RIP Joe and a suggestion - EVERYONE PLEASE READ!!!!!!

Everyone could donate and every $ helps. But in this case unless fontana or any track for that matter is willing to change the track and move walls the airfence can only do so much. Fontana needs to reconfigure or move that Damn wall and foot bridge. Having more airfence there wouldn't of made any difference IMHO. The wall is too F@#$# close, it was covered but the bike impacted the airfence at probably close to 100mph, the rider wasn't on the bike at that point and the airfence was thrown into the air. I don't the path the rider took but the only way to know for sure the outcome would have been better is for that wall to moved. They moved it back a few years ago 15 or so feet near the bump, but now at the bridge it turns and comes back out to cover the support at about a 45 degree angle which makes the impact more severe than if it was parallel to the track.

To your point, ever module of airfence helps but without the constant improvement of tracks to move walls back and give us more runoff the modules can only do so much.

 

God bless Air Fence Andy

 

Hey JU, just curious but,how big are the inflatable sections when they are uninflated for storage? Also how much do they weight, and how high can they be stacked?

Hell, if you have the specs on the airfence Bike (non inflatable), throw that in too.

 

Damn Justin, having never actually been on the track I didn't realize the walls were that close.

(BTW, I believe that you can also see where the one wall used to be by the marks on the access road.)

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=34.089332,-117.499793&spn=0.001622,0.002414&t=h&z=19

 

Maybe you can volunteer your services in helping put it up and then you'll know exactly where it is Seriously, not only are donations needed to purchase new airfence but volunteers are also needed to help put it up and take it down. Wear clothes you don't mind getting dirty....

 

Call Tyson at Airfence North America. He's in Oregon.

Inflatable stuff folds up to 4x4x1 (feet) From what I recall it's over 100 pounds (I have the specs somewhere at home, I'm putting together our order for 2009). I think you can stack about 5 high.

There are 2 different types of the foam barrier. One is high impact meant for direct hits, the other is for glancing blows. We use both at our club. 2 guys can easily move each section of foam. For the inflatable, use a plastic pallet and a forklift.

 

Depends on how you package them.

AMA used to roll them up like a sausage
28" diameter by 48" long aprox

Way they are shipped from factory and ASRA/CCS stores
36" x 48" x 14"

these are after a day or so after packing as they continue to deflate for ~24 hours depending on how they are packaged and how quickly they are put into storage bags

weight 200-250 pounds depending on the vintage and repairs that have been performed

I have stacked 7 high if bags are properly folded, pretty much need a forklift to do this, normal is 5-6. I beleive RACE stacks 8 high in a roling cage system they made but I have not seen them personally, AMA is supposed to be going to this system.

Noninflatables range quite a bit depending on the brand and level of protection

http://www.airfence.com/airfencebike_detail.html

http://www.alpina.at/index.php?region=80&lang=eng

http://savebarriers.com/save5.html

 

Dimensions and product information is available at Airfence.com. The inflatable sections measure approximately 48"x18"x32" deflated and packaged weighing in at 285lbs. In my opinion, it is the venue's responsibility first to make sure that adequate soft barrier deployments are made for each motorcycle event (trackdays/club racing/pro racing). Some tracks have been proactive and addressing their problem areas, while others have lagged behind. The Action Fund has done alot to educate everyone (riders, tracks, promoters, etc.) on the benefits of soft barrier deployment. Many of us as racers/track riders have seen the benefits of the Action Fund first hand.

At tracks like AC Speedway, Daytona, and other mixed use facilities, the Airfence cannot be deployed for the entirety of the race season and just stored in the off season. Imagine what would happen to it during a Nascar event. So there are significant man hours needed in deployment, storage and care of the Airfence. Every time the Airfence is deployed, care must be made to make sure that it is anchored properly.

There have been discussions regarding riders getting under the Airfence. Does that happen every time? No, but, it can occur. The best way to keep this from happening is by attaching at the top D-ring and at the front/bottom D-ring at every joint and securing to the tire wall, armco, or steel barrier. This keeps the Airfence from twisting and/or lifting.

Airfence Bike (non-inflatable) works by increasing the atmospheric air pressure inside the barrier upon impact. The pressure is increased to counteract the force applied. To work at its best, the system must remain as stationary as possible. If the Airfence can be moved or dislodged, its level of protection is reduced.

Based on the witness accounts of the impact, it was extremely severe and at a shallow angle to the wall. AC Speedway has been proactive over the past year in purchasing and deploying new Airfence. The area where this incident occurred has received lots of attention over the years. Walls have been moved, run-off increased, and soft barriers deployed.

RIP Joe

 

Not sure if this idea was ever thought of (or if it's even possible), but has anyone considered printing an advertiser's name on a section of airfence for funding revenue?

I would think from a marketing/images perspective, it would good to have "your ass was saved by (insert brand name)" for all those to see.

Well, maybe not those exact words, but you get the point.

I thought i've seen in the Euro races that they wrap the air fence in a thin material with sponsor's logos and such. I could be wrong though.

 

This was the first idea we had, back when we started the Roadracing World Action Fund. And the first problem we ran into: Racetracks own the signage rights and don't want to give them up. Some tracks would not deploy ANY soft barriers if they had a commercial entity's name on them.

 

Asked the about the sponsorship of a section when I was tearing the airfence down after an AMA weekend, they said that there was also other issues with having sponsors on them. Contracts: Example they used is track A is exclusive sponsored by Chevy Trucks, they can't use the fence with Dodge sponsorship on them. Would suck to loose a batch of units cause they were unable to be pulled off the truck for 'legal' reasons, also it could create issues where the sponsor of A's piece is off TV all year but sponsor B gets lots just due to the randomness of what order they are setup. Also noted if a sponsor no longer desired to be 'visable' any more it is hard to 'delete' the sponsorship off the fence off it if it were printed on the unit. Attaching banners to it becomes a little sketchy to make sure it is attached properly and not removing the reason it is there.


Also if you want to help out, at every event I have been at that had air fence up they are always BEGGING for help to tear it down at the end of the event. To be honest that job SUCKS, but it is worthwhile thing to do if you value having the air fence there.

 

I would be fine with that, well especially for Barber or Tally (since i am so close to both) would be no problem to help out there. The other tracks I probably will not get to till later friday evenings

 

I would be more than willing to pay extra $ on entry fee is I knew that it was going towards our safety.

Saying that and being brutally honest, I didn't donate a dime to the fund this year, though I could have when signing up. Why? Well....I didn't have to. Money is tight during the weekend, and if don't have to spend extra couple of bucks, I'll choose to do so. It's a hypocrite way of looking at it but I feel that my extra, say $10, won't be going very far for WERA when it comes to protecting the racers.

Yet, if I knew that everybody was contributing, or that everybody had to contribute, it would be easier to justify the extra entry fee cost because it would truly be for the greater good of the racers. 100 entry fees X $10 in one weekend is a good chunk of change that WERA could actually make a difference with.

 

That's on all of us...And that's absolutely true...Good intentions don't get fence up...

 

I hear that.

Well when it comes to the barber race, if yall need help in general setting up, I live 15 minutes from the track, get in touch with me and I could probably bring a few volunteers to help too :up:

 

That's one thing I don't get, I guess.

I consider myself a broke ass racer, but to quit racing over a extra $10 on the entry fee? You are running a hell of a tight budget that would make most hardcore frugal vintage racers jealous. I know people would bitch, but is there anything you've ever done that people didn't bitch about? I remember when we went to transponders...

I realize it's allot easier to post it on the BBS than actually implement it into the program. Especially when it's your livelihood on the line.

 

Its comments like this that make me comfortable in Sean's character as a race director. I have been in the AFM for a number of years, but this year has seen my first, albeit limited, WERA participation; I look forward to more.
--dave sapsis