Summertime and Roasting in the Cockpit Heat. What's the solution?

[Trackrat]

Here we are, prime tracking season and it is getting hot.

Drawing on the voices of experience here: What is a good solution for reducing body temps?

1. Ice pack garments?
2. The cool suit solution with an ice chest?
3. The tiny but pricy electronic system? (http://www.coolshirt.net/racing-liquid-cooler.html)
4. Some sort of air ducting solution off the cars A/C system?

If using driving suit tubing, how do you correctly pass the tubes through your firesuit? Out the crotch zipper? Cut a hole in the suit??

Who has a solution that they like? Kindly share?

[mooty]

cool suit with ice chest is the simplest and most effective way. i tried the ice pack garmet, no good. once you run cool suit, there's no going back.

i pass my through zipper. i have seen ppl cut hole in suit as will not sure which way is better or more fire resistant.

[CWS]

cool suit plus helmet blower.

[TRAKCAR]

Shorts if allowed, park in the shade, bring fan and ice watered towels to cool down before and after the session..
Went to Homestead yesterday 96F 80% himidety. Overcast and a strong breeze saved the day.

[24Chromium]

Hey Trackrat!

Hard to tell from the lame description of the electronic system you link to, but I would have to assume that it's some sort of Peltier device. Here is a link to a Wiki description of the device:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermoelectric_effect

When I worked in the bio-tech instrumentation field as an ME, I designed a machine that used a Peltier cooler. What I found was that I had to provide way more ducting of the hot side than I had anticipated. The process of creating cool meant that you had to dissipate a LOT of heat. I imagine that you'd have to run a duct from the device out to the outside.

Besides, that thing is way too damn expensive!

[larryf]

Cool Shirt system with 986 shirt(much better than FAST), minor incision through left pocket just large enough to get the two hoses through.

[TRAKCAR]

The real solution should be to drive with windows closed and A/C on, but that would be to safe and simple...

[CWS]

Originally Posted by TRAKCAR

The real solution should be to drive with windows closed and A/C on, but that would be to safe and simple...

But that only works if you drive with shorts and a T-shirt.

[bman]

Any suggestions on how to secure the cooler in a GT street car? I have a 986 shirt and cooler but haven't installed it. I've seen some strap it in the passenger's seat but that seems dangerous.

Photos please!

Thanks

[Skypalace]

I use a FAST cool shirt system, passing tubes through the crotch zipper (and up through the 5/6 point hole in my seat).

I had Sparco replace zippers in a couple of suits for me (I've heard of folks having local tailors do it, but Sparco was no more $ and I knew for sure they'd do it properly, use Nomex thread, properly fold the material at the zipper, etc.).

When I was talking to them I specifically asked about how they recommended routing the cool suit lines. They weren't much help - they explicitly recommended against anything going through the suit, whether in the pocket or elsewhere.

I can see their point, esp. from liability standpoint, but not too helpful. I've been thinking of getting some extra nomex (perhaps from a headsock or socks I no longer use) and use it to create an extra 'flap' on the inside of the suit at the hole I cut in a pocket, so there's a layer of nomex right behind the hole (ie. between the hose and me, over where the hole in the pocket would be) to help out.

Re securing cooler in street car, I don't see passenger seat being dangerous as long as it's sufficiently secure (ie. would stay fixed even in a large impact, rolling the car etc.)

I'd strap it into seat using fixed straps (not seatbelts or bungies, but non-stretching ratchet straps, like the 1" wide straps I use for mounting my cool suit into the aluminum carrier I have mounted on the floor (no passenger seat). Fix it to seatback securely with one strap, and to seat bottom with one or preferably two more straps, and it won't move, even in an accident, as long as all slack is taken up, and what you're mounting to is rigid (ie. seat bottom, or even better getting it around the seat rails if you can).

[TRAKCAR]

We experienced the solution today on Mancation.
PCA Nord is mandatory windows closed. We all ran A/C.

At one point I forgot to turn it warmer and I could see my own breath in the car LOL...........