At last weekend’s double-header races at Road America, new cooling scoops were trialed out by three drivers in the practice session. These new scoops have been modified and are now approved for use, becoming mandatory on all cars throughout this weekend’s races at Iowa Speedway.
Drivers have had a season full of hot races to deal with, and the temperatures behind the wheel have climbed past the point of what IndyCar deems safe.
To solve this problem, the teams have worked with the series to find ways to keep the temperatures down. A quick solution last week was to move the drivers’ drinks bottles away from the engine components so that the water stayed relatively cool throughout the race.
This weekend an additional thin scoop at the top rim of the Aeroscreen (the thin black piece seen in the photo at the top of this article) will adorn all 23 cars to help air flow to the drivers.
“We’ve found that it’s not just the ambient temperature of the cockpit in conjunction to the outside temperature, it’s about air not moving inside of the cockpit,” said IndyCar President Jay Frye. “This actually adds more airflow inside the cockpit.
“We’re excited to see how it works, knowing that it won’t be the final product.”
Drivers have noted that air simply does not move around the cockpit at speeds and tends to stagnate, causing them to overheat. The aim of the additional vents is to circulate air through the cockpit area, which now sits behind the protective Aeroscreen.
This solution complements the side-vents that have been in place all season, whose purpose is to direct fresh air directly into the top of competitors’ helmets.
The welcome airflow will help the field of drivers as they contest their second consecutive double-header this weekend in another round of hot temperatures.
The races take place Friday and Saturday night from the 7/8-mile Iowa Speedway, with the green flag dropping at 21:00 EDT (2:00 BST) on Friday and 20:30 EDT (1:30 BST) on Saturday.
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