Flip-Flops & Halo Tops

The notion of a halo conjures images of angelic cherubs and enlightened bliss in nearly everyone…except, apparently, for Formula One fans. In mid-July, the FIA made the controversial announcement that starting next year, all Grand Prix racecars must be equipped with a “safety halo.” For those not familiar, the halo in question is a carbon fiber protective device—shaped like the toe-strap on a flip-flop—that encircles the driver’s head and protects his/her noggin from impact with large flying debris and/or large structures. While, on the face of it, one would think that this would be received as a positive safety move by the FIA, it has been met with a very mixed reponse. Of course, if one looks back through F1 history, the FIA has not always been on the cutting edge of safety, and when they have implemented new measures, they have rarely been met with widespread enthusiasm.

Despite Barney Oldfield using a seatbelt, at Indy as early as 1923, the conventional wisdom—even into the late ’60s!—was that it was better to be “thrown clear” than trapped in a Grand Prix car. Even as late as 1968, a study in the UK found that of all the motorsport accidents that occurred in Great Britain that year, almost none of the drivers had opted to use a safety belt. Yet, despite their long-time availability and the prevailing evidence, the FIA did not mandate their use in Formula One until 1972!