Yesterday's race - NASCAR

[QC]

If you didn't see the finish you need to . . .

Crazy race, and once again NASCAR will have to respond to Talladega critics concerning danger to the fans. I think they were lucky that nobody was killed, but you could also argue that the fence did it's job. Wow!

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

That was a wild ride for Carl! Amazing he got out and ran across the finish line... He is a great guy.I have met him several times and he is always friendly and down to earth.

How much you want to bet one of those fans will file a lawsuit against the Speedway...
The fence did its job in my opinion.

 

[QC]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

How much you want to bet one of those fans will file a lawsuit against the Speedway...

I don't think you could give me good enough odds to bet against a sure thing . . .

 

[nlain]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

Can you imagine sitting there watching that car and fence coming at you, course it was over before the real fear set in. It did look like some debris did go inside the fence.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

The local news said 7 people in the stands were injured.2 of those were air lifted to the hospital.
They expect them to be ok but air lifted them to get them out of there instead of waiting for the traffic to clear.

 

[aspeck]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

Yep ... petty amazing. Shame Smoke lost a cylinder and that JR just couldn't do it. Fun race to watch, even before the last 20 laps ... what, about 60 lead changes????

 

[QC]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

Yeah, it was fun. I follow the #31 which may have been the car to beat. Came back from 3 laps down. Lead the race before and after. Just didn't have the right partner in the final laps.

That new two-car-super-draft deal is interesting . . .

 

[aspeck]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

Yea, it was amazing how the right 2 cars hooking up could boost speed by about 5 or 6 miles per hour, for a while, anyway. Amazing that the 2 car set up was far superior to the "train."

Not a Burton "fan" but I gotta give him credit for being there at the end after being 3 laps down. Definitely had one of the fastest cars on the track.

And sitting in the back all day might have gotten Edwards to the front at the end, but didn't protect him to the finish ...

 

[tommays]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

Well it was buy the grace of god that only somebodys jaw got broken and it did not hit a bit higher and kill them


Much like the recent monster truck sadness when a truck part killed a child in the stands they JUST CAN NOT allow it to stay the same after a close call like this

That car was way to close to GOING OVER or THROUGH the fence and causing total carnage in the stands

 

[BoatBuoy]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

Two things kinda interested me. First, Jr, even not winning, had a big grin on and talked about how much fun that was. Didn't seem the least bit sullen. Second, Carl wasn't the least bit mad about being take out on the last turn, in fact he was most gracious. He just said something about "that's what racing's all about". Some others would have been quite angry.

 

[triumphrick]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

Two things kinda interested me. First, Jr, even not winning, had a big grin on and talked about how much fun that was. Didn't seem the least bit sullen. Second, Carl wasn't the least bit mad about being take out on the last turn, in fact he was most gracious. He just said something about "that's what racing's all about". Some others would have been quite angry.

And what about "the kid" Keselowski???? He was gracious himself as well. Easy since he just won the race. But he was adamant about not going below the line and standing his ground.....great job!!!

 

[Rocky_Road]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

How much you want to bet one of those fans will file a lawsuit against the Speedway...
The fence did its job in my opinion.

Ever 'read' the legal fine print on the back of your ticket?

You are attending the event at your own peril...and your exchanging the ticket for entry to the event, 'seals the deal'!

I was at Talladega many years ago (1993), when Neil Bonnett took out a section of the fence in my seating section. They red flagged the race, until the fence could be fixed. Even then, the fence did it's intended job!

I have seen many Talladega, and Daytona, races both pre and post restrictor plates. In my opinion, the unrestricted racing was the safer of the two...and I would wager that the drivers feel the same.

 

[ne7800]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

That was a great race, I was proud to call my self a Carl Edwards fan after his interview. I am mostly a Jr fan but i like alot of other drivers.

 

[QC]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

I have seen many Talladega, and Daytona, races both pre and post restrictor plates. In my opinion, the unrestricted racing was the safer of the two...and I would wager that the drivers feel the same.

You may be correct, but with one big problem . . . My understanding was that the plate was introduced to keep speeds below 200 MPH to prevent a car from getting into the stands. It seems to me that if Carl's car was going 230+ MPH backwards that it could've gotten even higher into the air. If it did get any higher, assuming all else was the same, it would've been in the stands.

IMHO, the problem is not with the cars. Never was. It is the tracks. Talladega and Daytona were built when these cars couldn't get around them at the speeds they do. The idea was to allow the cars to go faster; long straightaways and high banking. Heck a couple of years ago, the open wheel guys had to cancel a race at Texas because they were losing consciousness in the turns. That's because the track had not kept up with the capability of the cars.

So instead of dealing with the inevitable redesigning or closing of Daytona and Talladega, they used a bandaid which opened up the law of unintended consequences and voila, 43 cars, all going the same speed. So, yes, while the Freight Train may be a less safe condition, they are at least still mostly limited to 200 where aerodynamics has a harder time overcoming gravity than at 230 . . .

Solution? Flat corners.

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

i love plate racing. too bad the first wreck was at seven laps. would have been more exciting if all 43 cars raced like that most of the day. exciting finish. glad no one was seriously injured.

 

[Rocky_Road]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

You may be correct, but with one big problem . . . My understanding was that the plate was introduced to keep speeds below 200 MPH to prevent a car from getting into the stands. It seems to me that if Carl's car was going 230+ MPH backwards that it could've gotten even higher into the air. If it did get any higher, assuming all else was the same, it would've been in the stands.

IMHO, the problem is not with the cars. Never was. It is the tracks. Talladega and Daytona were built when these cars couldn't get around them at the speeds they do. The idea was to allow the cars to go faster; long straightaways and high banking. Heck a couple of years ago, the open wheel guys had to cancel a race at Texas because they were losing consciousness in the turns. That's because the track had not kept up with the capability of the cars.

So instead of dealing with the inevitable redesigning or closing of Daytona and Talladega, they used a bandaid which opened up the law of unintended consequences and voila, 43 cars, all going the same speed. So, yes, while the Freight Train may be a less safe condition, they are at least still mostly limited to 200 where aerodynamics has a harder time overcoming gravity than at 230 . . .

Solution? Flat corners.

I once asked Dale (Sr.) how he felt about the restrictor plate. His answer was pretty revealing...and made perfect sense:

Non restricted racing meant that he always had a 'little' extra in reserve...and could count on using that to make a pass. He said that he (and all of these expert drivers) knew the limits of the track, and the limits of the car...and drove accordingly. The restrictor plate made all the cars pretty much 'equal', and they had to drive them full bore 100% of the race. The ONLY way left to gain position, was to bunch up and draft...and that is what we see at every race now. You put 40+ cars inches apart, for 500 miles, all going 100%...and you see some crazy things happening! This might make for fun racing, from a fan's standpont...but I know for a fact, that the driver's think it suxs.

Jimmy Johnson pretty much stated the above, when he was interviewed after being knocked out of the race...he said that as long as NASCAR made them race in a "box" (restricted plate traffic jams), this will keep happening. And he added..."until someone gets killed"....

 

[roscoe]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

Ever 'read' the legal fine print on the back of your ticket?

You are attending the event at your own peril...and your exchanging the ticket for entry to the event, 'seals the deal'!

Yeah, that is the intent of the disclaimer. But in reality, it only keeps the small lawsuits away.

Time and time again, the courts have sided with the injured attendees/spectators, when the injuries get bad enough. Usually it is based on that the spectator (or any common person buying a ticket) is not informed of the specific dangers they could be exposed to, and could therefore not be held the to terms of the "contract."

 

[nlain]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

When those guys are running like that if you watch the in camera shots look at how they are moving around, constantly up and down and side to side, that side to side bounce is what caused the first wreck. I don't know if there is a real solution to super speedway racing and safety, racing and safety really do not go together, that is why they have all of that safety equipment in the cars and on the drivers and around the track. Its a safe as they can make it and they hope it works.

 

[fire831]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

My opinion is if you want to set that close to the track you should assume all responsibility for debris coming through the fence. As far as that goes, I would say where ever you set. Like was said about the back of the tickets, it spells out the danger of watching a race live.

 

[BoatBuoy]

Re: Yesterday's race - NASCAR

My opinion is if you want to set that close to the track you should assume all responsibility for debris coming through the fence. As far as that goes, I would say where ever you set. Like was said about the back of the tickets, it spells out the danger of watching a race live.

fire831, you may not know it, but those seats are the "cheap seats", the bleachers, if you will. Folks only sit that close if they can't afford, or choose not to afford, more expensive seats.