The other shoe drops. Thanks HANS

[lateapex911]

FYI:
Yesterday Dave Parker of OG Racing in VA posted this letter from NecksGen, maker of a very good Head and Neck Restraint.

From: Farin Brady
Date: Fri, Jun 7, 2013 at 4:38 PM
Subject: Important Notice



Until further resolution, NecksGen has been instructed by the US District Court in Atlanta to cease production of the standard three sizes of the NecksGen head and neck restraint. In this legal struggle with HANS, and now Simpson Performance Products, NecksGen has never been found guilty of patent infringement. Unfortunately the biggest loser in their ongoing effort to unfairly control the neckbrace market is the racer.



NecksGen has always prided itself as being an innovator of new design and in giving the racers an affordable option in the head and neck protection marketplace while still focusing on quality and versatility. NecksGen thanks its many loyal supports who value the free market and have supported the company by becoming a NecksGen customer.



We will continue to supply parts and support for the three standard models. NecksGen will continue to be innovative in its design and will work tirelessly to continue its philosophy that puts the racers’ needs ahead of the bottom line.



Thank you,



Farin Brady

NecksGen Inc

Cliff notes:
HANS wrote a spec, people make products that fit the spec, and HANS sues them out of business. This is #2 for HANS. (there may be others I am unaware of) It's my understanding that neither company got judgement against them, but that both threw up the white flag due to legal costs.

Since Simpson owns HANS, I sent them a letter which read like this:

To whom it may concern:
Congratulations. Due to your involvement and ownership of the HANS brand, and the continued harassment and "Patent protection" that HANS deals out (most recently to NecksGen), I will never again buy a Simpson branded or owned product. HANS has, since their inception, attempted to monopolize and restrain free trade with it's involvement with SFI. Once you understand their actions over the long term history, you can see that the 38.1 standard is a massive disservice to the racing public. If not for HANS, we all could have higher performing and more consistent Head and Neck Restraints, for more reasonable prices. But the HANS company is out to maximize profits, which they have done successfully. I however will do everything in my power to ensure that they never get a cent from me.

Regards,

Jake Gulick

I couldn't find a way to contact HANS, so I posted this on their Facebook page. They were kind enough to let it exist for 15 minutes before removing it in its entirety.

To HANS,

Congratulations. Due to the continued harassment and "Patent protection" that HANS deals out (most recently to NecksGen), I will never again buy a Simpson branded or owned product, nor a HANS. HANS has, since their inception, attempted to monopolize and restrain free trade with it's involvement with SFI. Once you understand their actions over the long term history, you can see that the 38.1 standard is a massive disservice to the racing public. Sadly, the specification was not written as a performance based spec, but an architecture based spec. Which, of course, limits innovation and design. If the UL had limited home lighting to bulbs with tungsten filaments, inert gas filled, with threaded sockets, we would have no innovation and no LED, HID sodium vapor or any of the other types of lighting. If not for HANS, and the restrictive 38.1 SFI spec, , we all could have higher performing and more consistent Head and Neck Restraints, for more reasonable prices. But the HANS company is out to maximize profits, which they have done successfully. I however will do everything in my power to ensure that they never get a cent from me.

Regards, Jake Gulick

Bottom line:
I've tested all of them, and I found the NecksGen to be a real contender. If you are in the market, you should think fast, and get them while they last. SCCA has no limit on the 38.1 cert, so buying one has no lifespan at this point. NecksGen promises to support it and sell parts into the future but can not sell complete units.

I get that businesses are in business to make money, but HANS positions itself like the patron saint of racing safety, yet we'd all be able to wear devices that don't fall off, and devices that provide superior performance if HANS and SFI were actually concerned with safety as their number 1 priority.