I was reading that F1 drivers have to withstand really high temperatures consistently during a race and don’t have A/C. How come they’re hot if there’s wind coming at them really fast throughout the entire race?
In: Physics
The vast majority of their bodies are inside the car, with only the head sticking out. The aerodynamics of an F1 car is designed specifically to direct air in the most efficient manner possible so much of the ‘outside’ air won’t make it into the cockpit to cool the driver. Finally the driver has no exposed skin and wears multiple layers of fire retardant material to protect them in case of a catastrophic fire, [such as this one.](https://youtu.be/gCivN-b4FZI)
All of these factors to cause the drivers to get extremely hot during the race, combining with the physical and mental effort that they have to handle during a 3 hour race causes their body temp to climb to dangerous levels. It is not unusual for a driver to lose several pounds due to sweat after a race.
Latest Answers