The shifter handle on the transmission of Jimmie Johnson's car broke during Sunday's race at Michigan, so he and his team had to take drastic measures.
When Johnson pitted under green, the team handed him a pair of pliers and a vice grip to attach to the remaining part of the shifter handle so Johnson could shift the gears in the car.
However, he couldn't get the vice grip onto the shifter handle. When Johnson pitted he was in high gear; after his team pushed him away from his pit stall he tried to get the vice grip on the handle.
A process that continued as he exited pit road.
And continued some more as he got onto the track and accelerated up towards full speed.
It was an incredible moment of multi-tasking that a mere mortal would have incredible issues with. And we'll also be honest, it's a little bit dangerous too. We all know how dangerous texting and driving can be, but fixing your transmission and driving? Though given the preponderance of automatic transmissions in passenger cars, we won't see a new set of commercials against this.
But it's also worth pointing out if you didn't already know that Johnson is more than a mere mortal when it comes to driving a car. He's a six-time Sprint Cup Series champion with more car control than you, me, your best friend and your brother combined. If anyone could keep a car pointed straight and out of the racing line while attempting to do this, it's Johnson.
However, Johnson wasn't successful in his efforts. He lost a lap while trying to get the shifter fixed and his team ended up fixing it on a subsequent pit stop.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
from Yahoo Sports http://ift.tt/XsVxcr
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