NooooOoo
01-16-2018, 04:42 PM
#16
Rennlist Member
Energy from an impact is transmitted through the steering column to your hands/ wrists gripping the wheel. Force on the thumb is very similar to skier's thumb injury (falling on your ski poles) causing ulnar collateral ligament damage (my injury), or to the wrists which can fracture the fragile small bones in the wrist. Also best to avoid "bracing for impact" with your legs, which can result in bad foot injuries (like my buddy Yonker at turn 17 at Sebring). There's some debate about what exactly to do with your hands (across your chest, by your sides, and what implications air bags could have) but the general idea is to allow the belts and seat too absorb the impact. So, yes, continue to drive the car and make every attempt to save it... but let go of the wheel and relax your feet/ legs right before impact.
01-16-2018, 05:10 PM
#18
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Energy from an impact is transmitted through the steering column to your hands/ wrists gripping the wheel. Force on the thumb is very similar to skier's thumb injury (falling on your ski poles) causing ulnar collateral ligament damage (my injury), or to the wrists which can fracture the fragile small bones in the wrist. Also best to avoid "bracing for impact" with your legs, which can result in bad foot injuries (like my buddy Yonker at turn 17 at Sebring). There's some debate about what exactly to do with your hands (across your chest, by your sides, and what implications air bags could have) but the general idea is to allow the belts and seat too absorb the impact. So, yes, continue to drive the car and make every attempt to save it... but let go of the wheel and relax your feet/ legs right before impact.
Good info. Thanks.
Hope I never have the need to "use" that info, but good to know nonetheless.
Thanks...
01-16-2018, 06:14 PM
#19
Watch any NASCAR race--lots of examples of big wrecks 
and invariably the arms get folded across the chest.
Gary
and invariably the arms get folded across the chest.Gary
01-16-2018, 07:47 PM
#20
Rennlist Member
Originally Posted by gbuff
Watch any NASCAR race--lots of examples of big wrecks and invariably the arms get folded across the chest.
Gary
and invariably the arms get folded across the chest.Gary
01-17-2018, 09:39 PM
#21
Did you feel less traction since it was so cold out? I did not know racing season continued through winter.
I think this was a decent outcome. The alternatives could have been much worse.
I wonder if the snow helped your car redirect bounce off the rail a little easier, with less friction on the tires.
I think this was a decent outcome. The alternatives could have been much worse.
I wonder if the snow helped your car redirect bounce off the rail a little easier, with less friction on the tires.
01-18-2018, 12:52 AM
#22
Pro
Thread Starter
Looks like a great track. Keep an eye on your tires if you continue winter driving. My Sport Cup 2s delaminated due to cold weather. Talked with Michelin and the engineer said it was due to the delta T, most R compound tires don't like extremely cold weather. He advised staying above 50 degrees. The issue is the tire surface gets hot while the sidewall/core is still cold, this forces the delta T to be absorbed in ply compound of the tire itself causing separation within the ply.
01-18-2018, 01:02 AM
#23
Pro
Thread Starter
I believe if it wasn't for the frozen asphalt and then the snow on the run off, I would have stopped before the barrier. I actually didn't really think nothing of it when I was sliding as I thought surely I would stop in time ( I slammed my brakes pretty quick into it know I had lost it). I just kept sliding and sliding and by the time I reached the barrier it was really a scream of disbelief that I was still moving and was going to hit.
with that said, it was a long slide all things considered, so by the time I hit i was only going about 15kmph, so while there was damage, there was nothing too serious and I was still able to drive home with it.
Did you feel less traction since it was so cold out? I did not know racing season continued through winter.
I think this was a decent outcome. The alternatives could have been much worse.
I wonder if the snow helped your car redirect bounce off the rail a little easier, with less friction on the tires.
I think this was a decent outcome. The alternatives could have been much worse.
I wonder if the snow helped your car redirect bounce off the rail a little easier, with less friction on the tires.
01-18-2018, 03:50 PM
#24
Rennlist Member
Folding arms is not particularly a great way to address an impending crash. I have seen NASCAR do this and I have seen them take their hands off the wheel. Frankly I don't understand the thought process. I was taught (in racing school) to simply open up the hands so that the only part of your hands touching the steering wheel is the palm - on the edge of the wheel. This will permit a quick re-grip to regain control of the car in the event that you bounce and need to react quickly to avoid a secondary impact or cars.
01-18-2018, 10:11 PM
#26
Pro
Thread Starter
Charles, your other video shows that you've got good feel and steering control, so you know how to react and keep looking ahead when the car starts to slip. This is good muscle memory, they just reverted to natural instincts in this situation when it got extra hairy.
For the crash, based on the steering inputs and where/how the car spun off, you were probably looking no further than around where the exit kerbing ends. That's natural behavior for a tank slapper into fixation - hits the target without consideration for what happens after you hit the target. If you had scanned the road further ahead you would've automatically used more road to work with - I think there was a good amount of road and momentum in the right direction to stop.
For the crash, based on the steering inputs and where/how the car spun off, you were probably looking no further than around where the exit kerbing ends. That's natural behavior for a tank slapper into fixation - hits the target without consideration for what happens after you hit the target. If you had scanned the road further ahead you would've automatically used more road to work with - I think there was a good amount of road and momentum in the right direction to stop.
I cant wait to get my car back and go back out on the circuit. It was my first crash at the track, so I have some mental jitters that need shaking off to get my confidence back and apply what I’ve learned from the crash so I can be a safer driver.
01-18-2018, 10:55 PM
#27
Rennlist Member
thanks for the input. Yes, I’m finding that vision, looking ahead, is so important to getting thing right. I guess this becomes more critical as situations get more critical, so it’s something I need to work on going forward.
I cant wait to get my car back and go back out on the circuit. It was my first crash at the track, so I have some mental jitters that need shaking off to get my confidence back and apply what I’ve learned from the crash so I can be a safer driver.
01-19-2018, 05:04 PM
#28
Rennlist Member
I dislocated my left thumb by not letting go of the steering. It really sucks to not be able to grip anything tight (been 7+ months already). Might take a year or two to completely heal.
Also, agree it sucks sliding so long knowing how it is going to end. The squeal is a great thing to hear though as you were bleeding off speed. My crash was in rain and I slid on wet grass before impact. I looked up the data and, literally, the range of friction coefficients for wet grass overlaps that of ice! It sure felt like ice.
Also^2, if you want to freak yourself out, check out the stopping distances on various surfaces at track speeds. They are looooonnnnnng.