Hot Hot Hot

Up early sundy 4:30am

The car needs to be on the grid between 5:30 and 6:30.

From Past experience we have learned it is best to get there early otherwise it is bedlam.

We are first on the grid we sit and wait.

8:39 we leave Darwin city traffic is horrible we sit on mitchell st for 10 mins before we get on to the Stuart Highway.

For 40 km all is well with onlookers cheering as we pass. We also pass several cars who have already had problems. Then our car stops. It is hot i mean the temperature is hot the car is hot and the motor is very hot. For a moment I fear that this is our race. we summise that the motor has overheated and I cling to the vain hope that as Doug has suggested the motor has an inbuilt Thermal cut out. after about 10 min the motor spins up. My heart starts again.

We are now aware that we are suffering from a motor that is getting way too hot. so we can now work around this . We ar pushing into a very strong head wind and the car is struggling so are other teams. At every stop we cool the motor with a water spray and keep the motor fan running. We have decided that we can't make Hayes Creek hill but we can beat last times day one record beyond Adelaide River.

During the day the motor cuts out twice more and we end up with 181 solar km and 137 trailered.

We make Katherine by trailer and there are about ten teams here, many have done less that us a Canadian team has only done 51km's. We hear tha Aurora have had a blow out and this resulted in them having to repair their car and restart at Katherine. Tokai Uni [Editor: That is Umicar Inspire from Umicore, Belgium] is out having been pushed off the road by a huge gust of wind, and the resulting crash has destroyed there car. The driver is fine.

We will start at 8 while it is cool and there is no wind. We think we have 3/4 in our batteries this is a guestimate.

5 to 8 off we go stay tuned.

John Beattie
Leeming Solar Car team.