randsmit Registered Member
Posts: 11
(9/7/03 10:07 am) Reply
Helmets and Racing
At the final spring E-race meeting at Indus the topic of wearing helmets was raised and somehow was quickly adopted without sufficient discussion. Personally I'm not in favor. The reason given was something along the lines of a MAAC requirement, insurance reasons, personal safety, "the USA does it", etc.
Let me be clear. The NMPRA in the USA only requires helmets to be worn during racing to keep the litigation lawyers happy. AMA is covering their butts. Further, "helmets" being worn by many of the racers are not much more effective than wearing a dog's water bowl on your head. Guys are complying to the rule by wearing a simple plastic helmet shell which has no internal cage to provide separation between the shell and your skull. If the intent is to provide protection from impact by a model, this is not meeting the objective. A few millimeters of plastic between your head and a model traveling at racing speeds is not going to be of much help. I have also seen racers wear standard styrofoam bike helmets.
The simple plastic shells are technically called "Bump Hats" in the eyes of Alberta Workplace Policy Standards and are strictly intended to prevent injury against stationary objects. ie. the person wearing the bump hat bumps into the corner of a overhanging object. The bump hat is not intended to protect against moving objects which could impact the person either from above or from the side such as an overhead worker dropping a wrench off of a beam from above. In order to provide this kind of protection a proper CSA, ANSI certified helmet with internal cage must be worn. The internal cage provides a physical separation between the skull and the outer plastic shell.
So, having said all this, back to modeling...... Let it be clear that MAAC does not require helmets to be worn while flying any kind of RC model. There is nothing in our MAAC insurance policy that talks about helmets. In my opinion, the personal safety issue is bunk as well. The likely-hood of being struck on the top of my head by a race plane is worse than me winning the 6-49 lottery. I am more likely to be struck anywhere else on my body from a model approaching from the side ( coming in from between pylon #2 and #3 because I like to stand right on the pylon baseline when I am racing ). If this happens, I'll take my chances. I've been racing for 22 years and never been hit.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all in favor of helmets for the right reason. I wear one when I ride my bike, I wear one religiously when I snowboard. My helmet has prevented a concussion several times during my snowboarding adventures. I just don't see the point for racing. I find them uncomfortable and I find they limit my peripheral vision. They could also cause you to get a ZERO for one of your races - right Jim ?!!!
If others want to wear a helmet, the choice is yours. We do have some helmets available in the club house at Indus. I just don't think it should be a requirement. These are my thoughts - not yours.
Randy
======================================================================== Excerpts from the Alberta Occupational Health and Safety Code, issued July 7, 2003
[/b]Section 236, Standards for Industrial Headwear[/b]
A clearance distance must be maintained between the wearer’s head and the headwear’s shell for the protection system to work properly.
Where there is significant possibility of lateral impact to the head, employers must make sure that workers use headwear meeting the requirements of CSA Standard Z94.1-92 R1998, Industrial Protective Headwear. According to the Standard, a lateral impact occurs when an object strikes the headwear from any direction other than directly above. All protective headwear certified to this standard provides lateral impact protection.
Section 240 Bump hat
Unlike industrial protective headwear, bump hats are not equipped with a shock-absorbing liner and suspension system that can absorb the energy of an object striking the headwear. Bump hats are intended for use in situations where the danger of injury is limited to striking the head against stationary objects. Examples of these situations include automotive repair operations, meat processing facilities, underwater dives in restricted spaces, servicing equipment in a complex mechanical room, etc.
f1ca Registered Member
Posts: 9
(9/8/03 7:45 am) Reply
Re: Helmets and Racing
I agree with you Randy. When the topic came up I reflected exactly that. What good is anything but a total titanium body suit, if protection from impact is the objective? I think, to those of us who've raced a lot, the helmet would be a hindrance. I wore won at the last Balzac race, and it made my head top heavy.
I say, wear one if you wish, but don't expect it to save your life. Like anything else, the new guys can get used to it and it can be a part of their racing wardrobe. Let the others have the choice.
Murray
randsmit Registered Member
Posts: 12
(9/23/03 11:47 am) Reply
Helmets
Here is what the AMA rules state:
The part about eye-wear might have helped Don Hatch in Winnipeg.
1. Every person going onto the racecourse or between the designated sideline and the racecourse (see racecourse diagram) shall properly wear a helmet approved by OSHA, DOT, ANSI, SNELL,NOCSAE or other recognized organization that certifies safety equipment. In addition, all officials occupying safety cages shall wear protective eyewear.
Helmets and Racing
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