Anatomy of a NASCAR Crash

Here is an interesting article we dug up from Popular Mechanics regarding NASCAR safety. Enjoy!

Popular Mechanics, March 2008: Anatomy of a NASCAR Crash

Brickyard 400 Winner Uses New Sliding Tethers from HANS

HANS Device Press Release Follows:

Atlanta, Georgia (August 7, 2008) - When Jimmie Johnson won the Brickyard 400 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway; he was using the latest innovation from HANS Performance Products. The HANS Device used by Johnson was equipped with the new Vision Advantage PLUS™ sliding tether system.

An option to the award-winning HANS Device, the sliding tethers have brought improvements in left and right visibility by allowing the full rotation of a racer's helmet while using the head and neck restraint. Among those employing the sliding tethers is Jimmie Jonson’s teammate, four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon.
"We now have all the movement needed with our heads with all the safety features that the HANS Device offers," said Gordon, driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
Since the introduction earlier this year, the Vision Advantage PLUS sliding tether system has been accepted by NASCAR, NHRA and Formula 1, the leaders among sanctioning bodies worldwide.

Drivers at all levels of racing have embraced the sliding tethers with enthusiasm, including weekend warriors on short tracks and drag strips. "It's a dramatic difference, more than just an enhancement," said Gary Milgrom, the Chief Operating Officer for HANS Performance Products. "As soon as people try the sliding tether system they love it."

The sliding tethers can be easily upgraded on all existing HANS Device models in a few minutes with no more than a screwdriver.

"Our standard tether system is still an excellent solution," said Milgrom. "It allows significantly more head movement than any of our competitors. But racers always want more. As manufacturers, we always want more. Those wearing a HANS Device with the sliding tethers can now achieve 98 percent of the head movement available to a driver wearing just a helmet."

More than 60,000 racers worldwide use the HANS Device. Another innovative first from the inventors of the life-saving head and neck restraint, the Vision Advantage PLUS sliding tether system confirms the dedication and commitment by HANS Performance Products to affordable safety in all forms of racing.

More details on the HANS Sliding Tether System

New, Lower Price on Performance Friction BMW Rotors!

Due to an ultra competitive marketplace, we've chosen to lower our prices on the popular BMW M3, E46, E36 Performance Friction Direct Drive Rotors. Check out the new prices here.

Performance Friction GT3 Rotors

The Performance Friction Direct Drive Rotors for the Porsche GT3 are FINALLY back in stock! We received a massive shipment this morning. Get your ordered in quickly before they disappear!

Order HERE

Red Line Motorcycle Oils & Lubricants

Red Line recently released there specialized line of Motorcycle Oils & Lubricants. Although it doesn't have much to do with safety gear, we are a stocking distributor of Red Line Racing products (if this is news to you, check out the OG Racing catalog.) And as such, we took receipt of their motorcycle line!

See the complete line HERE.

From their website:

As part of Red Line’s all-new Powersports line, these High Peformance Motorcycle Oils are fully-synthetic formulas specifically created for the high demands of the latest high-revving four-strokes motocross bikes and ATVs, Sportbikes, and V-Twins. Available in popular viscosities of 10W40, 20W50, and 20W60, these ester-based products contain the anti-wear chemistry demanded by mechanics and enthusiasts.

The levels of zinc and phosphorus blended into these lubricants are among the highest in the industry and combine well with Red Line’s chemistry, designed to seal piston rings for more power, fight fuel dilution, extend drain interval and provide stronger film strength over a range of temperature. This oil also features lower levels of friction modifiers for superior wet clutch operation. Excellent thermal stability, oxidation resistance, cleanliness, and ability to lubricate hot metal make Red Line High Performance Motor Oil a superior lubricant. Recommended for JASO MB, API SJ, SG, & SH.

Dog Days of Summer

The thermometer shows a number somewhere in the high-90's. By mid-day it feels like it's in the triple-digits. Here you are, standing next to your car, in the middle of hundreds of idling engines, with your 3-layer Nomex suit (and underwear). You swear that your race shoes are melting to the surface of the track and your $$ race tires are turning into pools of rubber goo. Ever ask yourself, Why am I here?

Here we are again - the hottest time of the year. All we can hope for is to get the car moving so at least a tiny semblance of a breeze starts to come through the window. Will relief ever come? Even though the only sure way to stay cool on track is to wait for the Autumn months, there are ways to try and beat the heat. Here's a short and hopefully helpful list:

1. Fitness & Health (Free!!): The big concern with racing in such high heat is taking care of yourself and making sure you don't succumb to heat stroke. We all hear the warnings and all know the precautions, so stay properly hydrated (hydrated meaning with water, not beer). One should also stay in shape, especially during the racing season - activities in such extreme temperatures places a huge burden on the body; staying physically fit gives a huge advantage in overcoming such physical duress. Read more here: http://racingfitness.com/blog/

2. Fresh Air Systems Cool Suit (complete systems start at $398.00): The Fresh Air Systems Cool Suit is a simple t-shirt worn under your driving gear. The shirt is lined with 50 feet of small water tubing sewn onto the front and back. This tubing is connected to a remote cooler that circulates plain old tap water through the shirt. The shirt creates cooling zones on the body that help lower your core temperature throughout your race. Fresh Air Systems also offers kits with fresh air helmet attachments; a blower fan takes air from outside, shoves it through the same cooler (yes, like an intercooler) and blows fresh, cool air into your helmet.

3. Technical Underwear (balaclavas start below $50): There was a time when all Nomex underwear was constructed from the same, itchy waffle-weave fabric. However, the future is here and new technical fabrics are being engineered for every sport out there. It's about time they came into the motorsports world! 2BKool, a company from New Zealand, has released a complete line of Nomex blended underwear with a very unique quality. Tiny polymer micro-capsules permanently embedded within the fabric absorb and store excess body heat as it is created, dispersing the excess heat when necessary. It might sound like something made for astronauts, but this stuff really works!

If that's seems a little over the top, Sparco offers 2-lines of technical underwear, ICE and Carmyth. Both are treated to the same X-Cool chemical treatment that also helps draw heat away from the body (and it smells minty-fresh.) Carmyth has the added bonus of offering the highest flame resistance of any driver underwear AND the convenient side-effect of true wicking properties. Yes, sweat WICKING from driving gear!

4. Lighter-Weight Driving Suits: By reducing the weight of your driving suit, you're going to stay much cooler during the summer months. It's sort of like choosing between a light t-shirt VS a heavy wool sweater in the middle of summer. Lightweight doesn't necessarily mean a compromise in protection neither. The 3-layer Sparco X-Light HC Driving Suit ($1595 retail) is 25% lighter then many other similarly rated driving suits on the market. Plus, it is already treated to the same Carmyth and X-Cool breakthroughs as listed above.

Racing Blogs

We've recently added a blog for our own resident SCCA racer, Brian Hair. Brian has been with OG Racing for the last 5 years. As a lead salesperson, he is often the voice on the other end of the phone! Brian is passionate about driving, and will drive anything. He began autocrossing and doing track events in his father's BMW as soon as he had his license. Brian has been a high performance driving instructor since 2000. More recently, Brian has been a very active and successful participant in the Washington DC Region SCCA in Solo competition, winning class championships in four consecutive years (2004-07), and instructing autocross schools. In 2007, he began his SCCA Club Racing career, campaigning the OG Racing sponsored Spec RX-7 in the MARRS (Mid-Atlantic Road Racing) Series.

You can find his track tales at http://brianhairracing.blogspot.com or in our links list to the right.

Do you have your own blog detailing your racing career? We'd love to read about it! Drop us a comment or send an e-mail to info@ogracing.com.