A Baju Racing or Racing Racing , commonly referred to as Fire Cloth due to its fireproof nature, is a garment worn in various forms of racing by car racers, crew members working in vehicles during the race, tracking safety workers or marshals, and in some of the series commentators on the show.
In the early days of racing, most of the racing series had no mandatory uniforms. Beginning in the 1950s and 1960s, a special racing suit was designed to optimize the driver's temperature through heat transfer, and then protect the driver from fire. In 1967, the majority of competitors in Formula One, NASCAR, the National Hot Rod Association, and USAC Champ Car (modern IndyCar predecessors) began wearing special fire suits. Most modern wear uses Nomex, a material developed in the 1960s around the time a fire suit appeared. The lawsuit is also known for displaying flashy driver sponsors.
Video Racing suit
Design and use
The racing shirt is designed to cover the entire body of the driver, crew member, or marshall, including long sleeves and trouser legs. The typical driver's suit is one-piece overalls, similar in appearance to the boilersuit. The other armor is two parts, consisting of a "jacket" and pants. The coat consists of one or more layers of refractory material. The suit also has a special epaulettes or axle in the shoulder area that serves as a "grip" to lift the rider tied to the racing seat of the vehicle. This feature is mandated under the FÃÆ' à © dation international l'l'Automobile (FIA) international dation standard.
Most clothing uses fabrics made from Nomex, a synthetic material manufactured by DuPont that retains its refractory properties over time and usage. Other clothing consists of cotton which is treated with Proban, chemicals produced by Rhodia, or other substances. This jacket may lose its fireproof properties from time to time, especially after washing. Other clothing made of Kevlar, polybenzimidazole fiber (PBI), or carbon fiber, but less widely used because of lack of comfort and color variations. New clothes, such as those produced by Sparco, have an inner layer that is treated with menthol to create a cool and odor-resistant sensation. Additional accessories, including refractory long clothing, gloves, shoes, and face masks such as balaclava or "head socks" are also worn.
The outfit is not fully fireproof, but it is more fire resistant for a certain period of time, allowing someone to escape from the incident or be saved with minimal injuries. Bill Simpson, an innovator in racing safety, predicted in 1993 that someone had "20 to 30 seconds" before the fire suits started burning. The minimum protection levels mandated for uniforms in different racing series vary, as do minimum standards for drivers, crew members, and officials. In the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) drag racing series, for example, clothing is designed to last 30 to 40 seconds before the wearer suffers second degree burns. This is a higher benchmark than most other series, due to the high risk of fire from nitromethane and alcohol-fueled cars. SFI Foundation, Inc., formerly part of SEMA, sets fire protection standards for various sanctions agencies particularly in the United States, including NASCAR, IndyCar, NHRA, Sports Car Club of America (SCCA), and US Auto Club (USAC). The FIA ââsets the standard for most series such as Formula One and FIA World Endurance Championships, excluding standard drag race competition set by SFI. SFI and FIA standards are used by other organizations outside their jurisdiction, such as the Australian Motor Sport Confederation (CAMS).
Both SFI and FIA use Thermal Protective Performance (TPP) tests to measure the effectiveness of refractory clothing. This test, made by DuPont in the 1970s, measures the amount of time in seconds before the garment user suffers second-degree burns. For example, clothing that lasts three seconds before a second degree burn occurs receiving a TPP value of 6. Under SFI standards, it will receive a rating of 3.2A/1, the lowest possible SFI rating.
Anti-fire retardant settings
Suits in some other racing classes have an appearance similar to fire suits, but are not designed to be fireproof. The suit used for kart racing is not normally flame retardant, but rather made to be abrasion resistant using leather, nylon or cordura. The suit used for motor racing, called motorcycle leather, is also designed to withstand scratches. They are made up of the same leather or material, with nylon fabric and spandex forbidden. Optional fireproof clothing to provide fire protection. Internationale de Karting (CIK) and FIA commissions set the specifications for the karts suit. The FÃÆ' à © dation Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) arranges suits for various racing series such as MotoGP and AMA Supercross Championship.
Branding
Since the 1980s, racing apparel has been adapted to feature driver and team sponsorship, leading to designs similar to racing cars. For fire suits, the materials used to create sponsored patches must also be fireproof, adding extra weight to the shirt. Many modern outfits, however, use printed logos to reduce weight.
Maps Racing suit
History
Before the advent of refractory racing clothing, no driving uniforms were required in most racing series. In the NASCAR competition, for example, many drivers and crew members will be wearing jeans and other street clothes. American company Hinchman has been producing special racing apparel since the mid-1920s, worn by drivers of Babe Stapp and Pete DePaolo. In the 1950s, NASCAR Grand National (NASCAR Cup Series Energy Monster) Tim Flock driver started wearing a special racing suit, which became popular in the 1960s. At this time, the suit is designed with an inner layer intended to keep the driver cool. Soon afterwards, in some series of racing suits or racer clothes used in the competition were soaked in chemical solutions to keep them fireproof long enough for the driver to escape an incident. At NASCAR, baking soda solutions are commonly used, while Sports Car Club of America mandates racing suits treated in boric acid or borax. Boraxo, a powder soap brand consisting mostly of borax, is often used as a treatment.
The catalyst for developing a racing suit that can effectively withstand fires came in the late 1950s and 1960s, when several fire collisions took place in the motorsport world. In 1959, Jerry Unser died of burns suffered in a training crash for the Indianapolis 500. In 1963, Top NHRA Fuel Driver and Tech Division 7 Director Chuck Branham died after suffering burns in an accident. During the 1964 World NASCAR 600 (today's Coca-Cola 600), Fireball Roberts was involved in an accident on lap seven while avoiding two other cars, died five weeks later. Roberts has an asthma reaction to the treatment of clothing used by NASCAR, and has received a wobble to use it. A week later in 1964, Indianapolis 500 drivers Dave MacDonald and Eddie Sachs were killed in a seven-car crash on the second lap of the race.
After the incident, Jim Deist and Bill Simpson, who developed some of the first drag parachutes, released the first racing suit designed for fireproof. Both suits were "aluminized" to be fireproof. Jas Simpson consists of modified cotton boilersos. In 1959 after the death of Unser, all Indy 500 competitors were asked to wear fire-resistant clothing. In 1963, the FIA ââassumed responsibility for the safety of drivers in this series, and mandated fire-resistant clothing for Formula One drivers. In 1964, NHRA mandated its rivals. In the fall of that year after Roberts crash, almost all of NASCAR's competitors started wearing fire suits, even though no official rules were in force.
In 1966, Simpson met with NASA astronaut Pete Conrad, who introduced Simpson on Nomex materials used in space clothing for the Apollo program. Around the same time, DuPont also approached the Hinchman company about producing Nomex racing clothes. In that year's Indianapolis 500, Mel Kenyon's driver wore Nomex's armor produced by Hinchman. Later that year, several drivers began testing experimental Nomex clothing for Simpson, including F1 driver Walt Hansgen and Masten Gregory, NASCAR racer Marvin Panch, and SCCA Trans-Am Series driver Bob Tullius. The Simpson company Simpson Performance Products released the first commercial Nomex racing suit, called "Heat Shield Firesuit", in 1967. The suit was charged by 30 of 33 competitors in the 1967 Indianapolis 500.
In 1970, NHRA along with SEMA began developing specifications for fire suits, using the Thermal Protective Performance (TPP) standard developed by DuPont. This specification is now used by SFI. During the 1970s, Stand 21 concoction manufacturers partnered with brake producers Ferodo and French manufacturers of fire suits to create single sheathed asbestos racing uniforms. This outfit never became popular, as the dangers of asbestos exposure became more popular. Actor Steve McQueen is believed to be wearing asbestos clothing when performing stunts for the film, which may have contributed to his mesothelioma contraction. In 1975, the FIA ââintroduced its current standard for flame retardant clothing. At this time, DuPont created a new Nomex blend that utilizes Kevlar to prevent tearing and increase the length of clothing. In 1979, several F1 drivers including Niki Lauda, ââMario Andretti, and Carlos Reutemann began competing in a large five-layered suit made for NASA specifications.
In the mid-1980s, companies started designing fire suits to prominently showcase team sponsors. In 1986, the FIA ââintroduced a new specification for clothing, known as the "FIA 1986" certification. In 1989 Motorcraft Quality Parts 500 NASCAR event, ESPN/ABC announcer Dr. Jerry Punch reported from Richard Petty's cage hole when a fire broke out, injuring two crew members who Punch began treating on the spot. After the incident, where some of Punch's clothing items were charred or melted, ESPN mandated that its pit reporters wear flame-retardant clothing. Other networks have adopted this practice.
In 1994, the FIA ââmandated fire suppression for members of the F1 pit crew. At this time, the crew at IndyCar are also required to wear fire suits. In 2002, NASCAR officially mandated the firefighters for drivers and crew members who served the car during the pit stop. This was in response to incidents not related to fires in the previous season, including the death of Dale Earnhardt in early 2001, and a road accident on Pennzoil Freedom 400 towards the end of the season. NASCAR is one of the last sanctioning bodies that mandates crew members.
List of manufacturers of racing clothes
See also
- Safety on NASCAR
- Racing helmet
References
External links
- Media related to racing clothes on Wikimedia Commons
Source of the article : Wikipedia