Course markers

[John Burk]

A 3' balloon holds about a pound of air . Slightly lighter t

[John Burk]

A 3' balloon holds about a pound of air . Slightly lighter than the pvc pipe .

[manta22]

I think a beach ball would likely drop a bike on impact.
  Sid.

My guess is that it would be like hitting an air bag in car in a crash.

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[manta22]

A 3' balloon holds about a pound of air . Slightly lighter than the pvc pipe .

... and a lot more surface area to cushion the impact. A PVC pipe would cause more injury that a light vinyl plastic bag full of low-pressure air...I think. 

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[Buickguy3]

  The schedule 80 PVC does ugly things. [Like punch holes in the tire]
  Doug 

[JR529]

That looks like you hit more than just PVC. Even your disk looks bent.

[mkilger]

ya white pvc and white salt is hard to see and pickup   

[jdincau]

I just cant keep quiet any more,
1.     In flight training the rule was "first fly the airplane" meaning do not get distracted by what is going on inside the cockpit.
2.     Bill Taylor told me every time I left the line, "be safe, have fun, go fast - AND THE THROTTLE WORKS BOTH WAYS".
    

[Glen]

ya white pvc and white salt is hard to see and pickup   

I had the PVC changed to gray years ago as Mike K mentioned. Some where I have a picture of Ro Yale wher the car hit a mile marker flipped up busted out his wind screen and his face sheild, he was lucky with only a few cuts on his face.

[hotrod]

If you don't use helium how are they going to fly?  If they are down on the ground have we accomplished much?

Should not need helium at Bonneville. A standard black trash bag inflated about 2/3s, tied off and left in bright  sun will self inflate like a hot air balloon with enough buoyancy to stand up vertically.
May not lift off the surface but it will not lay flat on the ground, you just need to give it a bit or room to expand when you partially fill it and tie it off.
Cooling winds or cloud cover would make them "wilt" but worth an experiment to see what would happen with very light weight plastic bags like the 1.2 - 1.4 mil bags.

[Glen]

If you don't use helium how are they going to fly?  If they are down on the ground have we accomplished much?

Should not need helium at Bonneville. A standard black trash bag inflated about 2/3s, tied off and left in bright  sun will self inflate like a hot air balloon with enough buoyancy to stand up vertically.
May not lift off the surface but it will not lay flat on the ground, you just need to give it a bit or room to expand when you partially fill it and tie it off.
Cooling winds or cloud cover would make them "wilt" but worth an experiment to see what would happen with very light weight plastic bags like the 1.2 - 1.4 mil bags.

It's been tried and with any breeze moving them around can confuse the driver.

[Buickguy3]

   At about the 3 mile there was a West cross-wind. I had to put about 1/4 turn Left rudder into the steering wheel. As I passed through a soft/moist spot in the Salt, a mist came up and I thought I was going through a fog bank. When I realized that it was dry Salt on the canopy, the next thing I saw was the 4 mile banner dead ahead. I pulled the chute as I hit it. Not sure how long it took to cover that mile, but looking back I'm not sure what I would have done different. When the tread width is only 33 inches quick changes in steering input aren't good.
    Doug 

[jimmy six]

I've never driven too much over 200 but I like the black bags. I can see them a long way down the course and they helped a lot on shut down and turn out.

I started back when there was 3 lines and cones and did OK. The was a time when there were orange trash bags too and that was good.

I personally think bigger is better as long as we can keep them up in the wind.

Driving is total concentration with eyes forward and a brain attached to your right foot or right hand. Sometimes backing off is the right thing to do. Bonneville isn't the place to be driving thru any situation....

[SPARKY]

  spot on JD

[Koncretekid]

After hitting the 2 mile marker flag pole and cutting it off at 137 mph at BUBs (retrieved several pieces inside my fairing), I was given a valuable tip by another rider - - "memorize the horizon when you're on the starting line."  This is quite easy to do when making a down run as floating mountain is usually in view, but maybe not always.  It has helped me immensely to keep centered.