I have a question for the drag race guys, What is the point of wearing just the jacket to a fire suit? I have always raced oval track and road course cars, I always wore a full suit, shoes and gloves, It was usually a requirment especially with the SCCA. I see alot of guys at tracks and shows like pinks wearing just a helmet and jacket, My question is what is the point of the jacket, If there were actually a fire it wouldnt do you much good if any.
The "point" is that's all that is required down to a certain ET (10.0 usually). I have no answer to your second point, I did not write the rules.
I love it when racers call a Driving Suit a fire suit !! Wonder if Fireman use driving suits ?? >>>>.
funny story We were on Power Tour many years ago and one of the stops was a drags strip. One of the requirements was long pants. Since it was teh middle of summer my buddy didn't have any long pants with him but he wanted to race. He asked me if I had any long pants with me that would fit him. I'm sure he was expecting maybe sweatpants or something. The only thing I had was pink girlie flannel PJ bottoms. He wanted to race so bad he didn't care, he put them on. His buds still give him **** about that.
I dunno man, anything that can live through a funny car fire would certainly qualify as a fire suit. Those one layer jobs that most hobby guys wear? Not so much. I don't know about drag guys, but us circle track guys take fire very seriously. Especially with the modified and late model dirt cars that run methanol. Alcohol fires are scary mothers, so I always wore a three layer suit. Hotter than a sum***** in the July and August heat, but it's hard to replace pieces when they get burned off, ya know?
TPW 35, I come from an SCCA background also and equally important to "fire pants" is to close off all holes through the firewall. If you have a fuel line come loose at speed, it will ignite almost immediately on the headers and it looks like a blowtorch flame comming through even the smallest openings.
I have been wearing a fire retardant suit, goves, and shoes for many years. MY sutis have always been a one piece at least 3 layers. I just never felt comfortable with a 2 piece...................take a look at NASCAR drivers.............you don't see any 2 piece suits there. During races with the SCCA I wore NOMEX underware, pants, top, and socks and head sock. During my NHRA drag race days I started with wearing a helmet (which is what was required in the SS cl***es I ran in), it progressed to now........................... The suit I currently have is only good 40 seconds of direct exposure to fire/very high heat, and at the end of that time I (could) have second degree burns. With my NOMEX underware I think it increases the time by some 2/3 seconds, but................................... I would never be caught driving any race car without my complete suit/helmet/underware. Racing is a dangerous sport and I take all the precautions I deem necessary to keep me out of harms way. The picture shows me (after fighting off 24/35 year old kids for some 40 minutes of hard racing, the other is the Spec Miata I race)..................well, just a little worn out. To answer your question, just wearing a top (and my guess is that most of these guys have single layer suits anyway) is just stupid! And to answer your second, just wearing a single layer top only would probably give you only 4/6 seconds anyway.............buy then the bottom part of your body is toast anyway............................. IMHO
The material our turnouts are made of are very similar to a driving suit. We have a nomex outer layer then there is a vapor berrior and insulating layers. All we wear on our heads is nomex with a helet on over that. Nomex is designed to where if it does catch fire it burns away from your skin but nomex is not supposed to burn excpt in an oxygen rich atmospere. 21% or more oxygen
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