Rules

[Adger Smith]

Jeff Lee posted:
Lets start with that...seat belts. If it's SFI approved once, it's SFI & NHRA approved forever (or until an obvious problem)! I would count sun faded as a problem. I've replaced frickin' belts that had dozens of passes on them and they sat in my cool garage the remaining times.

And I've always been a proponent of "traditional" aluminum roller rockers for Stockers. That or take away any modified lifters. That means NO MODIFICATIONS. Take your pick.

I dont think I go along with you idea about belts. Good properly working seat belts played a part in saving me and I was told bad belts and plastic seats played a part in us loosing Lee Shepherd. Seat belts are abused by more than just the sunshine. They should be removed and checked. I don't agree with some of the prices charged to recert.
The rocker arm/lifter deal I agree with.

[Ed Wright]

Adger, didn't Lee's helmet come off?

[X-TECH MAN]

Originally Posted by Adger Smith

Jeff Lee posted:
Lets start with that...seat belts. If it's SFI approved once, it's SFI & NHRA approved forever (or until an obvious problem)! I would count sun faded as a problem. I've replaced frickin' belts that had dozens of passes on them and they sat in my cool garage the remaining times.

And I've always been a proponent of "traditional" aluminum roller rockers for Stockers. That or take away any modified lifters. That means NO MODIFICATIONS. Take your pick.

I dont think I go along with you idea about belts. Good properly working seat belts played a part in saving me and I was told bad belts and plastic seats played a part in us loosing Lee Shepard. Seat belts are abused by more than just the sunshine. They should be removed and checked. I don't agree with some of the prices charged to recert.
The rocker arm/lifter deal I agree with.

Lee never had his belts buckeled as it was a GoodYear tire test day. The wind caught the chute on a full pass instead of the 60 footers and he was thrown thru the windshield.

[Adger Smith]

The car they were using was the Alston test mule. OSBI confiscated all the wreckage and equipment for their study of the accident. OSBI is like the Oklahoma version of the NTSB and FBI combined. The story I got was the belts were chafed on the 2 layer plastic seat, remember them, from all the ins and outs of the test car and the belt broke on impact. It was all because the crosswind pulled him off track. His head hit the cage bar across the windshield and he had an open faced helmet on. Lee raced at my tracks quite a lot and I even opened the track for some testing. He was not the type guy to make a pass without the belts on or his chin strap fastened. He was a person of routine, right down to unloading his car and sitting on his tailgate eating his brown bagged sandwich. Check out this link, it shows helmet & intensity
Why do you think SFI came out with the belt rules after that and a couple other incidents with the plastic seats? Also if you see those seats now the belt openings are cut with a milling tool, not a hot knife that leaves sharp edges. It is a shame we have to loose people to further the safety rules. It is also a shame we have racers that are more concerned with the money and the inconvenience the rules cause than their purpose of safety.

[Ed Wright]

What tracks did you have, Adger?

[Jeff Lee]

Adger, you missed my point that if a visual inspection revealed a problem, even sun discoloration, then they need to be replaced.
That could mean replacing every race if there is something wrong!
A brand new set of belts, if improperly installed, will not be fully functional and are subject to failure.
A set of belts that look as good as new, are as good as new in my opinion.
Anything less, needs a replacement set.

I may be wrong but I think belts for fighter planes and sprint cars are not replaced on a calendar, only on poor quality.

[Ed Wright]

Originally Posted by Jeff Lee

Adger, you missed my point that if a visual inspection revealed a problem, even sun discoloration, then they need to be replaced.
That could mean replacing every race if there is something wrong!
A brand new set of belts, if improperly installed, will not be fully functional and are subject to failure.
A set of belts that look as good as new, are as good as new in my opinion.
Anything less, needs a replacement set.

I may be wrong but I think belts for fighter planes and sprint cars are not replaced on a calendar, only on poor quality.

Unless something has changed, in the '80s we had to have new belts in our sprint cars every year. May have just been local, but I don't think so.

[greg fulk]

Here's what I'd like to see....scale, fuel check 1st pass.... then the only way you go back is if you go quicker or have a heads-up run! Would speed things up so much!

[Bob Bender]

ED, every time I set a record (60,70,80) I went to the barn..............

[billy leber]

Originally Posted by greg fulk

Here's what I'd like to see....scale, fuel check 1st pass.... then the only way you go back is if you go quicker or have a heads-up run! Would speed things up so much!

Amen, what a waste of time scale and fuel is for the most part. When you need to get back for a second car its even worse.