Archive for Safety 101
May
16
Scotty’s Safety Scoop – The Video Edition.
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Hey Guys and gals, I thought we would change things up for this article. My wife found this great crash video on YouTube.com. It is a sled test on a dirt sprint car chassis. This is a unique video, because sprint car safety has been long overlooked.
The thing I noticed about the head-on portion of the test, was how well the car did. The energy was dispersed through the whole car, minimizing the amount of involvement to the driver. I was also surprised by the fact that the car was dirt frame, which has far less tubing in it than that of a pavement car. It looked like the car was a front frame section from being put back together.
The scary part of the video was the sled test with the chassis on its side. Simulations like this one should remind us about the wreck the ended Shane Hmeil’s career. After seeing the chassis crush down like this one did, I hope it shows the chassis builders some areas that they need to improve. Seems how most modern day cars are built like this one in the video, all of them should be looking closely. The only other thing I would’ve like to see was the side chassis test done with a wing on the top. To see how much energy the wing absorbs would be interesting.
I hope during the first test you take a moment to look at the drivers head, and how far it’s stretched during impact. Those of you who still don’t believe in head and neck devices should pay attention, cause that’s what you could have to look forward to. A head and neck device can easily turn a career ending wreck into a simple put the car back together and go racing next week situation.
Not that they are, but if they are reading this, I would like to thank the Cape Research Center for doing a test like this one. A sprint car crash test has been long overdue. With this video, it shows drivers, owners, and chassis builders where the gaps are in these cars safetywise. With this information we can build better safer cars to help us keep enjoying this sport.
Another thanks goes to John Godfrey of Spike chassis. Though not perfect, his dirt car held up very well in the head on test. John Godfrey also uses his chassis building skills to build the Dave “the Man of” Steele designed Diablo pavement frames. I feel all of the cars out there today would suffer the same fate as the one in the side impact test. That is just something that needs to be worked out and will come hopefully soon. But, after seeing how the Spike chassis fared out, I would have to definitely consider them for a new car.
I hope you guys and gals enjoyed the video as much as I did. I feel there is a lot of room for improvement, but overall, it was better than I thought it would be. If you have any comments or questions about this or any of my other articles, please email me or the website and we will get you taken care of. If you would like more information about the Spike or Diablo chassis, give Johnny or Dave “The Man of” Steele a call at Steele Performance parts. Dave helped design the Diablo car himself and is a dealer for all Spike Chassis products. He also has all of the other safety equipment we need in stock and ready to ship.
Be sure to keep checking back to FloridaSprintCarFans.com for future safety articles, and all of the latest news and gossip in sprint car racing going on in Florida.
Be Safe and Have Fun!
Scotty 67
Apr
20
Scotty’s Safety Scoop Returns!
Posted by: | CommentsThis weekend is that rare time that we have no sprint car races to attend, but fear not, Scotty Adema (last spotted standing in the TBARA victory lane at Punta Gorda Speedway, as Mickey Kempgens’ car owner) has returned with a Scotty’s Safety Scoop just for you. Hopefully we’ll tie him down for a 10 Questions feature as well.
Hey guys sorry it’s been so long since the last safety article, but things have been pretty busy at the shop the last few months or so. Last year we were building a dirt car, and later in the year jumped back into the TBARA. This proved to be quite time consuming for my dad and I.
I usually get my inspiration for these articles by going to the racetrack and seeing things that I feel need to be addressed when it comes to safety. Then I come home and write a coffee fueled rant about how bad or wrong I think something is. This time I’m deciding to give credit where credit is due, and speak about the positive things I’ve seen the past few times I’ve been to the track. I haven’t been to a racetrack but three times in the last year, but when I did go back, I saw a drastic change in the way the racers are treating safety.
A few weeks ago, we went to race with the TBARA at Punta Gorda. I haven’t been there since the ownership had changed hands. I was really surprised at how the new owner had the track crew so well organized. They all were easily identified by either a bright yellow shirt that said “Track Crew,” or were in very nice button-down polo shirts. The corner workers were doing a great job keeping the pit lanes open and clear for the sprint cars either going on the track or coming off. The track also would announce over the PA system when we were coming off the track. This may not seem like a big deal, but there are still quite a few people that don’t realize we can’t stop, or feel we should yield to pedestrians.
Another thing I noticed was how intense the track crew worked to prep the track before our feature. I personally heard the track owner (Kevin Williams) tell about 10-15 track crew members to walk the entire track and pick anything they saw up. These guys were even clearing the third and fourth lanes for us. By doing this, it just limits the potential of getting a flat tire from doing the four abreast lap. Though we have spare tires, they aren’t near as good as the new ones we had on the car before the flat. Kevin personally was out there on a golf cart doing the very same thing. This act means a lot to us racers and car owners.
The biggest and most important thing I saw there was how strict they were about people getting near the fence when the sprint cars were on the track. If you’ve read any of my safety articles on track safety, you know that I feel that nobody should be anywhere near the fence while the sprint cars are on track. The track was even making announcements and even threatened dismissal to the spectators, and fines to any pit crew members who persisted in getting to close to the fence. The track throughout the night kept reminding spectators and pit crews about staying away from the fence. I believe it was upwards of a thousand dollar fine for the crew members, and the fans faced being banished for the season.
Hey, I like watching the sprint cars go around these tracks, and feeling the wings push through the air, but anyone that has seen these things get airborne knows that the fence is merely a suggestion to an airborne car. I don’t care how quick you think you are, you aren’t going to get out of the way quick enough. Punta Gorda Speedway is doing a good thing with this rule, and I hope other tracks in the state (Dirt and Pavement)adopt similar rules to it.
At Punta Gorda, as I was scrambling for parts to try and get my car running right (it never did), I looked around at the other cars as I always do, and noticed something different. I noticed it was hard to find a car there that didn’t have some kind of full containment seat in it. In 2009, it was at best 40-50 percent of the field had a good seat. This last race, I’d bet it was upwards of 70-80 percent. I couldn’t be happier to see all those cars with good seats. For those of you who didn’t have one, I can only encourage you to get one. The prices of them are coming down, so you guys are really running out of excuses quick.
The other thing I noticed along with the seats, were all the new helmets outfitted with a head and neck restrain systems. The new helmets fall under the snell 2010 rating. This rating means it passed all the brutality some guy named snell could put it through. But really, the helmets that meet that spec are safety-wise the best you can get. Seeing so many guys using a head restraint is great also. Even drivers in less funded teams were using them. I’m glad people are realizing it doesn’t matter how much money you have, we all have to be safe. The only thing I would like to see more of is the drivers stepping up to a carbon-fiber helmet. There are so many advantages to carbon-fiber over a composite shell, but we’ll talk more about that in an upcoming article.
I wanted to write this article to let you guys know what a drastic change I’ve seen people (drivers, crews, and even track owners) take in protecting themselves and others. I’m glad that some of my fellow competitors are jumping out of the stone-age, and taking advantage of the new technology in safety. Remember, these articles are to inform and educate you on ways you can race on Saturday and still make it to work on Monday. I would like to think you guys read my articles and decided to change for the better safety-wise, but for whatever reason I’m glad to see the change happening.
Thanks for reading, I’m going to try to get a little more regular with these things in the future. If you have any topics you think should be addressed contact me or the website and we will get you taken care of. Also, if you have any questions about this article or any of my other articles feel free to shoot me an e-mail and we will get you answered. Make sure to keep checking back to floridasprintcarfans.com for future articles and all of the latest news in sprint car racing in Florida.
Be Safe and Have Fun!
Scotty67
May
11
Scotty’s Safety Scoop – Fancy Feet
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Hola, fellow Sprint car fans of Florida. I know it’s been a while, but I’ve got the first safety article of 2011 ready to go. I haven’t been racing in a while, and that is where I usually come up with most of my ideas for these things, at the racetrack. Hopefully, we will be back at the track with the new dirt car in a few months. It seems like we’ve been building this thing forever. I’m excited to hear about all the dirt tracks bringing sprint cars back to the forefront, but still very disappointed about the ongoing saga with the pavement tracks. It was while I was hanging my head in disappointment that I came up with the topic for this article, footwear. I looked back through my articles and couldn’t believe I hadn’t done an article on driving shoes yet.
In this article we are going to cover everything you need to know safety-wise below the kneecaps. We’ll go over Nomex socks, safety boots, and even get into firesuits again. All of these working together will help reduce the risk of injury to your feet. If you’re like me, you need your feet to get to work. Something’s gotta pay for that next set of tires, right!
Don't forget to put some cotton socks on under your Nomex socks, like these from Simpson.
Before we put our fire shoes on, we have to have socks on. By now I hope everybody is using Nomex socks. As usual, if you’re not, you need to start. I even go as far as wearing a pair of pure cotton socks under my Nomex ones. This helps take the wear and tear off the thirty dollar Nomex socks, but it also adds one more layer of insulation. Plus, the cotton absorbs the sweat and keeps your Nomex socks from stinking up your helmet bag. Remember back to the Nomex underwear article, how wet Nomex can actually steam you in a fire situation. So try to keep your socks as dry as possible.
Alright, we’ve got our socks and we’re ready for shoes, now which ones should we use? Anybody that has picked up a parts catalog can tell you there hundreds of styles and about as many brands. All of them have a specific application. Sprint cars have a unique thing about them that differs from late models, modifieds, and any other stock type car. With all of those cars, not only does the shoe have to protect the driver’s foot from fire, but also from the ambient temperature of the foot box area. Most of those cars have the exhaust right near the floor pan or foot box. This causes those panels to heat up quite uncomfortably. The shoe has to be able to absorb or dissipate that heat away from the skin before it blisters or burns. Take for example in NASCAR, you see the drivers putting on the chrome booties on their heels. All those do is prevent the driver’s heels and ankles from burns from the floor pan.
In sprint cars ambient heat really isn’t an issue. Most of our cockpit heat is usuallys the result of a fire. Sprint car fires either come from the fuel pump area, which is located between the driver’s legs, or the fuel cell, which is located directly behind the driver. With this in mind, we know we are going to be dealing with a raw fuel fire, either from a loose or cracked fuel pump fitting, or a rupture of the fuel cell. Fire shoes can be broken down into two categories, high-top or low-top. In my opinion, I can’t see why you would use a low-top shoe in a sprint car. The high top shoes offer better protection from fire, and also add a little more padding to the ankle area. This really comes in handy when the U-joint decides to go south.
The other aspect about fire shoes you have to consider is the material they are made of.
Our Factory Driver Ryan Partin uses the Alpinestars Tech 1z, made with kangaroo leather and Nomex lining.
Every company making fire shoes uses Nomex in the construction of them. The outer layer is usually a cloth type Nomex that is designed to help against fire and also make the shoes durable. The only bad thing about this is like what happens to a towel when it falls in a full bath tub, it absorbs the water. This is the same with the cloth type shoes. The shoes can actually absorb fuel if you have a leak or rupture. I can tell you a shoe full of methanol is not safe or very comfortable. It tends to burn after while, on fire or not. When I first started racing I had a fuel line soak my shoe at Ocala Raceway. It was Bo and Sonny Hartley that taught me you always have to have two pairs of shoes for just such an occurrence. I also found out me and Bo has the same shoe size.
Simpson makes a special leather shoe designed for sprint car drivers.
The other option is a shoe like I use now. I use the high-top, leather shoe by Simpson. I hope you guys know by now I’m not big on the shameless plugs, but they are the only company I know of that make such an animal. The leather does a better job at repelling the fuel, oil, and even dirt that the cloth shoes can absorb. I have had a fuel leak with the leather shoes on, and the strap that covers the laces area kept the methanol from getting in my socks. I’m not saying these are the only shoes to use. All the major companies make a safe and tested product, these just happen to be the ones I use and why. Whatever pair you choose or style you like, make sure they meet all the requirements for your series, and are the safest product you can get.
Well, we’ve got our socks on, and our shoes picked out, the only thing left to look at to keep our feet safe is our firesuit. The way your firesuit fits is very important to helping protect feet and ankles from fire. The way we sit in a sprint car is basically like sitting in a tight office chair. In this position it tends to pull your pant legs up when you’re seated. This exposes your ankles to the world. There is no point buying thick Nomex shoes and a double layer suit, if all you have covering your ankle is a thin sock out in the open.
Make sure when you order a firesuit to get a “Boot Cuff.” This allows the pant leg to fall over the top half of the shoe covering the ankle area. The next thing is to make sure you tell the manufacturer that you’re driving sprint cars. Most companies know they have to add a few more inches to the pant leg to counteract that bind when you sit in the seat. The last thing is to get a suit with an expandable back section. It adds a little price to the suit, but when you have this option it keeps the pant legs from drawing up when you sit down. Sometimes, when you have this option, they don’t have to make the legs as long as without it. The expandable lower back piece also prevents the suit from looking like a Nomex potato sack when you’re walking around the pits.
I know this hasn’t been one of my most exciting topics, but it is still one that needed to be addressed. I also know that this safety stuff isn’t cheap either. Always remember though, you need to be as safe as possible no matter what. The price of safety equipment is cheap compared to the skyrocketing price of emergency and rehabilitative healthcare.
I’m sorry it took so long to get back to you guys with a safety article. I’ve got a few in the works right now, and plan on getting another one out in a few weeks. As always, if you have any questions about this article or any of my past articles please e-mail me and we’ll get the info. Also, if you have any ideas for future articles let me know. Thanks to all of the guys at FloridaSprintCarFans.com for being patient with the lack of articles this year. Remember to keep checking here for new safety tips and the latest news in Florida sprint car racing.
You guys and gals take care.
Scotty 67
Be Safe and Have Fun!