Redhead Racing & Performance LLC Blog

2010-04-28T16:27:00.008-05:00

Whats new at RHR

2010-04-19T20:34:00.001-05:00

New to Redhead Racing & Performance LLC.... it is a new era for RHR as our customers change so do we. We have had several requests from customer to supply them with parts for their racing motorcycles and parts for their street bikes. We are now actively expanding our parts offerings to include the motorcycle performance market.

Whether you are looking for parts for your track bike or parts for your sport touring bike we are here to help.

Stay tuned for updates to our site......
As always thank you for your support and choosing Redhead Racing & Performance LLC for your racing and performance needs!

Whats new

2008-02-26T10:01:00.002-06:00

Hello all. Just wanted to give an update. A few things have changed on our site. We have brought a lot of things up to date. There are new items being added to the shopping cart daily.

We are very excited to announce that we have picked up a few new vendors.

RCrew Racing
PasswordJDM
NRG Innovations
PIC Suspensions

Info on all of these products will be added to the site soon. We will also be adding these products to our rental car fleet.

Also in the near future we will be doing several video segments on the site. They will be covering new and exciting products we are carrying, installation of products, set up techniques, and new technology for the sport compact performance market.

We will keep you updated!

Shawn McLoughlin

Racing Dates

2008-02-03T08:35:00.000-06:00

Hello all. I just wanted to update everyone. The 08' season is around the corner. We have a lot planned for the upcoming season We will have rental cars available for Midwestern Council races, SCCA CenDiv and GLDiv races, and also NASA Midwest and Great Lakes divisions races.

Please check out our calendar page http://redheadracing.net/calendar.php for all of the race dates.

Happy New Year

2008-01-03T16:12:00.001-06:00

Well it has been awhile since I have posted.

Well 2007 was a year of not a whole lot on the racing front. My wife and I bought our first home and that has taken up most of my time. Also the crash at the end of the season in 2006 put a damper on things.

We will be back in full force this 2008 racing season with our new car a 2000 Honda S2000. We are also working on a few new cars for the rental program.

I will make sure that I keep everyone up to date with what is going on with pictures and post about the cars and the season.

Shawn McLoughlin
Redhead Racing & Performance LLC

Chicago Autobahn

2006-10-17T16:58:00.000-05:00

I'd like to report that the racing has been going well but a incident at the Chicago Autbahn South Course has put the #32 in a bit of a hurt.

This video, supplied by another club members in car camera(a Miata) shows what happened to the #32 as it came out of turn one at about 70 mph. You'll see the back end skip out and Shawn spins into the guardrail. Continue watching the video and you'll see the rest of the carnage on the opening lap.

Thankfully Shawn was ok, no injuries, just a little sore. The car isn't as bad as the video shows. Just the front section ahead of the strut towers was damaged. It will need so major cosmetic surgery and a assortment of parts from the radiator to the oil cooler, fans, lights, and other tidbits to be back on the road for next season.

Missing the up coming long race isn't how the team wanted to end the season but that comes with the territory of racing. Some days your the dog, some days the hydrant.

Gingerman, Labor Day weekend

2006-09-09T12:26:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the lack of updates lately. Shawn and I both have been very busy with our work and personal lives to remember to do updates on a regular basis.

Labor weekend took Redhead Racing to Gingerman Raceway in Western Michigan. Shawn had a full weekend of two races to run. His first practice and qualifying with the #32 Honda wasn't as good as he had hoped. A lack of power around 6500rpm kept him regulated to a 3rd spot on the grid. During the time between qualifying and the start We discussed the problem and decided that changing out the plugs and fuel filter should clear it up which it did. Shawn went on to score a overall victory when the race was finally over.

The second race was a little less stressful as the Honda performed flawlessly and Shawn sat on the pole and lead the entire race to take the overall win.

A great weekend overall and it makes the long drive to and from the track worth it. Next up we will be in Illinois at the Chicago AutoBahn park for a Sunday race.

2006-07-31T16:28:00.000-05:00

This is a little bit of how our weekend went. Once it all sinks in and some pics are available I'll post them.

Friday. Final load, look over our lists then off. I meet up with Shawn at Full Compass we headed to Elkhart Lake. It was about 5:30 pm when we made it there. Registration started at 6 pm. I had a quick beer while looking over a gorgeous Ferrari 360 that was in the parking lot. Very cool car. Once we registered we unloaded everything, and with the help of Dave Anderson set up. We basically went over everything we had, and needed to do. About 10ish we went into town for some much needed grub.

Saturday. Way to early to be up but with the Miata in Group 1 and the Honda in Group 6 it was going to be a busy day with the way the schedule laid out. Along with Dave, his son Devin pitted with us for the weekend making for a fun time having that much bench racing going on. The extra hands and minds where helpful too. With the end of Group 6 Shawn needed to be out and into the Miata in group one with no down time after the first session. In the heat we had up there. It was no fun, I could see. Once the morning was done the Miata was 26th on the grid of 39 and the Honda 4th on the grid of 38 if my memory of the car total is correct. Lunch was a nice break but then right into the Miata. A 30 minute race and Shawn managed to climb up a few spots to 22nd. Not the best, but not bad for the first time on RA with the Miata. The Honda, 4th place behind a few Porsche 944's and a RX-7.. That night I crashed at my wife's aunt's with the family. Trying to keep the piece so to speak.

Sunday. Early again. I got there about 7:30 am and the rain was just coming in. Devin rolled in a little later and helped his dad Dave pack up since Dave wasn't racing today. Shawn had me wire up the Honda wipers(we had the harness out, never put it back in) so I tackled that as Shawn did some prep work on the Miata. We switched to rains on the Miata, more like streets, and Shawn went out for practice/qualify. He ended up 28th on the grid there. With the wet conditions, it was expected to be back further since the tire combo wasn't really going to be good there. The Honda got Hoosier "Wets" put on and Shawn went out and posted another 4th place qualifing spot. Once we saw the lap times with Shawn on wets, and others on drys, we knew we had a small shot for the finale. After that, another break for lunch and then into the Miata which had the Proxe's for dry back on. Shawn worked the field well and managed to put the Miata up to 19th place when all was done. A big improvement over the previous day. Then it was a relaxing, hot afternoon waiting for the final race of the day in the Honda with Group 6. Shawn finally was on track and didn't waste anytime on the drop of the green shooting past the VW in third. A few turns later and the third place Porsche 944 was pasted. Then it was a matter of clicking of great laps and running down the RX-7. About halfway point of the race Shawn got past him in turn four and didn't look back. Winning the Overall race by a margin of about 10 seconds. Nice to grab your first overall win at a place like RA.

There wasn't much time for celebration, we needed to be packed and out by 7 pm. With the help of Devin and his family we had the rig rolling out in about 50 minutes. Which was nice because it was a long ride home and I am feeling it today, and I didn't even race! Just crewed!

Road America

2006-07-27T16:27:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posts on the blog this month. We've been on a mad dash to get everything prepared for Road America and it took a toll on the usual things we needed to do. The Miata is ready to go with it's new colors and decals. The trailer lettering has also started. Both are and have turned out great and we should at least look good when we roll in this weekend. Hopefully all the hard work pays off in some top finishes in the cars.

Wish us luck

Miata Progress

2006-07-07T07:48:00.000-05:00

The Miata is progressing nicely. The inside is sprayed and now we will tackle the outside body work and painting. If everything goes according to plan, we should have the #132 SM/ITA ready for Road America.

Down time

2006-06-28T15:43:00.000-05:00

With Sunday's Blackhawk race completed(more on that later) we have a month of down time until Road America. So with that time we are going to strip the Miata apart and get it painted the team colors. The scheme is still kind of up in the air. So it should be a surprise to everyone, me included, when it is done. Which is scary, since I am painting it! We are also going to install a new seat in the blue Civic of Andys.

Blackhawk this past weekend wasn't what we expected out of the team. Saturday we unloaded and set up but went home that night because we both had family obligations so it was a early Sunday ride down. This weekend we where joined again by Andy Schmiechen and also Dave Andersen who both brought their Honda Civics down to race. Everything went well threw practice and qualifying. By the time the qualifying sessions where posted we where happy to see the #32 had snagged the outside of the front row.

Then Mother nature and Mr. Murphy decided we where having to good of a day. Just after the lunch hour rain hit. We looked over the tires choices and decided since we had no rains, to leave the Hoosiers on. All we could do was hope for a break. Discussions went on and on. With Andy wondering about my weather predictions and if he should mount the Hoosier dirt stockers he had.

Right about the time grid was being called the rain started to let up. We thought we caught a break sitting on grid looking at all the cars with rains on and us with normals. As the cars went on the parade lap our luck ran out, the rain picked up again. Two attempts to take the green flag where needed and on the second when the flag waved Shawn took off and had the field by a good 10 cars going into turn one but the lead only lasted one lap and with the rain picking up Shawn worked the Honda as best he could to a 10th place finish. Even though it was a tough race overall Shawn still scored another win in the UNR group. So at the end of the day we where still happy. The car was in one piece, no off track excursions like some had, we learned a lot about the cars abilities in the rain, and what we truly need for rain tires.

Road America is coming up at the end of July and everyone is looking forward to bouncing back and having a good showing. Wish us luck

More Blackhawk Farms

2006-06-23T07:20:00.000-05:00

This weekend we are back down to Blackhawk for a Sunday race. This time just the Honda for Redhead. We will also be joined by Andy and his Honda. The Miata has a sick transmission. 3rd/4th shift is not as smooth as it should so this past week we pulled the transmission. Since it will be down for a spell we are also getting it ready for new paint to match the Honda. The next few weeks before RA we will sand down the blue, spray some primer and then throw on the team colors of Gun Metal Grey and the Deep Orange. It won't be in the same scheme as the Honda, but it should be unique to all the other SM cars on the track.

More on our race weekend Monday.

Dog days are already here

2006-06-16T17:05:00.000-05:00

I was smart enough to pick today, one of the hottest days we've had so far, to do some repair work on the Honda. Just some small things. A suspension bolt on the left front was stripped out. New bolt in and everything is great. Go over all the bolts on the car, check torque and wear for safety sake. Then get those dreaded hood pins tightened back down. Don't want a hood flying up now do we, that could ruin a guys day. Right?

After that, just go over the car, look for odds and ends that need to be done before our next race at Blackhawk Farms on June 25th.

Should be a great weekend, we did well last time and should expect similar results. Going to just run the Honda that weekend. Then it will be a month long of prep work for our favorite track. Road America, I can't wait.

See you at the track!

mylaps posted results

2006-06-04T10:22:00.000-05:00

www.mylaps.com has the results for last weeks raced at Blackhawk Farms

Race One, Improved Touring , Honda Civic

Race Two, SM/Prod, Mazda Miata

Race Day, "Speeding is FUNdamental"

2006-05-30T09:17:00.000-05:00

After a long hot two days (did I mention it was hot before? No, ya. Freakin' hot) we where at the day we've been working towards all winter, Race Day.

The morning again started at 8 a.m. for the drivers meeting. Then practice. Shawn had entered two races for the day with the Honda in the IT group and the Miata in the Prod/Spec Miata group. This would mean keeping focused on two different styles of cars. Practice for both groups went fantastic, no issues or problems. Then qualifying. Shawn put some fast laps down with the Honda and ended up 5th on the grid out of about 40 plus cars. The Miata was a learning experience, with a qualifying spot of 33rd out of 38 cars. A little disappointed with the time Shawn looked forward to getting back into the Honda.

Lunch came and I was given a ride around the track by Devin, who showed me the proper lines and also talked about how the car would react. I learned a lot on those few laps. Hopefully some day I can put them to use.

Race one with the IT group was up next. When the green dropped Shawn was stuck to the inside and dropped a few spots but quickly got them back and returned to his 5th place starting spot. As the laps clicked off so did the cars (waving twice to Andy), getting around a SM and a RX-7 put Shawn in third place behind a Porsche, and Bimmer which is how the race ended. Overall that put him in 3rd overall and 1st in class.

Race two with the Prod/SM group was next. Starting 33rd Shawn pushed as hard as he could and clicked off some consistent lap times, improving threw the race to push up into the 25th spot by the time the checkered flag fell. For the first time under race conditions in the rear wheel drive Miata that is already a sign of improvement. Seat time in the car will result in even more improvement in the future.

That put a end to our day at Blackhawk Farms. A great weekend with somewhere in the area of 6 or so hours of track time. We where spent, mentally and physically. It took around 3 hours to get packed up. Finally arriving at home sometime on the 11 p.m hour.

Sleep and A/C felt good. Til' next race

Saturday Driver School

2006-05-30T09:08:00.001-05:00

Our weekend continued at Blackhawk for the Driver School. With last years motor letting the magic smoke out of every cylinder Shawn was one race short of getting his Novice Permit signed off so would have a Comp license. So back to school, back to school, to learn. As Billy Madison would say.

The morning started at 8 a.m. and ran all the way threw until 5 p.m. or so. Long day with a lot of track time. At one point during the day a suspension noise that was thought to be solved decided to rear it's ugly head. The lower control arm bolt going into the sub-frame had come loose and the nut had become unattached from the sub. So some grinding, swearing, more grinding and a hammer fixed it in no time. The rest of the weekend we checked the bolt between sessions just to make sure it hadn't come loose again.

Rain passed threw just before a session. A lot of cars quick changed to rain tires but we stayed on the same set. Which was a good idea since the track dried fast and was only slick in 6 and 7. Shawn took it easy threw the session until Andy decided to pass a ton of cars and put Shawn in the cross hairs. Shawn not wanting to hear Andy rib him the rest of the day dropped the hammer and put some distance between the two of them.

The practice race went of without a incident and afterwards licenses where handed out. That night we pulled the cars threw race tech and prepared for a long Sunday, thankfully the beer was still cold so as Crew Chief I made a last second call to drink some of them.

Friday Test Day

2006-05-30T09:08:00.000-05:00

On the 26th we arrived at Blackhawk Farms for the test and tune day put on by the MSCC. We took part of the morning to setup the hauler and get the cars teched.

Andy Schmiechen also was pitting with us for the weekend with his newly purchased Honda Civic. So we put him to work right away, along with Dave and Devin Andersen. With the five of us, and just enough knowledge to get us in trouble, we set the haulers side awning up in just a hour or so.

unfortunately Dave's Honda ran into a overheating problem so his weekend pitting with us came to a end. Devin though was around for the weekend to still help with the cars, give advice, and pointers.

The afternoon we had enough time to run two sessions in the Honda and two in the Miata. Both session went without a hitch with no problems on either car. By the end of the day we where happy with how things went so a vote was taken, and off to watch some live music nearby. Which gave us a chance to unwind after a long day.

Spec Miata at Milwaukee

2006-05-30T08:19:00.000-05:00

It was nice to see the Spec Miata for Redhead racing run good at the Milwaukee Mile in the Great Lakes Gran Prix. The first weekend out as a rental and it did well.

Qualified 1st in the Spec Miata and finished 2nd. It also qualified 1st in the ITA group but did not start the race.

Honda Improvements

2006-05-19T15:46:00.000-05:00

Wednesday night was spent adding a A-Spec racing rear subframe reinforcement brace on the Honda. Not a very big job, but it will help keep cracks from forming where the rear lower control arms attach to the body.

In other news, the Miata is rented for a weekend of racing. More details on it's adventures come Sunday!

Team meetings

2006-05-09T07:43:00.000-05:00

Monday night was a "Team meeting" night at Willie's Repair. With Shawn and I going over every aspect of the upcoming race which is Memorial Day weekend.

Both cars are near race prep, with just minor adjustments needed to the Honda, and then a final tune on the Dyno at King Motorsports. The Miata only needs to have a "pre-load" inspection before it is tied down in the Hauler. The CRX was also looked over and a plan of attack has been devised to get it squared away this season.

The Hauler, just some final adjustments to the tire rack will be done. Then stocking it with all the needed gear for a full race weekend.

We will be heading down to Blackhawk Farms Raceway in Rockton Ill on Friday the 26th for a test day. Then a driver school on Saturday to refresh Shawns skills. Followed by Sunday's race which is a Madison Sports Car Club sponsored event.

If you would like to join us on any of the three days to see the new toys Redhead Racing has, discuss a possible rental, or just enjoy a weekend of road racing, please feel free to contact Shawn or myself threw www.redheadracing.net

Bj

Drivers are so busy

2006-05-05T11:44:00.000-05:00

They are, you wouldn't believe how busy the Driver/Owner of race teams are. So much going on trying to get ready for upcoming seasons that they never have time to update their blogs. So, the Crew Chiefs have too, as usual, step in and kick start things. Shawn's lucky I only have a size 8 shoe.

All kidding aside, I'd like to introduce myself. I'm B.J. Ruland, Shawn's "Crew Chief" and also one of the sponsors of Redhead Racing threw my family owned business, Willie's Repair. One of my new duties at Redhead Racing will be making an attempt at updating the blog portion of www.redheadracing.net as the season goes on.

A very busy spring with some great additions to the team in equipment should make 06' a fun and competitive season. Let's hope over the next few days/weeks I can show all of you what has been going on behind the scenes at RHR and what to expect in the future. Wish us luck!

B.J.

Update 7-13-05

2005-07-13T08:27:00.000-05:00

Well the Redhead Racing Civic has been running behind. We have run into some set back which made us miss the race at Road America. I was bummed because I really love that track, it is one of the best in the country.

The motor is back in the car and all hooked up. When I was installing the intake manifold it cracked so King motorsports is welding that up and will put it on when they tune the motor. I sent the wiring out to a guy I met on Honda-tech.com he is going to make me a race harness for the car to eliminate all of the wiring we do not need. Hopefully if everything goes as planed and I bust my butt this week we will be ready for the race at Blackhawk Farms on the 24th of July.

I will post some pics of the car in it's current state soon. We just sold our old camera and we are waiting for our new one!

Shawn

Motor build up

2005-06-13T10:04:00.000-05:00

My block header and gauges came in! Here are some updated pics of the build so far.
Also there some some pics of my custom dash!

block top

block long view

piston dome side

piston top

piston side 2

bottom of block

close up of crank balance

crank again

Fuel / Volts gauge

OIL / Water temp

tach

shift light

Fuel pressure and oil pressure

Hondata S200

S200

RMF header 1

RMF Header 2

RMF Header 3

RMF header 4

Dash 1

Dash 2

Dash 3

2005-05-26T09:26:00.000-05:00

Well there has been some set backs as of late. I am still waiting for the block to come back from the builders. They were having some problems getting the pistons.

Well good things come to those who wait, right?

I ordered my gauges yesterday. I purchased SPA dual digital ones. Here is what they look like.

SPA gauges

They are going to be mounted in a custom Stainless Steel dash we are making. I will be starting on that this weekend.

I also picked up 2 sets of Hoosier race tires. They are used but have plenty of life left in them for me. 205/50/15 in size.

I am also looking at a header for the new motor. It is a toss up between an RMF header or SMS header. Both have great products so it is tuff decision. I will post pics when I get them up. I will also post some pics of the motor going back together.

Sponsorship

2005-04-14T12:08:00.000-05:00

I just finished up my sponsorship document. Now it is time to hit the road and start looking for sponsors. It is a bit late but things have been crazy around here.

BJ and I will be working on the car this next up coming week. We will be making the dash, mounting the seat, painting the cage, and removing the rest of the HVAC system since we will not need that anymore. I will post some pictures up when we are done.

There are some new items that are going on the car for this season. It will be a fun project. New cams, pistions, rods, ECU and more.

I will keep everyone updated!

First Post

2005-03-21T22:05:00.000-06:00

Hello…. This is my first post on my blog. The point of this blog is to blog about my amateur racing career. So I hope someone out there will find this interesting.

A little bit about me. I am the owner of Redhead Racing. Back in the summer of 1999 I purchased his first Honda Civic and caught the import bug. After I immersed myself in import car magazines, online forums, and websites, I decided to start adding performance modifications to my 1999 Civic EX. Since then I has had a few different cars and has become more involved with auto-x and wheel to wheel racing. He is a member of the Madison Sports Car Club, Midwest Council of Sports Car Clubs, and many other online car clubs (www.honda-tech.com, www.clubsi.com and others). I am also on the auto-x committee for the Madison Sports Car Club (www.madisonsportscarclub.com)

Tonight I spend dinner with my friend BJ Ruland. BJ is my crew chief also for Redhead Racing. We got together tonight to go over the up coming season. We started a budget for what it will cost to run the whole season, and who we should approach for sponsorship.

Well that is all the news fit to print right now.