Howdy,
On Sat, 24 Feb 2001, Larry Joffe wrote:
> The lack of mandating
> certain things being checked in Tech is another lack of a rule.
That made my head hurt. "Lack of a rule" wasn't the issue. It was "what
safety devices is NASCAR prohibiting".
> Yes, it is up to the various sanctioning bodies to determine and set what is
> and what is not a safety item. Just like F1 and CART has ruled that the
> HANS Device must be worn this season, NASCAR needs to step up and do
> something as well. Make all of the drivers wear closed helmets, make it a
> rule that they must wear a HANS Device. Have the three guys fueling a car
> during a pit stop wear full flame suits. Not just the regular race suit.
> Get them into balaclavas and helmets and gloves and anything else that is
> needed.
I pretty much completely disagree with this. NASCAR should certainly not
prevent folks from doing this and probably should encourage it, but it
should be the team's responsibilty to take whatever protective measures
they feel necessary.
Of course, I also wear a motorcycle helment & other protective gear
_always_ but don't think they should be required by law. If safety
equipment only affects the individual, then leave it up to the individual.
(One thing I'm wondering is how many NASCAR team sponsors are calling up
their teams saying that the HANS device just became required. Note that
safety gear _does_ directly affect the sponsors).
You shouldn't try to legislate safety for professional series. You should
do everything you can to support it, but rules requiring a HANS device,
for instance, can't adapt immediately when the next guy comes along with
the Ed device that protects 7 times better.
IMHO, tech inspections for safety items are common in grass roots racing
because the competitors are much more likely to cut corners due to lack of
funds, lack of knowledge, or lack of time. Typically those things don't
apply to professional level racing.
Mark
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