Jim Beam Racing News
The Suit loses it’s Cool... While Courtney Keeps His...
21 March 2009
Photos from the Clipsal 500
James Courtney today suffered one of the harshest system failures felt at a circuit like Adelaide’s Clipsal. The cool suit, designed to maintain average body temperatures for drivers whilst in the cabin of the vehicle, failed on the start line and did not recover throughout the session.
With outside temperatures reaching 34 degrees Celsius throughout the race, and the cool suit itself maintaining a constant temp of 43 degrees Celsius, Courtney was placed in an uncertain situation. With the team medical personnel keeping a constant vigil on the radio, Courtney assured the team he was travelling okay.
At lap 47 it was decided to bring him into the pits to check the equipment and see if he was physically able to continue. With the front windows on 18 being removed in that pit stop, James was sent back out to continue the race.
Despite the extreme condition that Courtney was racing under, his lap times remained consistent throughout the session. He remained a front runner until he pitted to check his physical condition and to change the car set up.
“We had a chat to him and he assured us he was okay to go on. Once he was back, he let us know that the window removal had made no difference at all to ambient temp in the cabin”, explained Scott Sinclair, Head Engineer on car 18. Courtney’s commitment shone through and he remained on the track to claim valuable team points.
“I am feeling okay”, Courtney said afterward, “That was really really tough. It was hot and it was dirty, but I lasted as long as I possibly could. The most frustrating part of all of this is that my car is fast. It has the pace. It was just a suit failure that bought us down today”.
The new qualifying rules have suited Courtney better than any other driver in the field this weekend. Starting again from 4th position on the grid, Courtney has promised that the cool suit is now running effectively and that the #18 Falcon FG is a force to be reckoned with.
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