TBK-Light.com

you're on the internet. What sort of reactions did you expect?

Good, I'll keep you posted.

It's weird how it is accepted how close the driver's butt is to the track, while every other possible impact (front/rear/side/rollhoop) is subject to clearance criteria and/or crash structures.

That's a really good point there actually that I hadn't thought about. Does the FIA have a mandate that there has to be some cusioning that the seat sits on?

This is like saying the designers would prefer a smaller/shorter nosecone if it weren't for front crash-test specifications. Of course they do.

Safety is always an added constraint in engineering and wouldn't be the slightest bit included in a competitive design if it wasn't for the technical regulations, and that's what we're talking about here, not the designers' view of it.

Scotty, I'm done discussing. I do not wish anything bad for Alonso, it was just a stupid joke, move on.

This thread should be closed. Race is over, move on, maybe?

Any thoughts on why we're seeing more spinal injuries now than in previous decades of racing? Is it because the chassis's themselves are stronger than they used to be?

Are we?

Kimi has a reoccurring injury from a previous accident in 2001 (something similar what I've got from a car accident in 1999). Whereas Alonso hit a curb, went to the hospital and has been given the all clear. That's only two and being pedantic, they aren't even in the same decade.

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

Cars flying is already a rarity so it's not like we'll see much of these, but I believe the risk is somewhat heightened nowadays by the all-tarmac run offs and high curbs on the side. Indeed it will take someone landing his ass square on a high curb because anything is done, but it's still very unlikely.

Flat landings are the crashes that make me cringe the most in open-wheelers nowadays (also rear-impacts with little damage) because they give you that feeling that the driver gets the whole impact on his back, while a crash that destroys the nosecone/sidepod looks "soft" if that makes any sense.

That's very true. In fact it is that type of flat landing that injured Mansell back in Japan 1987, the injury being compounded by his car landing on the edge of the track.

Some time back I posed a question (as did other people above) about the chance of there being some form padding or energy absorption built into the drivers seat or under the seat. Scotty gave a good answer against it. Let me see if I can find it.

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

Sorry, I meant within all open wheel racing, not just limited to F1 - Alonso is the latest one, but there's also been spinal injuries in F3, Indycar and GP2.

Ok I understand your point. But I don't think now is any more different than decades in the past. In the past, drivers would sustain back injuries in various types of incident.

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

That reminds me. Kimi's vacating the circuit struck me with the contrast of when Vettel retired on Lap 1 with a puncture having sewn the title up weeks before, and still went to watch the race on the pit wall with the engineers.

And still people think it's Vettel who is the spoiled kid...

“It was good fun and nobody got hurt”

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No wonder he has a back problem just googled his crashes

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http://www.youtube.com/user/scarsurfing?feature=mhee