Track safety recommendation: Eye protection

["Marc S. Edwards" <marce@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Besides the communications device to talk to your instructor and instructor
talk to you, I have another practical but vital (and relatively cheap) safety tip.

I am aware of 2 instances where a rock or something else came through an
open window during a drivers school and impacted around the eye area of a
person. I believe that in one case the instructor was wearing glasses/sun glasses
and those are what prevented serious injury to the eye. In the other case the impact
was not in the eye but around the eye area.

Most of us drive with helmets that do not have a shield protecting the facial and
eye area. I would recommend that you wear shatterproof eye protection material, 
or at least the shield that does or can come with your helmet to protect your
eyes. You would probably feel very unfortunate and foolish that you have a bunch 
of great safety equipment in your car and the latest kevlar helmet protecting you in 
the event of an impact or OTE, but, a small piece of something had made it into 
the cockpit and damaged your vision, took out your eye(s), or injured your eye area.

This safety tip would also help if something were to shatter your windshield (windscreen
for those across the pond) and pieces of glass become airborne and ready to attack your
eyes.

I don't think that the stylish small frame/small glass-area eyeglasses necessarily fit this bill. 
There is still plenty of space for something to get by.

Thanks for listening,

Marc
1995 M3 with eye protection on.

------------------------------