8th Annual Racing Goes Safer Seminar at Long Beach Grand Prix
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The Stand 21 Safety Foundation’s 8th Annual “Racing Goes Safer" driver safety seminar at the Long Beach Grand Prix will be held on Saturday, April 13th, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 Noon, followed by informal conversation and a light lunch.
David Hobbs, the versatile veteran racer and TV expert race analyst will be a special guest speaker. He will talk about motorsports safety from his perspective based on a full career both behind the wheel and behind the microphone, sharing stories from his book HOBBO, Motor Racer, Motor Mouth.
The event is free to racers at all levels, their crews and families, and sanctioning bodies who are interested in practical advice on how to better protect themselves from dangers at the track.
This year’s program will also include a tribute to Dr. Bob Hubbard, the inventor of the HANS device, who recently passed away. The HANS frontal head restraint, or FHR as the FIA refers to it, has saved an untold number of racers’ lives since its sale began in 1991. Tom Gideon of NASCAR Safety will add his recollections of working with Bob on lab testing of the HANS.
In addition, Jeff Horton, IndyCar’s Director of Engineering and Safety will describe the tools and process used in The Evolution of an Indy Car Headrest.
Peter Cline and Jon Winker will talk about how Vet Motorsports helps wounded military veterans in their healing process by participation in motorsports, in Finding a New
Tribe: Veterans and Motorsports. See vetmotorsports.org.
Securing proper medical care and follow-up after a racing accident will be the subject of John Gorsline, who works with high-risk activity participants, and Mike Semel’s presentation titled The Hidden Safety Team, You Race and Your Family Rides Along.
Admission to the seminar is free, but attendees must register, and have admission to the Long Beach track. By going to racinggoessafer.org they can both register and purchase a discounted ticket to the track if they do not have a track credential.
The Stand 21 Safety Foundation is a non-profit organization created by Stand 21 Racewear Founder and President Yves Morizot to help educate racers on better safety practices. This is done through seminars featuring worldwide experts in motorsport safety.
This seminar is made possible through the generous support of Eibach, the SAE of Southern California, and the Long Beach Grand Prix Association.
More information about the Foundation and the Long Beach seminar can be found at racinggoessafer.org. Questions can be directed to Foundation Director Don Taylor at dtaylor@racinggoessafer.org.
More on David Hobbs
David Hobbs’ racing career began in his mum's Morris Oxford in 1959, and he went on to set a British closed-course speed record of 167.5 mph driving the then-secret Jaguar XJ13 in 1967, a record that lasted for 19 years. He then claimed the 1971 Formula 5000 championship and the 1983 SCCA Trans-Am Championship.
He's raced in the 1993 U.S. Fastmasters Championship, at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Indy 500, led the 1976 Daytona 500, and debuted in Formula 1 in 1966, competing on that circuit for several years.
As a TV commentator, Hobbs began his on-air career with CBS in 1976, covering 17 consecutive Daytona 500 broadcasts, then moved to the Speed Channel network to cover Formula 1, Le Mans, Trans-Am, World Sports Car, etc. Most recently he was with NBC Sports co-hosting live coverage of Formula 1 races from 2013-17.
In 2018 his book, Hobbo: Motor Racer, Motor Mouth, coauthored with Andrew Marriott, was published, which Hobbs has been promoting through book signings around the country.
He opened David Hobbs Honda in 1987 in Milwaukee, Wis., which is managed by his eldest son Gregg. Hobbs and his wife "Mags" live in Vero Beach, Fla., and Elkhart Lake, Wis