Safety technology has come a long way since Fangio, Ascari and Moss roared around the track at up to 300km/h in an open cockpit. Fabian Coulthard walking away from a 250km/h plus crash on the first lap of Bathurst is testament to that.
The car simply disintegrated around the rollcage, releasing all the energy, and keeping Coulthard safe. Allowing him to walk away.
This morning that crash got me thinking about us, people, and whether we have a rollcage. A safety area around us that allows us to survive the bangs and scrapes of business, love and life.
We all go for tumbles from time to time. Sometimes we learn, sometimes we repeat the tumble until we do. And sometimes we never learn.
A great example is driving. In the absence of a rollcage Dudley Moore said, “The best car safety device is a rear-view mirror with a cop in it.”
Unlike racing, personal rollcage technology doesn’t seem to have advanced much at all. We still have to build it ourselves with the tools we are given. Those tools can be pretty archaic. No CAD or TIG welders. For a lot of people they are still building their protection with a ball peen hammer and a hacksaw.
That means they aren’t well protected and react badly when things go wrong or get hurt when they take a tumble.
I’m always reading, writing and learning about simpler, lighter, stronger, technology to build my rollcage so I can take bigger risks and come out smiling if I crash.
Think about this this week; Could you take a tumble at 250km/h with your present rollcage. Get up, dust yourself off, smile and walk away?
Have a great week.