I have previously slammed others for stupidity with a dynamometer, and this video simply shows what can go wrong.

The use of a dynamometer to simply explore what peak BHP can be achieved is exactly analogous to the flat out races of the very early steam rallies. I am firmly with the late Ronald H Clark that any such exercise is stupidity personified.

As for the comment " NO - THEY SHOULD NOT HAVE GOT INTO THAT SITUATION IN THE FIRST PLACE.

By all means demonstrate a dynamometer, but limit the maximum power to a conservative multiple of the nominal horse power and always with the engine on the governor. Maybe an exercise in efficiency measurement would give people something more challenging to do.

I trust the NTET and rally safety officers will have taken note and learnt from this near miss.

Martin

I have also maintained that Dyno testing should be carried out with the governor belt on, in fact it is a good way of setting the governor up to work effectively. Another way of looking at it would be to ask whether thrashing or wood sawing should be carried out without a governor belt.

Governors were fitted for a reason, I don't see any point in doing belt work with out them in use really.

Utter stupidity from the crew on the engine and the dyno. They had a warning a few minutes earlier when the belt came off but fell to the ground. They were lucky that it was only the engine that suffered any damage.

Did you take the heads of your Barbie and Action Man dolls and swap them around?

Christ we’ll all be saying sex is dangerous next!

I guess we could all just sit around boiling water, Or is that a little extreme for some?

Accidents have a pyramid shape. For every 10 near misses, a finger gets a minor cut, for every 10 minor cut fingers, there is one serious cut. For every 10 serious cuts, there is a finger lost, for every 10 fingers lost, there is limb lost, for every 10 limbs lost, there is a fatality.

If you choose to ignore the near misses, you are going to work your way up that pyramid. The particular bit of tom foolery in question could have had very different consequences if a bit of belt had caught the driver - I understand it trashed the steersman's seat.

The problem with dyno testing is that it turns into a willie competition - mine has more BHP than yours. So somehow we have to reign in the testosterone and put some sense into it.

If you read my post, you will see I made positive suggestions on how that might be done while keeping dyno testing.

Martin

The first beheading at a steam rally should bring the punters in............

It can be - it can begat children which is very dangerous to your bank balance as you will no doubt find out in time Mr Langley:D