Pizza Company makes a paraplegic’s ambition come true

Bernd being strapped in.

One of the best ‘feel good’ stories in 2011 comes from Thomas Raldorf of the Pizza Company Racing Team.

Thomas was approached by Oskar, the owner of the Baan Sabaijai in Pattaya, concerning Bengt, a Swedish National who is stuck in a wheelchair and living at Baan Sabaijai.

Bengt told Oskar that his biggest wish for Christmas was to get to experience some laps in a race car, as he had seen an old picture from 2006 when some of the residents of Baan Sabaijai had been taken round in race cars at the Bira International Circuit.

Oskar contacted a number of people, and ended up speaking with Thomas Raldorf from The Pizza Company Racing Team and asked if this was something that could be arranged. Thomas agreed to fulfill Bengt’s wish, and a passenger seat was installed in the race car for a day at Bira.

With the help of the people from Baan Sabaijai and the mechanics Bengt was moved into the race car and safely strapped in.

After the experience, Bengt was very happy, and said that he really enjoyed the drive in a race car, and that his wish for Xmas had come true thanks to the efforts of Baan Sabaijai and The Pizza Company Racing Team.

Fatigued at the wheel

The Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute stated that on a 2008 study about 20 percent of all road traffic accidents are caused by driver fatigue. Tired motorists are also eight times more likely than refreshed motorists to get in an accident, displaying driving abilities similar to those of someone who is intoxicated.

Anti Sleep Pilot

The problem is, we often don’t know when we’ve reached that “too tired” state - which is where the Anti Sleep Pilot is supposed to assist the driver. The Danish device sits on the dashboard, monitoring you and your driving conditions, and lets you know when it’s time to pull over and take a ten minute rest.

Before starting the trip, you complete a short test to determine your personal risk profile. This information is stored by twisting a knob on the bottom of the unit, so several drivers can keep and access their profiles on one device.

Once you start driving, the Pilot continuously calculates your fatigue level, and displays your status. Its calculations combine 26 different parameters, including your personal risk profile, your fatigue status when you started driving, and input from a clock and accelerometer. It also maintains and measures driver alertness through occasional reactive tests, in which you must touch the device as soon as indicated. The longer you take to react, the slower your reaction time is becoming.

When the combination of variables indicate that you’re reaching your limit, the Pilot’s visible and audible signals alert you to the fact that you need to take a break - the device is light and sound-sensitive, so its display and alarm automatically adjust for cabin conditions. As the unit is able to monitor time and vehicle speed, it also knows how long you’ve stopped for, so there’s no pulling over for only a few seconds just to shut it up.

Currently this device is only available in Denmark, although you can pre-order on the company website. Its price should be around US$250.

Ford and Chrysler on the way back?

After the disastrous 2008/9, both Ford and Chrysler showed some very positive gains. Ford was up 19 percent, Chrysler up 17 percent and GM was also up but only six percent.

Ford was very up-beat as it had expanded US market share for the second year in a row with total sales of 1.9 million vehicles. This was Ford’s first back-to-back market share increase since 1993 and came after some years of restructuring at head office Dearborn.

Unlike General Motors and Chrysler - which were forced into bankruptcy in 2009 - Ford managed to survive the 2008 financial crisis without government aid during the economic downturn.

Chrysler attributed its solid gains to the business plan developed by Fiat’s Sergio Marchionne, who took the helm after Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy in June 2009. Part of that was dropping models with dwindling sales and launching 16 new or improved models in the last quarter of 2010.

Autotrivia Quiz

Last week I mentioned that turbocharged engines in automobiles had been around since the 1962 Oldsmobile Cutlass, but they were not the first. I asked who were the first? Hint, it was a diesel. It was Saurer in 1938.

So to this week. What British sports car had a six cylinder TOHC engine, looked fast just standing still, had a top speed of 240 km/h, but took 7.1 seconds to reach 60 mph? Clue 64-73.

For the Automania free beer this week, be the first correct answer to email [email protected]. Good luck!

Who is going to run you over?

The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) in the UK has figures that show fatalities have fallen 33 percent in the 16-19 year old bracket, 25 percent for drivers in their 70s, and 22 percent for drivers aged 80 and over since 2008.

No Helmet

Despite the falls, the fatality rate continues to be highest for 16-19 year olds, followed by the over 80s, but for very different reasons. The greatest risk to the oldest age group on the road is as a pedestrian. In comparison, younger people are much more at risk as a driver or as a passenger in a car driven by a young driver. Pedestrian risk increases from two percent of those injured aged between 20 and 50, to around nine percent aged 80 and over. The greatest risk to pedestrians is car drivers under 30 who are involved in more than a third of pedestrian fatalities.

During their teens and twenties, the risk of young drivers being killed halves every five years as they gain more driving experience. This lends weight to the IAM’s call for post-test training to be made compulsory in a form similar to that of the system in countries like Austria, where reductions of up to 30 percent in young male driver fatalities have been achieved. If new drivers can be kept alive during this most dangerous stage of their driving career, the risk of them becoming another killed or seriously injured statistic reduces significantly.

The Austrian system ensures new drivers have at least three further contacts with qualified instructors during the first 12 to 18 months of their driving career. After taking the test, an initial assessment drive is undertaken to gain knowledge of a driver’s experience so far and to highlight any deficiencies. There is then a visit to a Road Safety Center to demonstrate handling in the wet, speed into corners and the impact of speed on stopping distances. Discussion sessions are also held which take a psychological approach, talking about peer pressure and the main risks to young drivers. The final element is an eco-drive assessment. Compared to what happens here, there is certainly room for improvement in the lax Thai licensing system.

Despite widespread beliefs to the contrary, older drivers are no more likely to be involved in an injury crash than middle aged drivers, and are much less at risk than drivers aged under 30. However, the risk of being killed as a car occupant increases from about 0.6 percent of those injured aged between 30 and 50, to over three percent aged 80 and over. This is generally a result of age-related frailty; older people are more likely to be injured in a crash and are less likely to recover. Between 20 and 50 years of age, the rate of deaths declines for all road users except for motorcyclists which remains almost constant over this period.

Young male drivers continue to be the most high-risk group, and are more than twice as likely to be involved in a fatal or serious injury crash as young female drivers. A renewed focus on young drivers, which provides them with opportunities to gain further experience in a controlled and safe environment is of utmost importance says the IAM.

However, Thailand also had a blitz over Xmas/New Year. The Ministry urged agencies with integrated checkpoints to crack down on risky behavior and for local administrative organization-level checkpoints to oversee residents’ driving behavior. Provinces were to repair landslide-damaged roads and educate motorists; to supervise public-transport vehicles and drivers strictly; and to enforce the ban on drink-driving.

Now all that seems reasonably relevant and something as a starting point for all the committee think tanks which will be called up to propose the answers to the road toll problem. But considering that the road toll went up during the 2010/2011 celebrations, the emphasis was not the right one.

However, the leg-work has been done already, even before the first coffee break for the Think Tank. The following statistics are readily available and a quick internet search will show that the road toll costs the country 2.1 percent of GDP. Now what were prime factors?

1. 80 percent of those killed are between 15-60 years

2. 75 percent of the people killed are male

3. 80 percent were riding motorcycles

4. 85 percent had no crash helmet

5. More than 50 percent of those injured had blood alcohol levels above the legal limit of 0.05. (Figures for blood alcohol levels of those killed are notoriously under-reported to avoid police/insurance problems.)

A crackdown on motorcycle riders with no helmets would be a start and insisting that retailers only sell helmets of international standard would be next. But will that happen? I doubt it.

2011 FIA Formula One World Championship Race Calendar

The SLS Mercedes F1 pace car

This year there are 20 GP’s slotted for the year. Diaries out, pencils in hand and away you go! By the way, this information is stored on the Pattaya Car Club Facebook page.

01 Bahrain Grand Prix (Sakhir) - 11 - 13 Mar

02 Australian Grand Prix (Melbourne) - 25 - 27 Mar

03 Malaysia Grand Prix (Kuala Lumpur) - 08 - 10 Apr

04 Chinese Grand Prix (Shanghai) * - 15 - 17 Apr

05 Turkish Grand Prix (Istanbul) - 06 - 08 May

06 Spanish Grand Prix (Catalunya) - 20 - 22 May

07 Monaco Grand Prix (Monte Carlo) - 26 - 29 May

08 Canadian Grand Prix (Montreal) - 10 - 12 Jun

09 European Grand Prix (Valencia) - 24 - 26 Jun

10 British Grand Prix (Silverstone) - 08 - 10 Jul

11 German Grand Prix (Nrburgring) - 22 - 24 Jul

12 Hungarian Grand Prix (Budapest) - 29 - 31 Jul

13 Belgian Grand Prix (Spa-Francorchamps) - 26 - 28 Aug

14 Italian Grand Prix (Monza) - 09 - 11 Sep

15 Singapore Grand Prix (Singapore) - 23 - 25 Sep

16 Japanese Grand Prix (Suzuka) - 07 - 09 Oct

17 Korean Grand Prix (Yeongam) - 14 - 16 Oct

18 Indian Grand Prix (New Delhi) * - 28 - 30 Oct

19 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (Yas Marina Circuit) - 11 - 13 Nov

20 Brazil Grand Prix (Sao Paulo) - 25 - 27 Nov

* Subject to circuit approval