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drag racing: obvious safety gaps
#467609
09/14/09 02:24 AM
09/14/09 02:24 AM
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 435
New Mexico
Scott440
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OP
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Posts: 435
New Mexico
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prior to the 60s, seatbelts and helmets were sometimes missing from motorsports. now, it seems like an obvious safety gap...to even THINK otherwise is insane. we get a chuckle out of seeing leather racing helmets in old photos.
well, after seeing a few drag wrecks, i gotta say there are still some obvious things missing:
1-bigger, softer barricades ... hay bails, water filled drums ... with or without a guard rail. just get rid of those concrete walls! how about 4 rows of water drums on each side of the track, spaced. and space them a few feet apart to give the car more gradual deceleration. and make the drum easy to split open -- water or fire slurry couldn't hurt a car on fire.
2-soft center divider along the entire strip so a crazy car doesn't take out his competitor (especially when the competitor is slightly behind). so it obstructs visibility for the fans -- even a 48" high wall sitting in a 12" deep trough could delay the cross over a second or two. shame on you sanctioning bodies -- if you've left this out for fan visibility, you've been getting away with murder.
3-fluid catch pan/tray under the engine. how many times has something broke loose, spewing lubricant or coolant conveniently ahead of the rear tires. it could help with aerodynamics (smoother airflow under the car) and eliminate costly downtime (ridding the track of fluids).
4-if a car has a parachute and is not reasonably close to the center of his lane, or tire pressure drops way low, or a fire occurs, there should be an electronic auto-deploy of the parachute. i'm sure with today's technology, the signal to deploy could be sent remotely by track equipment. OK, this concept is a bit elaborate, but definitely worthy of some trials.
while you're at it, apply these concepts to other forms of auto racing.
items 1-3 may be present at *some* strips today, but if drag racing is around in 2050, they will be universal, and people will laugh at 2010 safety standards.
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: Scott440]
#467610
09/14/09 07:38 AM
09/14/09 07:38 AM
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Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 22,696
Bitopia
jcc
If you can't dazzle em with diamonds..
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If you can't dazzle em with diamonds..
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 22,696
Bitopia
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1. "Softer" walls have a tendency to catch a vehicle, and at 150+ mph, you really don't want that.
2. Center divider wall is a great idea for safety, and has been discussed over the years
3. I would think a catch pan would give a false sense of security, and cause a bigger problem at the top end with larger amount of fluids, fire, etc
4. An active secondary remote control,chute deployement control by teams crew chief, is not real complicated nor expensive and not likely to have too many negatives, and has merit IMO
Reality check, that half the population is smarter then 50% of the people and it's a constantly contested fact.
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: jcc]
#467611
09/14/09 09:09 AM
09/14/09 09:09 AM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,763
Walton's Mountain, Pa
Steve1118
master
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master
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,763
Walton's Mountain, Pa
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The concrete walls are a must.
The problems with the old "softer" systems they used in the past is they would give, act like a spring, and the car would bounce off and be catupulted either across the lanes and into the other barrier, or back into the racing surface.
You want something you can "ride" to a stop without it pushing you into an even worse situation.
"Old age and treachery trumps youth and enthusiasm, every time!" East Central Director / Chrysler Power Magazine www.reasbeckracing.webs.com
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: jcc]
#467613
09/14/09 01:16 PM
09/14/09 01:16 PM
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 435
New Mexico
Scott440
OP
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 435
New Mexico
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Quote:
1. "Softer" walls have a tendency to catch a vehicle, you really don't want that.
if you are driving the "other" car that's EXACTLY what you want. your car could be perfect and still be totaled. if you're driving the squirrel car, you want the softest landing possible. maybe the water drums should only be filled 25% to prevent ricochet.
Quote:
3. cause a bigger problem at the top end with larger amount of fluids, fire, etc
a pan to catch oil is more dangerous? pls tell me you're just kidding.. i'm not sure a diaper is even enough with all the hoses near, but not on the engine.
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: Scott440]
#467614
09/14/09 01:38 PM
09/14/09 01:38 PM
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Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 5,048
Atlanta Indiana
Dave Watt
master
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master
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 5,048
Atlanta Indiana
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Quote:
a pan to catch oil is more dangerous? pls tell me you're just kidding.. i'm not sure a diaper is even enough with all the hoses near, but not on the engine.
Just think if you had a fuel line rupture/leak during a run and not know it. The catch pan would fill with fuel and could cause an inferno.
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: Steve1118]
#467616
09/14/09 01:52 PM
09/14/09 01:52 PM
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 435
New Mexico
Scott440
OP
mopar
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OP
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Posts: 435
New Mexico
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Quote:
The concrete walls are a must.
The problems with the old "softer" systems they used in the past is they would give, act like a spring,
You want something you can "ride" to a stop
then keep the cheesey guard rail (or replace w/hay) and put water drums behind them...just get rid of the concrete. what about sawdust or plastic pebbles instead of water. or even put a trough of water on the sides of the track. if i dropped a cat from a 10 story building, i bet you it would bounce more on concrete than a shallow pool of water.
it's possible, but VERY hard to drown in 6" of standing water...
putting a slurry or water trough down the center would not obstruct the fan vision at all. but then, you have to clean the slurry off the track after each crash. with the water, you could blow dry it and get it off much faster than an oil slick.
if you had the option of a water trough down the center, would you take it? (not being theoretical, i'm really asking). if the other guy had a really nasty spill, he could potentially splash water in front of your tires, but on the other hand, maybe the speed is so great that he just ends up washing the side of your car for free.
why did hay bails disappear...they seemed like effective soft systems and they definitely don't promote ricochet? they were in place in the early days of sports car racing. have a few cars/people died because the hay just didn't look "high tech". i hope not.
for the record, I think concrete at the start/burnout box is reasonable.
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: Mr.Yuck]
#467619
09/14/09 02:12 PM
09/14/09 02:12 PM
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 435
New Mexico
Scott440
OP
mopar
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 435
New Mexico
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Quote:
75/80's ends in a corn field, that's almost like a hay bail.
good enough...
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: Scott440]
#467620
09/14/09 02:15 PM
09/14/09 02:15 PM
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Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 28,312
Cincinnati, Ohio
Challenger 1
Too Many Posts
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Too Many Posts
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 28,312
Cincinnati, Ohio
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Quote:
prior to the 60s, seatbelts and helmets were sometimes missing from motorsports. now, it seems like an obvious safety gap...to even THINK otherwise is insane. we get a chuckle out of seeing leather racing helmets in old photos.
well, after seeing a few drag wrecks, i gotta say there are still some obvious things missing:
1-bigger, softer barricades ... hay bails, water filled drums ... with or without a guard rail. just get rid of those concrete walls! how about 4 rows of water drums on each side of the track, spaced. and space them a few feet apart to give the car more gradual deceleration. and make the drum easy to split open -- water or fire slurry couldn't hurt a car on fire.
2-soft center divider along the entire strip so a crazy car doesn't take out his competitor (especially when the competitor is slightly behind). so it obstructs visibility for the fans -- even a 48" high wall sitting in a 12" deep trough could delay the cross over a second or two. shame on you sanctioning bodies -- if you've left this out for fan visibility, you've been getting away with murder.
3-fluid catch pan/tray under the engine. how many times has something broke loose, spewing lubricant or coolant conveniently ahead of the rear tires. it could help with aerodynamics (smoother airflow under the car) and eliminate costly downtime (ridding the track of fluids).
4-if a car has a parachute and is not reasonably close to the center of his lane, or tire pressure drops way low, or a fire occurs, there should be an electronic auto-deploy of the parachute. i'm sure with today's technology, the signal to deploy could be sent remotely by track equipment. OK, this concept is a bit elaborate, but definitely worthy of some trials.
while you're at it, apply these concepts to other forms of auto racing.
items 1-3 may be present at *some* strips today, but if drag racing is around in 2050, they will be universal, and people will laugh at 2010 safety standards.
Have you ever raced anything?
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: Scott440]
#467623
09/14/09 02:24 PM
09/14/09 02:24 PM
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Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 28,312
Cincinnati, Ohio
Challenger 1
Too Many Posts
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Too Many Posts
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 28,312
Cincinnati, Ohio
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Quote:
have an e body pink slip to bet?
\
I have a top alcohol dragster pink slip to bet.
E bodys are for enjoyment on the street.
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Re: drag racing: obvious safety gaps
[Re: Scott440]
#467628
09/14/09 08:04 PM
09/14/09 08:04 PM
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Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 2,179
California, USA
blairboy3
top fuel
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top fuel
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 2,179
California, USA
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Quote:
i bet if one track required a tray the safety record would blow all the other tracks away. a lot of ways to prevent sloshing...seal the back/front, require some maxi-pad-like lining in the bottom. remember, a leak generally does not dump 6 qts down all at once.
Which proves a diaper is enough protection for what may happen. Diapers give, and the ones I've seen have a kevlar material for balistic protection... a pan wouldn't. So, what would stop a snapped piston & rod going through a block from going right on through the pan, or a grenading transmission for that matter.
I can see not having a concrete barrier @ the END of a track, but not from the sides. Like some have already said... at those speeds, a "soft" rail could catch the nose of more cars causing them to catapult over the railing 
1968 Plymouth Fury III 4-Door: 12.79 @ 115, 60'- 1.93 (Hey... it's a Cruise ship... what do you expect?!) Famoso Raceway, 02/08
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Wow todays is only monday and already ran out of meds?
