how much change should be done to make our sport safer? lets start with the obvious, the real trouble usually starts when open wheel cars bang wheels. lets start with enclosing the wheels. now everyone on this board is going to say no, no, no ,no . well if people were truly concerned with driver safety this is a one true way of making this form of racing much safer. the fact is sprint car people are not truly concerned with driver safety or this would be the first thing done. I am sure people will say they are not sprint cars without open wheels. people also said they are not sprint cars when they put roll cages on them. not until wheel enclosures are put on sprint cars will safety be major concern.
"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help." President Ronald Reagan
Have a trained safety squad ,such as Lawrenceburgs travel w Usac.....that crew is unmatched and nakes me feel safer for my driver rverytime they show up at the BOSS races....they know what it takes to get a driver to safety cause they train w sprintcars!!!
Originally Posted by cshuman:
In Australia, they require hood and arm guard panels to be fastened by "wingnut" dzus buttons so safety workers can take them off without needing a tool. That being said, I don't think panels are making any injuries worse. If a guy needs to get in, or out, they will. The biggest thing I think needs to be done is head clearance.. build the cars with taller cages and smaller openings. There are way too many guys running with their heads damn near even with the cage.
Casey, the sad and stupid thing is the owners and drivers here in Australia voted during the off season to change that very rule. This season you no longer have to use winged dzus clips on arm guards. My cars have and always will run them as I care about the people in my cars.
Sarah and I have talked with Josh on several ocassions and his feeling is each and every driver knows the risk when they strap in, hell no we dont want anything to happen to our son but we also understand he knows what can happen, straps in and loves it. You can start yelling now but I say leave them alone and for Gods sake do not cover or enclose the wheels on a sprint car.
they put roll cages on them to make them safer, so now people think they are still not safe enough. the next logical step of course, would be wheel enclosures, other then that this safety thread is all b.s. we all know that this would make them a lot safer. if car owners and sanctioning bodies truly cared about driver safety this would be implemented asap.
"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help." President Ronald Reagan
Originally Posted by sp6967:
how much change should be done to make our sport safer? lets start with the obvious, the real trouble usually starts when open wheel cars bang wheels. lets start with enclosing the wheels. now everyone on this board is going to say no, no, no ,no . well if people were truly concerned with driver safety this is a one true way of making this form of racing much safer. the fact is sprint car people are not truly concerned with driver safety or this would be the first thing done. I am sure people will say they are not sprint cars without open wheels. people also said they are not sprint cars when they put roll cages on them. not until wheel enclosures are put on sprint cars will safety be major concern.
You guys are starting to turn my stomach with the safety crap, no sprintcars wont be sprintcars with wheel enclosures. Whah whah.
Wheres Ralph Nader when you need him, or maybe Martha Stewart could design the cars complete with flower holders. If your for putting wheel enclousures on sprintcars you definitely need to find a different race site to troll.
Originally Posted by Backitin:
You guys are starting to turn my stomach with the safety crap, no sprintcars wont be sprintcars with wheel enclosures. Whah whah.
Wheres Ralph Nader when you need him, or maybe Martha Stewart could design the cars complete with flower holders. If your for putting wheel enclousures on sprintcars you definitely need to find a different race site to troll.
You guys are starting to turn my stomach with the safety crap, no sprintcars wont be sprintcars with roll cages. Whah whah.
Wheres Ralph Nader when you need him. If your for putting roll cages on sprintcars you definitely need to find a different race site to troll.
internet of 1969 if existed.
"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help." President Ronald Reagan
Originally Posted by sp6967:
they put roll cages on them to make them safer, so now people think they are still not safe enough. the next logical step of course, would be wheel enclosures, other then that this safety thread is all b.s. we all know that this would make them a lot safer. if car owners and sanctioning bodies truly cared about driver safety this would be implemented asap.
In order for this sport to continue, as with most other sports, the competition excitement will need to be balanced with an acceptable level of risk for the competitors. I believe the car owners and sanctioning bodies truly care about driver safety but, let's face it, if competitor safety becomes the paramount goal the sport will die because people will realize that the only way to absolutely prevent sprint car driver injuries is to stop racing them. At issue is not whether the car owners and sanctioning bodies "truly care" about driver safety but what level of risk is defined as acceptable. In the early 70's that level changed when roll cages were mandated. Since then there have been many other more subtle changes implemented (seat belts within two years of manufacture, fuel tank bladders, better fire protection, current helmet standards, etc.) all designed to enhance driver safety while maintaining that balance with the excitement of open wheel competition.
I, for one, am interested in what USAC is researching, especially given Mr. Jones' post indicating no car construction changes. This gives me the impression that they are working on the balance I've mentioned and as most folks know finding that balance is the challenge.
And, please understand, to say that since my car is still open wheeled that I, as a car owner, don't truly care about my driver's safety offends me deeply.
