NASCAR goes with HANS

[Andrew Longman]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CAR_NASCAR_HUTCHENS_DEVICE?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=SPORTS&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

I can't say I could ever see how the Hutchens Device would actually work.

Kinda ironic juxtaposed with a recent column on SPEED describing how DE told other drivers to quit complaining and race (see http://www.speedtv.com/commentary/14431/ )

Interesting that after the deaths in 2000 there was almost a strike by drivers, who then complained about mandated use of head restraints, who then largely self selected the more restrictive HANS, and who now seem to be accepting this new rule without much noise.

Classic example of why safety must be regulated, not voluntary.

Good for them.

[pchall]

Classic example of why safety must be regulated, not voluntary.

Good for them.

Does this come with an admission that the Hutchens rig was a POS?

[tllips]

Does this come with an admission that the Hutchens rig was a POS?

I guess the fact that they are banning the Hutchens is as close to an admission as you are going to get.

[Chief]

I guess the fact that they are banning the Hutchens is as close to an admission as you are going to get.

It's amazing to me that NASCAR can do this now. What about the folks that have been injured (or killed), both on the national but also local circuits, BECAUSE of the endorsement NASCAR made by saying the Hutchens was "OK"? I realize the risk factor in racing but allowing a failure from the beginning to be used as an approved safety device (which is repealed) is a crime in it's self.

[Gnam]

http://www.hutchensdevice.com/instructions/images/hutch5.jpg

Damn. Any first year engineering student could resolve the forces acting on the head and show that this thing isn't as strong as the HANS device. Plus it looks like the tether strap allows the head to roll downward, which is what it's supposed to prevent. :shakehead

[pchall]

Damn. Any first year engineering student could resolve the forces acting on the head and show that this thing isn't as strong as the HANS device. Plus it looks like the tether strap allows the head to roll downward, which is what it's supposed to prevent. :shakehead

It's nice to to smart kids here to confirm our suspicions....

[Racing Truth]

Gee, it only took 'em, what, 3 yrs.? :shakehead

[devilmaster]

IIRC - Hutchen's was designed by a NASCAR team member, no?

Second, as I applaud this move (finally), I wonder, do they still allow their catchcan man to be strapped to the catchcan, and technically be strapped to the car?

Steve

[Ankf00]

WOW, I never saw a schematic of that thing before, jeebus it's worthless :eek: 1 f'ing tether? ONE? wtf?! the standard of nascar technology :saywhat:

[racer2c]

IIRC there was plenty of refusals to wear the HANS. I think the Hutchins was a way to apease the guys that said the HANS was to 'restraining'.

[Gnam]

WOW, I never saw a schematic of that thing before, jeebus it's worthless :eek: 1 f'ing tether? ONE? wtf?! the standard of nascar technology :saywhat:

To be fair, the HANS device also uses only one tether on each side of the helmet. The difference is where the tether attaches.

http://www.sptimes.com/2004/webspecials04/daytona/daytona_graphics/images/hans_device.gif

See, on the HANS, the tether attaches to the harness at a point directly behind the driver's head. That way when the driver's head gets whipped forward and tries to rotate down, the tether pulls straight back, stopping the rotation by securing the head directly to the body.

The Hutchen's attaches below the head at the shoulders, so the tether pulls down and back, esentially trying to rotate the head the opposite way. The thing is though that's the same thing your neck does. And it just isn't strong enough to prevent injury. The Hans, on the other hand, supports a driver's head in a way his neck can't, thereby offering him greater protection.

[Ankf00]

ya, seat belts are done the same way, mounting belts to the ground leads to spinal compression, need a cross bar to mount from instead, HANS though has actual hardware involved restraining the head relative to the torso, hutchens is a belt attached to a freaking belt, no way in hell that belt doesn't come majorly out of position during a wreck....

[JohnHKart]

Wasn't there some injuries and a death at a short track where the guy was wearing a hutchens in the past couple of years?

John

[Railbird]

I always thought the Hutchens device just tied their head to their nuts.

[Dave99]

I always thought the Hutchens device was the Manziere of auto racing.

[devilmaster]

I always thought the Hutchens device just tied their head to their nuts.

^ Post of the week.

I always wondered why they'd want something that tied down like a parachute rig, and it looked like it usually took them 5 years to get the straps untangled, if you've ever watched a pre-race.

Steve

p.s. Does anyone know if they outlawed crew members to be tied to the catchcan? RW?