December 12, 2019

jimsgarage

Indianapolis and PRI 2019

I really do enjoy going to this trade show. It was an early morning as the opening breakfast is not to be missed. The shuttle bus had a heavy load of us to get there early this morning.

When we arrived the line was already very long.

It wrapped around several times, but soon we saw movement and then we were inside with the crowd of our brethren of the racing industry.

We enjoyed the breakfast and that gave us a chance to get to know each other. People are from all over the country and have varied racing interests and experiences. With our phone we were able to share photos and videos of our adventures and our passions.

Soon we had the introduction…

…and then the highlight of interviews from Ralph Sheneen. There was Don Schumacher of racing fame and several of the racing stars that work with him.

The stories were entertaining and provided much insight into their racing lives.

Soon it was over and the official opening of PRI 2019 began and the crowds descended the stairs to the acres of display area.

The show was on and we started exploring.

Stage 8 has one of the most incredible products for ensuring exhaust fasteners don’t vibrate loose. This is especially important in the all-to-common turbo applications where heat and vibration work to loosen just about any bolt and stud fasteners used. Stage 8 ensures they stay in place.

Another great product that I was glad to see at the show was Jack Tech USA. They make the fastest and safest strut spring compressor I have ever worked with and this show they introduced a heavy duty version.

They have several great products that use their unique system of gears and transmissions to raise and lower in complete confidence.

Many other familiar faces were there such as Eibach and AP.

Hunter was there with their products.

Their latest tire changer is almost completely automatic to the point that once the TPMS is indexed and the dismount operation is initiated the operator can walk away and balance the previously mounted tire.

They demonstrated their Road Force balancer as well as their latest alignment machine. It was all very impressive. I did my best to torture them with my most difficult operational questions, but they had done their design homework and their machines showed off how well they can deal with today’s challenges.

DSC Sport was there with their adaptive suspension technology.

Penske Racing shocks was also represented.

We are all holding our collective breath to see what Roger Penske does with having newly acquired the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indy racing series. If his past performance is any guide it will be a huge acceleration of the improvements that have already taken place in Indy racing.

Kittyhawk has a process by which they can remove the porosity in castings and additive manufacturing.

Aegeus was one of several Chinese companies that were at PRI for the first time and showing of some impressive products.

SCW Driveline was there from Australia with their products.

ALITRAX showed off their Connected Racing Intelligence. With things such as in-car flagging and Race Control notification.

Swift Springs was there with a new product that replaces the common bump stop technology with springs!

These go in place of the plastic bump stops that generally get over compressed with springs that are far more resilient and predictable. Swift also had their usual vast catalog of springs that work for stock replacement as well as for many coil-over applications.

The folks from Hawk brake technology were also present with an impressive race car display as well as improvements to their already impressive brake pad options.

Streamlight had a vast array of LED work and task light technology.

AGI roll cages have many products available that allow quick and safe roll cages to be installed without custom welding.

Liland Global showed off their many products for cooling and for replacement stainless steel gas tanks. Along with their oil pans.

In the Lucas arena were many types and styles of racing trailers and motorized race car transports, but the one that really caught my eye was the open trailer that makes loading and unloading so very easy and practical.