Race Car Safety and the Racing Harness
By Byron Jonas on Sep 9, 2009 in Cars
In the race car industry, drivers are constantly taking extraordinary risks as they zoom down the raceway at incredible speeds in pursuit of that lusted-after trophy, record, etc. In light of the mightily high stakes involved in this sport, car designers and mechanical teams place a lot of priority on the safety issues in such cars; this attention has given rise to a wealth of different technologies of wide use, not only within the racing field.
The single most important safety mechanism inside a race car is the racing harness, and a driver is effectively investing all their hopes for surviving a crash on this device, as well as their own talent and driving skills out on the track, of course.
Over the course of time, many different kinds of racing harnesses have been invented and put into place in vehicles, without a single variety being designated as standard for the industry. As successive accidents and problems arose, designers and engineers discovered ever more valuable information about the nature of safety in a race car, and hence advanced the qualities of racing harnesses considerably to where they are today, which is quite advanced compared to even just twenty years ago.
Strictly speaking, a racing harness is defined by the fact that it is bound not to the seat-as is the case for ordinary road vehicles-but rather to the frame or subframe of the car itself, which provides additional security.
Harnesses in the racing industry tend to have upwards of 4 different straps, with 6 being the standard for most racing vehicles at present. Indeed, it was after the death of Dale Earnhardt, the beloved race driver, that many racing teams decided to implement the switch from 5-point to 6-point racing harnesses; the final strap being located between the legs.
Racing harnesses may have a variety of different straps, but another difference that characterizes them is the fastening mechanism in particular. Their composition and their method of fastening can change drastically from one race car to another, and in most instances are quite distinct from the ordinary seat belt latches used in standard vehicles.
As with everything on a race car, they need to find the perfect balance of lightness and toughness-no simple feat at all. Carbon Fiber has emerged as one of the most reliable materials to make them out of, and is currently used by the biggest harness manufacturers in the racing industry.
It is very important from a safety perspective that the harness's lock be practically impossible to release while operating the car, and the cam lock buckle has presented excellent qualities in this sense. When you add to this design a rotational locking mechanism, it is all but impossible to unlock while driving, which is a major safety conquest. Further problems are avoided by making them dust proof and shockproof.
A curiosity of the racing harness industry is that several of the lessons learned and the technologies advanced have been put to use in other contexts, such as the aviation industry (both passenger and military). In fact, the main racing harness manufacturers also provide major airplane manufacturers with seat belts.
Byron Jonas knows that the racing harness is an crucial element of car racing safety. This is why, as is the case with all his race gear, he only buys from GMP Racing Products
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