Formula Australasia 2006 Competition:- Updates, Pictures, Stories, and More

[Big Bird]

Yep, agreed. I saw cars at FSAE East that looked dangerous driving at 30mph in a straight line. The poor old corner marshals didn't know which way to run. They are doing us a favor, best we don't go maiming them and all

Cheers

[Wes Snaza]

Hello Everyone,

I have had the opportunity to read through the recent posts, I was also humored by the title of the thread as "Formula Australasia 2006 Competition:- Updates, Pictures, Stories, and More."� It definitely shows how easy it is for engineers to get "off topic."�

The posts were all very interesting with everyone making valid points, although some were presented more professionally than others. I would like to defend my fellow colleague, Aaron, on his discussion on the Formula SAE West course. Our team understood that our car dimensions were going to be a hindrance on an FSAE track, this knowledge stemmed from the fact that we had over 12 years of combined experience from previous competitions, which were of course in Detroit. Any FSAE team member that has attended both FSAE and FSAE West understands that the inaugural West competition was much tighter than even a traditional Detroit course. I feel that I am correct in stating these facts and I would be open to any corrections.

The next point I would like to make is one that Aaron also pointed out earlier in his post. All our team members are very educated in terms of the rules; this is instilled early on with first year members. Yet, I do not believe Aaron was "whining"� in his posts, his comments were mainly in discussion of what FSAE is all about. Yes, winning is important, but that is not the overall goal of the project. I believe students involved in FSAE have the dedication and drive to be a successful engineers- thus FSAE as a project is accomplishing what I believe is its goal.

Back to FSAE West 2006- our team learned a very valuable lesson last year, which was the importance of preparation. We didn't do poorly because of the dimensions of the autocross course. If I was going to point a finger at our why our performance was where it was last year I would have to say it was due to rain! Due to our improved management this year and the quality of students we have on the team we feel we will be very competitive in Fontana.

On a final note, thanks Geoff for your comments on our 2006 car, they are greatly appreciated. I wish you and your team best of luck at your upcoming competition(s).

Wes Snaza
Engineering Lead
SDSM&T Formula Hardrocker Racing