John Force experienced a severe head injury when his Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car exploded and collided with the concrete walls at Virginia Motorsports Park near Richmond on June 23. Despite the gravity of the incident, there hasn’t been a significant push for the installation of SAFER (Steel And Foam Energy Reduction) barriers—also known as soft walls—at NHRA tracks to mitigate the impacts of such crashes.
The demand for SAFER barriers in NASCAR surged after Dale Earnhardt’s tragic death at the Daytona 500 in 2001. Force, the NHRA’s most successful driver, encountered a major crash and explosion on June 23, which sent his car crashing into the concrete barriers lining the drag strip.
In NASCAR and IndyCar, drivers often credit SAFER barriers with reducing the severity of crashes by absorbing much of the impact energy. Surprisingly, there has been little outcry for implementing these barriers at NHRA tracks. The NHRA community is currently adopting a cautious approach, preferring to gather all relevant information before making any decisions regarding SAFER barriers.
SAFER barriers are now a common sight on all oval tracks and many high-speed sections of road and street courses used by NASCAR and the NTT IndyCar Series. These barriers, constructed primarily of polystyrene foam encased in a tubular steel skin, are attached to existing concrete walls. Developed in the 1990s by Dr. Dean Sicking and his team at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Midwest Roadside Safety facility, SAFER barriers effectively absorb and dissipate the energy from high-speed impacts, providing a significant safety benefit to drivers.
After Dale Earnhardt’s fatal crash, NASCAR promptly adopted SAFER barriers, first installing them at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2002. By 2003, under the leadership of then-president Mike Helton, NASCAR tracks began incorporating these energy-absorbing walls, initially in strategic areas before eventually surrounding the entire tracks.
However, NHRA drag racing tracks have yet to adopt SAFER barriers.
Chad Head, vice president of the NHRA ownership group Professional Racers Organization (PRO) and general manager at Kalitta Motorsports, emphasized the need for a thorough investigation before making any decisions based on Force’s accident. “Whenever an accident occurs, there’s an immediate urge to question and suggest various measures,” Head told Autoweek during the Summit Racing NHRA Nationals at Norwalk, Ohio, one week after Force’s crash. “It’s crucial to allow NHRA to conduct their investigation—examine the car, understand exactly what transpired.”
“As of now, our knowledge is limited to the information released by John Force Racing. It’s essential to gather as much data as possible and identify short-term improvements. However, before making any significant changes, it’s only fair to let the sanctioning body complete their investigation and report their findings to the owners and teams. Then, we can collectively discuss and decide on the best course of action.”
