Nylon Cordura

The 2 often quoted materials in Motorsports wear are Cordura and Nomex.
Just what are they? Here is a little background into the materials that will save your life.

CORDURA was the registered name of a certified (nylon) fabric from DuPont.
Today, it is the registered name of a high-performance Nylon66 product manufactured by INVISTA, a whollyowned division of Koch Industries, Inc. It is used in a wide range of products from luggage and backpacks to boots, military apparel (such as tactical blade sheaths, ammunition pouches, etc.), and performance apparel.
It is designed to be long lasting and resistant to abrasions, tears and scuffs.
As a brand name, CORDURA reaches back to 1929 as a development of Rayon. The product was further developed during the Second World War and used by the military in tires. From 1966 when new formulations of nylon proved superior, the CORDURA brand was transferred to the nylon product instead. CORDURA has continued to be developed as a brand by INVISTA with new products applied to an increasing range of items such as:

luggage
motorcycle clothing
anywhere that abrasion resistance is important
sporting and recreational equipment
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Nomex is a registered trademark for flame resistant meta-aramid material developed in the early 1960s by DuPont and first marketed in 1967. A Nomex hood is a common piece of Racing and firefighting equipment. It is placed on the head on top of a firefighter's face mask. The hood protects the portions of the head not covered by the helmet and face mask
from the intense heat of the fire. Race car drivers wear driving suits constructed of Nomex and or other fire retardant materials, along with Nomex gloves, long underwear, balaclavas, socks, and shoes to protect them in the event of a fire. The FIA and the SFI Foundation provide specifications for flame-resistant drivers clothing to be used in racing. The standards range from single layer suits that provide some protection against flash fires to much thicker multi
layer SFI-15 suits required by the National Hot Rod Association that can protect a driver for up to 30 seconds against the intense heat generated by the nitromethane fuel they use

Regulations

When it comes to go kart races organised by official governing bodies, safety is paramount and never compromised. This is especially pertinent as the competition at such events is fierce.

Thus, when purchasing equipment, you have to bear in mind what purpose you need your apparel for. For this reason, most people will have a set of overalls, shoes, gloves, etc for practise purposes, and another set for competition purposes. Repeated use will wear down the fabric, especially around the crotch and joints.

So, let us take a look at the regulations:

SMSA events
- Flame Resistant Clothing
1) All participants must wear racing overalls homologated to FIA, FIA/CIK or SFI.
Thus it is very important to check the apparel provider with the list of approved companies. The list can be obtained from the FIA website. Many retailers profess FIA certification when they really just mean that they conform to the regulations but ARE NOT certified. The onus is upon yourself to check or you will be barred from taking part in events
Furthermore certification will expire, and this to you will have to check with the certification body. I.e. FIA/ CIK / SFI

2) Gloves must be homologated to FIA 8856-2000

3) Shoes must be homologated to FIA 8856-2000

4) Helmets must be homologated to FIA8860-2004 or SNELL SA 2005 / SNELL SA 2000, or SFI31.1A / SFI31.2A or BS6658-85 type A/FR


For your reference always check the certification bodies:

SFI Foundation Inc. - http://www.sfifoundation.com/
Federation Internationale de l'Automobile – http://www.fia.com
CIK/FIA - http://www.cikfia.com
Snell Memorial Foundation - http://www.smf.org/
SMSA – http://www.smsa.org.sg/
www.obracing.sg

CIK-FIA Championships in Macau

CIK-FIA has named Macau as the venue of the CIK-FIA 2009 Karting World Championships. The event will be held at the Kartodromo de Coloane circuit from the 8 - 11 of October 2009.

Info from CIK-FIA site

Great news for us as this is the first time the world championship is being held in Asia. I guess its time to plan for a karting trip up to Macau in 2009.

For more info on Kartodromo de Coloane circuit in Macau can be found here.