The new 902 system is up and running perfectly. All new electronics, computer circuitry, and control console that took a couple of weeks to install properly. The operating system is quite different from the old 901 (24 years old), and has taken some getting used to. It's sort of like when my second wife moved in to my house 20 years ago, the first thing she did was move the silverware drawer from the kitchen cabinet next to the fridge to a different cabinet six feet away. 20 years later, I still open the drawer next to the fridge when I need a spoon.

SuprFlow tech Brett Williamson spent two days here showing me and Sean Ray the new system. I used my HTG Edge 1000 triple to verify the new system. Tuned to max power on pump gas on the 901 system, it made 225 HP. As Brett gauranteed, the engine made 225 HP on the 902. It's just math--torque and RPM, but it made me feel real good to see it myself on my own sled that has 100 dyno runs on the 901, and now 90 on the new system during training. And now instead of manually adding torque to make up for the 6.8% power loss created by the dyno absorber speed  reduction drive at 8000rpm (and then increasing exponentially) it's done automatically by the 902 computer!

Plus, the real time graph we watch on the computer screen is instantaneous, without the 1/2 second delay of the old system. Remember--the computer system in the 901console was designed 30 years ago, and times (and speeds) have changed. The 901 recorded data 10x per second and the new stuff records 100x per second. More measurements can be made simultaneously--two LM1 widebands, two fuel pressures (one EFI and one for carbureted engines), exhaust backpressure for two-stroke pipes or turbos, N2O bottle pressure, boost up to 100 psi, and there are 8 extra 0-5v channels that can be used as needed.

Sean and I are experimenting with dragrace acceleration tests that now can be viewed on the "real time" graph. Once we determine where the HP peak is on an engine when it takes off from a dead stop, we can program the test to mimic that--blast from low revs to peak HP RPM in a second, then gradually slide to higher revs, up chasing the climbing HP peak (as pipe center section temp climbs) for whatever number of seconds the race is expected to last.

All cold air equipment is here (four walk-in freezer condensors and evaporators) but more carpentry work/ insulation needs to be done. Typical contractor delays are forcing me to try to operate the evil and terrifying Harbor Freight $59 Chinese air nailer (trying not to crucify myself) on Labor Day weekend to ensure that we can have lots of dry winter air for EFI tuning this month. I have two EFI sleds from Utah in the bay next door waiting for cold air, and others close by, but just as anxious to miss the typical December madhouse for EFI tuning. 

2011 Apex preproduction engine data will be posted here on Sept 10, per Yamaha's request (that's when they are doing their scheduled info release).