Teathered Kill Switches (yes or no)

Didn't say it would work, that's why I said, "I would try it."

 

good arguement there. now jump up and down crying hystarically to complete the 3 year old tantrum.

 

Re: humm

Yeah, but how wide is the rear tire on a Pro Stock bike? Probably wider than most passenger vehicle tires, so those bikes are more prone to staying upright.

 

the thing that bothers me is how many of us have missed a shift in a turn and almost had the bike spit us for that. think what would happen if you are sliding accross to weight the inside of the bike and you pull the cord. On the other hand bike geometry will keep them up as long as they are doing better then about 25mph so that is bad.

 

I rember that one came off turn 8 and hit at turn 5. I think that was about my first race weekend.

 

I'm not arguing for or againsta a rule here, but it is a simple matter to make it long enough that it only pulls when you are definitely off the bike. See the pic of Don's wrist attachment. That coil thingy is at _least_ 2 feet long.

I don't have an opinion re: a rule yet, but I'm gonna do the Don Signature Wrist Tether® setup on mine before the weekend is out.

 

Here's a voice from the other side of the fence. As a corner worker seeing a ghost rider coming at you, if I had a vote, I would vote for the teathered switch. It is just a little too exciting to see it coming, and not know where it's going.

Just my .02 cents

 

There is also a 2-56 screw buried under all the goop.

I might try putting a peice of velcro on the stop switch insted of the silicone -- a bit less destructive that way, and easier to put on when you are getting on the bike.

Don

 

Steve Martin, a couple of rounds ago.

 

He races bikes now?

 

LMAO!

 

I have corner worked, raced, and now run a crash truck in the Southeast. I would say NO on the teathered kill switches. They would cause as many problems as they would prevent.


Corner workers know to hit the kill switch if a crashed bike continues to run, and according to the rules, it must be clearly marked.


How many riders have ridden in a group, and some jokester comes by and hits your kill switch? I see this happening more often with a teathered kill switch.


Racers often run their bikes on a stand to warm it up, so riders will have the teather off them to warm the bike, and once they get on they will remember to hook the teather on them. I see this becoming a pit-out or grid thing, "verify kill switch teathered"

Racers may misplace them, and you will hear requests on the PA of a rider needing a loan for a replacement switch.


Picking up crashed bikes, I have to be sure the transponder stays with the bike/rider. Now I will have to check that the teather is still attached to the rider.


Riding on the street, I use my left to switch to reserve and open/close my face shield, and I use my right hand also. And in racing I would not want one hand's motion restricted by a teather.


The last ghost bike I was involved with, was at Jennings GP turn 11.
What happened: a classic low-side, rider comes off, and the bike ghost rides to the fence.
With teathered kill switch: a classic low-side, rider comes off, bike stops at side of track.

What happened: the rider simply jumped up, and ran to his bike, out of the impact zone
With teathered kill switch: rider jumps up, and trys to replace/activate the kill switch, standing beside the track, while bikes go by at speed, only a couple of feet away.

 

Yeah, but how wide is the rear tire on a Pro Stock bike? Probably wider than most passenger vehicle tires, so those bikes are more prone to staying upright


Well actually the drag bikes fell onto their sides hit the walls and continued back onto their wheels and on down the track as if nothing happened. I've seen bikes ghost ride from the dog leg at Daytona in the infield and no matter if there was a tether or not the bike would have continued at the same speed and went just as far. The throttle was closed but the bike was doing in excess of 120mph at this point and no tether was gonna stop this bike. At this point the bikes have a mind of their own and don't stop until they hit a wall or in worse case cut a corner and hit other racers which I've never seen this happen in person or on TV.

 

I don't think that the bike would go as far if the kill switch is tripped. How? A bike at speed will slow much more gradually when it still has ignition, when a bikes ignition is cut the bike will slow much more quickly.
A bike that is still running is IGNITING!!! The pistons are still being pushed by ignition.
A bike that is killed via the switch is not IGNITING!!! The pistons are pressurizing the cylinder and slowing the engine because there is nothing to push the piston back with the exception of inertia.
Test 1. Next time you ride your bike, cut the throttle and see how long it takes to stop.
Test 2. Bring the bike to the same speed as the first test, except cut the iginition, and then see how long it takes to stop.
HMMMMM

 

I think you should actually try your test, at about 60 mph, and record the distances. You'll find that the difference wouldn't make a bit of difference on a racetrack - the bike will travel far enough that the end result is the same. It will be at a slightly lower speed when it hits something, but that's about it. At 100 mph, it's still going to go a LONG way before it falls over.

I passed Don's aforementioned tether-killed bike at VIR after it spit him off in t7 ... it ghost rode on the track almost all the way to the big left-right turn combo before exiting the track into the grass. (And let me tell you, it is VERY odd to pass a bike without a rider)

- Roach

 

It's way too late by then (talking about engine damage here).

Umm...this is ridiculous...I don't know how else to say it.

There would be no negative consequence if the rider didn't attach it..only that it wouldn't function.

The rider might lose it? That's a reason not to use them? This belongs with the "jokesters might want to pull on it" reason.

Why would you care? It's a $.75 piece of plastic...

Then you shouldn't use one. How is this a reason that, in general, they shouldn't be used?

First of all, you are implying that ghost riding is actually a good thing because it takes the bike to the fence...I think you'd have a hard time finding many people who agree with this idea.

Also, if you've ever used one, you know that it taks about .05 seconds to replace...you just jam it in there...unless you use the style that Don has, in which case you ignore it entirely and deal with it after the race.

Anyway, like I said before, I'm not for or against the use of these things, but I really like the idea solely for its save-my-motor potential. Fuzzy, I dont' mean to pick on you, but this has to be the weakest list of arguments, ever.

A prankster might yank on it??? Come on...

 

Maybe he started late. He is 35 after all. But he is in ninth position in the championship right now.

 

I loved his King Tut song.

 

Hitting that formula again, uh? Good thing she will be on solid food soon.

 

Doesn't matter to me really, picking up crashed bikes with teather or not makes no difference.