2
Carter Racing
Goodstone and paid the $30,000 Pocono entry fee. If we withdraw now, we can get back half the $30,000 entry. We’ll lose Goodstone, they’ll want $25,000 of their money back, and we’ll end the season $80,000 in the hole. If we run and finish in the top five, we have Goodstone in our pocket and can add another car next season. You know as well as I do, though, that if we run and lose another engine, we’re back at square one next season. We’ll lose the tire sponsorship, and a blown engine is going to lose us the new $800,000 oil contract. No oil company wants a national TV audience to see a smoker being dragged off the track with their name plastered all over it. We can’t live without the oil
sponsorship. Think about it -- call Pat and Robin if you want -- but I need a decision in an hour.” BJ hung up the phone and looked out the window at the crisp, fall sky. The cars were already on the grid, spectators admiring the gaudy paint, excitement mounting in anticipation of the start. This was what made racing at this level special, the cars on display with crowds mingling around and waiting for the engines to roar to life. In an hour, the spectators would retreat to the stands and the cars would circle the track in anticipation of the start. The temperature sign across the street flashed “40 DEGREES 8:23 A.M.”
Exhibit 1: Note from Robin Burns
BJ, I got the data on the gasket failure problem from Pat. We’ve run 24 races this season, with temperatures at race time ranging from 53 to 82 degrees. Pat had a good idea in suggesting we look into this, but as you can see, this is not our problem. I tested the data for a correlation between temperature and gasket failures, and found no relationship. Relationship between Temperature and Gasket Failures
4
Breaks in Head Gasket during each Race
3
2
1
0
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
Ambient Air Temperature (in degrees Fahrenheit )
In comparison with some of the other teams, we have done extremely well this season. We’ve finished 62.5% of the races, and when we finished, we were in the top five 80% of the time. Our rate of blown engines is 29%, but we are running fast, so we have to expect some difficulties. I’m not happy with the engine problems, but I will take the four first-place finishes and 50% rate of finishing “in the money” over seven engines any day. If we continue to run like this, we will have our pick of sponsors. Robin
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