How far from the cage?

[Al Jones]

(Not sure if this applies with RCR, seem to remember a pic of Fran standing on his spider).

Hmmmmmm.Don't think I want to go there but Brian might want to re-do that [St. Fran]picture.

 

[Ron Earp]

Pad the cage.

 

[Iain]

IMHO pad the cage.

I always wear a HANS device when racing and last year we had a certified installer come and deliver a lecture on how they should be adjusted. Grisly stuff but very interesting ! I recommend you visit the HANS web site and see just how far your head travels (via an extended neck) in the event of a full frontal collision, (Turtles spring to mind !)

We have lugs welded to the roll cage and chassis to fit side straps / webbing to help with the sideways impact that Jac is talking about.

Nowadays most fatalities on the track seem to occur when the bits inside your body bounce of securley restrainded bits of the outside of your body ! (The brain bouncing around in the skull )

Probably safer to take up gardening

 

[J. Salmon]

Thanks for all the info. This is good stuff. It's always a bit of a crap shoot.

I ALWAYS wear my belts. My parents had us wearing seat belts while the other kids played monopoly in the back of the wagon. I feel naked without them, and I like 'em tight.

I am a bunch shorter than Dean (thanks for the measurements), so I am going with 6-point plus padding on exposed tubes, SFI/FIA approved.

Best regards, -J.

 

[J. Salmon]

Iain, you are right about the HANS. I will have one before my next track event. Not having one is starting to seem silly, and many more groups are requiring them. I got my Dad one for Christmas, as he runs our Cobra replica with 5 -points and race seats. It always looks like if he were to crash, his body would be held firmly in place while his noggin' bounced down the track in the helmet.

I plan to take the 40 to CDOC and have them look over the belts and everything to be sure I haven't done anything stupid. A little experience will go a long way I think.

 

[Randy V]

Make real sure you make the appropriate adjustments to the height of your shoulder harness mounts when adding the Hans device to the mix.. You can end up with spinal compression if you don't..

 

[Will Campbell]

Make real sure you make the appropriate adjustments to the height of your shoulder harness mounts when adding the Hans device to the mix.. You can end up with spinal compression if you don't..

I see this all the time in race cars at the local level, and it really surprises me. Recently I saw a Brunton Stalker at a car event that had the shoulder belts coming up and over the seat back. That is a recipe for a compressed spine in a sufficiently bad front-end prang.

I'm just 6 feet, and ended up getting a custom seat in my race car so I could move the harness openings up high enough so the belts were within 5 degrees of horizontal while wearing my HANS.

-Will

 

[Chuck]

This thread inspired me. I would like to keep my noggin in one piece for a few more years. The padding is not that expensive and if you don't like it, pull it out. In the pic it looks a bit more intrusive than it actually is when sitting in the seat.

 

[Dean Lampe]

Chuck, I did the same thing after reading this thread. I think a Hans device is in my future. :thumbsup:

 

[Randy V]

Chuck, I did the same thing after reading this thread. I think a Hans device is in my future. :thumbsup:

I credit my being here because I was wearing a Hans in my last big wreck.. You won't catch me on the track without it...

Nice work Chuck. You may want to use a couple of Zip-Ties to retain those pads as the adhesive doesn't always do the best job..

 

[J. Salmon]

Make real sure you make the appropriate adjustments to the height of your shoulder harness mounts when adding the Hans device to the mix.. You can end up with spinal compression if you don't..

Yeah, that is why I want to take the entire car and me to someone who knows what they are doing. Everything from anchor points to alignment... too many things for me to think about.