Blogger: James McKinnie
Location: Miami, Florida
Welcome to Miami! “Where every day is like a Mardi Gras, no work all play!” -at least that is what Will Smith says in his famous “Miami” song. But, for the Volvo IT team, it has been all work and little play. This stop over has been difficult to say the least.
James and Niko working on a 40 meter cable drop
I personally believe it is our most challenging thus far. Heavy thunderstorms and tropical storm winds resulted in a flooded Race Village, that at one point someone was paddle boarding between the Volvo and Camper pavilions!
Water in the race village!
Across the street in the Media Center, water was pouring in, drowning the 220V power cables that supplied all the equipment.
Logistics have also been difficult as we pushed our heavy, bulky flying boxes across the six lane US1 highway in downtown Miami. Three of these flying boxes were our server rack, network rack and UPS rack. Over on the Race Office side, all of the department containers were placed in the mud, or as Nico refers to, the potato field! Ha-Ha! As you can imagine, flying boxes don’t roll in the mud. Despite the circumstances, Volvo IT has risen to the occasion, delivering on time and that’s what matters.
Bruno and Niko with the IT gear
On the lighter side, my girlfriend spent a few days here in Miami with us. On my day off, she and I rented a car and drove to Key West! Following Will Smith’s advice, we rented a jet ski and toured around the island. We reached speeds of 50 MPH and took turns at 35 MPH! We finished the day with the sunset in our sights.
James with his girlfriend
Kind Regards,
James
