<VV> Shoulder Harnesses + Philosophy

[Sethracer at aol.com]

In a message dated 12/8/2005 11:09:04 AM Pacific Standard Time,  
mhicks130 at cox.net writes:

People  can do what they want with their cars but I'm not modyfing mine so 
much it's  hardly a Corvair anymore.

mike



Lots of Corvairs had shoulder harnesses. That doesn't qualify as "Hardly a  
Corvair" material.
 
I look at car modifications as a little bit of risk analysis. Generally  
speaking, I won't ride in a car that doesn't have seat belts. I even feel a  
little bit naked without a shoulder harness of some kind. But I have driven  
countless miles without a shoulder belt. Excluding racing incidents (As on a  track) 
I have been in only two accidents in more than 40 years of driving. (It  
seems like only yesterday I waited outside the DMV for them to open on my 16th  
birthday, so I could get my license.) In neither case did I have any belts on. I 
 was lucky the first time, 35 years ago, and real lucky the second time (30 
years  ago). If there is a third time, I'll have belts on. We all get to manage 
 our own risk. At racing events, autocrosses require a helmet and a belt, 
track  events usually add a shoulder harness requirement. Real racing requires  
date-coded full harnesses and up-to-spec helmets. As we all know, almost  
anybody can drive a car on the street, many still drive without any belts, but  
that number is declining each year (for more than one reason!). The tough part  
comes when we begin to manage others risks- as in our children. As Craig  
pointed out, the safety improvements of the last 40 years really have worked.  All 
accident rates, and injury rates are down. At least some of that is due to  
the "Safety Nazis" as some people refer to them. And the mandated changes  to 
the cars. I have never tested an air-bag, I hope never to try it. I believe I  
also do not drive any more recklessly, knowing that I have the protection  
afforded by the newer cars. That may not be true for everyone, I realize. Of  
course, on the racetrack, at least when I am not driving someone else's car, I  
can drive as fast as I feel comfortable - And I do suppose I feel a bit more  
comfortable at the limit when I am fully restrained and protected. So, I  guess 
that if driving around without any upper restraint system, or bucket seat  (No 
Corvair seat really qualifies here) (or air-bag/ABS/Disk brakes) results in  
you driving more carefully, that is probably a good thing. It is an acceptable 
 risk for you to take. Each person will have their own risk management level. 
I  still read news articles where people are killed in simple rollovers when 
they  are ejected from the car. I guess that risk was acceptable to them. They 
rolled  the dice - and crapped out!   - Seth  Emerson