Sure, seat belts and fire bottles. They add those where they don't already
exist. Beyond that, no , it isn't easy. It also can effectively cost
millions of dollars, depending on the car, to go farther than that even if
it's possible.
In any case, that wouldn't have helped anyone in this particular accident.
This used to be the case some years ago, but really isn't any longer. Even
Brian Redman made the point a couple of years ago that vintage racing in the
US has turned into serious racing.
No. Today's cars are safer because they are newer and incorporate all that
we know now. You can't go back to a 50 year old car and "add" the safety
stuff. You would have to replace the entire car with a newer one.
--
Regards,
Bruce Kennewell,
Canberra, Australia.
---------------------------
> >Yes...Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, to name but three.
> Ah, but did they actually *do* it? :-)
> >However, Vintage or Historic Racing in the USA is run in a somewhat
> >different manner which, in SOME cases, emasculates the performance
> >of the drivers. (Note that I say "SOME" cases.....not all.) The
> >attitude is, however, generally towards the "parade" or
> >"demonstration" type of racing rather than full-on competition.
> <snip>
> Presumably that's at least in part a result of the fear of crippling
> litigation. (On a similar point, I remember reading somewhere that the
> development of cricket in some parts of the US was being stymied by
> local parks' insistence that the grass should be at least 2 inches
> long, to avoid people slipping over and suing them.)
> --
> David. (GPLRank handicap: +39.92)
> "After all, a mere thousand yards - such a harmless little knoll,
> really."
> (Raymond Mays on Shelsley Walsh)
--
Regards,
Bruce Kennewell,
Canberra, Australia.
---------------------------
> > And the fact, as stated that it was the Andretti Lotus!
> They stated it was the SAME car? Not the same TYPE of car?
> I mean, after all, the reason Andretti only drove it in practice was
because
> the wheels fell off the damn thing and it scattered itself, and nearly
> Andretti as well, across half of Indiana. Rindt's did the same, and Lotus
> was then banned from the track for the year.
> So it couldn't have been the same actual car that Andretti drove. That car
> ceased to exist in May of 1969. Oh BOY did it cease to exist!
Allow me to quote from a recent edition of the great US periodical, "Vintage
Motorsport", the May/June 2000 issue, actually. Coincidentally, it features
Brian Redman on the cover, in fact!
However, it isn't his words to which I refer. It's actually a letter from a
chap who lives in Covina, CA (which is, I assume, California?). He refers
to the last Monterey Historic meeting, at which Stirling Moss competed.
(Note: I use the word "competed" in the true sense!) Apparently Stirling
became a little TOO competitive and the result was that he was chided by the
authorities after a bingle occurred. His response was that he did "only
what comes naturally to a professional race driver".
The letter-writer takes umbrage at that statement by Mr. Moss and, in the
last few sentences of his letter, we get to the heart of the matter. I quote
in full:-
"I do believe that they [professional drivers] must lower themselves to our
level and adhere to the rules that we all must abide by in vintage racing in
the US (as opposed to England where a little fender, or "wing" bashing seems
to be acceptable).
Thus I say again that SOME (lthough by that letter it may appear MOST)
Vintage or Historic racing in the USA is NOT full-on competitive in the true
sense or spirit of the word.
--
Regards,
Bruce Kennewell,
Canberra, Australia.
---------------------------
> > Yes...Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, to name but three.
> > However, Vintage or Historic Racing in the USA is run in a somewhat
> > different manner which, in SOME cases, emasculates the performance of
the
> > drivers. (Note that I say "SOME" cases.....not all.) The attitude is,
> > however, generally towards the "parade" or "demonstration" type of
racing
> > rather than full-on competition.
> This used to be the case some years ago, but really isn't any longer. Even
> Brian Redman made the point a couple of years ago that vintage racing in
the
> US has turned into serious racing.
We're talking the bad reporting that led to a claim the car that was
involved in the crash at Goodwood was a 49 that Andretti drove.
Since such is not the case who the hell knows WHAT we're talking about here.
Andretti did, of course, drive a 49 in a Grand Prix. But the car that was
involved in the accident at Goodwood was a variant of the car Andretti
drove, and wrecked in practice, at Indy.
Since the initial reporting is, shall we say, ***ed, we arn't ever going to
have a logical conversation about it.
Which was part of the point that started this whole thread :)
Perhaps it's the same reason Formula 1 Soccer, Rugby and Australian Rules
futbol hasn't caught on over here... We already have enough sports as it is.
Baseball, Football, Basketball, Hockey, Tennis, Golf, American racing,
Boxing, Olympic sports, all the new extreme sports, more and more soccer. I
think we can do without cricket.
> >Yes...Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, to name but three.
> Ah, but did they actually *do* it? :-)
> >However, Vintage or Historic Racing in the USA is run in a somewhat
> >different manner which, in SOME cases, emasculates the performance
> >of the drivers. (Note that I say "SOME" cases.....not all.) The
> >attitude is, however, generally towards the "parade" or
> >"demonstration" type of racing rather than full-on competition.
> <snip>
> Presumably that's at least in part a result of the fear of crippling
> litigation. (On a similar point, I remember reading somewhere that the
> development of cricket in some parts of the US was being stymied by
> local parks' insistence that the grass should be at least 2 inches
> long, to avoid people slipping over and suing them.)
> --
> David. (GPLRank handicap: +39.92)
> "After all, a mere thousand yards - such a harmless little knoll,
> really."
> (Raymond Mays on Shelsley Walsh)
> <snip>
> >I think we can do without cricket.
> Sorry, I don't understand. No-one can live without cricket. :-)
> --
> David. (GPLRank handicap: +39.92)
> "After all, a mere thousand yards - such a harmless little knoll,
> really."
> (Raymond Mays on Shelsley Walsh)
Thanks, Kevin.
I think the car that was involved in the incident was a Lotus 64, the same
TYPE as driven by Andretti at Indy in 1969.
If there was a Lotus Type 63 then it must've been designed for a class other
than F1 or Indy.
--
Regards,
Bruce Kennewell,
Canberra, Australia.
---------------------------
> > Uno momento, por favour!
> > Are we talking about the Lotus Type 63 or the Lotus Type 64?
> We're talking the bad reporting that led to a claim the car that was
> involved in the crash at Goodwood was a 49 that Andretti drove.
> Since such is not the case who the hell knows WHAT we're talking about
here.
> Andretti did, of course, drive a 49 in a Grand Prix. But the car that was
> involved in the accident at Goodwood was a variant of the car Andretti
> drove, and wrecked in practice, at Indy.
> Since the initial reporting is, shall we say, ***ed, we arn't ever going
to
> have a logical conversation about it.
> Which was part of the point that started this whole thread :)
<snip>
Sorry, I don't understand. No-one can live without cricket. :-)
--
David. (GPLRank handicap: +39.92)
"After all, a mere thousand yards - such a harmless little knoll,
really."
(Raymond Mays on Shelsley Walsh)
But they're vintage *racing* cars! If you're going to race them, you
can't expect never to dent the damn things.
--
David. (GPLRank handicap: +39.92)
"After all, a mere thousand yards - such a harmless little knoll,
really."
(Raymond Mays on Shelsley Walsh)
--
Regards,
Bruce Kennewell,
Canberra, Australia.
---------------------------
> Perhaps it's the same reason Formula 1 Soccer, Rugby and Australian Rules
> futbol hasn't caught on over here... We already have enough sports as it
is.
> Baseball, Football, Basketball, Hockey, Tennis, Golf, American racing,
> Boxing, Olympic sports, all the new extreme sports, more and more soccer.
I
> think we can do without cricket.
> > >Yes...Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, to name but three.
> > Ah, but did they actually *do* it? :-)
> > >However, Vintage or Historic Racing in the USA is run in a somewhat
> > >different manner which, in SOME cases, emasculates the performance
> > >of the drivers. (Note that I say "SOME" cases.....not all.) The
> > >attitude is, however, generally towards the "parade" or
> > >"demonstration" type of racing rather than full-on competition.
> > <snip>
> > Presumably that's at least in part a result of the fear of crippling
> > litigation. (On a similar point, I remember reading somewhere that the
> > development of cricket in some parts of the US was being stymied by
> > local parks' insistence that the grass should be at least 2 inches
> > long, to avoid people slipping over and suing them.)
> > --
> > David. (GPLRank handicap: +39.92)
> > "After all, a mere thousand yards - such a harmless little knoll,
> > really."
> > (Raymond Mays on Shelsley Walsh)
--
Regards,
Bruce Kennewell,
Canberra, Australia.
---------------------------
> >Ah well, yes, we do, in fact, tend to look ascance at actually rubbing
> >fenders in vintage cars.
> But they're vintage *racing* cars! If you're going to race them, you
> can't expect never to dent the damn things.
> --
> David. (GPLRank handicap: +39.92)
> "After all, a mere thousand yards - such a harmless little knoll,
> really."
> (Raymond Mays on Shelsley Walsh)
