FATAL NASCAR CRASHES

Posted 07/07/09 at 3:45 PM PDT by steve.wingate | Email This |

The Car of Tomorrow might produce boring racing, but it saves lives. Does Kyle Busch walk away unscathed after his wreck at Daytona? How about Carl Edwards at Talladega? Thanks to the Car of Tomorrow and other safety advances made both inside and outside the vehicle, Busch and Edwards climbed out of their cars looking as if nothing happened. It was not always this way. It would be unfair to blame the old car for every driver death, but it is fair to say that the Car of Tomorrow is the centerpiece of NASCAR's new era of safety.

We are sharing the videos that follow so that no one forgets the real dangers of stock car racing or takes the sport's current safety standards for granted. If you do not want to view these sad, shocking videos, do not click through. Our condolences and respects go out to all of the families, teams and fans who lost a driver on the track. Let us pray it never happens again.

For anyone who doubts that the COT is saving lives, we offer the following video as Exhibit A.

Now watch Exhibit B.

Notice the similarities between the two wall impacts? Both of them were head-on at roughly the same angle and both happened at extremely high speeds. What were the differences? Other than the fact that McDowell walked away and Earnhardt didn't? Head and neck restraints, the SAFER barrier and the Car of Tomorrow - all mandated by NASCAR to better protect drivers.

Joe Weatherly’s fatal accident at Riverside in 1964: The argument for window nets

As the video explained, Weatherly’s head hit the wall when his car did. Many claim that this is what led to the use of window nets in NASCAR, but nets weren’t actually mandated until Richard Petty’s near-fatal wreck at Darlington in 1970.

Yes, those are Petty's arms hanging out of the window after the wreck. Window nets became mandatory in 1971.

Terry Schoonover killed at Atlanta 1984

Grant Adcox fatal accident in 1989 at the Atlanta Journal 500

Adcox died of severe head and chest injuries, including a heart attack caused by the crash. A post-accident inspection by NASCAR officials revealed the driver’s seat was improperly mounted, which caused it to tear free upon impact and inflict severe injury on Adcox. As a result, NASCAR set new rules for the way seats were mounted for the 1990 season.

J.D. McDuffie dies at The Glen 1991

McDuffie’s car broke a ball joint at full speed, leaving him with no way to slow the car in turn five. Because there was no gravel trap, McDuffie slammed into the tire barrier with such force that his car launched 90 degrees straight up and landed on its roof. As a result, a “bus-stop chicane” was installed later just before turn five to slow the cars down.

Click here for Part Two of this article.

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Bendoya (not verified)4 years ago

What does Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Pink Floyd have in common?
Their last greatest hit was THE WALL !

steve.wingate4 years ago

Sigh... just wanna remind everyone not to feed the trolls.

Chris (not verified)4 years ago

It's horrifying to think what would have happened to Busch in a similar accident twenty years ago. The first hit alone might have severly injured or killed him, the second (Kahne) hit from the rear might have ignited the fuel cell, and if he managed to survive those two, the third (Logano) in the driver-side door would have left him in the same shape as Bobby Allison at Pocono.

steve.wingate4 years ago

Very good points, Chris. Yes, Kyle's impact with the wall was as close to head-on as you can get. The door impact was something I missed the first time. Neil Bonnet suffered a crash similar to Bobby's at Darlington in 1990 (or was it '89? - I forget) that sidelined him until 1993. I fully believe Busch would not have survived the same crash just 10 years ago. That's the point I wanted to make - that these cars survive the egg-drop contest - the COT, as ugly and slow as it may be, is keeping drivers safe.

Anonymous4 years ago

what day she born


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