Proposed Rule changes 1/26/09

[abordick]

Carl,

Sorry, I made a mistake in my previous post. Please reread it.

ab

[galexkeene]

for the mouthguards it was the repeated accidents leading to broken wrists/teeth that brought it on. not sure how it helps broken wrists, but for the teeth, it does at least help a little. the test that really needs to happen is making sure that the harnesses they wear actually, you know, stop them from hitting the steering (the "tilt" test is a bunch of B.S.)

Edit: i would also note that for concussions, the mouthguard is especially effective. it's not superficial, and if it is molded, it's not falling out unless it is purposefully spit out.

as for stop flags all having to be yellow, not sure if the actual document had reflected it until now, but that rule was changed in a preliminary sense at least a few semesters ago (all stop flags had to be yellow with a black X on them). was changed at least before last raceday.

[Carl Nott]

for the mouthguards it was the repeated accidents leading to broken wrists/teeth that brought it on. not sure how it helps broken wrists, but for the teeth, it does at least help a little. the test that really needs to happen is making sure that the harnesses they wear actually, you know, stop them from hitting the steering (the "tilt" test is a bunch of B.S.)

Doh, didn't know drivers were getting chipped teeth. Sucko. I think catching the buggy at the end of Hill 5 is a pretty good 'will she fly out the windscreen when rapidly decelerating?' test. I suppose you could add a 'catch the buggy instead of braking' run during capes that would do the same thing. Then again if your driver gets knocked unconscious after the Hill 5 catch it's going to be hard to pass the drop/brake test...

Ah, no worries Bordick, I missed that the first time. Now I just need to come up with a comment that includes 'Drivers' and 'Blown'... that sort of thing doesn't just write itself!

[galexkeene]

while hill 5 can involve some rapid deceleration, i think hitting the bales to any degree probably leads to more. for most front loading buggies this isn't a issue, the safety chair just gives a good yank on the hands, but for many of the top loaders it's much harder to test.

i dont actually have a solution in mind that isn't sort of silly/dangerous/hard, but picking the buggy up and tilting it 30-45 degrees either way tests absolutely nothing.

[ahundt]

To answer some of your questions:

1. The driver during the worst accident last semester happened to be wearing a mouthguard. It is obvious that this prevented much more serious injury. Fitted mouthguards are required, and a correctly fitted mouthguard will not fall out or disrupt speaking and breathing. You can give me the $5 during Carnival.

2. Double bales are required on Raceday and they provide more safety, so we are extending that safety throughout the year. Last semester's crash was near the end of the bales.

3. This discusses modification and removal of the buggy after an accident immediately after a crash. It can be seen in more detail in the actual change list. I will look for & fix those multiple and lacking definitions.

4. This is a solution in search of a problem, it is being removed.

5. Only one person in the car has to have the training, and that person does not need to be driving.

Cheers!
Andrew Hundt

[swiftsam]

Sweepstakes has produced a version 2 of these rule changes. If you want to take a look, the change document is here:
http://cmubuggy.org/files/bylawsChanges-2-4-2009.txt

To quote Andrew,

"The most pertinent changes are:
- Required mouthguards for drivers.
- Required double bales at all times.
- Rules regarding accidents and buggy removal
- Follow Car Certification Program, needed for at least one person in any active follow car. (Similar to the required driver meetings)
- Stop flags required to be Yellow with a large black X. (this was started last year)

Reformatting changes:
- Addition of a single accident section, removal of the others
- Added a 'Common Freeroll/Raceday Rules' section to eliminate duplicate rules.
- Edited some rules to be more concise, clearer, accurate, and shorter, particularly lists.
- Changed to standard 1" margins
- 36 total pages shorter
- 9 pages shorter due to content changes

He said we were helpful last time, so don't hold back from commenting on this round.

[McCue]

Mouthguards are cool, but should not be mandatory -- ESPECIALLY during push practice, which is something they were considering.

Double bales are a way bigger pain in the ass than is worth it. That sounds like a callous thing to say, but it's not -- we tried it when I was safety after Ja's accident and it wasn't really making anything safer.

As for the rest, not the worst group of rules I've seen added. The black X is as cool as the follow car certification isn't.

[Abby]

I feel like I'm beating a dead horse, but I need clarification on the mouthguard thing. My previous assumption was that something hit a driver in the mouth, but it is actually the driver that is the projectile, yes? And the fact of this happening is a violation of existing rules regarding harnesses, yes? So this is a rule to mitigate the consequences of a rule not enforced/ adhered to? I'm not being snarky, I'm just trying to understand.

[McCue]

A perfectly safe harness gives somewhat under forces involved in a very fast crash. In that situation, a driver's mouth could hit any number of things, not only the windshield.

[Abby]

I dare you to stand face to face with tom wood and repeat that statement out loud