I think the first time I saw belt sanders raced was at a tool show by Woodcut at the De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill - must have been around 1998. Seemed pretty harmless to me (as well as a bit pointless!).
However, this US show is using shuttering ply tracks and a lot of entrants are using circular saws, the power provided by the blade digging into the track. There are side rails, but they're only a couple of inches tall. The tools are connected to mains power with very long leads.
All-in-all, it's a H & S inspector's dream, but I do worry about the relative certainty that one will fly off into a spectator. They range from children as young as four, who seem to run about almost at will, to some well-educated elderlys who ought to know better. The final jaw-dropper is that some of the team members are at the far end, waiting to see their machine finish. If that's not asking for trouble, I don't know what is.
Add to all that a pair of real numb-n*t commentators who specialise in winding up the crowd and the entrants to do even more dangerous stuff and it's not hard to see why
Tim was asking for more fishing! I recall Real Time Extra (Sky 135) being mentioned here earlier because of some early morning workshop programmes, but they've stopped now.
<rant> Goodness knows what they're doing on 133 (Real Time), especially with NYW. No matter how devoted a fan you are (and I was one), they just seem to be flinging on repeats at random lately.
A typical week might include part two of the Windsor chair, followed by the flagpole, then part one of the cigar chair, part one of the garage workshop with part two of the roll-top desk bringing up the rear. Planned programming - I don't think so - and even though there's a dedicated forum heaving with complaints along the same lines, they take absolutely no notice at all.
</rant> :x
Aaahh - that's better!
Ray.