Join the Discussion "I am convinced that the investigation was a joke and an attempt to divert responsibility from the France family." RuddFan01

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Dateline: August 27, 2001

Last week NASCAR announed the long awaited results from their million-dollar investigation into the death of Dale Earnhardt. While Mike Helton's announced safety enhancements for the future are a step in the right direction NASCAR can, and should, do more.

Why not?

Probably the single biggest issue resulting from the death of Dale Earnhardt has been the use of a neck restraint such as the HANS device or the Hutchins device. At Michigan and again this weekend in Bristol all but two drivers, Jimmy Spencer and Tony Stewart, used one of these two devices. While both of these two drivers promised to test them during upcoming tests in Talladega both drivers admitted that they were caving in to peer pressure and really had no interest in using the devices.

NASCAR mandates that all drivers wear seatbelts, helmets and firesuits for their own safety so why not mandate the use of a head and neck restraint? What do you say to a young racer today who idolizes Tony Stewart and refuses to wear the safety device because Tony doesn't? I can see no good reason why not to force their use instead of just "encouraging" their use.

Experts in safety

NASCAR also announced that there would be a designated physician who would travel with the circuit, be familiar with the drivers and their medical histories, and would assist local doctors in the care of the drivers. While this is a great idea there is still one glaring omission here, what about the safety crews?

Currently the crews that rush to the accident scene are locals who are hired by the track. These crews work, at most, two Winston Cup races each year. A NASCAR incident is a different thing than a wreck on the highway. Having highly trained crews that are intimately familiar with the race cars, their safety features and the unique physics of a stock car crash can only help improve the quality of care a driver receives in those critical first moments after an incident.

Both the IRL and CART have "Safety Safari" crews that travel with the circuit. These crews train all week long, have the latest techniques and equipment at their disposal and are knowledgable in exactly the types of injuries that race drivers receive. They have been credited with saving numerous lives and limiting the drivers' injuries because they always do the right thing, quickly.

These guys are the best in the world at what they do while NASCAR drivers need to rely on local rescue squads and fire departments for their lives. While I do believe that these crews generally do a fine job I also believe that the job could be done much better.

In general I believe that NASCAR does a decent job with repect to driver safety. However with respect to the neck restraint systems and dedicated safety crews NASCAR is clearly coming up short.