The rules for 2009 state that some variety of head-restraint system (such as a HANS device) will be mandatory. I have some mixed feelings on this- as has been said before, the cost of this race figures out to a bare minimum of three or four thousand dollars, and those HANS devices aren't cheap. The race we ran at CMP (LeMons South) was a very clean race with minimal contact, and speeds were pretty low- I know we never cracked 75mph, and I doubt even the fastest cars ever touched the century mark. With roll cages, 5 point harnesses, and helmets already required, the HANS device doesn't seem to add much. I guess it boils down to, if teams want to run with them, good for them, but making them mandatory only pushes LeMons unnecessarily further close to the "racing I can't afford" realm.
It needs to be said, lads, that for living my personal dream, and accepting any personal risks involved all in the name of good clean fun and friendly sportsmanlike racing where nobody gives two shits about who wins or loses, and teams are only too willing to jump in and help one another, the LeMons racers are my own personal heroes-of-the-week. I'm proud of you all, and eternally grateful to Murilee and Jalopnik for providing coverage of the races. Very glad to hear everyone's alright.
Mike the Dog is sitting by the door with a pair of cow slippers, and a very sad face. was starred
Mike the Dog is sitting by the door with a pair of cow slippers, and a very sad face. was unstarred
I thought Audis with unintended acceleration only collided with strip mall nail and hair salons, and dry cleaners. The driver wasn't in search of a blue-rinse and a set, were they...?
@Gaseous Clay: @Gaseous Clay: They were standing around scratching their arses for most of that time, clearly. One guy sauntering up and shouting into the cabin when everyone else is strolling around wondering where to get their doughnut fix does not good stewarding make!
@Mojonaut: Actually, the safety truck was there very quickly.
I'm unfamiliar with the layout of Thunderhill, but if the corner workers are stationed cross-track there's a good possibility that the responder is just off camera waiting for traffic to clear to get to the car.
As the clip shows, there were quite a few competitors that passed by at that point. And slowly, which suggests one corner worker had quickly thrown the yellow.
The clip seems to end just as the response is beginning, so I'll reserve judgment. It just didn't look like poor stewarding to me.
@SundaySunday: The yellows came out seconds after the impact so I'd say corner worker speed was good. The response vehicle was stationed at the end of the straight but facing the opposite direction. They did a 3-pt turn and then quickly back down the straight to the accident. There were other people walking slowly up to the car off camera that got in the way of the truck which is why you hear them hit the horn to clear a path. The impact was enough to move the wall so they also had a large forklift come out and fix that. Even that thing arrived reasonably quickly and I don't even know where that was stationed. Somewhere way off track. All I know is right as that car hit the wall myself and a group of others were screaming in to the radios "PIT! PIT! PIT!" since we knew it would be a long yellow or hopefully full course black.
@Vassago: I've been fortunate that I've only had a few incidents to run to and none of them as bad looking as this one. As a corner worker, I've had a couple cars that went off cross-track from my station. Let me tell you, it gets your heart rate up knowing you have to respond but having to wait for the cars to clear your station.
Again, I'm glad no one was hurt & my respect for the Lemons organizer's commitment to safety is way up after reading this.
@philibuster: Yes, but if you're like many of our fellow commenters, you wear that helmet because your mom won't let you leave the house without it. *cough*Didorosi*cough*
Still looks like awesome fun. Can I be the Bernie Eccelstone of Lemons? You know negotiate the TV rights on behalf of the teams for mega dollars. Just asking because if F1 and this were on TV at the same time I would be hard pressed to choose which one to watch.
@TheDanMan Is drinking beer in the hot sun..: "How much is a HANS device again?" Couple hundred bucks, but since it sits outside the suit it wouldn't be totally disgusting to share one amongst the team like a race suit or helmet would be.
"if F1 and this were on TV at the same time I would be hard pressed to choose which one to watch."
I wouldn't. Watch LeMons, download F1... simple solution.
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I agree, though. I laughed. Maybe I shouldn't have, but I did.
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This is your image.
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I'm unfamiliar with the layout of Thunderhill, but if the corner workers are stationed cross-track there's a good possibility that the responder is just off camera waiting for traffic to clear to get to the car.
As the clip shows, there were quite a few competitors that passed by at that point. And slowly, which suggests one corner worker had quickly thrown the yellow.
The clip seems to end just as the response is beginning, so I'll reserve judgment. It just didn't look like poor stewarding to me.
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Again, I'm glad no one was hurt & my respect for the Lemons organizer's commitment to safety is way up after reading this.
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roll cages are not for the street, unless you want to wear a helmet on the street.
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Audi 0
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Fixed it for you.
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How much is a HANS device again?
Still looks like awesome fun. Can I be the Bernie Eccelstone of Lemons? You know negotiate the TV rights on behalf of the teams for mega dollars. Just asking because if F1 and this were on TV at the same time I would be hard pressed to choose which one to watch.
12/30/08
"if F1 and this were on TV at the same time I would be hard pressed to choose which one to watch."
I wouldn't. Watch LeMons, download F1... simple solution.
12/30/08