Yeah I looked at the pics and saw the dust cloud wich is why I said it probably hit something

Something that has always confused me in these situations that used to always bring up another subject. DRO said the motor exploded, and shrapnel took out the rear wing, followed by a series of events that tore the car apart. My question is: at what point (and why) would the monostrut configuration of wing been any different/ better in this kind of incident? I have seen many old threads that used to tout the benifits of the Mono in cases like this, but I don't understand why .. When the wing gets damaged, it unloads the rear of the car, dual or single strut..Can anyone give me some insight?

VERY happy to hear that Hillary is alright- what a crap-a$$ way to start the season tho...

I was on the top end and it looked like the engine blew and and it broke the frame rail and it came apart right after the drivers compartment. Then the back half totally broke apart. I was right where it happened and the motor came out and either she pulled the chutes or the cables pulled them. but it ripped the rear end away from the engine and the engine rolled and broke off the blower and mags and what not like 400 more feet till it stopped right at the chain link fench. it looked way worse then it was. and while the back half came apart like it is supose to.. the drivers compartment was up against the left wall and she was steering it straight but not against the wall. and it coasted past the last return road. she go out fast and was stunned that she was ok. but she was fine getting out of the car.

Go Hillary good driving.

Thanks for the first hand account Bob...
I guess my tire theory can be discounted as the cause of the problem... I apoligize to the tire manufacturer...
There you have what happened, and thanks to attac chassis and the NHRA, another one walked away...
This time!!

By Bob's description, sounds like the heat treatment behind the driver is doing what its supposed to (kinda..). Big, wildly dynamic spinning, flaming thing breaks the chassis away and gets it away from the driver- good thing.

Right?

YouTube - Crash @ the Strip in Las Vegas

here is a video

Wow, sure glad she was okay.

DRO said the motor exploded, and shrapnel took out the rear wing, followed by a series of events that tore the car apart. My question is: at what point (and why) would the monostrut configuration of wing been any different/ better in this kind of incident? I have seen many old threads that used to tout the benifits of the Mono in cases like this, but I don't understand why When the wing gets damaged, it unloads the rear of the car, dual or single strut..Can anyone give me some insight?

Martin - 1. DRO quoted "eyewitnesses" - did the "shrapnel" destroy the wing (which may be in the right lane in one of the photos) or the left struts? I cannot believe that anyone's vision is good enough to definitively determine exactly what happened - or that their brain could process information that quickly. That being said . . .
2. I was not a believer in the monostrut until I got a really close look - no one here has gotten a closer look as far as I know. The tube structure that supports the wing looked very strong. Because it is centered, it appears unlikely that parts from an engine explosion or tire failure could cause it to fail. Also, I would think because the vertical airfoil is so large, it could act as a rudder to stabilize the car in the event that the wing is damaged.
3. What happens if the wing is damaged? I don't think anyone knows!
One thought would be to engineer the wing to break away (like the junction between the back half of the chassis and driver's compartment) if it is struck. Result? The downforce dissappears evenly and hopefully, the vertical element helps keep the car going straight.
4. It is painfully obvious that when debris strikes any part of the current setup, a catastrophic failure is almost a certainty, usually resulting in the chassis separating unevenly.

Probably more "insight" than you wanted, but I saw this go very smoothly down the track at 326 mph. I'm now a believer. As always - JMHO

I should let this go, but the whole heat treating of the rear of the chassis is a whole other thread... not good... I could'nt figure out why the ambulance was at the end of the track and the crew-men were running to where the debris was... Look at the video a few times, and Hillary is riding the left gaurdwall in her capsule... Martin, they have always been made to come apart at the foot box and behind the cage... She is a very lucky girl... I hope we don't see more of this because of the HT issue... Or whatever caused this major malfunction...

That was really scary! I'm so glad she's okay (extremely sore and bruised, I'm sure, but okay).

Thanks Bob, and welcome! I was up on my monostrut soapbox when you posted -

Thanks Jim, but with up to 2 tons plus (or more) of downforce at speed, wouldnt the WORSE thing be to unload the chassis that radically at speed? And I'm not an aerodynamics specialist by any stretch, but have we seen any test results (from the 15+ years of having monostruts in our sport, as well as use of them at Bonniville, F1 and other types of racing series) that say in the event of a catostropic situation, a rudder (potentially damaged) will be enough to keep the car straight?

But not just when a motor blows, Ray.. Especially with as many ballistic bags that are around them now

I'm glad Hillary is OK and will be racing next weekend. Whatever the cause or damage is isn't important, the fact that she is ok, is important. I have said this before and will continue to say it until my last breath, I hate to see ANY racer crash.

Good luck this season Hillary, lets hope the worst is already behind you.

Thanks Donie for the link!!!
Wish I could figure out how to slow the video down.

I, too, am very happy that she's OK!!!




Ya gotta love how the camera really vibrates when she launches! I can not wait till G'ville!!!!!