Toledo FSAE Fire Photo

[-pru-]

While sitting in the paddock of the Solo I'm attending this past w/e at Toledo's BAX airport, I hear the following announcement, "Okay, we'll need someone with a fire extinguisher to help out that car…". I look over toward the course and see an extinguisher being discharged (first I've ever seen at a Solo). Missed the lead up:

[rmccown]

While sitting in the paddock of the Solo I'm attending this past w/e at Toledo's BAX airport, I hear the following announcement, "Okay, we'll need someone with a fire extinguisher to help out that car…". I look over toward the course and see an extinguisher being discharged (first I've ever seen at a Solo). Missed the lead up:

Now that's a hot lap! Anyone know the back story of this? Is the driver OK?

[rickjohnson356]

wow

[-pru-]

Now that's a hot lap! Anyone know the back story of this? Is the driver OK?

Engine let go just shortly before the finish line. Post finish, driver drove over to waiting crew, jumped out, and watched as crew put out fire...Driver was okay...

[marshall9]

Glad the driver was okay, did he know? I don't see any mirrors on that car

[-pru-]

Glad the driver was okay, did he know? I don't see any mirrors on that car

Not sure the driver knew the extent of the engine failure (i.e. fireball!), but I'm pretty sure that he knew something was amiss! Plenty of workers waving him down post boom!

I would say it was roughly a little over 100' from point of failure/fire to the point where the driver jumped out / fire put out. That is, it wasn't long before he was out of the car after the engine failure (less than 15 seconds total).

[Ron Tebo]

A similar thing happened to me at Grattan, a bleeder valve came out of the right rear caliper and the rotor started the fluid on fire. I came into the pits and they blasted me and the car with the extinguisher......did you ever try and get that stuff off of you....

[Dave Welsh]

Mirrors not required in SOLO.

In fact, many top drivers in cars with mirrors will adjust them at odd angles to eliminate the temptation of using them to check to see if they downed a cone. It is most important to keep focused to what is in front than worry about anything that has already happened.

[Revs2-12k]

Mirrors not required in SOLO.

Neither are Firesuits...........I hope he was wearing one....

[EYERACE]

The University of Florida Gators [the only American SAE team to ever finish in the top ten three years in a row] require all drivers to wear at least a single layer firesuit in the SAE car.

[-pru-]

Neither are Firesuits...........I hope he was wearing one....

Yes, driver was wearing a firesuit...

[Wren]

Neither are Firesuits...........I hope he was wearing one....

Firesuits are required by FSAE, so all of the teams have one anyways. I would be more concerned about how good their firewall really was, the FSAE rules are seriously deficient in some places IMO and fire safety is one of them. The no-minimum-weight rules make for some interesting safety comprimises.

That's a shame to see a car burn like that, especially one that has as much emotional investment in it as an FSAE car. One burned to the ground at Alabama after I left and there were some seriously devastated people standing around it. Everyone looked like someone had just died and one of the freshmen was crying.

[jcolbert666]

Everyone looked like someone had just died and one of the freshmen was crying.

Was it a dude or a chick that was crying?

[rickb99]

No minimum weight I can understand to allow for some design innovation in materials.

No fire suppression system (if they don't have one) I cannot understand?

The addtional comments about other cooked cars here would seem to indicate they don't have fire suppression systems.

[Wren]

No minimum weight I can understand to allow for some design innovation in materials.

No fire suppression system (if they don't have one) I cannot understand?

The addtional comments about other cooked cars here would seem to indicate they don't have fire suppression systems.

You are allowed a fire suppresion system, and you don't have to count it against your cost, but most teams are on such a shoe string budget that they can't afford it.

Was it a dude or a chick that was crying?

Dude. F'ing engineers.

[iamuwere]

No minimum weight I can understand to allow for some design innovation in materials.

No fire suppression system (if they don't have one) I cannot understand?

The addtional comments about other cooked cars here would seem to indicate they don't have fire suppression systems.

At the same time, SCCA has NO requirement for a fire suppression system in any of the Solo classes. I always had one in my Fmod just because it is too much work to get it out of my car from Club racing configuration.

[bonedome]

I'm running an older ex-club racer F500 as an FMOD. I didn't build the car though I've pretty much turned every nut and bolt on it. It still has the fire system and I usually wear a suit. Having been a badly-burned firefighter, I can attest to the value of as much protection as you can get.
jerry

[jcolbert666]

Dude. F'ing engineers.

If it had been any of my school's FSAE entries (at least while I was there) we would have probably started roasting hot dogs on it.

[Lynn]

If it had been any of my school's FSAE entries (at least while I was there) we would have probably started roasting hot dogs on it.

Wichita State?

[jcolbert666]

Wichita State?

Close- KU

[Xpit]

I wear a firesuit and have a Halon system in my older Xpit F4 that I use for AutoX. At my first event I got a few funny looks from some of the tuner car people. When they realized the angled piece of aluminum in the cockpit wasn`t the seatback but the fuel cell cover they understood why I was wearing one.

[bonedome]

I'm the same way, having been a fireman with burns over 75%, I can tell you it's no fun at all. If you blow up the pic-no pun intended-you can see that the driver is looking hard left, like maybe he's trying to see behind a bit. When your a55 is on fire and your head is catchin', well, it's time to get steppin'!!

[Purple Frog]

The picture looks like a typical FB race at Road Atlanta.

In FB, the fans are sparred the sight of flames, they are all kept enclosed in the bodywork. FSAE is a lot "flashier".

Sean's shield between the block and headers might be going in the right direction...

[Jonathan Hirst]

I love how the driver is looking sideways.....

<thought bubble>"Wow, look at everyone waving at me...and pointing. That's weird......"

Jonathan

[kakarot]

Kinda sucks, FSAE car and builders/engineers are so attached. I feel the pain.