Evolution Dynamics Pikes Peak Edition Evo
By Sarah Forst & Wes Dumalski
F1 race car driver Stirling Moss once said “To achieve anything in this game, you must prepare to dabble in the boundary of disaster.” Of course, he also broke both ankles and chipped four vertebrae after falling three stories down an elevator shaft a few years back so accidents can happen to anyone…
But how do you prepare for a floor routine that involves 14 somersaults 100 feet down a 45 degree abyss polluted with boulders? They don't call Turn 16 of the Pike's Peak course “Devil's Playground” for nothing. 12,500 feet up the side of the summit- just 1500 feet shy of the finish line- the corner features a steep unprotected cliff. Perhaps the asphalt leading up to the turn should be nicknamed Skidmark Alley.
By now, the video of the Evolution Dynamics Evo careening down a boulder ravine has been viewed by millions. My own life even flashed in front of my eyes while watching it. You can't skimp on safety with racing events like this. If you haven't seen the Evo playing pinball in a quarry, check out the video:
Flash back to December 2011. Kevin Dubois at Evolution Dynamics asked Jeremy Foley if he wanted to run Pike's Peak in an Evo 8. That's akin to asking a homeless man if he wants a fifth of hooch. Pike's Peak entertains a limited number of participants and is invite only. They filled out the application, crossed some fingers and toes, sent in a bribe or two, and got a letter back saying they were accepted. Thus the dream had begun.
Evolution Dynamics shared these “before” photos with us:
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| The Evo 8 has Evodynamics custom dry carbon hood and Seibon carbon widebody front fenders. |
Flash forward to August 2012. Eight months of grease, lube, and fluids and a baby is born. It's a Mitsubishi 4G63 with forced performance HTA3586 ball bearing turbo making 550whp and 500 ft lbs at 28psi running E85. In Colorado Springs at 6000 feet, it made 540whp and 480 ft lbs at 24psi. It's a boost happy rocket on wheels.
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| The rear has a custom made alumalite rear diffuser that measures 42″ long with a 12 degree angle. |
Time for the competition. The first day of practice went great. They went out with the last run group which contained Time Attack, Open wheel, and Unlimited cars each getting about three runs. Jeremy and Yuri took the first run at about 80%. It was their first time using the pace notes and they were pretty conservative with the unfamiliar sections. They weren't able to complete the second run due to a power steering hose failure. They cleared up a few mistakes and made changes to the line and braking zones and got in a quick third run.
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| Tucked in the engine bay is a 2.3L 4G63 making around 550 wheel horsepower and 500 ft lbs of torque at 28psi. |
The qualifying sessions were also successful, with the team finishing in fifth place. The windshield mounted camera spotted small puffs of smoke coming out of the hood vents in 1st gear during hard accelerations. The problem was identified as a loose oil feed line on the turbo. This issue and the power steering hose failing again caused them to miss the practice sessions but they turned the car around in time for the race.
