Dipl. Ing. Peter Bürger from Germany is the „helmet-man“ in
Formula One. He is Arai`s F1 coordinator and takes care of the
helmets of the japanese manufacturer drivers since more than 20
years. He maintained the helmets of more than 75 F1 drivers, who
have won over 150 GP`s and 9 World Drivers Championships between
them… impressive numbers!
TSS: Peter, you take care of the clients of your employer, the Arai helmet company, at all F1
GP`s around the world. How did you get in contact with motorsport?
PB: I started karting as a hobby in the mid-eighties, in the end with pretty good success as
my best result was a fourth place in the European championship in 1991 against rivals like
Jos Verstappen or Giancarlo Fisichella! That was not bad, but also not good enough to
continue in higher leagues. Right from my early days in
karting, I was in contact with Arai. I bought their helmets
and also sold them to other drivers. When I realized that I
was not good enough for a professional career as a driver,
Arai asked me to be their man on the spot, taking care of
the helmets, providing spare parts or doing a repair service
with visors etc. I accepted their offer and I also started my
own company “Point Racing”, selling racing gear and
equipment for drivers and riders. First I did this on a
national level with minor motorsport classes, but it really
took off in 1997.
TSS: What happened?
PB: As a consequence of a shortage of staff, Arai offered
me the job to take care of their clients in F1. This was in mid-january and they gave me one week to think about. I
accepted, but it was a jump into the cold water… my job began at the tests in Barcelona and the Australian GP in
Melbourne in march was my first F1 GP – Hockenheim 2019 is GP no. 410!
TSS: Your job requires a lot of travelling.
PB: Yes, I spend a huge amount of time
on planes and hotel rooms around world.
But if you want to work in F1, you have
to accept this. We all in the F1 circus are
pretty well payed and we see a lot of the
world, but we also have restrictions in
another parts of life, like family, friends
etc. – I always say: “You have to stand F1”…
TSS: You are very close to your clients, up to their privacy.
PB: Oh yes, it is sometimes a very delicate business, as I am
one of only very few people who sees F1 drivers in their
underwear, hahaha… when they get a final massage before the
race and I have to fix an issue on their helmet...
TSS: What issues are you talking about?
PB: For example a last minute visor change or things like that.
Nowadays, helmet components don`t break anymore, but I
have to keep them in perfect shape. A driver has to rely to a
100% on his equipment, and I am responsible that he can
concentrate on his job and not worry about an issue with his
helmet while driving. I have to give him the feeling, the helmet
is absolutely safe!The helmet is the only personal thing of a driver, everything else belongs to the team.
TSS: How does a preparation for a race weekend look like for you?
PB: I come to the race track and first thing I do is check the condition of the helmets. A driver normally has three
identical helmets available for a race weekend. For a whole season, Sebastian Vettel for example uses from 10 to
15 helmets. What changes during the weekend, is only the visors, depending on weather and visibilty. The visors
make a really big difference, especially the ones for wet weather. They have an antimist glazing with an airspace in
between the layers – so fogging is not an issue anymore with modern helmets!
TSS: What about the safety features like the Zylon visor panel on the upperside of the visor which was made
mandatory a few years ago after Felipe Massa`s accident in Hungary?
PB: The panel has now disappeared
again, because the shell of the helmet
has to be made to a new standard
which is called “ABP”, which stands for
Advanced Ballistic Protection. I give you
a few numbers: a steel projectile
weighing 5 grams is shot onto the visor
with a speed of 620km/h. The same
spot of the visor will then be heated
with a flame by 790 degrees centigrade
for 45 seconds and there must not be a
hole in the visor! The shell of the helmet is made of carbon fiber and the thickness of the forehead area is 1cm.
TSS: So a helmet for F1 standard is completely different to a helmet which is used for karting or even a
motorcycle helmet for road traffic.
PB: Yes, the only common thing is, that both are called helmets.
TSS: Are the shells made individually for each driver?
PB: No, there are certain standard sizes for shells which are used by each driver and we make the individual
adjustments by adapting the cushions for example on the cheeks.
TSS: Has there ever been a severe accident of a driver using one of your helmets?PB: No, fortunately all accidents
with drivers using one of our products got off lightly – at least since Melbourne 1997…TSS: So I hope your record
will continue to stand also in 2019 and your drivers, S. Vettel and D. Ricciardo for example, will have a safe season
2019!
PB: Yes, the main objective is always that our helmets never have to prove their durability in action on the tracks…
TSS: Thank you Peter for your time, this was a very informative view behind the scenes!
I am the Arai
"Helmet-Man“
For Formula 1
since 1997
Photos: ferrari.com and TSS
If you are looking for
equipment for riders or
drivers, check out Peters
homepage
www.point-racing.de.
He has everything
you need.