TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY JET DRYER TRUCKS READY

TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY JET DRYER TRUCKS READY TO AID SUPER BOWL SHOULD MORE INCLEMENT WEATHER ARRIVE IN NORTH TEXAS


FORT WORTH, Texas (February 3, 2011) -- With more inclement weather possibly on the way to the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, Texas Motor Speedway has its two track jet dryer trucks on hold for the North Texas Super Bowl Committee should they need some assistance for Sunday’s Super Bowl XLV at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.
Each modified Chevrolet pick-up truck is equipped with a Learjet engine and is traditionally used to dry or blow debris from Texas Motor Speedway’s high-banked, 1.5-mile oval that annually plays host to NASCAR and INDYCAR series events. Each truck, with a 60- to 80-foot wide coverage area, carries 450 gallons of jet fuel and utilizes six gallons a minute in blowing or drying a surface. Each engine produces 2,250 pounds of thrust and the air being emitted is at 500 degrees.
The trucks were not called in earlier this week for the icy conditions because the process would have been ineffective as the freezing temperatures would have returned the improved conditions back to ice in addition to being extremely time consuming and expensive (jet fuel is roughly $3 per gallon) for the short-term gain.
“This application works much better on blowing or melting snow rather than attempting to melt the thick ice we experienced,” Texas Motor Speedway Vice President of Operations Mat Stolley said. “We have the trucks prepped and ready to go should they need them leading up to or the day of the Super Bowl. Give the North Texas Super Bowl Committee a lot of credit for their due diligence. They contacted us two to three months ago regarding the jet dryer trucks so they were planning well ahead for the wide-varying weather conditions that are common for North Texas this time of year.”