Karl, Martin and Michael Troy were hired as support crew for the National Directors team and a Canadian team. Not long before the trip Karl was offered the opportunity to drive a rental 944 offered by www.pinkporsches.com. The event was part of a Speed World Challenge weekend.

Karl had not raced in 2 years and had to get his competition license reinstated with literally no time to spare. His race history and string of success over the years helped make that happen at the last minute.
The Troy boys were busy taking care of other teams cars which gave Karl very little time to develop his rental into a car he felt comfortable driving.

The first session was scary as the car did not do what it was supposed to. 20th out of 30 cars is not what Karl was accustomed to. The team made some significant changes for the following run and it made the car much more predictable.

There were 3 pink Porsches. The other 2 were driven by Chris Brady, a 944 Cup regular, and Nick Esayian, a pro driver. Karl ended up being fastest of the three piglets for the remainder of the weekend including Sunday’s Championship race. He finished 4th in a car he has never sat in before and after a 2 year break from racing. He was very pleased with the result.

On Monday, we are prepping all three cars for tech inspection. The cars have to have some type of AC. We are insulating the Carbon Fiber bodies with various lightweight materials in order to insure minimal loss of cool air in the cabin. Here’s a few specs:

• The car is powered by a 1cyl. 250cc engine that is turbocharged
• The car has a dry weight of 750 lbs. and has so little rolling resistance that one person can push it with only one finger.

Click on the thumbnails below for more photos of the Edison 2:
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Karl Troy is very proud to announce that his long time friend Oliver Kuttner has asked him to be part of this incredible project. Karl has been working with Oliver since 1993 as crewchief on various race-cars, including Pegasus BMW V12 powered WorldSportsCars, IMSA cars and Daytona prototypes. Edison 2 has entered 4 vehicles in the Progressive Automotive X Prize, #’s 95, 96, 97, and 98.

The Edison 2 team is comprised of some of the best in the business. Pioneers in Aviation, Road Racing and Engineering are involved in achieving one common goal. To win the X Prize with innovating designs that will benefit the entire world by overcoming fuel shortages. It is a huge honor to be crew-chief on the #98 car. As always Oliver has found a way to employ a group of team members that put personal achievements aside. Everybody helps where ever they can. Whether it is your car or someone else’s. Teamwork is key and the term “impossible’ does not exist.

Over 100 cars from all over the world have been entered in this event. Many have gone home by not meeting the required criteria. After the last competition in June 2010 only 15 teams and 21 vehicles remain. #96, #97 and #98 are 3 of those. #97 and #98 are of the mainstream category which are 4 seater cars. The two Edison 2 cars are the only ones left for the finals in the mainstream class. #96 is in the 2 seater alternative class. Unfortunately #95 had technical difficulties and was eliminated from the competition. #96 posted 101.5 MPGe on E85 fuel which is a new world record.

Karl will be back at Michigan International Speedway beginning July 19th 2010 for the finals as crew-chief on #98.

To find out more about the team and the competition, go to www.edison2.com and www.Progressiveautoxprize.com.

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