[Jeff Waegelin]

We used the same belting that Wildstang used in 2001 the past two years, with mixed results. In 2001, the belting worked incredibly. Without it, we couldn't even go up the bridge with 2 goals. However, we had a 6-wheel drive system and a narrower, half-width belt.

This year, we used the same material, but at full width and on a 4-wheel skid steer system. It gave us all the traction we needed, but didn't last nearly as long. We had to replace the tread 3 times before we finally changed belt types. We ended up going with a slightly lower-friction belt from a local supplier, but it was tougher and cheaper than the other stuff. We had been paying about $100 per belt, but with the new stuff, we could do 8 wheels for the price of one belt. We used it for Florida practice and IRI with no problems, and it's still in good shape. If anyone is interested, I may be able to harass our team leader and get the name, but I don't have it right now.