All of us Must Have Lived a Blessed Life!

[Florida_Slotter]

[waaytoomuchintothis]

Yep. Me too. I think about it now and then, and I think the difference is partly the the technology and the changes in the cars, and most importantly, there were a heck of a lot less folks in the way. The last time I went to a drag meet there must have been 50,000 people there. But also, in those days when an idea didn't work, we didn't do it anymore. There were lots of big time blow ups and crashes in practice and while working out engine modifications in the 50s and 60s, but when something was a bad idea we just did something else until we got it right. Today, with micro adjustments and insanely complex equipment, you can't decide if something will work with a torque wrench and common sense. I hated to see my favorite drag class disappear, but the truth is, AA Altereds were crazy dangerous and hopped all over the track from time to time. Of course Funny Cars always seemed a bit nuts to me after the Altereds were gone to museums, so who knows- not me. I've seen blowers pop straight up off an blown engine, several engines that just blew up, and some transmissions, too. But the old days of Formula One had lots of lethal crashes into the crowds. One was so horrific that Ferry Porsche left F-1 forever. I think Porsche came back for a while many years later, but he said at the time that that was IT. He and Enzo Ferrari were both very cantankerous people.

[DAVE]

Up until about ten years ago there were a lot of areas at Road America where only snow fencing
separated the spectators from the track. Cars have certainly become faster, and better protection
was necessary. Also people are much more prone to sue a track if something does happen. Lawsuits
started to be filed the Monday after the wreck which happened on Saturday at Daytona. At RA,
all that was needed was for a wheel to come off a car and bounce into a small group of spectators,
and they put up the tall fencing that surrounds the track now. There are still a few small tracks in the
area which don't have the tall fencing, but I'm sure it is only a matter of time before they go that route.

[Ember]

Each movement forward in safety is as the result of a disaster. It's just that the reactions to a disaster happen more quickly these days.

I think there was also an acceptance of a level of danger in earlier times that does not exist now. Let's face it, the current trend is that people are not responsible for their own actions. If a kid trips over a crack in the pavement while walking along the street texting someone on their phone, who is to blame? The kid for not paying attention? Not any more. It is the council's fault for having a crack in the pavement. Or it is the phone company's fault.

Risk is no longer an acceptable thing. Nor are people expected to be responsible for their own actions.

[TsgtRet]

I'm all for safety and protection of the participants and the spectators. I agree that a new disaster brings changes (not always improvements) in the racing world. One of the reasons is, given the chance, humans will be stupid and as a result they need to be protected from themselves. Unfortunately, as this has progressed, racing has lost some of it's "midnite oil, coal shed, greasy garage floor" flavor. Look at an old SCCA program from the 50s: "Keep your distance; racing is dangerous". Can you imagine what the lawyers/insurance companies/etc would say to that today? I understnad the changes but am glad I got to see it "how it was".

[whitworthnut]

[waaytoomuchintothis]

Peter, does that photo make you wince?

[whitworthnut]

Just a tad.

It was actually quite a well known and very hot car, driven for the most part by Wilbur Lamoreux, former World Speedway champion. Bob Sullivan bought it in the hopes he'd win some races. He ultimately sold it to Earl Gandel, Manager of the Bridgehampton Raceway. It's life ended when hit by a Cadillac. I have a picture of that as well.

[Cjent]

Not to be a person who looks at "the dark side" of racing, but from the 1955 LeMans tragedy through 1973, when Sir Jackie and others finally brought safety to the fore, a lot of great drivers died.
The lawsuits should be thrown out of court. When you buy the tickets, they state you sign away the right to do so. We had to sign a waiver the minute we entered the track last Saturday + when you enter your car to run, or to be a driver, you sign yet another waiver.
America thinks it can sue for stubbed toes today.
OK, rant over.

[waaytoomuchintothis]

That's certainly true, but the use of waivers to bluff people out of their rights is just as widespread. The truth is, no matter what you sign, under any circumstances, you simply cannot sign away your Constitutional rights. Any document that claims you did so is prima facea invalid. Constitutional rights can only be taken away as an order from criminal court.

The answer is also simple... We should feed all the lawyers and the super-rich to the poor and hungry then get on with our lives in peace and harmony.

[ElSecundo]

[Florida_Slotter]

[nhdungeonracer]

[whitworthnut]

You'll find that once you bury Lawyers, they're OK. Because deep down, they're really nice people.

[VenturaAlfa]

Keep in mind too that driver's dying is considered to be a bad idea. Dale Earnhardt's death cost NASCAR a ton of fans. Revenue lost because he was killed. Not something any sanctioning body wants. The same happened in Indycar. I think you can even say part of the demise of Indycar is due to driver's deaths. Fans stop watching when their favorite guy gets killed. No sponsor out there considers it to be good publicity when their sponsored car has a driver killled in it or pieces of it with the sponsor logo fly into the crowd.

Leadfinger1 made a great point on liability.

When I go to a Sprint Car race at the local track or at Perris I take into account where a car that catches a rim might potentially land but I don't think that occurs to most people. Most people think a catch fence will catch a car no matter what but that only works if the car does not clear the fence.

Santa Maria Speedway sits on the side of small hill. A few years ago we were walking up to the ticket booth which is below turn 1. I could hear somebody trying to qualify and then it got real quiet real quick. I looked up and a sprint car had cleared the fence upside down. It had caught the right rear and flipped over the fence. The driver and I were staring at each other from about 40 feet away. The car landed in what would have been the ticket line if enough people had been there. I got to the driver first. He was shaken but ok. Fortunately, no one was hurt but that convinced my then girlfriend to never go to another race.

Lighten up on lawyers a little bit. I am one and the good ones don't appreciate those kind of jokes. I'm fairly thick skinned but would rather not read them in a slot car thread.

Ventura Alfa