Sprint car racing accident, driver on track killed

[IRGuy]

I know nothing about auto racing, or how drivers are expected to conduct themselves after a fender bender, but it seems to me that an angry driver who is on the track among moving cars under a yellow caution flag trying to get another driver to stop is exercising poor judgement, let alone violating common sense safety protocol. My first thought was here is a Darwin Award candidate, but I will reserve judgement until some of you guys with racing backgrounds have a chance to comment. Sad case in any event!

[CaptPatrick]

Poor judgement? How about NO judgement... He asked for it --- He got it.

[scot]

Stay in the car, or get out and go over the fence... into the in-field, something. Getting out and heading straight at a car moving 100+mph was not a good idea. Still sad, Tony Stewart will have to live with that one for the rest of his life.

[Bruce]

Frankly there is liability on both parts here.

Track owners and sanctioning bodies in circle track racing have long allowed competitors after rubbing accidents to remove themselves from their cars and confront the drivers who they thought were the cause of a wreck. It sells tickets period.

Unless a car is on fire a driver should remain in the car till the safety crew removes them. If they do not they should be fined and suspended from racing for a period, just my opinion.

Getting out on a race track outside of a car is insanity at its least. Its not macho, its stupidity.

NASCAR viewing dropped off for a number of years when they cracked down on the on purpose bumper car incidents on track. Fans screamed foul. So a few years later they backed off and declared "boys have at it". Which is just another way to say its okay to to confront other drivers using a 4000lb weapon.

Second the dirt track car that Tony Stewart was driving are to designed to turn left and slide which is why tires on one side are bigger than the other. He full well knows that when you hit the throttle as Tony clearly did on video I have seen, that the car would fish tale like it did.

Did he mean to run over the other driver? Absolutely not. My guess is he meant to send a message to the other driver and misjudged the distance between him and the out of car driver, the rear tire grabbed the driver and ran him over then thru him.

Two people who both made a foolish mistake that night and as a result someone died.

Tony will be forever changed by the results of his choice.

My guess is like most other changes in racing, someone has to die before rules are made. I would find it hard to believe as a result of this that track owners and sanctioning bodies will no longer allow driver to get out onto the race track after a wreck unless the car is on fire. And drivers will get the message that using your car to get across your POV stops now.

Its all fun and games until someone dies.

[MarkS]

Bruce said,
He full well knows that when you hit the throttle as Tony clearly did on video I have seen, that the car would fish tale like it did.

Tony Stewart is and has always been a hot head jackass. He is guilty of chasing people down on the track after jumping out of his car as well. He slid the car trying get close to the other drive and misjudged the distance. He murdered the guy clear and simple. he should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

As far as the other guy, he is guilty of being an idiot, thats all.

[JeremyD]

#1 rule in racing is stay in your car - unless it's on fire.

One of the things that has not been discussed - is why didn't the red flag come out (and all cars stop where they are) as soon as the guy came out of his car?

BTW sprint cars have around 15" of stagger - the cars look like a crab when they go in a straight line.

[Bruce]

Usually a red flag comes only if there is debris on the track where the line of yellow cautioned cars cannot go by a wreck safely or without picking up large debris in the tire surface.

[JeremyD]

I've been on several race tracks that have "gone red" either because of an accident or personnel on the track. When you have someone out of the car - progressing towards the racing line, even under a yellow, I think it would be appropriate to red flag the session. That's all I'm saying. Guy was wrong to get out of his car. Sad situation

[Bruce]

Jeremy,
That is really rare and I salute the track owner or sanctioning body who threw a red with while people are on the track by foot.

[Bruce]

I would find it hard to believe as a result of this that track owners and sanctioning bodies will no longer allow driver to get out onto the race track after a wreck unless the car is on fire

Seems the cooler heads decided to implement new rules. We'll see how serious they are when the first driver violates those new rules. After all rules are made to be broken.

[IRGuy]

New info released today states that a Grand Jury has exonerated Tony Stewart in the on track death of Kevin Ward, but the bombshell in the same news release is that Ward was high on marijuana at the time of the accident. High while driving a race car? I suppose that explains a lot.. but who in hell drives a race car while stoned? Sadly, I submit Ward's name as a Darwin Award candidate.

http://www.tmz.com/2014/09/24/tony-stew ... d%3D534977

Another article...

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/ ... 4-15-24-19

[Bruce]

You would be surprised at the number of under the influence drivers and crew in auto racing. NASCAR's random drug test has caught drivers and crew in all 3 top series. The most famous being Jeremy Mayfield(meth) in the cup series and Aaron Fike in the truck series who the later admitted to shooting heroin before races and was caught in a parking lot about to shoot up.

Former driver Shane Hmiel was suspended from NASCAR in 2003 for testing positive for marijuana, suspended again in 2005 for testing positive for cocaine and then suspended for life in 2006 after another positive test.

Whats the first lie any drug user convinces themselves of....I can handle it.

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.