Rubinho the first victim of HANS?

[RubberD]

So he says. Will FIA look into this or will they wait for a big accident to happen before they do something about it?

[Apexx]

Do you fit these devices the same a seat fitting or is it "off the shelf"?

[shiny side up!]

Where/when/how did Rubens say this? I would like to see exactly what he said...

[RubberD]

Rubens Barrichello has blamed the new HANS device for his accident at the Australian GP.

The Brazilian recorded the first retirement of the new season when he crashed into the wall on lap five at Melbourne.

Barrichello claimed he lost concentration because the mandatory safety collar was causing him pain.

He told The Guardian: "My concentration wasn't fixed on the track because the HANS device was sitting on my collarbone and hurting like hell."

Barrichello is the latest in a long line of drivers to complain about HANS. Jacques Villeneuve and Nick Heidfeld have been most vocal in their opposition to the collar, which all drivers must wear from this season onwards.

Some drivers, including David Coulthard, have worked with the device’s manufacturers in order to make it more comfortable.

[shiny side up!]

Hmmm, that is exactly what some drivers were warning the FIA about in the past months. I wonder if anything will be done? A safety device that causes crashes isn't really a safety device now, is it?

[Valve Bounce]

That was one helluva prang. This must be investigated, and all drivers asked how their reactions may have been affected during the race.

[J.McClane]

Wimps, complaining about a bit of pain.
Wasn't like that in the old days. Drivers would keep going even if their arms fell off, and that happend quite often..........maybe.

[Ian-S]

I'm suprised they havn't complained about the one-shot qualifying either, running one lap on their own on the total edge with no other cars to help their judgement, so much pressure, so hard...

poor guys.

Pay me that money and I'd wear one all bloody day without complaining.

[avsfan733]

pay me that kinda money and I wouldn't have the right to complain

[Jay]

lol.... those devices have been tested endlessly in America in accident, after accident, and in some cases with G-Forces the likes of which F1 drivers will never see in Superspeedway wrecks. As long as the HANS device fits properly it should not cause excessive discomfort, apart from being unable to turn your head sideways.

The F1 boys need to shutup and drive. That's the worst excuse yet for an accident.

[Don K]

Originally posted by Apexx
Do you fit these devices the same a seat fitting or is it "off the shelf"?

AFAIK, they are custom made, but it takes a couple of weeks to get a new one.
(Perhaps the rich teams can get them faster).

However, I would say Rubens has had enough time to get a better one before this race.

[Hugh Jarce]

I've heard they are custom made - and I think some teams are developing versions for their drivers.

Don't think the HANS caused the oil on the track induced skid - did it? Or is RB saying the pain made him miss it?

I tend to agree with Jay - when all else fails use blame!

[slicktoast]

Maybe Rubens and Ralph got their HANS devices switched and thats why they both went off at the same place. I haven't heard of the devices causing any oily discharges on the track before. Could it be a case of: saving face?

[nunga]

The FIA should make this device only available to the drivers who wish to wear it. F1's safety standards are incredibly high unlike other open wheelers eg CART or IRL, Sato's t-bone by Heidfeld last year proved that because if that was IRL or CART someone probably would have died.

[Tristan]

I think everyone here is missing the point.

The reason why the F1 drivers are whinging so much is that these HANS have been introduced at such a late notice. Now, as everyone knows, these HANS need to be made to custom fit.

THE PROBLEM IS that the time between them becoming mandatory and the first race has been to short. For the time being the drivers are using very uncomfortable non-custom fit models, hence the pain.

Hopefully come Brazil the custom ones will be ready.

[Peter Mallett]

I thought it was announced during last season.

[Red]

It was, but it wasn't announced untill recently that FIA is not joking...

[Smokey 6 litre]

it just another in a VERY long line of excuses drivers use, just ADMIT that there was an accident, and you were to blame, you dont hear footballers wining and their on huge wages....oh wait a minute.

[garcon]

Originally posted by Tristan
I think everyone here is missing the point.

The reason why the F1 drivers are whinging so much is that these HANS have been introduced at such a late notice. Now, as everyone knows, these HANS need to be made to custom fit.

THE PROBLEM IS that the time between them becoming mandatory and the first race has been to short. For the time being the drivers are using very uncomfortable non-custom fit models, hence the pain.

Hopefully come Brazil the custom ones will be ready.

So how come David Couthard has had time to work with his team to develop a combined fitting with his harness so that the HANS slots in between his shoulder padding and the strap, thus removing any discomfort and potentially damaging pressure on his collarbone...

I hope he makes a nice little killing when he gets to sell the design to the other teams - he deserves it for being grown up and resourceful.

[Adam43]

In the interview I saw, DC said that it was done wuickly and the other's hadn't had chance to try his modification. Maybe more will use this in Malaysia or by the European season.

[Ian-S]

Erm, that's how the device fits on for everybody.

On the other hand if he is putting the HANS device above his belts (the legs are designed to go under the belts, not be tucked into the padding) then that's very dangerous and probably likely to do serious damage in a shunt.

Have a look here:
http://www.hansdevice.com/

[Tristan]

Personally I don't know what the FIA is doing. HANS devices MUST be custom fitted.

[chezza]

Think this device could be a good idea...however it remains t be seen what good/harm it would do in a major incident.

[Jay]

Originally posted by nunga
The FIA should make this device only available to the drivers who wish to wear it. F1's safety standards are incredibly high unlike other open wheelers eg CART or IRL, Sato's t-bone by Heidfeld last year proved that because if that was IRL or CART someone probably would have died.

Not sure about IRL, but that's not at all true about Cart. The speeds in most F1 crashes are not as great as Cart crashes on the ovals and some road/street circuits, which the Cart cars have been designed to take. I'm quite confident that a Champcar chassis would fair better in impact tests than an F1 car. They're simply designed to take harder impacts. Tracks are a different story...F1 does have the safest race tracks in the world.

As I said before, the HANS device has been tested in accidents far more serious than anything that would ever be seen in F1 and it has saved lives. In all the accidents, there has yet to be one where the device contributed, or made the situation worse.

The device must be custom made and fitted, but when done so properly it should not cause any excessive discomfort.

[BootsOntheSide]

Rubens is one guy who is incapable of accepting the blame for anything. He blames the guy who hits him from behind, then, when he hits someone from behind, its the other guy's fault for braking too late, even though telemetry tells a different story. This could be a repeat of that.

I think safety devices should be optional. If someone who is in the HANS loses concentration because of it, hits someone who refused to wear the HANS, and the objector breaks his neck, what do we say about HANS then?