaving. That is the only way they will have any hope of defending the design next year.

[Tony K]

I would also like to add Colorado State University to the list. There are a few people thrashing on the car at the moment... but it's far from anything resembling a car. Perhaps if 80% of the car wasn't carbon fiber it would have had a better chance. There are 4 of us that aren't seniors from the team that are still going though. Two of us went last year, and I'm dragging two of our grad students along for the experience and tours. I'm still sad that CU - Boulder continues to beat us every year though... maybe one of these days we'll emerge from our every other year rut.

[Kamil S]

Arizona State University will not be able to go either. Inexperience and lack of funding were major drawbacks, we had a lot designed but almost no funds to get anything fabricated/bought. Our president will be at the competition though to bring back the good stuff (i.e. pictures and tips).

Good luck to everyone at the event. Whether competing for first place or just glad to make it, you guys rock at it. Racecar engineering kicks butt!

[RiNaZ]

On the side note, does any team here have any problem with outsider listening in for their presentation/judging?

I remember being brush off by one or two team when i have my camcorder on during their presentation (i was at least 6 feet away).

Let me know so i can keep an eye out and not try to piss anybody out there.

[james17]

Well, I guess I will put us on this list; UTSA will not be making it either this year. Last year we cannibalized (sorry '02 car guys), used four figure sums out of our own pockets, failed classes and generally sacrificed to the fullest extent possible. We simply couldn't do it again this year and while our main sponsor was awesome another couldn't come through in time. The biggest issue we had is that it is hard for an entity to succeed when another part of that entity constantly punches itself in the face (again, maybe the '02 car guys will get that, while I'd like to be brutally more specific I'd get yelled at).

I'd like to thank anyone who answered my idiotic and panicked questions on here.

We are trying to bring about 4 guys to comp. so the lone new guy we managed to talk into it can see what all his work was for an so we can take hundreds of pictures of other school's cars so we can brutalize and then imitate them.

One quick question for a fellow Texas team with a minute, what route do you use, last year it took us like 29 hours (including one blowout and a messy turtle incident), does this sound right or is there a faster way?

Oh, and to any schools who's tools (I fuzzily remembers something about a group of guys who spoke "real"� English but who weren't from Europe or Australia) or parts (an absolutely huge power cutoff and some pricey braided line) we may have borrowed and never returned, we really aren't kleptomaniacs and if anyone remembers anything I want to try and get it back to you (or we could lone you our freshman, he does good bodywork???), sorry. It had been a real, real, real long 8 weeks.