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This was sickening to watch. There are many YT videos of similar Indy oval wall-crashes. Just a small touch or a slip seems to translate to a 100G+ hit to the wall. And Alonzo is leaving F1 for this...
No kidding! This accident and the other bad ones on ovals the past few years should give him pause. IMSA sportscar +WEC would provide a high level of competition week in/out with lower chances of these kind of accidents. Though I still recall the Memo Gidley accident at Daytona, that was nasty too. No racing is "safe"
That would make sense, but I wonder how often (if ever) that is done, due to expense (parts & man hours).
until Sir Jackie Stewart took up the issue of track safety it was just considered risky business and drivers just accepted the risk. He led the move to safer tracks and it is better sport because of it. Its an evolution though and even the 70s races were tame compared to the insanity of the wood board racing tracks of the 20s and road races along tree lined straights with the trees as the crash barriers.
I think they should at least double the height of the safer barrier. It might have helped in this case. The current height is barely taller than one car. Of course it wouldn't help if you got launched real high like Dixon at Indy or Jeff Krosnoff at Toronto. Didn't he hit a street lamp pole? Poles are bad. They are just metal trees.
I'm no doctor, but the words spinal cord injury are very concerning. Let's all hope for the best.
Spinal cord injury is like saying arm injury. There's quite a spectrum of severity from trivial to life changing.
From a trauma standpoint, the cord can be bruised, swollen, stretched, crushed, and transected. Some injuries are simply seen on MRI with minimal to no symptoms for the patient. To the best of my knowledge he does not have a devastating cord injury but I'm one step removed and not professionally involved.
Spinal cord injury is like saying arm injury. There's quite a spectrum of severity from trivial to life changing.
From a trauma standpoint, the cord can be bruised, swollen, stretched, crushed, and transected. Some injuries are simply seen on MRI with minimal to no symptoms for the patient. To the best of my knowledge he does not have a devastating cord injury but I'm one step removed and not professionally involved.
Roger that. And they do mention that they don’t yet know the extent of that injury. Hope for the best.
First, thanks to God that RW is alive, however according to an orthopedic surgeon (not associated with Wickens’ treatment) the most important factor is RW’s neurologic status which has not been released. Neurological recovery from a spinal cord injury could take anywhere from days to years. According to Dr Burns, “Rehabilitation for those who have suffered an injury to the spinal cord can be extensive. Patients not only need to recover from the spinal injury itself but the body also needs times to repair the damage done to the neurological system as muscle, skeletal and other organ systems could be affected.”
As someone who has done DE’s at Poconos Raceway and driven the “IMSA/Long” configuration with the high speed banked turn and hit speeds in excess of 160mph at the end of the ensuing straight, this really brings home just how quickly things can go wrong on track! I know it might be unpopular but is it time to mandate more stringent minimum safety requirements for our PCA HPDE’s? (E.g., HNR, minimum 4pt harnesses, roll cages etc.)
I'm praying he isn't a paraplegic... rather ironic considering who he drives for...
I drove Pocono in 1974 at the Parade. A 914 a couple cars ahead of me put it into the wall pretty much up to his gas tank- needless to say, I didn't push it much after that...
Scott ("hi to my family at home") Pruett had a pretty good career with a lot of hardware in his back- hope Robbie can do something similiar!
I wonder how much Fernando Alonso considered the risks before deciding to go to Indy Car ?
Looking at the serious accidents and deaths on the oval tracks in the past years , my guess is he is making a big mistake !
Let's hope Robert Wickens recovers without too many long term health issues.
Knowing Pocono and the strength of the construction- I'm amazed they were even able to repair it. I don't think they were prepared for such an extensive episode. . Amazing he survived. ..
I just read a article on @robertwickens crash and it said the fence did its job , yes it did keep the car in the track , this is not always the case as shown with @kylelarson42 car where the motor and front suspension was in the stands . All I’m saying is things can always be better and improved , it’s not just good enough !!! I’m asking all the race drivers , fans , and teams to stand together and strive to make change and make it better . We have a amazing sport , let’s make it that much better ! @kylelarson42 @maxpapis @jordan10taylor @lewishamilton @tarsomarquesoficial @tagliani18 @jpmonty2 @simonpagenaud @josefnewgarden @tommykendall11 @josefnewgarden @jimmiejohnson @alexisdejoria @popeofwelding @grahamrahal @
The primary purpose of the fence is to keep cars, parts and debris out of the stands and possibly injuring or killing spectators. The fence keeps as much materials as possible on track. Given the speed and Gs associated with RW's impact, the fence performed spectacularly. Having RW on track where emergency personnel could get to him quickly also counts for something. Imagine if the emergency crew had to go looking for his car's shell in the woods!
08-21-2018, 01:28 PM
