Feb 25, 2001
A broken lap belt, and Bud pole qualifying for the Dura Lube 400.
A Faulty Lap Belt.......
The news about the broken lap belt in the No. 3 racecar did not make the pill any easier to swallow. It certainly creates a multitude of questions and speculations. The sanctioning body became aware of the belt on that fateful Sunday night, but chose not to divulge the news to the public until the day after the memorial services. This move was understandable, people's minds should not have been on the cause at that time. That unfortunate news would have just clouded the tributes and remembrances.
I assume that the news traveled fast among the Cup teams. It was reported yesterday during qualifying that a couple of teams had installed 6 point safety belt systems as opposed to the 5 point systems that are commonly used. The five point system includes a belt over each shoulder and two between the legs, all connecting to a larger belt around the waist. The lap belt around the waist is what broke, at the webbing near the buckle, causing the other belts to be useless. These belt systems are the responsibility of the drivers themselves. Darrell Waltrip made that point and stated that since drivers come in all different sizes, seat configurations and belt systems vary. What gets installed behind the steering wheel in the racecar depends entirely on the drivers preference.
It has been made quite public that a lap belt has never broken before during the 52 years of NASCAR history. When you consider some of the horrendous crashes that have occurred down through the years, it makes you wonder why did it fail this time? There was speculation that Simpson Performance Products produced a faulty lap belt, and that the buckle's attachment to the lap belt was below acceptable standards. There is no proof to back this speculation.
Then there is the unfortunate news that Dale Earnhardt himself was the cause of the tragedy by somehow altering the way belt is attached to the roll cage in order to be more comfortable in his seat. At this point, this is merely speculation. Dale's seat was positioned farther away from the steering wheel than any other drivers are, which means that it was closer to the back of the roll cage in the driver's compartment. This would make the lap belt shorter, and could also lead to the belt being attached to the roll cage in an unusual manner. The sanctioning body is involved in an exhaustive investigation to uncover the truth about the broken belt. We may know the results in a matter of hours, or in a matter of days or weeks. But, you can rest assured that NASCAR will get to the bottom of it.
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