| Junior's Report Card: Helmets |
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I know I am going to get hammered for any bad words towards Dale Jr, but, before you lay into me, think about what I have said here, really think about it, and then comment.
With that said, here I go. Since Dale Earnhardt's death, safety has become the buzzword around Nascar. Why it took something this big and the lives of many other drivers as well to finally get everyone paying attention is beyond me. A lot of concern and focus was put on Dale's "Open-faced" helmet. Points were made on each side as to whether or not it contributed to his death and his chances of survival had he had a "Full-faced" helmet. I am no expert in that field so I won't get into that. What I will get into is the fact that Dale Jr FINALLY started wearing a "Full-faced" helmet. Grade: A+ Dale Jr stated that his father had basically mandated that he wear an open-faced helmet because it would reduce the risk of neck injury in a crash. The theory was that in a crash, the extra weight of a big bulky full-faced helmet would cause your neck to be thrust forward at a greater velocity therefore increasing your chance of serious injury. That theory holds a lot of water. However, with the new advances in helmet technology, the helmets have become much lighter and with the addition of head and neck restraints, the weight of the helmet and the forward thrust are basically removed from the equation of a crash. So, Dale Jr, after talking with his family, especially Teresa, decided to go with the full-faced helmet. He wanted people to understand that this was something he felt he needed to do and didn't want anyone, especially his family, to think he was going against his father's wishes. By making this a family decision, JR showed respect towards his father and his wishes, even though he was about to go against them. Grade: A+ With the good comes the bad and Dale Jr found himself miserable through the last portion of the race as something got in his eye from under the helmet. When Jr used to wear an open-faced helmet, he wore goggles that sealed tightly to his face and nothing could get into his eyes. By switching to the full-faced helmet, Jr either forgot, didn't know, or chose not to wear a "skirt" that goes around your face and neck and tucks into your firesuit. This skirt not only prevents debris from getting up into your eyes, it also prevents serious injury to your face and neck in a fire. Grade: C Now this last grade is not 100% of Jr's doing, but, as the "quarterback" of that team, I feel his level of responsibility is higher than anyone else's. We all know what happened at Homestead 2 weeks ago. Ward Burton's car was forced into Ricky Rudd's pit crew and an official during a pit stop. Most everyone was treated and released that day but Bobby Burrell suffered serious head injuries and as I write this, he was just released from the hospital today!! God Bless you Bobby and I hope to see you back at the track soon! This past Sunday at Atlanta many of the crew members wore some sort of helmet. Well, maybe many is too big of a word. Only 9 teams out of the 43 had crew members in helmets and of those 9 teams not all members had them. Dale Jr and Kevin Harvick as well as others, pleaded with Nascar to make helmets mandatory. Grade A++ BUT, and I repeat, BUT, Dale Jr's crew was not wearing any sort of helmet. Why?? Other crews had hockey helmets, skateboard helmets, bicycle helmets, BMX helmets, and even full-faced racing helmets. They wore something that was comfortable for them and added a level of safety. Great job!! Some of the guys said that the helmets were actually more comfortable than the big bulky head sets they wear. What upset me the most was this. NBC cut to a shot during the race showing the Bud team's mascot Wilson the volleyball. As you may know, Jr's team adopted the mascot back at Dover and Jr went on to win the race. So, during this week's race the Bud team outfitted Wilson with a helmet to protect him during the race. In my opinion, this was not a very good joke. This, to me, was a mockery of the safety issue and I can guarantee that Bobby Burrell and his family did not find this amusing. Had the whole team been wearing helmets and they put one on Wilson, that would be a whole different story. That would have conveyed the message: "Everyone needs to wear a helmet here, regardless of who you are". Instead they relayed the message of mockery and for that I am highly disappointed. Grade: F Don't get me wrong, Dale Jr is my favorite driver and he has been since he started running the Busch cars part time, and all through his Busch career and Championships. I just feel in this case, the Bud team, of which Dale Jr is the leader, I feel they really dropped the ball. But I guess that is ok, since he had a helmet on. Thanks and keep reading!! Rob |