Closed cockpit F1 rule possible
Discussion
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/oct/18/dan-wh...
I suppose after the Surtees death, reinforced by the Massa incident, it was always on the cards.
Given that all we can see of the drivers now is the top half of their helmets I can see few arguments against it. It is a shame though.
How long before the wheels are enclosed?
I suppose after the Surtees death, reinforced by the Massa incident, it was always on the cards.
Given that all we can see of the drivers now is the top half of their helmets I can see few arguments against it. It is a shame though.
How long before the wheels are enclosed?
I'd be surprised if we saw that any time soon, if at all.
article said:
Adding a cockpit will be highly unpopular with fans, with the open-wheel, open-cockpit format seen as part of the brand of Formula One and a further level of separation from the drivers likely to be equally decried.
Paddy Lowe said:
"I don't think it's inevitable. It's something that's being studied. A lot of discussion has occurred at council meetings in the FIA as to whether such a thing is right for the sport."
Derek Smith said:
I suppose after the Surtees death, reinforced by the Massa incident, it was always on the cards.
I have a vague recollection that Marko's career was cut short after a stone went through his lid...Derek Smith said:
Given that all we can see of the drivers now is the top half of their helmets I can see few arguments against it. It is a shame though.
Minor tangent, but isn't that one of the things sited in Hamilton's defence for clipping other cars of late?Derek Smith said:
How long before the wheels are enclosed?
No issue with that. Always prefered the look of sportscars.I thought a raised screen could be the answer but Sunday's fatal seems to rule that out. I had visions of a bar coming out of the roll hoop, coming forward and then splitting into two to support the sides of the screen. By way of explanation it was off-season and some F1 mates and I were having a coffee and buns.
The problem, from the FIA's point of view, is that they have done some tests. If they got some positive results from it then any decision not to implement is risky. Don't forget that on some bloke's desk, high up in the volunteer section of the FIA, was a report which highlighted the risks drivers were under and suggesting remedies. It had been there, unimplemented, for some little time and then we had ths deaths of Ratzenberger and Senna. This put the FIA at risk.
As soon as enquiries are mounted these damn scientists tend to come up with answers. It's a dirty trick. They all do it.
I have to say that I much prefer the looks of sports cars to the curretn F1 cars but even so, we already have sports cars.
The problem, from the FIA's point of view, is that they have done some tests. If they got some positive results from it then any decision not to implement is risky. Don't forget that on some bloke's desk, high up in the volunteer section of the FIA, was a report which highlighted the risks drivers were under and suggesting remedies. It had been there, unimplemented, for some little time and then we had ths deaths of Ratzenberger and Senna. This put the FIA at risk.
As soon as enquiries are mounted these damn scientists tend to come up with answers. It's a dirty trick. They all do it.
I have to say that I much prefer the looks of sports cars to the curretn F1 cars but even so, we already have sports cars.
I strongly suspect the Guardian have just re-hashed an old article that was written after the Massa accident because the research video etc was shown last year IIRC and the following has already been designed and used by the majority of the F1 field, albeit not officially mandatory until next season I dont think
The carbon strip that extends off the top of the visor
http://www.formula1.com/news/features/2011/3/11880...
The Guardian said:
Which may make the alternative, an additional device to protect the at-risk area where visor meets helmet, more likely to be the first mandatory addition to the sport's safety regulations.
The carbon strip that extends off the top of the visor
http://www.formula1.com/news/features/2011/3/11880...
Edited by LocoBlade on Tuesday 18th October 17:08
Barbarossa said:
It's been discussed quite a lot since the Surtees, Massa and Schumacher Brazil incidents. The FIA Institute did some tests here. The big concern is getting a driver out after an acccident.
Interesting video.Whilst I can't say anything about this particular case, in such circumstances it can be a good idea to come up with an excuse for not doing anything because of a perceived and more dangerous risk.
If anything, I'd suggest the canopy would aid driver escape. And in any case, if that tyre had hit the drier there would be little need to pull him out except to bury him.
I could see the FIA looking at the current reports of the Indy death, with drivers, old and not so old, saying how dangerous the arrangements were. There's a lack of understanding of American racing in this country and many of the criticisms lack substance.
Post Senna there was all sorts of fallout. Williams were at risk, as was GP racing in Italy, and that's without Bernie going for money rather than history and excitement.
Derek Smith said:
If anything, I'd suggest the canopy would aid driver escape. And in any case, if that tyre had hit the drier there would be little need to pull him out except to bury him.
Its the 99.9% of accidents not involving something impacting the cockpit area that they're concerned about with regards to driver escape. Other than to "escape" an otherwise deadly accident, it would certainly slow down a driver removing himself from the cockpit but Im not sure that's a big issue, one of the arguments against is that a slower escape in the event of a fire could lead to injury or death, but I think as long as the canopy and bulkheads stayed intact, the survivability of a fire would if anything be even greater with the canopy because it would protect the driver from exposure to flammable liquids and direct flame for a fair amount of time, at the moment if there's fuel splashing around in the cockpit and flames licking around fireproof overalls etc then you only have a fairly short time period before you start getting burnt but inside a fully enclosed safety cell there'd be no immediate need to get out assuming efficient marshalling to put the flames out in a timely fashion. Lets face it though, although it should never be ignored, the combination of modern fuel cells, no in-race refuelling and efficient well trained marshalls means the risk of a large scale fuel fire in modern F1 is very small, and one that burnt for more than 20-30 seconds even smaller, so you'd almost certainly prevent more injuries/deaths by having the cockpit protection than you'd get because of the canopy hindering escape in a fire.
doogz said:
Having watched the video, i'm more concerned about the fact that a canopy seems to act as a springboard to launch the wheel and tyre up in the air. Who knows where it'd end up.
Cobblers. The tyre is being shot at the canopy at xx mph why do you think it went so far?Was the test using a tyre and wheel? - it looked like just a tyre to me... if that's the case it's rather alarming that the open topped screen shattered.
This keeps on coming up.
Bernie is known not to like the idea, therefore I'd be amazed if it happened.
In any case tests that were done a while back showed a wheel punted high in the air for something like half a mile, i.e. easily capable of passing fences and going into crowds / grandstands etc.
Wheldons death is very, very sad, but given that the accident ripped the roll hoop (i.e. structural part of the chassis) and everything else above the height of the sidepods. Would an enclosed cockpit of helped ? no one can say for sure but it seems unlikely.
I can remember Burti in the Prost crashing into a barrier and he was embedded into the barrier, didn't look nice but he was fine. If a cockpit "hood" was to smash it could potentially cause injuries.
Bernie is known not to like the idea, therefore I'd be amazed if it happened.
In any case tests that were done a while back showed a wheel punted high in the air for something like half a mile, i.e. easily capable of passing fences and going into crowds / grandstands etc.
Wheldons death is very, very sad, but given that the accident ripped the roll hoop (i.e. structural part of the chassis) and everything else above the height of the sidepods. Would an enclosed cockpit of helped ? no one can say for sure but it seems unlikely.
I can remember Burti in the Prost crashing into a barrier and he was embedded into the barrier, didn't look nice but he was fine. If a cockpit "hood" was to smash it could potentially cause injuries.
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