{"id":496911,"date":"2017-09-01T01:53:01","date_gmt":"2017-09-01T08:53:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportscardigest.com\/\/?p=50196"},"modified":"2024-01-11T14:53:42","modified_gmt":"2024-01-11T14:53:42","slug":"flip-flops-halo-tops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.supercars.net\/blog\/flip-flops-halo-tops\/","title":{"rendered":"Flip-Flops & Halo Tops"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The notion of a halo conjures images of angelic cherubs and enlightened bliss in nearly everyone\u2026except, apparently, for Formula One fans. In mid-July, the FIA made the controversial announcement that starting next year, all Grand Prix racecars must be equipped with a \u201csafety halo.\u201d For those not familiar, the halo in question is a carbon fiber protective device\u2014shaped like the toe-strap on a flip-flop\u2014that encircles the driver\u2019s head and protects his\/her noggin from impact with large flying debris and\/or large structures. While, on the face of it, one would think that this would be received as a positive safety move by the FIA, it has been met with a very mixed reponse. Of course, if one looks back through F1 history, the FIA has not always been on the cutting edge of safety, and when they have implemented new measures, they have rarely been met with widespread enthusiasm.<\/p>\n

Despite Barney Oldfield using a seatbelt, at Indy as early as 1923, the conventional wisdom\u2014even into the late \u201960s!\u2014was that it was better to be \u201cthrown clear\u201d than trapped in a Grand Prix car. Even as late as 1968, a study in the UK found that of all the motorsport accidents that occurred in Great Britain that year, almost none of the drivers had opted to use a safety belt. Yet, despite their long-time availability and the prevailing evidence, the FIA did not mandate their use in Formula One until 1972!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n