Another Racer Killed at E-Town

[BKSG1198]

I really don't think we should be throwing E-Town under the bus and ready to write it off the schedule. I mean there are a few other National Event Tracks out there that are very short at the end (Pomona which has a Golf Course behind it's sand trap) but, even long shutdown tracks have issues. Last week at Chicago Burl Brown lost his chutes in his TA/FC and went into the sand and destroyed his car, A few years back good Friend Dan Pomponio had his chutes tangle in his brakes at Atlanta and he went through the safety fences destroying his car. The sad part about E-Town is there has been life lost at this track in the shutdown area so the black eye has been cast and the neighboring town already wants the track gone. I know the TA/FC guy in Atlanta a few years back died but, it was determined he had a massive heart attack while going down the track and he never lifted. I mean the only thing I can see them doing at E-Town if it would ever be allowed and I doubt it would be similar to what they did at Maple Grove. The Grove has the road that runs behind the track and the railroad crossing that come down when a car gets too the end. They expanded it last year and the run-off actually goes over the road so just wondering if they can do something since there is an open field next to Pension Road. I know Pension Road is a busy road but maybe bring in another by-pass road to cut down on some of the conjestion.
After watching the coverage from this weekend and what some TA/FC racers had to say I think NHRA should look at the cars first and some sort of "Kill Switch". On one of the sites they talked to Bob Tasca and he said this about TA/FC

Two weeks ago Tasca sat in his old alcohol car and he shuddered at the thought he used to race to the quarter-mile with it.

“I wouldn’t ever drive it again,” Tasca said. “I will tell you why. I would have to make so many changes – a three rail chassis, I won’t ever drive a car without one. Number two - auto shut off devices. They weren’t even invented when I raced in the alcohol classes. They have air parachutes, we didn’t even have those back then. If you have an air parachute and with two hands on the wheel, the parachute opens and hit the brake. As opposed to go on the steering wheel at 1,000 feet, hit the lever and then grab the brake. There are things in fuel racing today that make it safer than in an Alcohol Funny Car.

“These cars [Alcohol Funny Cars] need to have the same technology as that on a nitro car,” Tasca said sternly. “They are harder to stop at 260 than I am at 300. They couldn’t run a fuel car at some of these divisional events and yet they run these alcohol cars.

You guys talk about Leb Valley....have you been to the end of Cecil County...It amazes me they run Alky Cars there.

Last but not least I did see this new thing they are coming out with for run-away aircraft at Laguardia Airport in New York which sits on the Hudson so not much run-off there if the plane overshoots the runway . It's like a Concrete type foam that when at any type of speed the foam compresses when the plane runs into it. It doesn't cause alot of damage and the foam can be replaced easily so maybe instead of water barrels have that at the end of tracks after the nets.

[Bret Kepner]

NHRA National Event Facility Shutdown lengths:

http://www.dragracingonline.com/agen...20-x_6-55.html

[Tony Janes]

BSKG1198: There is no golf course at the end of the Pomona sandtrap. The golf course is on the other side of McKinley Ave and up the hill!

[BKSG1198]

Sorry Tony... A good friend took a picture a couple years back from the golf course and I could see the sand-trap from one of the holes.

[jim powers]

years ago when vinnie and richard napp were still alive they proposed closing off pension road during professional catagories,supposedly the town did not go along with the idea,why only god knows

[FINESPLINE]

Originally Posted by BKSG1198

I really don't think we should be throwing E-Town under the bus and ready to write it off the schedule. I mean there are a few other National Event Tracks out there that are very short at the end (Pomona which has a Golf Course behind it's sand trap) but, even long shutdown tracks have issues. Last week at Chicago Burl Brown lost his chutes in his TA/FC and went into the sand and destroyed his car, A few years back good Friend Dan Pomponio had his chutes tangle in his brakes at Atlanta and he went through the safety fences destroying his car. The sad part about E-Town is there has been life lost at this track in the shutdown area so the black eye has been cast and the neighboring town already wants the track gone. I know the TA/FC guy in Atlanta a few years back died but, it was determined he had a massive heart attack while going down the track and he never lifted. I mean the only thing I can see them doing at E-Town if it would ever be allowed and I doubt it would be similar to what they did at Maple Grove. The Grove has the road that runs behind the track and the railroad crossing that come down when a car gets too the end. They expanded it last year and the run-off actually goes over the road so just wondering if they can do something since there is an open field next to Pension Road. I know Pension Road is a busy road but maybe bring in another by-pass road to cut down on some of the conjestion.
After watching the coverage from this weekend and what some TA/FC racers had to say I think NHRA should look at the cars first and some sort of "Kill Switch". On one of the sites they talked to Bob Tasca and he said this about TA/FC

Two weeks ago Tasca sat in his old alcohol car and he shuddered at the thought he used to race to the quarter-mile with it.

“I wouldn’t ever drive it again,” Tasca said. “I will tell you why. I would have to make so many changes – a three rail chassis, I won’t ever drive a car without one. Number two - auto shut off devices. They weren’t even invented when I raced in the alcohol classes. They have air parachutes, we didn’t even have those back then. If you have an air parachute and with two hands on the wheel, the parachute opens and hit the brake. As opposed to go on the steering wheel at 1,000 feet, hit the lever and then grab the brake. There are things in fuel racing today that make it safer than in an Alcohol Funny Car.

“These cars [Alcohol Funny Cars] need to have the same technology as that on a nitro car,” Tasca said sternly. “They are harder to stop at 260 than I am at 300. They couldn’t run a fuel car at some of these divisional events and yet they run these alcohol cars.

You guys talk about Leb Valley....have you been to the end of Cecil County...It amazes me they run Alky Cars there.

Last but not least I did see this new thing they are coming out with for run-away aircraft at Laguardia Airport in New York which sits on the Hudson so not much run-off there if the plane overshoots the runway . It's like a Concrete type foam that when at any type of speed the foam compresses when the plane runs into it. It doesn't cause alot of damage and the foam can be replaced easily so maybe instead of water barrels have that at the end of tracks after the nets.

Sounds like a good idea worth trying. BTW---Laguardia airport sits next to Flushing Bay which is part of the East River. Just a certain plane from there landed in the Hudson River.

[Ed Fernandez]

Call me crazy,but in the case of run away cars at high speed,why doesn't NHRA cosult the US Navy about a catch wire like used on aircraft carriers to stop planes weighing over 17K pounds in about 250" at speeds over 200 knots?A lot of fine details but maybe they could be overcome.The wire could be raised by someone at the end of the track when needed as can the tail hook when the situation arises.Slower cars wouldn't be affected by the system.Just a goof ball idea by a blathering idiot who doesn't want to see anyone else severely hurt or killed doing what we enjoy.

[Bob Emery]

Possible downside to a carrier style catch wire is that it will be above the track surface at least an inch or so, which could put the racer airborne. Just a thought for consideration......

[Beth Denysenko]

Midway in Chicago is using the foam/concrete blocks at the end of the runway. They were installed after the plane overshot the runway, broke throug the fence, drove out onto a city street and killed a boy in a car on 55th Street which runs along the perimeter.

If they can stop a runaway airplane, and if the weight to crush equations could be worked out right (obviously a race car doesn't weigh as much as an airplane nor distributes it's weight the same way), this might be a viable solution. Obviously what some tracks are doing isn't working as planned. It's an unfortunate and costly game of trial and error.

[Ed Fernandez]

Originally Posted by Bob Emery

Possible downside to a carrier style catch wire is that it will be above the track surface at least an inch or so, which could put the racer airborne. Just a thought for consideration......

I'm not an engineer but as an explaination of my reasoning,the cables diameter would be way smaller than the carrier cable and I think would be in a groove on the racing shutdown surface.I mentioned someone being at the top end area that could operate
some sort of devise to elevate it up to the paved height when needed.Of course every
fast car,TAD/TAFC/TFD/AAFC would need a remote activated tail hook.Sounds a bit far fetched but I wish they would come up with something.
I personally think they'll take the easy way out and just mandate a slowing down of the cars.