Racing 101-Week 3 - April 19th, 2009
I had every intention this week of writing an article on tires. I ran out of time as we really had a ton of things to get done and I never got around to writing it. It is now Sunday morning and I have a much more important topic to write about.
Last night at Williams Grove we had “the big one”. I have been racing for 20 years and never destroyed a car. Just like the old saying goes, there is a first time for everything and last night proved that. I also made the discovery that there was something way more important to write about than tires.
To quote the famous Van May as he described his Syracuse wreck, the car is “pretty much used up”. There really isn’t a whole lot left of the car and it hurts this morning to go out and see what I came home with on the trailer. Without fully describing the wreck, let’s just say an accident started at the fastest part of the track and there was nowhere to go. To add salt to the wound, the guy who started the accident pulled away from the scene and continued on. It happened in the blink of an eye and was over in 3 seconds.
There is an amazing silver lining to this situation. As you can see from the picture there isn’t much left on the car and even the stuff that is still there is most likely broken. The motor broke off both mounts and cracked a piece of the block off. What you don’t see in the picture is what is not broken. The driver of this car got up and walked out of this mess. Not only did John walk out and back to the trailer, he had no injuries to speak of.
If you are a reader of 3wide’s message board, you know about a year ago I was involved in a “discussion” about safety and vintage cars. I know I made some people very angry with my comments about the level of safety and construction of vintage cars vs. a car of today. Since that discussion I have replayed that thread several times in my head and wondered if I was correct in my statements or not. I wrestled with the idea that maybe I should just keep my mouth shut every now and then, let people do what they want and leave them be.
This morning there is no doubt in my mind that I stand behind everything I said. I am also going to ask anyone who currently has a vintage or modern racecar, or is thinking about owning a racecar to take a good look at the pictures and descriptions that I am going to post up today. This wreck and the fortunate ending it had for my driver reinforced every dollar I ever spent on this car and every hour I spent making things “right” on the car so they were safe and proper.
A quick estimate of the speed of impact was probably 100 MPH. It was at the end of the long Grove straights, but he also had time to get on the brakes very briefly. This was not a 140 MPH hit like some 410 Outlaw sprint cars get into or a 200 MPH impact that a NASCAR vehicle would encounter. Please look closely at these pictures and descriptions and see if your car (or you physically) could withstand this type of impact that we experienced last night.
The first shots are of the overall chassis of the car. You can see the hard impact on the nose. This chassis is a 2007 Beaberbuilt with approximately 60 nights of racing on it. It was fully TIG welded by a professional. It never sat in a field, had rust on it, or for that matter, ever sat in the rain. Many older cars get water and rust inside the tubing through cracks or condensation. In all the broken tubing in this car there was no rust or water coming out. In fact, as you see, the car basically stayed in one piece and bent instead of shearing off.
This is the fuel cell. It was waffled from behind. This shell was new in 2008. It has new grade 8 bolts installed every year and are checked for tightness every week. Two bolts broke but two stayed on kept it intact. The fuel shut-off was needed to be used by the safety crews because the main fitting on the motor was snapped off and methanol was pouring all over the track. It was clearly marked and was easy to find and use.
This is a shot of the side where another car piled in and almost joined John in the cockpit. I have heard tales of people removing bars from the cockpit area because the driver doesn’t fit properly. If this bar had not been there, the silver paint from the front bumper of another car would have been inside with John.
Finally, this is the one I really want you to take a good look at. I know you may not be able to see it well, but this 2 year old seat is twisted up like a pretzel. It is bent in every direction possible but you will see it did not break loose because of the quality and strength of the mounting system. You will also see a rather large head restraint that is also bent. This, at one time, was a full containment seat. A containment seat is one that fully encloses the driver at the head, shoulders, and ribs. We removed the shoulder restraints because we could not get them to work with John and this car. We figured this was OK because John wears a Hutchens Device, which is a tether system for the helmet. In addition to the tether, he replaces his helmet every 3 years. He also had on arm restraints that were adjusted properly, and a 1 year old $1500 driving suit that also fits properly.
This is a picture of the seat in the other car I own. This seat will be on EBay next week.
Many drivers out there install the cheapest seat they can find, which may or may not fit completely right. Then, they’ll mount it using questionable means. I can tell you from experience that is the dumbest thing you can do. A car will never leave my garage again without a full containment seat and they will be on a rotation schedule to be replaced every few years or after a major wreck. I will never remove part of the seat again. I credit this seat and the fit that it had on his body with his ability to walk away last night and not only drive again next week, but still be the husband, father, and friend that he is. I also give some credit to his physical condition. He is 32 years old and in good shape. I know that must have helped too.
It can happen to you. I always knew that and took the necessary precautions. Last night it paid off. It also forced me to reevaluate the safety conditions of my other cars. I ask you to do the same with your car, no matter how fast you are going. If you are looking to get into racing, you need to really give some thought into where you are going to put your money. $800 for a seat is much better spent money than $800 on a trick paint job.
I am not trying to grandstand, look for sympathy, or even say “I told you so!” to all the individuals I argued with a year ago. Look at these pictures and you decide for yourself. This was a well constructed, well maintained, newer racecar. This was about a 100 MPH impact-a speed many racecars, street cars, or vintage exhibition cars can get up to. Safety has to come long before speed and looks if you want to survive. You, your family, and racing in general does not need you to become a statistic. If you can’t afford the best safety equipment, maybe you need to wait until you can before you get in the car.
Cars are replaceable, humans are not. Safety equipment has come a long, long way since the earlier days of racing and we should use everything we have available to us.
I’ve got a good bit of work to do this week. As always, comments and suggestions are welcomed at stocker1042@hotmail.com. Until next time, take care, be good, CHECK YOUR SAFETY EQUIPMENT, and go see a race next weekend.
