Locally I have 4-5 tracks near me, and on a couple of them I don’t really have any ‘neck issues’ at all after 45-60 driving time. Two of the tracks however both have sections of sustained high speed, high-G corners combined with very short laps (30 second’ish) which end up resulting in massive fatigue for me after only 20-30 minutes of driving, and sometimes even worse issues by end of day. (also, since I can see the ‘do neck exercises’ comments coming already - I’m in decent shape, not great shape, and for better or worse, no part of me is looking to add much exercise beyond what I do already)
That said, I am at the point where I’m interested to see what ways anyone else is using to help give their neck some support. Currently I use a AlpineStars neck brace, which may or may not offer any ‘safety’ protection, but it doesn’t even pretend to offer ‘support’ since the helmet doesn’t even touch the brace all the way around.
I’ve been looking at some of the big foam ‘neck collars’ and thinking maybe that would be enough for added support in high g corners, but then I’ve also seen these ‘Helmet restraints’ which seem like they might be even better (they attach to the helmet and then loop under your should - e.g., https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Simpson-36007-Helmet-Restraint,1064.html )
Any real world experiences to share would be appreciated, thanks.
Some of the oval guys use a strap like you linked to. I’ve never seen it used in sprint karting though.
Unfortunately, the reality is that you just need to strengthen your neck to combat it. It’s not just about being in good shape, karting stresses a bunch of muscle groups you don’t normally use or work out in a “normal” exercise routine.
For me personally, only a big foam brace would make a difference, but than it will alter your ability to move your head around freely. the alpinestars neckbrace is similar to mine, and will actually protect you in case of a flip. foam collars DO NOT help in flips.
Thanks for the feedback @E13 about the foam collars. I think on a couple tracks I’ll have to try it out because any little bit of help would be better than what I have now.
Try it out and see how it feels. I dont know if a smaller one will help but you would have more movement. tell me how a foam collar feels. I agree with @tjkoyen here also, I dont think there is a better solution than to just exercise those specific muscles. 3/4 of my my tracks have high speed banked turns and exercising has helped me a ton.
Dixon and Stockton (well, at least in reverse direction, haven’t been the other way). I don’t have any issues at two other local tracks but those tracks are literally a pain in the neck after 30 minutes. I think it has more to do with their shortness than anything else, maybe. Both the tracks that are giving me issues are 30-seconds-a-lap tracks (e.g., very short) in my TAG kart (shifters get into the 28-29 second a lap range). The other two tracks around here, Davis and Prairie City, are longer laps and feature a little more in the way of straights to grab a quick moment to rest on as well as just more time between visits of high-g sections.
Totally doesn’t help with your problem. Here’s a story I saw yesterday that’s about a very fast race that shouldn’t have been. Talk about neck fatigue…
" The fun faded away once drivers started reporting that the track was a “rollercoaster”, “very fast” or “physical”. They started reporting dizziness and disorientation, some said they could not control their car after constantly running at 230 mph (370 kph). Max Papis couldn’t differentiate frontstretch from the backstretch when his crew told him to pit."
“After qualifying it was reported that drivers were experiencing 5G loads for 14 to 18 seconds during a 23 second lap meaning they had less than 9 seconds to relax during one lap, around 4 seconds per frontstretch and backstretch. It was all made clear in drivers meeting where 21 of 25 drivers reported that they were suffering from disorientation, vision problems or vertigo-like symptoms.”
Haha, I guess it puts my ‘problems’ into perspective! 5G loads for 14 to 18 seconds?! Might as well just start punching someone in the nose at that point.
