Anything is better than nothing. I've had whiplash a couple of times and 25 years later, on a good day, my neck is stiff and crunches when I turn my head. I've talked to other drivers who have the same. The injury that keeps on giving.

Good capture. I wish I was able to capture more of it. I have captured several wrecks, and the first thing I notice is that in almost everyone of them I see the drivers helmet touch the ground first. In one of the it even shows the driver getting hit in the shoulder because he is leaning out so far.

[Tony Barhorst]

I agree that the q.m drivers need to have their head and neck more secure..I have always wondered about the leaning out of the car. Q.M's are a great way to go ..very safe...but the leaning out of the car is a situation that could cause bad injuries.

Rule of thumb with all race car safety..head and neck MUST be secure...thats why Indy Car had a better record than NASCAR in the first part of this decade..Indy Cars had better head and neck restraint.

The leaning out of the cars is a habit seen in no other form of 4 wheel racing.

[wbr]

My two boys raced WKA Champ Karts for a few years before the Kenyon Midgets. Champ Karts are similiar to .25 midgets but have no suspension or shocks and they go a bit faster. The officials would black flag any driver that broke the plane of the roll cage during green flag racing, no exceptions.

I was really shocked to see the .25's drivers hanging halfway out of the cage at Ft. Wayne- the first time I saw the .25 drivers compete. I have no dog in this fight but sure hate to think about one of the little guys getting hurt for no reason.

[spankytoo]

Originally Posted by Phylo82 The QMs are going much faster now then they were 7 years ago. Heck, they are going much faster then they were 2 to 3 years ago. The speed is getting ridiculous for young, and in some cases inexperienced drivers. Kids are moving to faster classes much more quickly now then when we started QMs 5 years ago. It used to be that a driver had to master their current class before they moved to a faster one. That doesn't seem to be the case any longer.

You misunderstood my post. I said we were in it for seven years. We have only been out of it for a couple of years. I still think that quarter midgets are the safest of race cars to put a child in. Why would anybody go to karting where you get ejected and then the Kart hits you.

Originally Posted by spankytoo We were in quarter midgets for 7 years. The worst accident causing an injury was a sprained thumb from the steering wheel spinning or a sprained ancle from a head on crash. These cars have been raced like this for over 20 years. If there was an issue you would think that the rules would have been changed.

My grandmother would have wisely said "What doesn’t happen in a year happens in a day"

[ryderrocket19]

Westfall chassis built our daughter's QM and we had them put in a Kirky seat and she took a vicious ride in Toledo went over the wall and landed in the hot shut and walked away unharmed. We thanked God that day for that Kirky seat.

Dave Ryder

Maybe some of you people need to get your kids out of QM.

[Phylo82]

Originally Posted by spankytoo You misunderstood my post. I said we were in it for seven years. We have only been out of it for a couple of years. I still think that quarter midgets are the safest of race cars to put a child in. Why would anybody go to karting where you get ejected and then the Kart hits you.

I agree with you on that one. If you follow the proper safety precautions QMs are very safe. My son took some wicked flips and some nasty runs into the wall at Mini-Indy. He was shaken up a bit a couple of times but no bad injuries.....he had harder hits when he played football.

My opinion though is that QMs are going in the wrong direction. They should run a harder spec tire (dump the Vegas!!!!). The harder tires will last longer (save $$$$) and it will put the emphasis back on car setup and driver ability.

Sure, the lap time will be off a couple of tenths from what they are running now but it will be better racing, the kids will learn how to drive and it will be safer.

---------- Post added at 09:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:44 PM ----------

Originally Posted by ryderrocket19 Westfall chassis built our daughter's QM and we had them put in a Kirky seat and she took a vicious ride in Toledo went over the wall and landed in the hot shut and walked away unharmed. We thanked God that day for that Kirky seat. Dave Ryder

Dave, I think the smartest thing I ever did in QMs was to put a seat in my son's first car when he was a novice. He felt more comfortable and he learned how to get around the track without hanging out and looking down at it.

I don't know about you guys, but I always have a little 'lump in my throat' every time I strap my kid into a car, even back when he was running QMs. Watching him rocket around the track in L160 and then in WF could give a father some serious heartburn.

I thought USUK had everything under control.