Mike went psycho on the CSR last night. All the rims came off so the bearings can be inspected in the hubs and carriers. Axles need to be inspected. He pulled the front swingarm and leading link fork, the rear swingarm, and the outside spindle and caliper carrier. These go to our media blaster / metallurgical expert today to get stripped down and then inspected for stress fractures or weak points. Then it’s back here where they will get shot, cured, and freshly packed bearings will be reinstalled and everything reassembled and safety wired again. Mike feels there have been too many ‘incidents’ this season due to mechanical failures. He states that he was a complete nut about keeping his bike tidy when racing with the AFM, and never once had something fail, which is why he always says to me, “Better to catch something small here in the garage, than to be suprised by something big out on the track.”
Rig looks funny with all the suspension components stripped off of it, Mike assures me it will be back in fighting trim in a couple days.
And when it’s all stripped off, there is not exactly much in the way of suspension parts sitting there. There is some light surface rust buildup on areas of the parts, so I can see why Mike wants them stripped and inspected.
Blanco Basura is supposed to come by in the next evening or two and work with us on the new sponsorship design skin for the rig. No idea what they have in mind for version two, but they crank out amazing stuff. We have a couple new sponsors to incorporate into the new skin, so we’re happy that we’ll have it done in time for Reno-Fernley so we can fly their corporate logos around the track for the photographers and fans. Less than ten days out from raceday at this point!
~Sarah