How much "sheet metal"?
 

Recently saw some posts of new cars prepped for USAC season. At what point does it become a hybrid looking Sprint/modified? I would never want to sacrifice safety, but this is also sports entertainment in which the human element should be primary.

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

If carbon fiber is legal (I'm not looking up the rules & am out of the loop...lol - not that I ever really was anyway...), it's proly as much of that as it is sheet metal...lol

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

Mr Devin sent me a rulebook when I was a race official yrs ago:15: in their it stated openings on R/S had to be so big:18:, don't know if it's changed since then.:31: I see some of these sprint cars where the R/S opening is very small & w/ these containment seats I hope drivers can get out quickly of theirs a fire:18:. I never saw a rule book so complete b4 in my life as that USAC book was:6:

I'm disgusted by it too. The Chili Bowl midgets had wings/spoilers mounted on the back of the cage behind the drivers. It's almost at the point where I will stop following the sport as they become less and less the cars I used to love.

This has to be an over 50 post....

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

I'm under 50 and not a fan of just seeing a helmet. Seeing a driver work the wheel shows a lot of what the car is doing, and how smooth or not they are.

I only stated that I believe the person who started the post would be over 50.......and I bet I am right.

Not a fan. Age 31

I wish they would completely enclose the driver with a roof that attaches with hinges. I also think they need to have fenders to make them safer. Cars should be fully enclosed.

😂

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

Sounds as if the genre' of racecar you're wanting to watch is late models. Everything but the hinged escape hatch fits your preferences. Give the Late Model Dream or the World 100 at Eldora a try. I've heard it's a really great party! Besides having fenders and being fully enclosed the left rear jacks up a foot and a half all by itself upon acceleration and half the left rear wheel and tire disappears behind the left side sheet metal. The right front wheel sticks out to the right side a foot or more further than the right rear. The right side of the front valance is a foot shorter than the left side and the whole nose piece is somehow twisted to the right. Given 'em a try, they might be just what your looking for.

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

As a former Midget driver (2016 -2nd in POWRi Outlaw Midget Points, not bragging just for reference) I prefer to have some sort of covering on both sides of me. Since midgets run with no wing I am entering and exiting the car from the top anyway, and left side exit would result in dealing with a hot exhaust. I have been in an accident when a front tire on another car got into the car with me and smashed my hand on the steering wheel, after that i started putting left side guards on my cars. I am not personally a fan of the halo bars being put on cars now. I had one on a midget and my Han's device would get caught on it when i was trying to get out of the car. But i don't know what the answer is for head protection so as of now i would just risk running with out the Halo. But i can say if I run midgets or Wingless sprints I will have some sort of panel on the left side of the car.

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

Like it's been posted 50 times (in one way or another? lol). Prolly, but seems like only way stuff gets changed/"fixed" is enough people complain...but this isn't Twitter...for some reason that has become the only source for anything...I prefer IoW myself...(age38)...lol

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I too am a former midget driver and I agree about the protection, but carbon fiber and sheet metal don't give you any real protection other than from rocks or mud. The only thing that adds to real safety is extra chassis bars and they don't have to be covered with body panels to do their job. If the body work is what makes you feel safe in the car, you're just fooling yourself.

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

ditto...for the most part...(my "former driver" part included a brief foray in Midget98's beautiful equipment too...the best car I got to drive in any discipline of my "career"...lol. From stock cars of all sorts, mini-indys, etc).

PS - at the end of my National Midget "career", I used to make an attempt to at least Q (when they had it) without the right side guard (seemed my dad always wanted to button it on...surprising, as he is a traditionalist, but gather he did figure it was "safer"), at least once a year, espcly on HoF night. It did in-fact give a different perspective...idt it made me any faster tho...lol. BUT I maybe only raced without one barely once tho, I gotta say...I heard enough stories of guys from the 80s & early 90s taking a rock in the arm...actly forgot it one time & had a buddy stop at the shop on his way up! lol.

And your point is?

And your point is?

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

I think we should respect the opinions of drivers like this guy who are risking their lives for our entertainment. Only way i can see to make everybody happy about this is clear Plexiglass panels? :23:

While wearing a black Simpson coat & a Goodyear hat.....jk

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

Way I look at it is as long as it fits within the rules let the driver run what side arm guards or no arm guards as he wants. Hopefully it doesn't happen, but if he gets trapped and killed in a fire due to the panels blocking off the escape then that was his choice it'd be bad to see, but we're racing death is a very possible thing to happen. I'm all for left side enclosures, but not all the way up to the dash like the KKM or CMR cars. This isn't the 70's anymore. (Even though them cars were beautiful.) People want to preach safety, but then say "let's run no side panels so we can see the driver do his thing." That makes no sense. I personally will probably adding a left side bar and panel to close the car up some more on the left probably elbow height or a little more bending down. I've gotten hit enough by rocks or big pieces of mud and want to have less of a chance on getting hit in the left arm by another car.

I’ve touched on this subject before. I say , just to simplify it the rule should be no bodywork above the drivers sight line anywhere on the car, sun visor excluded. In my opinion this should apply especially to the Silver Crown series

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

they used to not even allow sun visors

And let's be realistic about the "sun visor". They don't really block the sun anyway. If this was the real reason for them how come they stay on after dark? Two dzus buttons and off they come. And realistically, how many races are run in the daytime anymore where this might even be a viable excuse? Taping off the top part of the helmet visor is way more effective for blocking sunlight anyway. I remember when the big controversy of the day was panels on the outside of the nerf bars on a Drinan pavement car. It didn't take long for those to be banned. Same goes for the ram air hood that was popular for a few weeks before USAC said no forward facing scoops directed toward induction. Is it just that the incremental growth of the side panels came on slowly enough to not cause an uproar. I guarantee if someone had shown up at a USAC race back in the late 90's with a car looking like the ones today, there would have been immediate action to limit bodywork.

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

I disagree Midget98. My Front and Side visors block off lots of sun. Also helps block off the big lights at night. I got crap from some people when I started running them, but one person that gave me crap started running them himself and noticed a big difference. Biggest place that I have noticed them to be very helpful is Turns 3&4 at Waynesfield. Rules allow me to run 8 inch tall side visors, I think that's a little to big personally. Mine are 3-3 1/2 inches. I'm going to make more so might go 4 1/2-5 inches, but in testing I can see fine out the sides with bigger just this car is a little taller. I also don't have them part of the side panel so if there would be fire and I need to go out the side with a little pressure the will bend out. Taping the visor off makes it less visibility everywhere. Sun visors only take visibility out from top of the car. I personally felt it was a lot safer to run sun visors then taping off my helmet.

Re: How much "sheet metal"?
 

When tracks started moving to the bright halogen lights, those visors became necessary. Now the trend is moving to more power efficient LED lighting and both are much brighter and more intense than the old amber lighting.

And for those of us fans that are annoyed by the constant ride-hopping in open wheel, the names on the visors are really helpful.

Late Models where just discussing visors, it's not open wheel, but it's worth the read and the reasons may be applicable to sprinters as well:
https://racingnews.co/2019/02/03/mar...n-dirt-racing/

I have ran front and side visors for several years. They help with lights and keeping mudd and rocks off of me.
They will stay on my cars unless someone wants to come along with a big sponsor check. Then they can be removed if they would like.

The people who say sun visors don’t work have never entered turn three at Lernerville.