There is a reason for safety equipment...

Often times when I am hanging around one of the few tracks I have visited with my camera gear I will hear racers complaining about various different pieces of safety equipment. Diapers, collector tethers..pretty much anything and everything has been mentioned....right down to folks making passes with "hubcaps" on...but there is a reason for all of the safety gear...

Doug, no truer words were ever spoken. I've seen my share of incidents over the last 50+ years of being at the track. The people who tempt fate are just adding more reasons for safety equipment inspection. A good example happened at an NHRA bracket race, a 4 speed car came to the box, did his burn out, went to the lights, launched & the flywheel exploded. The driver forgot to put the inspection plate on the clutch can. When it went south, a piece of the flywheel hit the track, bounced up & cleaved the starter up the side of his head. He was dead on arrival at the hospital, the driver fared better with cuts & bruises, not to mention the damage to the car. The driver/owner never got over the fact that his mistake resulted in the starter dying.

Truth..... Race cars making a pass down the quarter mile place parts under unbelievable stress. When something comes unglued, the damage can destroy the car, spectators, and drivers. Never go without your safety gear in place -- both car and driver.....

Doug I'm certainly not criticizing you for this, not at all. So, a question. I have not heard or read any updates.........was this car configured "as per the rules" or was it lacking? Last I heard, it was built, inspected, and passed 'the rules.'

So do we need more stringent protection for drive shaft/ drive trains? Thicker floor plates? More loops around the shaft? Etc?