Autocross harness loose end securement methods?

[captain_pants]

How is everybody tying up the loose ends of their harness in the car? We do lots of in/out of the car through a day at autocross, and I'm tired of constantly digging the lap belt ends out from under my butt once I've slid down into position.

I tried an elastic strap with a loop to hook the camlock buckle, which is ok but it doesn't work well for varying ...ahem... thicknesses of drivers and I don't have anything for the opposite lap belt.

I've seen some mini bungee cords with the bent wire ends, but I don't like the idea of a little hook flapping about in the cockpit. Velcro is an option, but it damages many fabrics.

What do you do aside from just doing contortions in a small cockpit?

[Neil_Roberts]

The simple solution is to prep the cockpit immediately after getting out, every time. Loop the sub straps over the steering column. Hook the lap belts over frame tubes or whatever will hold them up. Flip the shoulder belts out of the cockpit opening.

The more complex solution is what endurance racers do - bungee cords and expensive quick releases that latch the belts in easily.

[Rick Kirchner]

For years I used the small bungees (1/8" or so) with one end cut off and zip tied around a tube. Hook the belts into the bungees and away you go. Until one of the hooks grabs you right glove at Fontana and makes it so you can't make the turn out onto the oval....

So after that I always spent time hooking the ends onto something else in the cockpit, and it was a PITA.

At Indy I took the time to replace all that with a couple of those keychains with a pip pin that separates the halves. bungees get the ends cut off and go through the keychain halves and around the belt hardware where the webbing wraps. It's a bit more fiddly to snap them together, but that's when you have time. In the cockpit, press the button and they fall apart and you can hook up and not worry about where the ends go.

[TimH]

I'm lucky that my lap belt ends hang up nicely wedged between frame tube and side panel.

To get the same result I've seen a single bungee draped over the steering column, or a small bungee on each side hooked to the mirror stems. Either way the tether gets tossed once you click in.

[captain_pants]

Thanks for the suggestions!

The Citation has aluminum walls lining the lower cockpit (inner shroud for side radiators), so you'd need a long harness to drape over neighboring tubes. My pull-up lap harness is near minimum length to be tight on my hips, so that's out. I've tried standing the lap belts on edge on the seat foam, but they always slide down the seat as I step in.

I'm loving the idea of the pip pin keychains! Can easily put those on bungees and they won't hook anything while driving.

[David Ferguson]

Consider trying velcro on your flat panels -- or magnets --- both have magic properties....

[Jim Garry]

Velcro works great for my co-driver and me. On really hot days the velcro will pull out from the harness side. In the past I've sewn it on. Probably will do that again.