Irl

#211
#211
doozer said:
All racing is dangerous.
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While this is a true statement, this type of racing with open wheel cars running well over 200 mph three and four wide so close to each other is without doubt the most precarious there is. I have been expecting this to happen, and was fearful that a bad wreck was imminent today. I really think they are going too fast.

I don't know if any are aware, but VN member NissNiss is a close friend of Dan's widow.
 
#212
#212
Burhead said:
If you want to see the wreck its on YouTube, brace yourself before watching it though.
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Thanks for the heads up. Wasn't really looking for a visual, just wanted to know if he hit the wall or got caught up in the field type thing. Either way, guess I'll check it out.

edit: Just watched it...that was brutal.
 
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#214
#214
rbroyles said:
While this is a true statement, this type of racing with open wheel cars running well over 200 mph three and four wide so close to each other is without doubt the most precarious there is. I have been expecting this to happen, and was fearful that a bad wreck was imminent today. I really think they are going too fast.

I don't know if any are aware, but VN member NissNiss is a close friend of Dan's widow.
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i actually texted a friend one lap before this happened that it was going to happen today. i've also stated here numerous times that this is the very reason there aren't large IndyCar fields. i don't disagree.

however, you and i have been going to races for a long time. perhaps twice as long for you. it can happen at any moment in any point of time, and i know that when i go to the track. i've seen drivers walk away from worse and lose their lives from less.

either way, it's never ever easy and incredibly sad.
 
#215
#215
rbroyles said:
While this is a true statement, this type of racing with open wheel cars running well over 200 mph three and four wide so close to each other is without doubt the most precarious there is. I have been expecting this to happen, and was fearful that a bad wreck was imminent today. I really think they are going too fast.

I don't know if any are aware, but VN member NissNiss is a close friend of Dan's widow.
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I have to agree with this. They will have to do something after today.

Watching it, I knew someone had to get hurt, it's just shocking it was Wheldon who seemed to be far behind the initial wreck.
 
#216
#216
This is as sad as it gets. RIP Dan.

Saw both of his 500 wins in '05 and '11 in person at Indy and it'd be hard to find a more gracious guy in racing. As infectious of a smile as you'll see in sports. Always had great respect for him and I can't really find more words to describe this than "heartbreaking", because that's what it is.

Just saw this on Twitter and it's hard to hold back emotion. My design in tribute for #DanWheldon, gone too soon. Forever ... on Twitpic
 
#217
#217
SURFSIDEBEACHVOL said:
I have to agree with this. They will have to do something after today.

Watching it, I knew someone had to get hurt, it's just shocking it was Wheldon who seemed to be far behind the initial wreck.
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That actually may have been why he was going so fast at impact, he was probably too far back to see the start of the incident. It does bring up the question did his spotter get a warning to him?
 
#218
#218
I know I saw it happen on his camera, but he sits well lower than that. And even if his spotter told him, would it have mattered? Those cars close on each other so fast.

Two weeks ago I watched one of the greatest moments I have ever seen in racing when Sarah Fisher and Ed Carpenter went to Victory Lane. Yesterday I watched one of the worst. I'll never forget either moment as long as I live. Racing is so cruel.
 
#219
#219
That syle of racing will always be dangerous until they find a way to protect the drivers from the outside world. I don't know near as much about open cockpit and Indy type cars as I do NASCAR, but it just seems accidents like this have the potential to be fatal if there is nothing more than a helmet protecting the driver.
 
#220
#220
The biggest issue is creating a car that stays on the ground. I think the new car next year will help with this, as the rear wheels will be enclosed somewhat.
 
#221
#221
doozer said:
The biggest issue is creating a car that stays on the ground. I think the new car next year will help with this, as the rear wheels will be enclosed somewhat.
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That's good. Trying to keep all race cars on the ground (especially Indycars) should be a main priority in safety. But another priority should be inclosing the cockpit to protect the driver. Maybe it's not possible to do that, but I've always worried about cars going into the fence or debris hitting drivers in the head. The drivers are just too open to the elements.
 
#222
#222
There's just inherent problems with it, and with Indy cars averaging two and a quarter on oval tracks, there's certainly a limit on how to deal with the problem from an engineering standpoint. Jimmie Johnson came out earlier today and suggested that Indy stop racing on ovals, which I think is probably for the best. It obviously works great for NASCAR, with a car design that obviously lends itself more to safety in dealing with high speed contact, but open wheel racing just can't.

It wouldn't be the first time, either, that a particular series of racing had to call it quits because of safety concerns. I don't know how many, if any of you were up on Group B Rally in the 80's, but it was basically the same thing -- there was really no safe way to put 500+hp, 1500lb hatchbacks on narrow dirt roads so they had to can the whole thing.
 
#223
#223
milohimself said:
There's just inherent problems with it, and with Indy cars averaging two and a quarter on oval tracks, there's certainly a limit on how to deal with the problem from an engineering standpoint. Jimmie Johnson came out earlier today and suggested that Indy stop racing on ovals, which I think is probably for the best. It obviously works great for NASCAR, with a car design that obviously lends itself more to safety in dealing with high speed contact, but open wheel racing just can't.

It wouldn't be the first time, either, that a particular series of racing had to call it quits because of safety concerns. I don't know how many, if any of you were up on Group B Rally in the 80's, but it was basically the same thing -- there was really no safe way to put 500+hp, 1500lb hatchbacks on narrow dirt roads so they had to can the whole thing.
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A big part of the problem with Group B was crowd control, or more correctly, lack of it.
 
#224
#224
Definitely but spectators still watch rally in the same way, but the cars are far tamer.
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#225
#225
milohimself said:
Definitely but spectators still watch rally in the same way, but the cars are far tamer.
Posted via VolNation Mobile
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This. The Group-B cars were simply too fast.


The crowd control was terrible, but the main thing that killed them of was the speed of the cars. According to this link 5 drivers/co-drivers were killed, during group B. Only 3 spectators died during the group B era.

List of fatal World Rally Championship accidents - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For the IRL, it will be interesting on how they approach this. I say they need to consider cockpits, and also going to ovals less than 1.5 miles.

IRL at Bristol. That would be an amazing thing!
 
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