Why is it important to wear the proper safety gear while racing?

We all know racing is dangerous and expensive; but to cut corners on your safety gear is one thing you should not do at all. At an August race, a runabout racer thought it would we a good idea to just have sunglasses on, instead of purchasing a pair of goggles.

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Little did he know, the rest of the day would change day for another rider and his life forever? 

Warner crash

For this race, only two riders showed up to the line. One was a Pro rider and the other was a novice. Apparently, the novice rider was not very familiar with the coarse. The 2 were battling door to door after coming out of the s’s to approach the final left turn before going into the front stretch. The pro rider gave the novice rider plenty of room on the inside, but the since the novice rider was not wearing goggles, he had no clue where the next left turn buoy was. Missing the buoy completely.

buoys

Photo Credit : Throttle Junkie.comPhoto Credit : Throttle Junkie.com Photo Credit : Throttle Junkie.com

The two were battling and neither let off the throttle, BAMMM the pro rider completed his turn while the novice rider didn’t turn creating a collision sending the novice rider in the air and the pro rider to the hospital with a broken leg. Luckily the pro rider had all the proper gear on that basically saved his life. The wetsuit he had on held his leg together long enough to get the proper medical protection he needed.

This is why it is important to wear the proper gear such as: wetsuit, water shoes, spine/chest protector, helmet, goggles, life jacket and leg guards are all very important which could end up being a life or death situation. This could have been avoided with just a pair of goggles and knowing the coarse. If you feel that this should be checked as safety inspection at the line and before racing starts please advise your race director.

Safety should always be the first priority for keeping everyone safe!

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188B4601-XL Photo Credit : ThrottleJunkie.com