Racer Suspension

[Bill Koski]

What is interesting then is that NASCAR has a five year limit on these same belts?
It would seem their belts are liable to be stressed to far more G's then drag racers belts!
The rumors at the time were that LS didn't have his helmet or belts on? He'd been doing only 60 footers so that seems likely.

[sammy pizzolato]

thanks green light that is some great info.but i still think the belts should be changed every five years cuz our belts don't have the sunlight exp that a street car has. but someone is making a lot of $$$$$$ off of this and a waste of $$$$$ for the racers.just saying!!! but in the end bob and bugs got the raw end of this deal. and a very good friend that used to work for i am not going to say. said that L.S. did not have them on.

[Evan Smith]

Sammy, I totally agree that belts should be certified for 5 years. I hate buying belts every two years!

Evan

[Greenlight]

Originally Posted by Bill Koski

The rumors at the time were that LS didn't have his helmet or belts on? He'd been doing only 60 footers so that seems likely.

Here is what LS's widow wrote regarding his accident:

Hey, y'all. Reading all the comments about Lee's death makes me realize that rumors, reliable sources or not, are just not always true. He was doing 60-foot clockings that day, but he was world champ and had previously been in an end-over-end crash in Englishtown, NY, so he would have much more concern about safety than most others. He had his seatbelts on, and tight, and his helmet was on as was his fire jacket. Stories abounded about all those not being done, but they were. Alston installed the seatbelts which were made from sub-standard materials and broke under the force of the crash. His helmet was badly cracked on his way out of the car and there were fibers from his Simpson jacket embedded in the paint on the roll bar, he hit so hard. There was nothing he could do to get the car back under control on his way down the track with the crosswind, so he pulled the chute and the car turned instantly to the right and began to flip end over end, ejecting him early in the crash. He was killed instantly, leaving a huge hole in not only the racing world, but also in the world of those who loved and cherished him in his personal life! I know all this because I am his widow and wanted to let anyone who is interested know the truth. Thank you all for the kind words....

[71mavlouisville]

$5000.00 is ridiculous!!! I can understand the suspension, taking points or something like that, but, $5000.00? I think $500.00 would be reasonable for a sportsman racer. Has NHRA looked at the payouts for Super Stock, $300 + for entry to win $1800.00

[71mavlouisville]

Sammy, I agree with you, seat belts every 2 years is CRAZY! Sometimes I think we get the cart before the horse. The best way to not get hurt is to not crash. A guy can put 1000’s runs on tires, 1000’s runs on engine, 1000’s on rear ends and driveshaft’s, 1000’s run on brakes? But his belts are new? With my chaotic life and being a professional 1st round runner up I get about 30 runs out of a set of seat belts LOL!

[Mark Yacavone]

Originally Posted by Greenlight

As I recall, the webbing failed (or the sewing) in Lee Shephard's crash in 1985, which prompted the seat belt rules being what they are today.

I seem to remember the state of New Jersey having this, as another one of their BS laws, first.
NHRA said ...Hmmm.. another contingency opportunity. They wouldn't want to pay out any money themselves... so here ya go,..nationally.

[SSDiv6]

[QUOTE=Greenlight;381934]Sammy, the OEM seat belts (~1.8" -2.0" wide) have a minimum break requirement of 6000 lbs. and must retain at least 60% of that strength (3600 lbs.) after long term exposure to radiation (i.e. 20 years), etc. (see FMVSS # 209). For a 220 lb. driver (95% percentile), the 20 year old seat belt can withstand about 17g (maybe a 60 mph crash in a modern car).

The attachments (metal portions) each must withstand at least 2500 lbs. (during a crash the seat belt takes the entire load, while the load is distributed to several hardware points.
Generally speaking, the hardware maintains its strength for more than 20 years. That's why you could pick up the 20 year old car by the seat belt.

Racing seat belts are wider and the racer is exposed to more seat belt area (3" wide, 5 pt.), which is very good in distributing the load to the driver during an impact (maybe a 60g impact). The problem, as I see it, is the SFI spec. indicates that the common material used in "racing" seat belts (Dupont Nylon 6-6) maintains only 60% of its strength after 1 years exposure to radiation, and may only retain 10% of their strength after only 2 years of exposure to the elements. This is what I find unbelievable.

http://www.sfifoundation.com/seatbelt.html

If the SFI spec. required manufacturers to use OEM type material (probably slightly more expensive) the seat belt recertification time could be extended, but the manufacturers would make less $$$ (you always have to follow the $$ trail).QUOTE]

About 10 years ago, I had a discussion with SFI on this subject with enough criteria for extending the expiration requirements for Sportsman racers. I provided actual testing results on seat belts performed under the DOT standards with additional analysis that was extrapolated to expected motorsports and racing forces during a crash and additional studies based on published SAE papers. Guess what? They did not care.

If SFI changed the belt material specifications, it will not increase the cost of the belts. You can procure 660 feet of belt webbing that exceeds both the DOT and SFI requirements for around $150.00. The cost of the belt is in the fabrication and manufacturing.

[sammy pizzolato]

so glad to hear the truth about L.S. that is how untrue facts start.i still say that lee was a true racer and would hate to know that he was making a run without belts.RIP LEE. so we can finaly put that story to rest!! thanks to his wife.

[boster]

NHRA has the right to confiscate any part on your race car or whole car at the track . When I got suspended at Indy in 2008 they took my crank and I never got it back and it was their right to do so .

I got a year off for that incident and it cost me over 20k when all was said and done

NHRA also has the right to search your truck or trailer when you are on their property and we all agree to it when we get our membership , register for a national event or get a tech card.

If NHRA tech ask's for something you are better off to give it to them and not give them a bunch of BS .

It appears that NHRA tech is not going to tollerate any BS from any racer"s concerning safety or conduct at the track

Sorry to hear that MR Dennis got hit so hard but he is not the first or the last