The SimXperience Team is very excited to introduce and welcome new Product Developer and Mechanical Engineer, Todd Bettenhausen! If you are an active member of the iRacing community hardware forums, you are probably very familiar with the name and do not need an introduction. If you're a long time USAC or Indycar fan, you are most likely familiar with the Bettenhausen name as well.
Todd grew up with his twin brother Cary in a family that started racing in the early 20th century and it was all he ever knew as a kid. His grandfather, father and uncles all drove race cars. His dad, Gary, was his hero and Todd thought he was the greatest racing driver that ever lived.
Growing up, the brothers Bettenhausen played every racing game they could get their hands on. When Indianapolis 500 The Simulation was released, Todd would sneak in some races during lunch at his first job in a large sheet metal shop in Indianapolis. This shop basically invented graphic cases for reprocessing medical instruments and implants (essentially custom-fitted autoclavable toolboxes). Thus began a nearly 30-year career with his brother Cary in case and tray design, culminating with the founding of their own company, ContainMed, Inc., in 2005. They have been awarded several patents over the years related to building cases and trays from modular components, methods of retention of instruments and implants, and various latches and other mechanisms.
All the while he enjoyed driving with racing simulations including the Papyrus NASCAR and IndyCar series, Grand Prix Legends and the Ratbag dirt games. He never worked particularly hard at being a good sim racer as the technical side always appealed to him more than driving. He was constantly looking for a way to better immerse himself into the simulations and started by building an aluminum shelf to get his monitor atop a giant Force Feedback steering wheel to allow his monitor to be close enough for a good Field Of View.
Once he joined iRacing and saw how vibrant and creative the community is, he started a series of DIY projects that included a chassis made from interlocking MDF sheets with a triple monitor shelf, a couple of chassis made from 80/20, an enormous triple rear projection setup that consumed an entire master bedroom, and a platform to add the SimXperience Rear Traction Loss to any sim racing chassis. Many of these are featured in the YouTube videos he's created over the years, and have been shared with the iRacing community as drawings and through detailed descriptions.
"We are very excited to have Todd as part of the SimXperience family. Todd brings many years of mechanical engineering experience to the table as well as his passion for motorsports and technology. We have some exciting new projects that Todd is going to start working on immediately and we can't wait to share them with the public" says SimXperience President and CEO Berney Villers Jr.
Both Todd and Berney share in the excitement over Todd joining the team.
"I got to know the SimXperience team over the course of a couple of beta testing opportunities. I've known Pat Dotson, whom I'll work closely with, since my earliest days in iRacing. I believe we built a mutual respect while working together and the team's commitment to and passion for simulation was, and remains, obvious to me. The opportunity to join them came at a point in time where our own company is running well and I just couldn't pass it up. Being invited to join SimXperience feels a bit like joining the Team Penske of simulation. I'm fortunate to have the opportunity to turn a hobby I love into a career. Of course, Team Penske never stops improving, and Mr. Penske expects results. I'm already modeling parts and the toughest thing might be waiting until the time is right to tell everyone what the next cool thing we've been working on is!" says Todd.
About SimXperience
SimXperience is THE premier motion simulator manufacturer with expertise in electronics, engineering, manufacturing, vehicle telemetry systems and software development. SimXperience products are utilized worldwide in driver training facilities, homes, simulation centers and race driver development programs. The company's team of software, hardware and electronics engineers have crafted the most advanced, customizable and immersive simulation available at any price point. The SimXperience Stage 5 Motion Racing Simulator provides a complete professional racing simulation in your home or facility, and it's delivered ready to run. For more information contact a SimXperience representative.