acpat
Well-Known Member
sorry for your friend and family.
Death at the local track
- Thread starter clinteg
- Start date
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nm9stheham
Well-Known Member
A common issue in rallying.... hitting trees sideways. A way to set up the seats better is to run 2 smaller tubes sideways across the floor for the seat to bolt to. Weld the outer ends to a sill tube preferably, or the rocker if no sill bar is installed; put the other ends through slightly larger 'slip' tubes welded to/through the tunnel. In that way, the the seat can move inward a bit if you have a hard sideways hit that crushes in the side bar, sill bar, and rocker on the driver's side.
Sounds like the victim suffered a basilar skull fracture.... same thing that got Dale Earnhart. The only way to have a hope to survive this is a head & neck restraint like a HANS or Simpson Hybrid or similar device that is SFI 38.1. They are not really rated for 100% sideways impacts; the only thing for full side impacts is side nets and on both sides of you head, or a seat with wings by your head.
We have to have the H&N restraints for all sanctioned rallying now... no exceptions. The side head support is not mandated.
dallas ward
Well-Known Member
Its sad to see
Sorry for everyone involved
Especially when safety equipment , tech inspection and driver error are to blame.
But with the speeds involved in drag racing we all run the risk of death even with the best tracks, equipment , teck inspections and skills
People who love to drag race know there are possibilities of accidents and still do it
Please don't take this the wrong way as I meant no disrespect to anyone
Sorry for everyone involved
Especially when safety equipment , tech inspection and driver error are to blame.
But with the speeds involved in drag racing we all run the risk of death even with the best tracks, equipment , teck inspections and skills
People who love to drag race know there are possibilities of accidents and still do it
Please don't take this the wrong way as I meant no disrespect to anyone
65_valiant
Well-Known Member
One of the local speed shops almost immediately offered an at cost offering for anyone that wanted a Hans device, any model.
65_valiant
Well-Known Member
Was his cage adequate for 10.80's?
How many passes did he make before he wrecked?
He knew the car was in the 9.20'same with high 150's low 160's in late February.
If he lied to tech, I don't know that I could blame tech or the track, unless he was making several passes at that speed.
Either way, I've been stopped for running high 13's with no helmet there back in the early 2000's time frame. I haven't raced there in years, so maybe they're much looser with their enforcement now.
The cage was adequate for 10.80's. But you don't go out thinking you might run that and pull off a near 8 second run. He knew what it'd run. So yeah the track isn't going to be in any sort of fault here.
67redcudavert
Well-Known Member
From what you were saying earlier it sounds like he ran into the end of the guardrail where there is an opening. I don't think any cage in the world would have saved him.
Because of crashes like that is why the big tracks have had the solid concrete barriers for a while now.
I was at Indy in 79 when they still had the armco guardrails with the turnoff openings. A guy on a motorcycle lost it and ran into the end of the rail at a turnoff opening. Also at the same event a nitro car blew off it's blower which went sailing way high in the air and nailed a TV cameraman on a 3 story tall scaffolding, knocking him off.
Somewhere in the 80s they started putting in concrete barriers, but still with openings, but not with blunt ends. I was at Indy in 96 when Blaine Johnson made a pass, blew his engine at the finish line which took out a rear tire and the wing so he lost control and hit the wall where the opening was.
Now they have the concrete barrier in a solid straight line from the starting line to the end of the track with maybe a heavy gate way down track.
It has been said over the years that rulebooks are written in blood......
Because of crashes like that is why the big tracks have had the solid concrete barriers for a while now.
I was at Indy in 79 when they still had the armco guardrails with the turnoff openings. A guy on a motorcycle lost it and ran into the end of the rail at a turnoff opening. Also at the same event a nitro car blew off it's blower which went sailing way high in the air and nailed a TV cameraman on a 3 story tall scaffolding, knocking him off.
Somewhere in the 80s they started putting in concrete barriers, but still with openings, but not with blunt ends. I was at Indy in 96 when Blaine Johnson made a pass, blew his engine at the finish line which took out a rear tire and the wing so he lost control and hit the wall where the opening was.
Now they have the concrete barrier in a solid straight line from the starting line to the end of the track with maybe a heavy gate way down track.
It has been said over the years that rulebooks are written in blood......
A couple of observations;
The star-telegram stated he had been racing 15 yrs., he was 34, certainly not a novice.
Exactly which one of us was in the car w/him when it came unglued?
The day before the exact same thing happened to another driver who luckily came away
with only broken ribs, prompting this driver to avoid that lane.
"He never lifts", so?? Almost nobody lifts until they believe they are about to actually lose
control, and this ain't his 1st rodeo w/ this car, it is always "under control" 'till it ain't.
Who the hell said backing out of the throttle of a FWD car going 150 is a good idea?It is
a directionally DE-stabilizing move, unlike a RWD w/big meats on the back, we don't know
exactly what the car was doing under him by the term "squirrelly".
When you know there are rules for safety,and you ignore them,then lie about ignoring
them, you have only yourself to blame if the lack of them kills you.
Tracks count on patronage to stay in business, and like it or not, there is a sizable cast
of whiners at the races. The smart thing would be to eliminate early turn-off lanes to
remove any gaps at the high speed part of the run-out section, but plenty of crabbing
from folks w/ slower cars "having to go all the way down" to the end makes them a
bit hesitant. Various other safety concerns and attendent inconveniences likewise.
In the end, even the correct mods and equip. he should've had may not have saved
his life, it is the peril of the sport. And we lost another one RIP...........
The star-telegram stated he had been racing 15 yrs., he was 34, certainly not a novice.
Exactly which one of us was in the car w/him when it came unglued?
The day before the exact same thing happened to another driver who luckily came away
with only broken ribs, prompting this driver to avoid that lane.
"He never lifts", so?? Almost nobody lifts until they believe they are about to actually lose
control, and this ain't his 1st rodeo w/ this car, it is always "under control" 'till it ain't.
Who the hell said backing out of the throttle of a FWD car going 150 is a good idea?It is
a directionally DE-stabilizing move, unlike a RWD w/big meats on the back, we don't know
exactly what the car was doing under him by the term "squirrelly".
When you know there are rules for safety,and you ignore them,then lie about ignoring
them, you have only yourself to blame if the lack of them kills you.
Tracks count on patronage to stay in business, and like it or not, there is a sizable cast
of whiners at the races. The smart thing would be to eliminate early turn-off lanes to
remove any gaps at the high speed part of the run-out section, but plenty of crabbing
from folks w/ slower cars "having to go all the way down" to the end makes them a
bit hesitant. Various other safety concerns and attendent inconveniences likewise.
In the end, even the correct mods and equip. he should've had may not have saved
his life, it is the peril of the sport. And we lost another one RIP...........
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