![]() When Nomex material is exposed to flame, instead of burning or melting it develops a carbon char. Additional accessories, including fire-resistant long underwear, gloves, shoes, and balaclava-like face masks or "head socks" are also worn. Newer suits, such as those produced by Sparco, have inner liners treated with menthol to create a cooling sensation and fight odor. Other suits are made of Kevlar, polybenzimidazole fiber (PBI), or carbon fibers, but are less widely used due to lack of comfort and color variety. These suits can lose their fire-resistant properties over time, particularly after washing. Other suits consist of cotton treated with Proban, a chemical manufactured by Rhodia, or other substances. Most suits use fabric made of Nomex, a synthetic material produced by DuPont that retains its fire-retardant properties with time and use. This is mandated under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) safety standards. The suits also have special epaulettes or yokes on the shoulder area that act as "handles" in order to lift a driver strapped to a racing seat out of a vehicle. The suits consist of a single or multiple layers of fire-retardant material. Other fire suits are two piece, consisting of a "jacket" and pants. Typical driver suits are one-piece overalls, similar in appearance to a boilersuit. Ind圜ar driver Helio Castroneves wearing a Shell-branded Nomex firesuit and head sockĪ racing suit is designed to cover the entire body of a driver, crew member, or marshall, including long sleeves and long pants legs. The suits are also known for prominently displaying driver sponsors. Most modern suits use Nomex, a material developed in the 1960s around the time fire suits emerged. ![]() By 1967, the majority of competitors in Formula One, NASCAR, the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA), United States Auto Club (USAC), and Champ Car (the predecessor to modern Ind圜ar) began wearing specialized fire suits. Beginning in the 1950s and 1960s, specialized racing suits were designed to optimize driver temperature via heat transfer, and later to protect drivers from fire. In the early days of racing, most racing series had no mandated uniforms. The 2007 racing suit of Formula One driver Fernando Alonso (left), and the 1990s suit of NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt (right).Ī racing suit or racing overalls, often referred to as a fire suit due to its fire retardant properties, is clothing such as overalls worn in various forms of auto racing by racing drivers, crew members who work on the vehicles during races, track safety workers or marshals, and in some series commentators at the event.
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