Did you watch last weekends races? I think both VeeKay and Marcus Ericsson were very glad to have the aeroscreen. Herta's nose, having already lost it's wing hit VeeKay right in the side of the aeroscreen at head height. If it hadn't been for the screen his head would have likely been smooched. Even just a Halo wouldn't have done as it would have gone between the upper bar and the side of the tub. For Ericsson it 'just' prevented debris from hitting him in the face. I hated the look of the aeroscreen in the first couple of races, but it's already blending into the background. From the side it doesn't look too bad as long as the halo part isn't too bright and contrasting a color. From the front it's not good, but I'll take a live driver and a bit of ugly over the alternative.
It still won't save a driver in a Justin Wilson Henry Surtees situation where a piece of heavy debris hits the helmet from above but a fully enclosed fighter jet type canopy could of course fatally entrap a driver in a burning car...no zero risk scenario exists.
Works for fighter jets, it should work for race cars. Include an emergency external release mechanism. Also, to really be "safe", the wheels should be covered. Something like the old center seat Can-Am cars.
Just booked tickets for the double header at Mid-Ohio. I am shocked they are allowing spectators, but i will take it. I haven't been to an Indycar race since the last Baltimore Grand Prix in 2013. Curious to see how the aeroscreens look in person.
Why are you shocked? Are things different in Ohio? They had spectators at Road America and Iowa. Curious.
Most of the country still isn't allowing them. A few days ago the Ohio governor announced a travel advisory for people coming from 9 states. It is a happy surprise, but a surprise none the less. I was really hoping to go to the IMSA race at VIR but they just announced that will be run without spectators.
I think that if they painted all the support structure "18% gray" (to use a photography term), it would become nearly invisible visually. I think that F1 should paint their halos the same way.
And if you are upside down? And if it goes off prematurely in an accident? If you want to remove all danger from cars going 200MPH, have all races be virtual.
A canopy likely would have saved Gonzalo Rodriguez. His roll bar dug into the dirt, and offered no protection. Having the cars setup as drones would be more interesting than anything virtual. Of course the fans, and pit crews would still be exposed to some danger.
There are exceptions to every rule. Pilots who eject don't automatically survive either. The question is which does the least harm.
Are you sure the debris from Sage Karam's car at Pocono made contact with Justin Wilson's helmet FROM above? I thought the debris came AT the frontal portion of his helmet.
Yes I looked at it quite a few times to understand plus they had a slow Mo. Like Henry Surtees it a million to one chance...
Practice for the 500 begins tomorrow. 33 entrants for 33 starting positions, that kind of kills any suspense for Bubble Day. Where's Jim Hurtubise when we need him?
Tsk, tsk, tsk.... Lemme' tell ya'..... Image Unavailable, Please Login He's upstairs, munchin' on some Fritos, washed down by some Pepsi doncha' know....?
For the unenlightened..... "Actually, there were two Mallards constructed. Herk also built one for Texas racer Ebb Rose, but it was written off in a crash. Herk’s own Mallard was modernized with squared-off, wedge-shaped bodywork and last raced at Michigan in 1972, where it started 26th (last) and finished 23rd. But probably the Mallard’s most celebrated moment came on Bump Day at Indy in ’72. The car sat in qualifying line all day without making an attempt, and at six o’clock when the gun sounded, the fun-loving Hurtubise opened the hood, where there was no engine to be found—only five cases of beer on ice for his friends." Image Unavailable, Please Login A quick read.... https://www.macsmotorcitygarage.com/jim-hurtubise-and-the-mallard-offy/
Sounds as though there are going to be some alterations to the windscreens to aide air in the cockpits starting at Indy. Evidently, drivers are getting too hot in the cockpits. Some solutions were tried out when Jimmie Johnson tested Rosenqvist's car at Indy a couple of weeks ago. BHW
The aeroscreen isn't a wind screen per se (they had air deflectors prior since way back when); it works in conjunction with the halo to keep parts from hitting the driver, side intrusion also. Thus "you" can't see the drivers anymore. But yeah, they've been working on ventilation for some time now. " Asked if the water at the bottom of the screen was coming through the NACA ducts designed for cockpit cooling, Power said: “Nah, I don’t think it was coming from the vents. I think it was just where the screen was sealed [to the bulkhead].” " https://us.motorsport.com/indycar/news/power-leaking-aeroscreen-easy-fix/4683780/ " Additional cooling for Road America IndyCar drivers entered the season with three new cooling measures meant to counteract the loss of the air hitting their faces and chests as they speed at 220 mph or more. But they’ve proven to not be enough. The measures included two holes drilled into the nose of the car with the use of ducting to bring air to the driver’s feet and legs; two channels of air that enter below the base of the screen and are fed into the cockpit toward the driver’s chest; and a helmet cooling system where air is picked up from a side-mounted scoop that then pushes air through a hose that connects into the driver’s helmet. But as Rossi said, particularly on tracks where the cars aren’t moving fast enough to push air into the car with enough force, drivers have hardly noticed any cooling efforts. Additionally, the helmet hose system has often fed in dirt, dust and tire marbles from the track. “And the teams can’t do anything. We need that all to come from the series, and it needs to be a priority, because it’s pretty bad,” Rossi said. " https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/motor/2020/07/10/indycar-adds-cooling-hydration-measures-aeroscreen-road-america/5405796002/ IndyCar introduces new aeroscreen cooling option for Road America https://racer.com/2020/07/09/indycar-introduces-new-aeroscreen-cooling-option-for-road-america/
Hondas are looking strong again for qualifying. Alonso is 2mph off of his team mates and towards the bottom for qualifying speed. He hit the wall yesterday. McLaren cars weren't drafting and following cars well in practice yesterday. Hopefully they find some improvements.
