24 Hours of LeMons: Altamont

Words and photos by Warren Madsen
May 10, 2008

Our fighter jet, the Porsche F44 complete with
guns, wing tips, tail fins and afterburners.

Okay, so if you read my recap of our Thunderhill experience, worry not my friends...this will be much shorter. In a highly anticipated event for the Driving While Awesome team at Altamont Raceway near Tracy, California; tragedy was the first news to report.

Our racing adventure ended at around the same time as the life of fellow LeMons competitor Court Summerfield.

We prepared our Porsche 944 as a Top Gun themed fighter jet- the F44. It turned out great if I do say so myself, and we really just arrived at the track and were ready to race; none of the scrambling we put ourselves through last time. It was hot on the morning of the race, about 95 and windy. We added a driver hydration system and it was probably one of the best additions since the last event. With a double layered racing suit and helmet on, the hot car becomes an oven...quickly.

Jared Basye was our first driver. It was his first track experience and he was making his way around quickly, except for the turn one spin- a tricky off camber left. He pushed on for about 30 minutes before I had to jump in. I wasn't exactly prepared but once I was strapped in the 944, it all came rushing back to me.

I cruised down pit lane and entered the banked section leading to turn one. I hadn't had the opportunity to drive here before so this was my first look at it. Tight, crowded and short- the track was more action packed than Thunderhill.

The baby blue Gulf Volvo at center, prior to action.

I was beat around, clipped on the side and rear ended. All par for the course. I was entangled in a long battle with a BMW 6 series, passed smoking Saab's and laughed my way around a disgusting black and pink Mustang. You know who you are. I kept the Porsche in one piece, never spun (but got close) and made up ground entering the finish line straight away. Our Porsche had the right gears there. I handed the F44 over to Bryan McQueen after an hour and fifteen minutes.

The only BMW with pricks on the
outside...the Porcubeemer E30.

With the car refuelled and warmed up, Bryan raced into traffic. This was his third time seeing this track so he was quickly comfortable and frustrated with the slow traffic everywhere. Not long into his stint he was stuck behind the V8 powered Volvo with big heavy bumpers. Not realizing the car ahead was about to come to a stop, Bryan crashed into the back of the Volvo and crushed the corner of our radiator. Not good.

Our nemesis (not really), the V8olvo.

He exited to pit road and found our stall. When we looked it over, the radiator was bent back and the mounts were smashed, but no fluid was leaking out, no hoses were torn. It looked OK...and that was because all the water had leaked out right after the contact. There was no more water to leak. Everything was hot and the overwhelming sense of losing laps rushed us to throw Bryan back out to the track.

As Bryan entered the track all the gauges went dead. Not a good sign. What must have been wires melting from intense heat, the Porsche was quickly dying before us. After one more complete lap, the car began to make noises and running rough as it tried to keep going. BAM! Grey smoke poured from the car...

The 944 came to rest on the infield grass and never moved under it's own power again. A blown rod was our guess, but it was dead no matter the cause. A sad but noble way for a veteran LeMons race car to retire.

The awesome Luftwaffe inspired BMW 2002 (or 1600?).
Great to see it racing!

We scratched our heads and tried to get a grip on what went wrong. There were still members of our team that never got a chance to race after months of preparation and that's who we thought paid the biggest price, that was until the race was red flagged shortly after.

The Number 39 Gulf Volvo 242 (one of our favorite cars at Thunderhill) was smashed head-on to the wall near the start/finish line. The track was not particularly fast at that section and any impact would be manageable with all the proper safety equipment that LeMons demands. Still the race was stopped and all safety crew rushed to the scene. With our car done, we watched intently for a driver to exit the crash, but, he never did. A medical helicopter came over the horizon, circled once and disappeared; a terrible omen.

According to later reports, Mr. Summerfield had experienced a heart attack and lost consciousness prior to impact. He had died doing what he loved according to his family, for what it's worth. Our troubles were laughable compared to the Gulf Volvo team and family. Our thoughts were with them.

We packed things up and headed home, I barely had time to take pictures as you can see by this scattered post. They finished the race on Sunday and an old Acura Integra took top honors this time around. We left thinking how to come back stronger than ever for Thunderhill in December. Stay tuned...

The Porsche F44