MCNSPORT & D-Mac: The year that was 2009

[MCNSPORT.com]

Just thought id give an insight into myself and my company and the progression we made in 2009

2009 will be remember by me personally as the proper development year of the Falken Tire, Sears Auto Centre Saturn Sky. The car went from mild to wild, if you can call a 700+bhp 1000kg car mild

Let start in Feburary when i flew to Charlotte North Carolina to test the Sky after the off season changes
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00204.jpg
This was my first time at ASD, the people that build the Sky, Mustang and 350z. These guys are the best in the business and also the best bunch of guys you could ever meet. Pretty impressive shop they have but they have since moved to a bigger facility which im looking forward to spending time at in 2010

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00197.jpg
First of the new changes was the lovely new lower control arms fabbed by the guys. This control arm sadly met its end in Irwindale later in the year R.I.P lol

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00199.jpg
Another addition was the second EDFC, which allowed me to control the suspension stiffness of all four corners from the drivers seat

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00200.jpg
Moving onto the rear. New upper control arms were cnc'd by ASD and a new rear anti-roll bar was integrated into the roll cage which is pretty cool. It also makes it very easy to change roll bar sizes. This was by far the best set-up change for 2009

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00206.jpg
Test day 1 was at an industrial area pretty close to the shop. This turned out to be more of a shakedown in a wide open Tarmac area

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00219.jpg
Here it is wearing its new shoes for 2009 courtesy of SSR

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00208.jpg
A nice shot of the rear. All the right bits in the best modern drift chassis available

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00239.jpg
Day 2 was a bit more interesting. We headed to what was known at the time as Lowe's Motor Speedway for some proper full on testing

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00244.jpg
Lowe's is a proper motorsport facility. Not only does it have the Nascar oval, with inner Road course and karting track but it has a 4 lane Drag Strip and........

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00246.jpg
A half mile dirt oval!!

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/3448713001_d16aa365b2.jpg
Here she is sitting in the paddock in Long Beach at Round 1. Long beach turned out to be a disappointment. Although we qualified second, the new suspension changes caught me off guard and i had a spin in Top16. The Long Beach street course with all its changes in surface is definately not the place to develope suspension!

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/3523686972_0707ce970b.jpg
Atlanta was next on the schedule. Atlanta had been good to me in the past, its where i first made my Formula D impact in 2007 in the trusty ae86 with a 2nd place podium finish. And with the new suspension parts we made quick progress with the Sky, we ended up with another second place which was much needed and the car started to handle really well, but if anythin it lacked a bit of forward bite

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00326.jpg
Falken also turned up in Atlanta with my giveaway guitar and it looked pretty dam cool! 4 leaf clover n all, how stereotype of them lol

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/Atlanta_Guitar_Winnercopy.jpg
And here is the lucky competition winner. Would have liked it for myself but he seemed pretty chuffed about winning it, so i signed it and he signed up for lessons i hope

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00181.jpg
As for MCNSPORT, we launched our incredably successful ae86 suspension which has hit nearly every continent in 2009. Well proud of the performance of these things and its MCNSPORT's first developed product and even more proud that its not made in China and just painted in our colour like all the other kits on the market

[MCNSPORT.com]

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00375.jpg
Back to more drifting. The Sky turned up at Wall New Jersey with a wider stance but you would have to look twice to notice it but by the end of the event i think everyone knew we had made changes. With what we learned in Atlanta the car took its biggest development leap forward yet. With the almost telepathic understanding between myself and my crew chief Ian Stewart (owner of ASD and general car genius) we made all the right changes and it resulted in an unbeatable car at Wall

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC_3280.jpg
And thanks t a stroke of genius all 3 Falken cars built by ASD with the same crew chief finished first, second and third. Will this ever be done again? What an amazing achievement. This cemented Falken Tire as a real force to be reckoned with

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/3658414439_55f57f3596.jpg
My headwear also seemed to be attracting a lot of attention in New Jersey and after the win it hangs in the Falken rig as one of my "lucky charms" so to speak

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00384.jpg
It was nice to see Ian the Kiwi mastermind getting into the Irish swing of thinks aswell. Maybe ther is some Irish in him as he burns very badly in direct sunlight

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00579.jpg
Meanwhile back at MCNSPORT, my growing love for the Rotary engine led me to build or first rotary motor which im happy to say runs like clockwork. Doing the rotors is quiet time consuming

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00594.jpg
But so worth it for the finished product. This is one of the coolest things ive done i think

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00644.jpg
And just to add to our global ae86 reputation we decided to stick it into our N2 ae86 thus converting it to our RE86

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00646.jpg
And here she is, Irelands possibly Europes first Turbo Rotary ae86 to add to our sr86 which was another MCNSPORT first and is Europes most successful drift car. RE86 is for sale now she will be missed. I think we have done everything ae86 now time to move on to other interesting cars.....

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/3798943919_af3a9ecf2d.jpg
It wasnt all good news in 2009 though. This is one of only a few shots from Las Vegas as we blew the engine in practice which was really upsetting. I was so excited about giving the new look car a good result to add to our 28 point championship lead. I mentioned the Sky went from mild to wild in 09 and the carbon doors, front splitter, rear wing and black rims really made a difference

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00430.jpg
I was left to take out my frustration on our rental for the week

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00431.jpg
A BMW M6 convertable. Nice car, a little slow compared to the Sky

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00543.jpg
Back in Ireland MCNSPORT were attending a hillclimb that Prodrift champion Mike Deane was competing in. From left to right is mechanic "Happy Darren" as apparently im "Grumpy Darren" and of course Peden. This was something we were thinking of getting into and still may but it has taken a bit of a back seat for a while

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00496.jpg
I love this picture of Mike (papa) Deane Senior. This is pure Ireland Green grass, cows and a bubble arch'd Mk1 Escort RS1600

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/FDSeattle2009012.jpg
Across the Atlantic again to Monroe Washington. A nice shot of me and Rod who i became quiet friendly with in 09 through Need For Speed Shift and Speedhunters.com. My loss in Monroe to Chris Forsberg and poor result in Sonoma (A track i dislike so much im not gonna even put up a photo from there) gave him an advantage in the championship i never clawed back

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00657.jpg
I arrived to Falken HQ in Fontana California to see the final development addition to the Sky and prepare for finale at Irwindale Speedway.......

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00659.jpg
An aerodynamic change to a larger rear wing from APR, looks much better.
Unfortunately i crashed heavily in Irwindale for the second year in a row in practice and bowed out in the top16 to team mate Dai Yoshihara

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i278/racershaven/DSC00661.jpg
Final pic is of my buddy James Deane floating around the Falken pit area at Irwindale, while Freddy Aasbo invaded our space welding in his seat braket, good old Falken Hospitality

Believe it our not thats a brief look behind the scenes in 2009. Whats 2010 going to hold?

I have a feeling its going to be a good one!

D-Mac

[Greg]

Cool thread Darren. Looks like it was an amazing year over all(bar the couple of crashes), and hopefully 2010 is even better to you. :)

[way2fastforu]

savage read darren...looks like you had an unreal yr...good luck for 2010 man

[damo86]

well done man, good year, hopefully this will be the same or better :D

[Stevo]

Fair play man good read,best of luck this year!!

[pandy180sx]

good read. looks like some set up over there. need to get out of this country i think

[Simon]

great great read!!!! besta luck in the new year dude!!

[git]

nice posting ....... :D

[Micko]

fair play darren, its good to see a driver in your position putting up a savage thread like this.

despite how unreal the saturn goes for you, it is in constant development which is pretty cool. All the best in 2010, a championship not too far away i reckon..:D

[Midnight]

One of my favourite formulaD cars,Best of luck this year lad.

[Jay Rockett]

Seeeeeeriously jealous man! Thats EXACTLY what i'd love to do with my career!

[geordier1]

really good too read darren,hope this year is as good or even better for you

[MCNSPORT.com]

jesus lads pretty blown away by all the comments

thank you very much

[Cooldrft]

Massive thread ,great to see a incite into the suspension components of the saturn.
Best of luck for 2010 Darren.

[Administrator]

Brilliant thread man, easy knowing you love what your doing! Jealousssss! Best of luck in 2010

[meego1]

always great to get an insight wid de pro s,good write up and best of luck for 2010 more wins are deffinetly on the cards 4 ye, stick it to the yanks:)

[OPTIMUS CRIME]

Fuck me...The yanks seem to do it the right way. 700 brake cars all the way, It must be cool practicing/competing on decent racetracks also. Good luck next year mate.

[Famous jh]

Fuck me thats livin the dream at its best... Fair play lad you have opened the worlds eyes to the level of irish drifting...

Despite some on DW trying to claim you as one of their own :D

[sideways15]

deadly tread man, got nemore pics?

[bob2222]

Brilliant thread man,savage car Best of luck in 2010

[MANO]

savage thread Darren fair play man keep up the good work

[Derk]

Great read Darren.. Well done and all the best for 2010. Keep the Irish flag flyin high!
(Love that pic of Mike Deane snr by the way :D)

[bart]

Great read Darren.. Well done and all the best for 2010. Keep the Irish flag flyin high!
(Love that pic of Mike Deane snr by the way :D)

was just about to say it..
its the coolest pic ever...
irish at its best...
great read also darren

[abceire]

we need a get the american drift car over to ireland for a lil show in 2010
who wouldnt love to see it here?
but also like how you seem to still love the scene here too , ah i remember way back when u d the black was it rx7 of some kind,we were saying who s that kid he s rubbish haha, suppose u done bit better then us now
go d mac keep up the good work

[barryl]

awesome read (grumpy)darren.best luck in 2010;)

[MCNSPORT.com]

awesome read (grumpy)darren.best luck in 2010;)

Fuck you man! haha only jokin

Seriously thanks again for all the comment

I'll have a word with Falken about bringing her to Mondello

not quiet such a positive response on DW http://www.driftworks.com/forum/drifting-chat/105188-mcnsport-d-mac-year-2009-a.html

Feel free to join in:D

[Famous jh]

not quiet such a positive response on DW http://www.driftworks.com/forum/drifting-chat/105188-mcnsport-d-mac-year-2009-a.html

Feel free to join in:D

I see that alright.... Mitto loves a good fight doesnt he! As childish as this sounds their bound to be jealous, after all Irish drifters are streets ahead... Dont see the yanks queueing up to sign the english lads...

[PeterT]

mitto sucks extremely large balls! i added a little sugar to the spice in the DW thread there

[MCNSPORT.com]

i dont no what to say

numpty

[Stevo]

Hahaha he's sum man, add spoon and stir :p

[bart]

Hahaha he's sum man, add spoon and stir :p

seen ur comments steve.. ur a terrible man.....:p


i think mitto is a jealous fooker....
im sure he'd pack up everything and go..
i'll say it again darren...
WELL DONE.......
your doin us proud in America.... (flying the green, white and gold flag):D

[MCNSPORT.com]

always!!

http://www.falkentire.com/userfiles/Darren-McNamara-Podium-Win-at-Road-Atlanta-2009-Formula-Drift-Round-2_2.jpg

[way2fastforu]

haha that mitto is a noddy..jus pure jealousy

[sr20ronan]

funny shit this reminds me of a thread, lol ,yeah the one with the most views for the hours it was up on this. Mitto wans to av sex with you Darren in the bathtub cause he keeps wanting to compliment you but you keep turning him down, stupid english cunt, shove his flag up his ass.


Mitto "Like all things in life, its a balance of the two that will provide the best results. If you take away the nature of the beast, does it continue you be a beast, or a sausage roll in a beast costume?"
WTF shit is he talikng, if I was out for a night of drifting and me man turned around and started talking that shit id be like fuck off you fag, he making drifting sounding gay with his fag talk. How the fuck do people turn drifting into this shit.

Can this Mitto guy even drift or is he one of them guys whos knows everything about drifting and cars like it gonna be in some sort of the summer test. I know a bit but dont know alot,I learn off the lads in a way its fun to know how to set up the car etc, im not a mechanic but I can drift I know that , i rather be out drifting than learning shit off this internet.

Hey tell them PD judges wall taping is good driving, Blowing your bumper off the car isnt and should get a 0, no bullshit this year or ill be another person not going. And as for that fucking idiot of a comentator asking you how much does the tyres cost up in mondello and the rest of the stupid questions, keep taking the piss out him it was funny


Anyway heres my Fanboy bit , gud luck this year in your powerfull "bathtub". And keep posting up the pics of home and abroad, they good reads.

[MCNSPORT.com]

jesus, i just laughed out loud the whole way thru reading that post. quality!!

[Midnight]

I actually got board reading that driftworks thread,does that mitto guy even drive or what.

I agree with ronan,i think he wants to shag you,he has a kinda love,hate thing for you:D:D

[MCNSPORT.com]

the only thing he be gettin up his arse is my size 12's

[Dunnedriftin]

Good right up darren, cant read anymore of that tripe mitto is even typing!

Will we see you back on irish tracks in 2010??

[MCNSPORT.com]

I'll prob bring the rotary cam out at some stage if its not sold and maybe in something new at the end of the year

[MikeFitz]

Good read darren, she's now my favourite drift car. Loved the comment from the commentators about their suspicion that it was a NASA project :D:D:D The very best of luck for 2010