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CUP: The Mystery of the Secret Laurel Hill Tunnel
Written by: Sam Collins
Racecar Engineering   http://www.racecar-engineering.com/
12/13/2007
London, England
 
The carpet (rolling road) didn't match the drapes in Ferrari's wind tunnel. (LAT photo) » More Photos

The rolling hills of Pennsylvania in the Northern United States are not where you would expect to find a revolutionary new aerodynamic tool, but deep under the Laurel Ridge you will find just that. Imagine being able to do limitless straight-line testing in perfect conditions - no wind, controlled temperatures and with a real, full-scale car. In the past this was impossible, but not any more.

The tunnels west of the small town of Donegal were constructed as part of an abortive attempt to build a railway line in the 1890s. After the project failed, the tunnels lay dormant until they were included in plans to build what became known as 'America's first superhighway' - the Pennsylvania Turnpike - a motorway-style road running east to west across the northern state. The new road opened in 1940 with much fanfare and instantly proved a success, but by the 1960s it was clear that the tunnels along the route were bottlenecks and possibly even dangerous to motorists.

So the tunnels were abandoned once again, though the one at Laurel Hill continued to be used sporadically for storage and also as a firing range. Then, at an unknown point a few years ago, a racing team, believed to be Chip Ganassi Racing, came along and changed everything.
A schematic of what's believed to be the testing and operations center. With the steel enclosure built to house a full transporter, the team, rumored to be Ganassi, can pull in, test, and leave with minimal drama or attention. (Photo: RCE) » More Photos

Rumours of an abandoned highway tunnel being used by a racing team first surfaced around 2004, but details were sketchy at best. But pictures have now emerged of the Laurel Hill tunnel as it is today, and it shows some intriguing modifications, including a large metal structure that has been added to the eastern end of the tunnel.

What is inside it can only be speculated at, though what looks like an escape road and tyre wall has been built next to the new building. Information on the western end of the tunnel is even harder to come by, but low-resolution images appear to show a similar escape road.

Tales recounted by hikers reveal a little more about what exactly is going on at Laurel Hill: 'I had been hearing screaming burn outs and deep-tone V8s blasting through four gears clear from the top of the hill,' claimed
hiker Corey Shaulis, who took some of the pictures seen here that day.

Discarded drums of Sunoco Supreme (a racing fuel developed for engines which operate between 7000 and 10,000rpm and the official fuel of NASCAR) have also been photographed at the eastern end of the tunnel, and a new surface is clearly evident in some pictures, leading into and under the new structure. It certainly seems as if somebody has at some stage built exactly what Paul Van Valkenburgh predicted in March 1995 - a coastdown tunnel - a tool that combines the best elements of real world, straight-line testing and conventional wind tunnels.

It is thought that a car is driven under its own power down the tunnel to a set speed and forces are measured. Exactly how measurements are taken is not known, but there are a number of options, like strain gauging for example. Other possibilities are that there are load cells built into the roadbed, or large plates to measure downforce.

Visit Racecar Engineering Magazine for more stories of racing technology and intrigue.



Initial testing has been conducted with a NASCAR, but rumours persist that both Ganassi's IRL Dallara and Toyota's F1 car have been run in the tunnel, though there is no evidence of either having done so.

Racecar contacted Chip Ganassi Racing about Laurel Hill but it declined to comment. However, sources in NASCAR have revealed a little more about how the tunnel functions: 'It is straightforward I think. The big thing about the tunnel is the ability to control the environment, making for more repeatable results. It can be heated/cooled to the desired temperature and, obviously, there are no worries about cross winds. How they measure forces I don't know though.' Climate control means the tunnel must be effectively sealed and, with the movement of air being measured, it might suggest an airlock at the eastern end to ensure gusts of wind do not upset the results.
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