SOUTHERN RESCUE GROUP
SOUTHERN RESCUE GROUP
RESPONSE 2005 PRESS RELEASE
There is a group of marshals that racing drivers hope fervently never to have to call upon, and who would themselves prefer not to have to use their specialist skills and equipment for real, but are nevertheless, an essential component of any race or rally. These are the medical and rescue crews, volunteers all, who form the backbone of motor sports safety services at all levels of the sport in the UK, and 50 of them attended a two day training event at the Historic Goodwood Motor Circuit over the weekend of February 19th / 20th.
Response 2005, the second of it’s type organised by the Southern Rescue Group, attracted crews from as far a field as the Midlands and Cornwall, with one team travelling over the water from Jersey.
A selection of racing and rally machinery was available for crews to examine and practice on this year, including Peter Solburgh’s Prodrive WRC Subaru (just back from the Swedish Rally), a BAR Formula 1 car (ex- Jenson Button, the car that ran in the London F1 demo last year), a 1960 Lotus 20 Formula Junior (with a Goodwood pedigree), an AC Cobra and a Ford Fiesta, this car recently featuring in the motorsport press, and belonging to the BTTC safety car driver Brian Furminger.
Saturday featured a series of lectures and demonstrations by Doctors and Paramedics on both basic and advanced life support, followed by a series of work stations to give the crews the opportunity to practice their skills on training manikins. Twenty nine of those present successfully completed a course in automated external defibrillation, enabling them to treat heart attack victims using the AED equipment now carried on an increasing number of rescue units.
On the Sunday the emphasis changed to casualty handling and extrication techniques. Daryll Benge, an experienced and well respected member of the BARC rescue crew gave a talk and demonstration on the HANS Device, now mandatory in several series in the UK, and likely to increase in usage in the coming years. Holmatro, a manufacturer of hydraulic rescue equipment, brought along a selection of its newest lightweight tools, and the crews were able practice the latest rescue techniques under the guidance of experienced Fire-fighters.
Brian Janman, a Paramedic and the crew chief of the Goodwood Rescue Unit, and the prime mover behind the Response events said
“ It is very gratifying that both teams and individual owners recognize the importance of training for rescue crews and medical staff, and that they are prepared to loan us cars, that in some cases cost in excess of hundreds of thousands of pounds “
Certainly without the support shown by Goodwood, who provided the facilities for the event, and organisations such as British American Racing and Prodrive, this type of event would not be possible, as the whole thing is put together on a budget that would only enable an average race team to buy a couple of spanners. This event, like other marshals training days organised up and down the country, is run under the auspices of the Motor Sport Association and the Motor Sport Training Fund, who provide a degree of financial assistance to training events.
So, dear competitor, the next time you find yourself with an excess of cash, remember that without the support and dedication of the volunteer rescue crews and marshals, you might not have an event to compete in, so please support the Motor Sport Training Fund.
RESPONSE TRAINING DAY 2006 18/19 FEB
