Jim Downing
Encyclopedia
James "Jim" Downing, born January 4, 1942, in Atlanta, Georgia, is the five-time IMSA Championship winning, owner/driver of Downing/Atlanta Racing, and principal in the development of the HANS Device
.
Looking for new challenges, he joined IMSA
in 1974, at the invitation of John Bishop, President and founder of the (then) new International Motor Sports Association IMSA (known today as the American Le Mans Series
), they were so friendly and helpful that it convinced him that he should give it a try. As a young person coming out of very amateur racing, it was a big step. He quickly discovered in the first year of racing a Mazda RX-2
in the old RS series that he got more experience in one year than he had in the last six years in club racing.
Sponsored by the Mazda factory for his entire IMSA
career, Jim progressed up the competition ladder from the near showroom stock Radial Sedan series Mazda RX-2
& Mazda RX3, to GTU Mazda RX3 & Mazda RX7 and GTO in the Mazda RX7, then up to the ultra-quick purpose-built GTP category prototypes, all powered by two, three, and four rotor versions of the Mazda
Wankel engine. After competing in an Argo built prototype since 1984, in 1988 he began designing and building a prototype racer of his own design. His Kudzu DG-1, made its debut at San Antonio in September 1989.
In 1999, with the demise/reorganization of IMSA series, he moved on to the American Le Mans Series
with his Kudzu racers until the end of the 2000 racing season, then into an AutoExe Motorsports prototype as his long and successful career wound down.
During his illustrious forty-five year racing career he has either won or scored highly in races at Daytona
, Sebring, The Nürburgring
and Le Mans
. He won several Camel Lights championships, including 41 career victories and is still racing today in SCCA and Formula Atlantic
(the fastest class in SCCA).
. Jacquemart, the director of Renault
Racing in the United States, raced in the GTU Class in the 1981 IMSA
series, and was at the wheel of his heavily modified Renault 5 Alpine Turbo when he missed the curve at Turn Seven and struck a sandbank with the front of the car. He suffered a fracture of the base of his skull and was pronounced dead on arrival at Morrow County Hospital in Mount Gilead, OH.
With the problem identified, Downing turned to his brother-in-law, Dr. Robert Hubbard, a bio mechanical crash engineer for General Motors
, to help him design a Head And Neck Support system that would eliminate or protect against these types of injuries. Working together, their goal was to create a device that would reduce the chance of a serious injury caused by the violent movement of the unrestrained head and helmet during a crash. Dr. Hubbard created the first prototypes of the HANS Device
in the late 1980s, and Downing, as a firm believer of the product he had helped to create, started wearing the untested prototype of the HANS Device
during his IMSA
sports car races.
HANS device
The HANS device is a safety item compulsory in many car racing sports...
.
Personal life
Downing is a Georgia Tech graduate with a degree in industrial management. He married public relations specialist Connie Goudinoff in 1989.Racing
His father being a major foreign car dealer in the Atlanta area, he grew up around cars and racing. He began racing soapbox derbies when he was 11, raced those for several years, then won a local downhill slalom event when he was 16. In his late teens and early twenties, he raced gymkhanas (known today as SCCA Solo) in almost anything he could get his hands on because SCCA rules of the time prohibited racing before age 21. When he was 21, he bought an Elva Courier for $200 that had been totaled, spent a year and a half putting it back together, and began racing at Daytona Beach in 1963. He continued SCCA racing successfully on the amateur level for the next 11 years.Looking for new challenges, he joined IMSA
International Motor Sports Association
The International Motor Sports Association is an American sports car auto racing sanctioning body based in Braselton, Georgia. It was started by John Bishop, a former employee of SCCA , and his wife Peggy in 1969 with help from Bill France, Sr...
in 1974, at the invitation of John Bishop, President and founder of the (then) new International Motor Sports Association IMSA (known today as the American Le Mans Series
American Le Mans Series
The American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consists of a series of endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Teams compete in one of five classes: LMP1, LMP2 and LMPC...
), they were so friendly and helpful that it convinced him that he should give it a try. As a young person coming out of very amateur racing, it was a big step. He quickly discovered in the first year of racing a Mazda RX-2
Mazda RX-2
The Mazda RX-2 was a midsize car introduced in 1970 and sold through 1978. It used a rotary engine and shared a chassis with the piston-engined Mazda Capella/616/618....
in the old RS series that he got more experience in one year than he had in the last six years in club racing.
Sponsored by the Mazda factory for his entire IMSA
International Motor Sports Association
The International Motor Sports Association is an American sports car auto racing sanctioning body based in Braselton, Georgia. It was started by John Bishop, a former employee of SCCA , and his wife Peggy in 1969 with help from Bill France, Sr...
career, Jim progressed up the competition ladder from the near showroom stock Radial Sedan series Mazda RX-2
Mazda RX-2
The Mazda RX-2 was a midsize car introduced in 1970 and sold through 1978. It used a rotary engine and shared a chassis with the piston-engined Mazda Capella/616/618....
& Mazda RX3, to GTU Mazda RX3 & Mazda RX7 and GTO in the Mazda RX7, then up to the ultra-quick purpose-built GTP category prototypes, all powered by two, three, and four rotor versions of the Mazda
Mazda
is a Japanese automotive manufacturer based in Fuchū, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan.In 2007, Mazda produced almost 1.3 million vehicles for global sales...
Wankel engine. After competing in an Argo built prototype since 1984, in 1988 he began designing and building a prototype racer of his own design. His Kudzu DG-1, made its debut at San Antonio in September 1989.
In 1999, with the demise/reorganization of IMSA series, he moved on to the American Le Mans Series
American Le Mans Series
The American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consists of a series of endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Teams compete in one of five classes: LMP1, LMP2 and LMPC...
with his Kudzu racers until the end of the 2000 racing season, then into an AutoExe Motorsports prototype as his long and successful career wound down.
During his illustrious forty-five year racing career he has either won or scored highly in races at Daytona
Daytona
Daytona may refer to:* Daytona Beach, Florida* Daytona Beach Shores, Florida* South Daytona, Florida-Motor racing:* Daytona Beach Road Course* Daytona International Speedway, a NASCAR speedway, which hosts:** the Daytona 500 NASCAR race...
, Sebring, The Nürburgring
Nürburgring
The Nürburgring is a motorsport complex around the village of Nürburg, Germany. It features a modern Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a much longer old North loop track which was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains. It is located about...
and Le Mans
Le Mans
Le Mans is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region.Its inhabitants are called Manceaux...
. He won several Camel Lights championships, including 41 career victories and is still racing today in SCCA and Formula Atlantic
Formula Atlantic
Formula Atlantic is a specification of open wheel racing car developed in the 1970s. It was used in professional racing through the IMSA Atlantic Championship until 2009 and is currently primarily used in amateur racing through Sports Car Club of America Formula Atlantic.-History:The history of...
(the fastest class in SCCA).
HANS Device
Jim Downing has been credited as the first to identify the problems associated with a restrained torso and an unrestrained head in sudden deceleration impacts, following the 1981 death of Patrick Jacquemart at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseMid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is a road course auto racing facility located in Troy Township, Morrow County, Ohio, United States, just outside of the village of Lexington...
. Jacquemart, the director of Renault
Renault
Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...
Racing in the United States, raced in the GTU Class in the 1981 IMSA
International Motor Sports Association
The International Motor Sports Association is an American sports car auto racing sanctioning body based in Braselton, Georgia. It was started by John Bishop, a former employee of SCCA , and his wife Peggy in 1969 with help from Bill France, Sr...
series, and was at the wheel of his heavily modified Renault 5 Alpine Turbo when he missed the curve at Turn Seven and struck a sandbank with the front of the car. He suffered a fracture of the base of his skull and was pronounced dead on arrival at Morrow County Hospital in Mount Gilead, OH.
With the problem identified, Downing turned to his brother-in-law, Dr. Robert Hubbard, a bio mechanical crash engineer for General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
, to help him design a Head And Neck Support system that would eliminate or protect against these types of injuries. Working together, their goal was to create a device that would reduce the chance of a serious injury caused by the violent movement of the unrestrained head and helmet during a crash. Dr. Hubbard created the first prototypes of the HANS Device
HANS device
The HANS device is a safety item compulsory in many car racing sports...
in the late 1980s, and Downing, as a firm believer of the product he had helped to create, started wearing the untested prototype of the HANS Device
HANS device
The HANS device is a safety item compulsory in many car racing sports...
during his IMSA
International Motor Sports Association
The International Motor Sports Association is an American sports car auto racing sanctioning body based in Braselton, Georgia. It was started by John Bishop, a former employee of SCCA , and his wife Peggy in 1969 with help from Bill France, Sr...
sports car races.