Last week, the RC industry received the unfortunate news of a track in Uniontown, OH closing over liability concerns stemming from an accident that left a spectator with a broken arm. The ensuing discussion immediately turned toward the subject of insurance, finger pointing in several directions, and many different versions of “the right thing to do.”
However, the bigger issue that arose in this situation is how the RC industry is struggling to deal with growing pains.
Without a crystal ball, it’s impossible to tell what kind of effect a wave of new products will have on the climate of the industry, which is still relatively young - true RC cars only began showing up in the last half of the 20th century. Technology has done amazing things for RC, creating the opportunity for new vehicles that have capabilities far exceeding the realm of possibility with previous generations of equipment. That skyrocketing curve of progression has had a lot of consequences for the end consumer, both good and bad.
Just thirteen years ago, it took a team of engineers creating a custom-built chassis to set an official world record over 100 mph. Now you can buy an RC car that does it out of the box, with at least a dozen more available that would earn a speeding ticket on almost any U.S. highway. It’s an incredible milestone culminating from modern engineering marvels in many different industries that have been translated into the niche market of radio-controlled cars.
But is it a good thing? People are dying at an alarming rate because they don’t respect the danger of using their smart phones when they should be focusing on piloting 4000 lb.+ chunks of metal, rubber, and flammable liquids. Should that same population have access to the incredible RC performance currently available? With no formal training available and no pre-purchase requirement whatsoever, anyone with cash or a credit card can take home something that has more potential to do bodily harm than what anyone might expect. All it takes is the arrogance to ignore the “this is not a toy” warning on a hobby-grade RC vehicle and you’re one “hey y’all, watch this!” moment away from putting someone in the hospital. And let’s not even breach the subject of careless mistreatment of LiPo packs and the damage that can cause…
Last week, the RC industry received the unfortunate news of a track in Uniontown, OH closing over liability concerns stemming from an accident that left a spectator with a broken arm. The ensuing discussion immediately turned toward the subject of insurance, finger pointing in several directions, and many different versions of “the right thing to do.”
However, the bigger issue that arose in this situation is how the RC industry is struggling to deal with growing pains.
Without a crystal ball, it’s impossible to tell what kind of effect a wave of new products will have on the climate of the industry, which is still relatively young - true RC cars only began showing up in the last half of the 20th century. Technology has done amazing things for RC, creating the opportunity for new vehicles that have capabilities far exceeding the realm of possibility with previous generations of equipment. That skyrocketing curve of progression has had a lot of consequences for the end consumer, both good and bad.
Just thirteen years ago, it took a team of engineers creating a custom-built chassis to set an official world record over 100 mph. Now you can buy an RC car that does it out of the box, with at least a dozen more available that would earn a speeding ticket on almost any U.S. highway. It’s an incredible milestone culminating from modern engineering marvels in many different industries that have been translated into the niche market of radio-controlled cars.
But is it a good thing? People are dying at an alarming rate because they don’t respect the danger of using their smart phones when they should be focusing on piloting 4000 lb.+ chunks of metal, rubber, and flammable liquids. Should that same population have access to the incredible RC performance currently available? With no formal training available and no pre-purchase requirement whatsoever, anyone with cash or a credit card can take home something that has more potential to do bodily harm than what anyone might expect. All it takes is the arrogance to ignore the “this is not a toy” warning on a hobby-grade RC vehicle and you’re one “hey y’all, watch this!” moment away from putting someone in the hospital. And let’s not even breach the subject of careless mistreatment of LiPo packs and the damage that can cause…
การแปล กรุณารอสักครู่..