Bell announces the launch of BELL STAR CLASSIC

The Bell Star Classic has the same shape as the famous Bell Star from the seventies but is produced to the latest safety standard (Snell SA2005) using the latest production techniques and high tech materials. This helmet is perfect for classic car enthusiasts and drivers of historic racing cars.

"A Star is (re)born."

The Bell Star helmet, launched in 1966, was the world's first full-face motorsports helmet. That Bell would introduce a quantum technological leap forward like the full-face had come to be expected. After all, Bell invented the motorsports helmet in 1954, significantly upgraded the design with the addition of expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam a couple years later and quickly earned the admiration and support of the world's top motorsport racers and enthusiasts. Many famous drivers such as Jacky Ickx, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Gilles Villeneuve and many others have all worn the Bell Star to protect their head in the seventies.

Fast-forward 40-odd years to 2009 and Bell is again launching a helmet called Star Classic to the delight of true classic car enthusiasts and historic car drivers. Reintroducing the same shape as the famous Bell Star from the seventies but produced to the latest safety standard (Snell SA2005) using the latest production techniques and high tech materials.

* Famous Bell Star design as worn by famous F1 drivers in the seventies
* High tech lightweight carbon-Kevlar® composite shell combined with multiple densities liner
* Snell SA 2005 homologation for highest level of safety.
* Available with Hans® "post" clips fitted as original equipment and FIA 8858 label.

Snell SA 2005 approved – FIA 8858 approved for use with Hans®

Sizes: SML – MED – LRG – XLG

Price £530.00 or with Hans Clips £610.00
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HANS device saves Hall in Nelson Rally

"That would have to be the best $1500 we have ever spent," was leading Nelson rally driver Kieran Hall's comment as he surveyed the remains of his Southfuels Subaru Impreza, after a 170kph crash saw his goal of becoming the 2009 New Zealand Rally Championship [NZRC] Rookie Champion dashed on the final stage of Day One of the Rally of Nelson last weekend - September 19 - 20.

Clipping a large hidden rock on the inside of a high-speed bend catapulted the car upside down and head-on into a bank on the opposite side of the road and it came to rest within 80 metres of the rock, making for an enormous rate of deceleration.

The fact that KIeran and Co-Driver Peter Hart were able to walk away from the wreck, and signal to following cars that they were ok, is testament to not only the structural integrity of their Southfuels Subaru, but also the HANS [Head And Neck Support] Devices they were wearing, which ensured the sudden stop did them no harm.

"The worst part was all the gravel and rubbish that caught me in the face as the car initially hit the bank with my side of the windscreen, but I reckon I wouldn't be here making these comments now if it hadn't been for the HANS Device, that's for sure...!", said Kieran.

"The car's a mess and our dreams' gone, but we are both ok, so we are Proof Positive that HANS are a 'Must' for our sport nowadays."

"So now we have to re-group and, following discussions with our Sponsors and Supporters, work out what we can do to salvage what we can from the car and decide what our best options are - to either reshell it or invest in a new one, so we can come back bigger and better than ever for the 2010 NZRC."

In the meantime Kieran will be concentrating on preparing for the Rally New Zealand Rising Stars International Award Final Shootout to be held in the Maramarua Forest, south of Auckland, over the weekend of November 21 and 22, having gained automatic qualification after last weekend.

The International Award winner - who will be selected from the three qualifiers - will win a prize package worth at least $50,000, which includes a financial contribution and professional mentoring, to use towards competing in an international rally in 2010.

"So we have plenty to do - and perhaps a bit more than we would have liked - but still have lots to look forward to in the next couple of months, as we put together year two of our four year programme to become NZ Rally Champions."

Original Article
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Lotus will return to F1 in 2010

Lotus are to return to Formula 1 next season for the first time since 1994.

The Malaysian-funded outfit have been awarded the final grid spot and join Campos GP, Manor and US F1 as one of four new teams for 2010.

The FIA has given current team BMW Sauber "14th place" for 2010, meaning they are now first reserves.

However, motorsport's governing body says it will "consult urgently" with the 10 existing teams to expand the grid from 13 to 14 teams for 2010.

"The FIA believes that a good case can be made for expanding the grid to 14 teams," read an FIA statement released on Tuesday.

"It will be consulting urgently with the existing teams regarding the introduction of an appropriate rule change to expand the grid to 28 cars in time for the first Grand Prix in 2010."

Lotus will be initially based at the RTN facility in Norfolk, UK, some 10 miles from the Lotus Cars factory. The 50,000 square foot facility was originally built by Toyota for its initial Formula 1 programme and then used by Bentley for its Le Mans programme.

The team's future design, R&D, manufacturing and technical centre will be built at Malaysia's Sepang International Circuit.

In its new incarnation the team is a partnership between the Malaysian Government and a consortium of Malaysian entrepreneurs.

It will be led by team principal Tony Fernandes, the founder of the Malaysian-based Tune Group, which owns the Air Asia airline.

Mike Gascoyne - who has 20 years experience in the sport after working with Jordan, Renault, Toyota, and most recently Force India - returns to F1 as the team's technical director.

Lotus has reached an engine supply deal with Cosworth.

"The team will announce its two drivers by October 31 2009. Currently six local and international drivers have been selected," said a statement from the Malaysian Government.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak added: "This is not only a dream, it is a reality. Malaysia is part of Formula 1 and we are determined to do our best to make our mark in this arena.

"I believe this is a meaningful development that will boost Malaysia's image."

Just three hours after the Lotus return was confirmed by the FIA on Tuesday, BMW Sauber revealed Swiss-based Qadbak Investments had agreed to buy its team.

The German car manufacturer, which took over Sauber in 2005, had said it would withdraw from F1 at the end of July, citing "current developments in motorsport" as the reason for their decision.

BMW was the second major manufacturer to announce it was leaving the sport after Honda's withdrawal eight months earlier.

But the FIA said it had received an "impressive application" from the team despite the uncertainties over its future ownership.

BMW Sauber's reserve slot means they can fill any vacancy that might occur between now and the start of the 2010 championship.

The organisation behind the new Lotus team have bought the rights to the name Team Lotus - which competed in F1 from 1958 through to 1994 - and have been awarded BMW's place, also pushing out Spanish outfit Epsilon Euskadi, following an intensive selection and due diligence process conducted by the FIA.

The team won seven constructors' crowns and six drivers' championships, including wins by Britons Jim Clark and Graham Hill, during their golden era in the 1960s and '70s.

Three-time world champion, the late Ayrton Senna, drove for Lotus for three seasons between 1985 and 1987 - although the team enjoyed limited success during that period.

Lotus withdrew from F1 in 1994 because of financial pressures but remains the fourth most successful constructor of all time.
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Stanley makes successful GT Debut

Jamie Stanley (sponsored by MSAR Safety) made a successful GT racing debut on 29th August contesting the Britcar four hour race in the Fox Motorsport Ferrari F430 GT3 run by the FF Corse Team.

The Foxint.com backed car qualified fifth overall and third in class with experienced GT racer Rob Barff at the wheel before handing over to Stanley to allow him to complete his qualifying laps.



Stanley started the race and was soon lying in fourth place and second in class until the leading class two car of Mick Mercer slowed and Stanley seized the place to elevate the FF Corse team to third overall and the leaders in class two.

Following a fuel stop under the safety car Stanley handed the car over to Barff who pushed hard and soon elevated the team back to the class lead and third overall. With one hour to go Barff handed the car back to Stanley and the team managed to hold their position until the final few minutes of the race where the team needed to make a final splash and dash fuel stop.

The result of the extra fuel stop meant the Foxint.com, FF Corse team crossed the line fifth overall and third in class. "If someone had said that I would pick up a trophy the first time I raced a Ferrari I'd have taken that let alone almost win our class" said Stanley.



"I think the weekend has been fantastic FF Corse have done a brilliant job with the car it has run faultlessly and thanks to FOXINT.COM hopefully we can build on this with further success" added Stanley.

Stanley will return to racing action himself in the Lotus On Track Elise Trophy when the series heads to Spa Francorchamps in October.

Images courtesy of Paul Cherry
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Lifting the lid - Formula One helmets uncovered

Before the 2009 Hungarian F1 Grand Prix, helmets only really made the headlines when a driver decided to sport a new livery or auction one for charity. But Felipe Massa's dramatic accident during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix brought driver safety - and in particular the great strides made in helmet design over the past few years - into much sharper focus.

Back in Formula One racing's early days, it was speed, not safety that took precedence. Legendary world champion Juan Manuel Fangio preferred to race in a simple balaclava. But by 1953, even Fangio couldn't hold back the tide, and helmets were made compulsory. The ones used nowadays, however, bear little resemblance to their primitive 1950's predecessors and are the product of years of research and development.

As with all aspects of the sport's safety, the FIA sets the standard, and the governing body's most recent evolution of their helmet regulations, FIA 8860-2004, was developed over an eight-year period. Drafted by UK testing facility, Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), the new criteria were adopted by the three main Formula One helmet manufacturers, Arai, Bell and Schuberth, and the resulting homologated helmets were made compulsory by the World Motor Sport Council in 2004.

Although the exact composition of the materials that make up a Formula One helmet is a secret closely guarded by the manufacturers, the rigid outer shell features a couple of layers, usually fibre-reinforced resin over carbon fibre. Underneath, there is a layer of aramid (also used in many bulletproof vests) and another much thicker layer of polyethylene, a soft and deformable material, which is covered with the same flameproof material used in drivers' overalls. Smaller quantifies of aluminium, magnesium and the binding agent epoxy resin are all added to the mix too.

The typical weight of a Formula One helmet is a remarkably minimal 1250 grams. The lighter the helmet, the less weight it adds to the driver's head under extreme G-forces, which in turn lessens the risk of whiplash-type injuries when something goes wrong. But as Massa's accident in Hungary so dramatically demonstrated, a helmet also needs to be super strong, so it can absorb impacts and resist penetration during a crash.

With these (somewhat incompatible) aims of being both tough and lightweight, it's no wonder the effort that goes into crafting a helmet that can fulfil the FIA's demands is immense. First, the driver's head is scanned to create a life-size model. This sculpted replica is then wrapped, layer by layer, with 120 mats of high-performance carbon fibre to ensure the perfect fit.

With every thread of fibre consisting of about 12,000 'microthreads', each of which is about 15 times thinner than a human hair, the process is as expensive as it is cutting edge. In one helmet, the total length of all the threads is approximately 16,000 kilometres. Over the same distance you could drive from Tokyo to London.

The individual layers are then bonded together in an autoclave (a type of 'industrial pressure cooker'), hardening under high pressure and at a constant temperature of 132°C. In addition, the parts which will be subject to huge loads once the helmet is in use, like the visor cut-out, are reinforced with supplementary materials, like aluminium and titanium.

As well as fulfilling its primary role of protecting a driver, the helmet must also allow him to see and breathe. Ventilation is provided through a small intake at the front, which filters the air to clean it of any motor oil, carbon and brake dust particles. Up to 10 litres of fresh air flow into the helmet's interior per second.

The visor is made from a three millimetre-thick piece of specially-devised clear polycarbonate. Combining excellent impact protection, with flame resistance and excellent visibility, it's by far the best solution. Most drivers tend to use tinted visors, which are coated with anti-fogging chemicals to prevent them misting up. In addition, there are several transparent tear-off strips attached to the outside, which the driver can remove as and when the visor gets dirty.

With equally strict safety standards to live up to, helmets are tested just as thoroughly as the cars. Fitted on an imitation metal 'head', and equipped with sensors that measure deceleration, the helmet is mounted on a sledge running on vertical track. To replicate an impact, the helmet (and 'head') are then lifted to a specified height and dropped on to a variety of objects, including a flat surface, a sharp edge, and a half-sphere.

The helmet test facility at TRL boasts a drop tower over 15.5m tall, which is capable of accelerating objects through gravity by up to around 17m/s (63km/h). A helmet designed to meet the FIA's 8860 standards needs to withstand an impact of 9.5m/s (34.2 km/h). At this speed, the sensors must never display a deceleration of more than 300g, while 225 joules of energy must be dissipated.

In line with the regulations, helmets also undergo a variety of further deformation and fragmentation evaluations, as well as procedures to test the HANS device, which prevents a driver's head from hitting the steering wheel. There's also a compulsory fire test, during which the helmet is subjected to an 800°C flame for 45 seconds. To pass, temperatures inside the helmet are not allowed to exceed 70°C, otherwise it is back to the drawing board. The visor, meanwhile, has its protective qualities evaluated by having projectiles shot at it at 500km/h. The impact marks must not exceed a depth of 2.5mm.

On top of these all-important safety tests, helmets also go through stringent wind-tunnel trials to ensure the design creates minimal drag when the driver is travelling at speed. All in all then, from start to finish developing a Formula One helmet is a long-winded and pricey process. But considering that Massa is already up and about - and talking about getting back behind the wheel - it's clearly worth all the effort.

Original article from the official Formula 1 website
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How could you get back in a race car after a wreck like that?

People often ask me, "How could you get back in a race car after a wreck like that?" usually referring to my tumble at Talladega in 1996.

The only explanation I can give them is to try and describe how a driver thinks. Oh boy!

On race day, drivers don't wake up in the morning thinking about the possibility of being in a big wreck. Instead, they're focused on the last few laps of practice the day before the race, the info they can give the crew chief before the car rolls to the starting line and preparing for that day's race and the idea of winning.

You see, drivers are all about finding speed. That is where their total concentration is. They understand and accept that wrecking is a part of their job. But their minds are occupied with finding a way to be better than the driver next to them. A lot of energy and effort goes into finding an area on the track or an adjustment in the car that translates to having an advantage.

This may explain why after a particularly scary wreck, like the one we saw Monday at Watkins Glen, how drivers seem so calm in their interviews. Throughout all of their racing lives, drivers are obsessed with the idea of competing and winning. That is what occupies their minds.

Because of this, you don't immediately realize what you just experienced. You have no consideration for how spectacular a wreck might have been. The only things you're thinking about is that your day is done, that you lost points in the standings and, possibly, that you just destroyed your most productive car.

I'm not saying this is normal; I'm just saying this is how a driver thinks.

My wife's explanation, drawing on years of frustrated experience, is that race car drivers lack that little voice most people apparently have in their heads that warns them of danger and tells them they need to be cautious. For many years, she would get angry with me and ask, "At what point are you going to listen to that little voice telling you to slow down?" Only recently did she realize that it's not that I ignore the little voice. Rather, it isn't there.

I don't ever recall hearing it, and I guess it could explain why us race car drivers aren't afraid of wrecking or getting back into the car after The Big One, and why most fans don't understand our reaction to the question, "How can you get back in the car?"

For the three drivers most affected by Monday's wreck – Sam Hornish, Jeff Gordon and Jeff Burton – there will be little effect from the crash as they move to Michigan for the next event. I know this because they unstrapped and exited their cars. I know this because I understand drivers. And I know this because mentally, after the first few laps of practice this Friday, their attention will be on Sunday's race and how to make their cars just a little faster for it.

But I left some wiggle room in saying "little effect," because you cannot subject yourself to that kind of abuse and not have it affect you physically. If it happens often enough and becomes exaggerated, it ultimately affects others aspects of your life that help mold you as an athlete or competitor.

In the case of Gordon, if he exacerbated the problems with his back, that won't necessarily affect how deep he can drive into the corner and it won't impair his ability to mash the gas pedal in the middle of a turn. But it will have an impact in his daily life, concerning things he takes for granted like quality of sleep, which can be aggravating and disruptive.

After my wreck at Talladega, the biggest problem I had wasn't inside the car, but outside of it. I lost sleep because of the pain and discomfort. The injury changed my routine without me even realizing it.

Any driver on any given Sunday understands that to beat the best, you need to be at your best. While I claim drivers don't spend much time thinking about the possibility of being in a wreck and are quick to dismiss ones they've walked away from, it doesn't necessarily mean they are not affected by them.

I can assure you that over the past few days, all of these three drivers gave consideration to how lucky they where. They appreciate the safety improvements that NASCAR has made to the cars and the gains made in the quality of their seats, helmets and HANS device. They appreciate being healthy, which leads to perhaps the greatest appreciation: Despite experiencing a violent wreck just a few days ago, they are healthy enough to compete this weekend. Because that's how drivers think.

By Ricky Craven - NASCAR Driver
Ricky Craven is one of a select group of drivers to have won races in each of NASCAR's Nextel Cup, Busch and Craftsman Trucks series. Craven also won Rookie of the Year honors in the Cup, Busch and Busch North circuits, becoming the first to earn the honor in three major NASCAR touring series.

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