looking outside of the box

[JASS]

I was looking for new ideas for comfort in boat racers seats, started looking into the gel pads - saw it on one of the posts here on the site.  When I spoke with the rep he said they were only for motorcycles not boats.  If he paid attention to what I was talking about & not assumed it was a "typical" boat seat he just might have made a sale.  To bad - I'll find my product somewhere else. 

By the way, you can use it in a boat seat - it just has to shallow 2" max in height - which is exactly what I was looking for.

[Mojo]

They can also be used in stock car seats where drivers have to sit for a long period of time.

In NASCAR they go as far as pouring a form material into the seat and having the driver in his fire suit sit in it. The mold is then used ( once dry ) to create a personalized seat for them.

Obviously the rep at Pro Pad cannot think outside the box.

Chris

[JASS]

I know of that process but this racer needs more of a standard seat - he is not belted in like a car driver.  It is actually safer for the driver to be thrown from the boat verses be strapped into it.  It's an outboard hydro. 

[Mike8560]

my dad was in a wheelchair and had gel pads for sea cusions w they are for more then bikes  you light want to look into memoryfoam

[JASS]

That was our first option but would it be able to take the impact as well as the gel - these racers are in a 6-8 second class

[Mike8560]

i would layer the foam like a get pad with m some normal foam so as to not feel the  seat bottom out

[JASS]

The customer wants to use thick plastic as the bottom - I have highly suggested not going that route.  If I round the edges of the form, layer my foam & do a final complete wrap shouldn't that be quite efficient?  Not to mention I don't think the plastic will hold the load & tolerate the heat changes the boat produces.

[SHHR]

  Have the driver or boat builder to check the rule book first. Most sanctioning bodies are stringent on the rules as to what you can or can't do. I do the upholstery and covers on an unlimited hydroplane. They have their own sanction; H-1 umlimiteds, but operate APBA rules.
  The difference with those boats are now they're closed cockpits with an inner cage and their seats are made from styrofoam pellets mixed with resin in a big trash bag. Then it's immediatly set into the cockpit and the driver sets in it like a big bean bag letting the fast cure resin set up and mold to his body. The seat is not fastened to the boat but a 5 point harness is and holds the driver and seat in the boat.
These guys have a 90 minute air supply they're on in a race in case of a blowover and saftey can't get to them right away. Anyway, I just made a vinyl cover for the seat with only 1/2" scrim for padding and held it on the seat with velcro.  these drivers only race about 3 lap heats with a 5-7 lap final with usually no more than 20 miles on a boat at any given time so comfort isn't a big issue either.
Like Steve David, The driver of the boat I work on told me before " when you're skipping along at near 200 MPH there's more on your mind than the seat you're setting in".

Kyle

[JuneC]

First off, I have not yet built a race seat so take my input with a grain of salt.  But... I've worked on a number of go-fast types and the newer/higher-end ones are made much like auto seats with a plywood (not plastic) frame with a cutout for the butt and some sort of suspension system topped by foam.  Last Apache I looked at (lost the job due to my HIGH :P price) had a spring unit in the plywood frame.  Plastic, even Starboard will crack under high stress.  Plywood won't.  Plus if it's solid and you bottom out, the shock up the spine would, at the least, give you a bad headache.  Of course, you have to have clearance underneath.  If there's only an inch to go, probably better to use the gel/foam layered with the highest density underneath IMHO. 

June

[Mojo]

Race sanctioning bodies from many different powersports are getting very picky on seat/harness systems. Everything within the drivers compartment was brought to the forefront of racing after Earnhardt's death.

I myself was a witness to a NASCAR fatality at Michigan International and the cause of the drivers death was a seat failure. I was in the garage area when the car came back in and it was horrible to witness.

I would carefully review the sanctioning bodies rules as Kyle stated and be sure your within their specs. If the boater is asking you to craft him an entire seat I would pass strictly from the liability standpoint. If it is a simple upholstery job then check the rules.

Chris

[JASS]

Thanks Chris, I am checking into the rules now - as far as I can tell the structure of the seat meets all requirements for safety.  The design is purely for looks.  I still have some concerns:  the buckets of the seat is all good to go but there is a small piece that sits on top of the bucket base - this is were we want to add either the memory foam or the gel pad but..... this piece is not attached to anything.  My concern-if by chance this boat decides to do something stupid and the driver is thrown from the boat, I don't want this piece to be flying along side of him.  I am thinking of adding some sort of strap on each side so it will stay with the boat not the driver.