Racing is dangerous.

[ELVA164]

My father had a pretty serious accident yesterday.

I don't know all the details, but his formula junior went off the track just before the uphill at Lime Rock, went sideways, caught the grass, and rolled about three times.

Dad's pretty banged up, with a broken right scapula, three broken ribs, a broken L2 vertebra, and a bruised/slightly punctured right lung. His head and neck are completely fine.

The car is completely destroyed, pretty horrific to see actually.

I guess what I'm learning from the accident and its results is just how imperative proper safety precautions are, and how ridiculous it is for people to ignore them. I've always felt this way, but this accident was as clear a picture as possible to paint. The steel floor and roll bar we installed in the car are the only things that did not bend, and that probably played a bit part in saving Dad's life. His harness held him in place, his arm restraints saved his arms from serious damage, and his HANS saved him from a broken neck.

Two years ago at Lime Rock, a Pre-War driver was killed in a similar accident because he did not take the proper safety precautions. I'm going to be applying to become a tech inspector soon and I can guarantee you there will be no leeway when it comes to items like these. It's idiotic that it even has to be said, but this is all the evidence anyone should need.

The crappy thing for me was I heard someone rolled, then found out it was Dad, then saw the car before I saw or heard anything about Dad. Not a good time.

I'm not totally sure why I'm posting this, except maybe for cathartic reasons and to drive the point home that you should never skimp on safety if you're hitting the track (or even driving around on the road--people still drive without seatbelts!!).

-Mike

[0100]

Damn that sucks. On the upside bones heal it could have been a lot worse. People have no idea how dangerous this is until they crash, I know I didn't. I crashed a formula enterprise car about 10 years ago at the uphill at LRP. This was before they had the tire wall and just a damn wall. I hit the wall going backwards and took out the entire right side of the car. I will never forget those 1-2 seconds heading backwards waiting for the impact, thinking this is game over. You mention take proper safety precautions. My hans was sitting in the trailer when this happened, because I was in a rush and almost missed grid and didn't have time to put it on. I never drive without full safety gear now.

Good luck to your dad. He will be back!!

[MauiM3Mania]

Sorry for the accident Mike, but I'm thrilled your dad is still with us and not terribly thrashed.

[ELVA164]

Thank you guys.

[Evergreen Dan]

Glad your dad will be okay. Also, thanks for the safety reminder.

As a HPDE tech inspector, I'm always amazed when someone is pissed at *us* that we are failing their car -- almost always for something that can be addressed at the track, such as water-contaminated brake fluid, improper belt routing/weaving, or unsecured batteries. Racing safety inspections have different requirements, but here is the guide we use for training: Boston Chapter BMW CCA Tech Inspectors' Guide

[adept]

Sorry about the accident. I can't imagine seeing the wreckage before hearing about the condition about your dad.

That said, thanks for posting this. It's good to get this message out as much as possible and especially in a way that drives the point home.

[CoMZ302]

My father had a pretty serious accident yesterday.

-Mike

Very glad things weren't any worse. Thanks for the reminder on safety gear.

[ELVA164]

Thank you all, and I appreciate you sharing the tech guide, Dan. I'll be taking a look at that for sure. I wish I didn't have this story to make my point, but since I have it I'll be using it.

[BlackHawkRacing]

Wishing your father a speedy recovery.

[TXBDan]

That is scary. Glad he's relatively ok and on the mend!

[olemiss540]

Thank you all, and I appreciate you sharing the tech guide, Dan. I'll be taking a look at that for sure. I wish I didn't have this story to make my point, but since I have it I'll be using it.

Just ordered a HANS. Thanks for the nudge needed and thank God for your father's condition...

[mslevin]

Scary, glad he's going to be okay. I see badly set up safety gear pretty often at car meets/on Facebook/etc. Never really spoken up about it before, but I think I should start.

[lmtfi]

My best to your Dad for a quick mend.

This is a good time for all of us to stop and re-evaluate our safety set-ups and personal protection gear. We get pressed for time in car prep, driving to the track, Tech, driver's meeting etc. These incidents don't just happen elsewhere....to "someone else".

I upped my safety protections this year. Time to listen to the little voice.

[ELVA164]

Just ordered a HANS. Thanks for the nudge needed and thank God for your father's condition...

Scary, glad he's going to be okay. I see badly set up safety gear pretty often at car meets/on Facebook/etc. Never really spoken up about it before, but I think I should start.

My best to your Dad for a quick mend.

This is a good time for all of us to stop and re-evaluate our safety set-ups and personal protection gear. We get pressed for time in car prep, driving to the track, Tech, driver's meeting etc. These incident don't just happen elsewhere....to "someone else".

I upped my safety protections this year. Time to listen to the little voice.

I'm really happy to hear all this. I deal with stubborn older guys a lot who are of the mind that "they didn't have this in period, so why should i?" I don't care if someone thinks I'm a dick; I'd rather be the dick who helped protect them than the nice guy who let them get hurt.

[Damon in STL]

It is interesting to me how my view on safety has evolved since the last time I was on track. I've not raced or tracked my car for a couple of years now due to life getting in the way. I have full race safety gear from my racing days and have provided safety tech with NASA and BMW/PCA DEs. I always thought I took safety pretty seriously.

Being away from the "in the moment adrenaline rush" which can cloud your thinking, I have now come to realize how unsafe some things I did with my car(s) were/are. Now that I'm thinking I may have time to get back into tracking safety has become the first item on my list and has the highest priority.

Tracking a car is not cheap, safety is not cheap and getting hurt can be very expensive physically and emotionally to those who care about you. I now look at safety as personal insurance and want the best I can buy.....then what is left over goes towards the car, entry fee, etc...

Maybe we should all try to get an unbiased opinion from someone who will give us the hard truths about how safe we really are.

p.s. Glad your Dad chose to have the appropriate safety equipment and will heal!

Damon in STL

[cohny]

I'm reading this and it's hitting home but I'm just not sure what to do. The boots theory describes my tracking situation pretty well. I can afford the track time because the up front costs are affordable in bites, but recently I've been thinking about how it's probably time to starting thinking about upgrading my safety. I did three days last year and this year I've already done 7 more and it's only June. Last weekend at Palmer my best time was 2:04 in a bone stock E36 with a square set of star specs.

I can feel that I'm getting faster and that I should start thinking about getting more safety equipment. The problem is a roll bar, 2 seats (equal restraint rules), HANs device, harnesses, and gloves would cost me about 3k+. I don't have the money to get all of that at once. Lot's of guys are showing up to these events with trucks, trailers, dedicated cars etc. and I've got my street car and a tarp. Threads like this tell me I should stop and wait until I can afford all of these items, or really just get a dedicated car, but I just want to get out there and drive. I'm sure some of you remember being 26 like me and just wanting to get the seat time. I literally LOVE being out there, it's just the greatest, but I also acknowledge that the E36 probably isn't the safest car...

So do any of you have any advice? How can I better prioritize my safety without a ton of money?

Wishing your father a speedy recovery. As others have mentioned, no one should have to see the car before even finding out how the person is doing.

[jrkoupe]

to all who dont know this guy...hes tough as nails.....he will mend!!!.......great family btw


to cohny:

thats a greaaaaat question. And I dont want to start a firestorm but:

an e36 is safe enough, hands down IMO...if its prepped and sound of course.

I started tracking in 77 w/ a 72 2002...now how safe was that car??.lol..but we knew so very little then.

The sport has evolved so very very much....and as u say, guys show up w/ sticker hoosiers.. cages..seats etc etc ...crews......trucks..lol etc etc

it is in my opinion that the lower run groups can be quick and still be safe w/ sound stock cars. Im not really sure when roll bars, harnesses, seats etc etc etc are needed.....thats a tough one

if you can lap in a safe and smooth fashion, not on the ragged edge, not looking for the last tenth, Id say u r good staying close to stock. A hans is always a good choice, but I can see an argument saying its not needed in lower groups.

its so very subjective. Only you know how safe you are being, how much cushion u r leaving

I got a dedicated car after like 8 yrs in....but it was not solely for safety. I just didnt want to run my nice daily hard 12x /yr on track. I wanted r tires, track pads, harnesses etc etc......I wanted to build a track day toy. Its been said 1000x times how hard it is to make a street car a dual duty track car......but it is a compromise that works for many

[TXBDan]

I'm reading this and it's hitting home but I'm just not sure what to do. The boots theory describes my tracking situation pretty well. I can afford the track time because the up front costs are affordable in bites, but recently I've been thinking about how it's probably time to starting thinking about upgrading my safety. I did three days last year and this year I've already done 7 more and it's only June. Last weekend at Palmer my best time was 2:04 in a bone stock E36 with a square set of star specs.

I can feel that I'm getting faster and that I should start thinking about getting more safety equipment. The problem is a roll bar, 2 seats (equal restraint rules), HANs device, harnesses, and gloves would cost me about 3k+. I don't have the money to get all of that at once. Lot's of guys are showing up to these events with trucks, trailers, dedicated cars etc. and I've got my street car and a tarp. Threads like this tell me I should stop and wait until I can afford all of these items, or really just get a dedicated car, but I just want to get out there and drive. I'm sure some of you remember being 26 like me and just wanting to get the seat time. I literally LOVE being out there, it's just the greatest, but I also acknowledge that the E36 probably isn't the safest car...

So do any of you have any advice? How can I better prioritize my safety without a ton of money?

Wishing your father a speedy recovery. As others have mentioned, no one should have to see the car before even finding out how the person is doing.

Are you the masking tape guy? I'm the tall guy with the white E36.

Safety stuff is a personal choice, but i can describe my situation. I don't trailer to the track as a truck/trailer setup is a big leap in cost and storage for things I'd never use otherwise. My car is street legal and I drive it pretty much only to/from the track. As i think you've seen, it has seats, harnesses, hans, rollbar, and i tow a tire trailer. Personally, i think its the sweet spot in terms of safety, performance, and cost.

The next step up in safety would be a full cage, but that pretty much dictates a truck/trailer which would also help performance in that i could more completely prep the car... but then that big ol' cost/hassle of a truck/trailer.

[cohny]

Are you the masking tape guy? I'm the tall guy with the white E36.

Safety stuff is a personal choice, but i can describe my situation. I don't trailer to the track as a truck/trailer setup is a big leap in cost and storage for things I'd never use otherwise. My car is street legal and I drive it pretty much only to/from the track. As i think you've seen, it has seats, harnesses, hans, rollbar, and i tow a tire trailer. Personally, i think its the sweet spot in terms of safety, performance, and cost.

The next step up in safety would be a full cage, but that pretty much dictates a truck/trailer which would also help performance in that i could more completely prep the car... but then that big ol' cost/hassle of a truck/trailer.

Yes I am the masking tape guy. It actually all came off pretty easily if you can believe it.

I remember you as well, you were showing me your tablet setup and you took home the 3rd place trophy for T70.

I would agree that what you've got is the sweet spot and where I would like to be too, especially because trying to hold myself in the seat affects my ability to drive properly in certain corners. I'll probably look into getting some proper seats first.

[jrkoupe]

TXB

that is kind of a sweet spot I agree...

Im about the same ......except i run my track tires on the car even during my commute to track.........Ra1's wear like iron...I have a spare wheel/tire in trunk

[ELVA164]

This is my 2 cents about safety equipment.

I only race 2 or 3 times a year, in other people's cars. Before that, I didn't race at all until I had collected all the appropriate safety equipment. I even skipped an event so I could buy a HANS.

Regarding the safety of any particularly car with or without a cage etc., that's a bit foggy but I would always rather have too much. Even someone who is driving at 7/10 (like I try to most of the time) can't eliminate the possibility of something unusual happening. This whole thread exists because something unusual happened to Dad. If he'd skimped on something like a HANS or arm restraints, he would be in much worse shape than he is now. Plan for the worst, because the worst happens if you don't.

[Evergreen Dan]

@cohny: Consider a head-and-next restraint that is compatible with 3-point belts. I've considered getting one for instructing:
One example: http://simpsonraceproducts.com/hybri...lt-compatible/
There are probably other choices too.

I prefer a HANS when using racing belts as I believe it has the best testing and history, but others might reasonably prefer something else. If/when you get a harness bar / roll bar, seat, and belts, you can sell your 3-point-compatible system.

There is also a HANS-compatible Schroth clip-in that probably is rated for your seats. That opens the crash protection vs roll-over protection issue which has been dep

Here in the northeast, cars tend to hit things rather than roll over or catch on fire (unless they're Porsches ). Therefore, I think wearing a good-fitting helmet and head-and-neck restraint are the most important safety equipment. I also like to wear fire resistant gloves on the theory that I need my hands to get out of the car.

[olemiss540]

Yes I am the masking tape guy. It actually all came off pretty easily if you can believe it.

I remember you as well, you were showing me your tablet setup and you took home the 3rd place trophy for T70.

I would agree that what you've got is the sweet spot and where I would like to be too, especially because trying to hold myself in the seat affects my ability to drive properly in certain corners. I'll probably look into getting some proper seats first.

Just sell and buy my track prepped car! There is no way to go down this road without losing a rather large pile of money unless you buy built.

Get something reliable (stockish hp and preventatively maintained) with rollbar/seats/harnesses/Hans and have fun. My car has been trimmed down to the mid 2700 lbs, so it actually makes it just an incredible platform once prepped and has no issues "maintaining pace"!

Edited: bought my FIA rated Hans from Europe for 288 shipped from demon-tweeks. NO BRAINER if you don't have plans for sanctioned racing IMO...

[dcvee]

Glad your dad is ok bud. Open cockpit is a bitch when it comes to safety measures. Seriously, no matter how much prep you do with hans, helmet, arm restraints there is still that fact that you are completely exposed in a car with no driver enclosure. Sounds like your Dad did the best he could with safety options and that's great. Probably saved his life as you said. I run the same safety equipment in my sprint car even though I enjoy the benefits of a full drivers enclosure.

As you said racing is dangerous....period.