First use of paved run-off areas?

[Quintin03]

I have wanted to know what the first use of (a) paved run-off area(s) at any type of permanent circuit. All paved areas built for the purpose of driver safety not part of the racing surface will be seen as such.

This thread has started at the gdecarli.it forum and this is the summary of the results up to now:

First ever circuit known to me to have paved run-off areas: Dijon-Prenois.
First oval known to me to have (a) paved "run-off area(s)": Daytona
First roadcourse with paved run-off areas in the curent line that I can confirm: Paul Ricard HTTT.

If anyone knows a circuit where there were/was (a) paved run-off area(s) before any of those were built at the three circuits shown above.

This is the link to the original discusion: Here

[westfieldbend]

it may not count but - brands hatch 1976.
When paddock hill bend was re profiled the old circuits tarmac was left in place as a 'run off' area

[Purist]

The more steeply banked outer portion of Darlington was originally intended as a run-off. I believe the switch to using that as the actual racing surface came in 1969 or so.

[Quintin03]

Originally Posted by westfieldbend

it may not count but - brands hatch 1976.
When paddock hill bend was re profiled the old circuits tarmac was left in place as a 'run off' area

I''ll count it as a run-off area. It may not have been built purely to serve as such but it was modified. I think this could be before Dijon Prenois.

[jab]

Tamburello had tarmac/asphalt run-off, ironically

As an aside, is it just me that thinks Parabolica ought to have it now? Bit dangerous if someone went in there side-on at high speed, don't you think? And this coming from someone who detests tarmac run-off areas

[Quintin03]

Originally Posted by jab

Tamburello had tarmac/asphalt run-off, ironically

When exactly? If possible add (moving) pictures.

[jab]

Before the added the chicane but after Berger's accident - I won't post a link because it's not appropriate, but if you watch Senna's crash or look at pictures of it, you'll see the run-off is just asphalt or concrete or something like that. Pics of Alboreto's crash there show it too

I can't find any decent pictures of it other than ones of Senna's crash

[Purist]

I guess it was VERY dusty as, to me, it looks like the car is going over a bed of very fine gravel.

[LuiggiSpeed]

I can't talk about the history of paved run-offs but I can tell you it's a good idea, if you run wide or go past your braking marker you can still make it back on track(most of the time)

[Quintin03]

It's looking like concrete but could also be very fine and thin gravel.

[Yannick]

Originally Posted by jab

Tamburello had tarmac/asphalt run-off, ironically

As an aside, is it just me that thinks Parabolica ought to have it now? Bit dangerous if someone went in there side-on at high speed, don't you think? And this coming from someone who detests tarmac run-off areas

Yes, that is is concrete pavement, but what it didn't have was a tyre barrier or water tanks, not even a guardrail - just the wall.

And during the early 90s, most other tracks did have tyre barriers. I was at Spa in 93 when Alex Zanardi had his practise crash at Eau Rouge, and they had tyre barriers in front of the guard rail - two rows of them if I recall correctly.

And if you remember Kovalainen's shunt at Barcelona last year and Massa's accident this year at Hungaroring, the tyre barriers and water that are standing in front of the guardrail are really wide these days.

But watching videos of Imola from before the reconstruction will show no such safety features on the run from the finish line towards Tosa.

Imola clearly was not quite up to scratch when the tragic events happened in 94.

[jab]

By modern standards, yes. But hindsight is a beautiful thing

[ECW Dan Selby]

Not necessarilly even by 'modern' standards. As noted, there were others tracks that used sufficient tyre barriers even back then. I just find it bizzare that Imola didn't use them for Tamburello, given the fact there's already been some huge accidents there in previous years. Also, Villenueve is almost identicle to Tamburello, so I would have thought that'd be a given, too.

Selby

[jab]

I don't think people were particularly too worried about Imola, otherwise they wouldn't have been going there. Any big accidents didn't lead to the press taking the "the circuit is dangerous" line, but more the "look how safe the cars are" line. The fatal accidents that weekend came completely out of the blue

[ECW Dan Selby]

Yeh I didn't really think about it from the "they survived THAT" p.o.v.

Selby