Wrecks are a part of racing. It’s the inherit danger every driver who straps into their cars face. They know that there is a chance to get hurt or worse even die.
It’s why Ernest Hemingway once said, “Auto racing, bull fighting, and mountain climbing are the only real sports ... all others are games.”
No truer words could be spoken about motorsports. It is that danger that propels these drivers to push the edge as close as they can.
It’s also that danger that makes me as a race fan question is it worth it?
Sunday following Dan Wheldon’s tragic and untimely death at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, those thoughts crept back into my head.
For his family, a mother and father lost a son, siblings lost a brother, his wife and two sons lost their father and husband.
The cost of entertainment is far too high.
Wheldon was the only fatality in Sunday’s 15 car crash and thankfully the others involved were okay or released after further evaluation.
Whether you are a seasoned veteran of racing or a rookie behind the wheel, whether you have been following racing your entire life or you just started watching this season, what happened on Sunday is never fully understood.
It is easy to angrily place blame on mitigating factors but in the big picture Wheldon’s death on Sunday leaves this writer wondering have we fooled ourselves into thinking racing is too safe? Have we as race fans become to complacent and not asked what more can Indy Car, NASCAR and other racing series do to protect these drivers?
In NASCAR, we have seen many vicious wrecks. In fact it was Jeff Gordon in 2008 who found the inside wall where there was no SAFER Barrier at LVMS. The wreck was so hard that his entire front end was across the track.
The in-car camera of his impact saw his HANS device do its job but still Gordon admitted in the days after it was one of the hardest hits he had ever taken.
Racing series across the board are always looking to make the sport safer. While moments like Sunday are rare with safety technology in both open wheel and stock cars, the possibility of death lurks around every turn.
NASCAR drivers, officials and owners do not need to be reminded of what a loss like this feels like from the inside. It was the loss of Dale Earnhardt, Adam Petty and others that propelled NASCAR to make major safety improvements with the cars and at the track following 2001.
This loss echoes for motorsports fans as a whole as once again we are forced to face the inner demons of racing at such high speeds.
Wheldon’s death has brought it to the forefront. For fans our outlet is with each other on social networks.
With sites like Twitter and Facebook fans are closer than ever to their favorite drivers or series. They at times get to know them like they are part of the family. It is because of that connection that Sunday loss feels for some it feels like they lost a good friend.
For the drivers they get back in the race car. It is second nature to them, it is what they do.
For the Indy Car series, LVMS was the season finale. Now drviers, owners and crew members will have to wait till 2012 to get back to business and move forward.
I expect though these drivers will never be the same.
For NASCAR drivers they are back at it this weekend at Talladega Super Speedway.There is a title to be decided and like I said it is what they do. As many have said on Monday at a fuel injection test at Charlotte Motor Speedway the only way to deal with it is to get back in the car.
It’s the only thing they can do and know to do in times like these.
For fans they turn to each other and question if the need for this high speed entertainment really worth it?
Meanwhile, family and friends mourn and try to understand the loss of a champion not only on the race track but in life.
RIP Dan Wheldon.
Written by:
