After putting my Daytona on its roof at Norwalk and sliding safely down the track I love tracks with concrete walls. Our local track PRP still has the old metal guardrails and it kinda makes you stop and think about how fast things turn ugly.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Prb-c7_Fhk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OHM3qtfVuE&feature=related

This track is Northtstar raceway in Denton Tx...We race our small tire headsup car there all the time and track is known for great hook and fast times.You dont't normally see cars get loose there,but this was a grudge race and they can run way into the night with chances of dew falling,making it very slick...BTW i think driver was ok,but car ruined...

Glad our tracks don't have steel guard rails. That wreck looks nasty and glad he walked away and looks to have had his safty equipment. Luckily cecil,atco,englishtown and maple grove all have walls!

IMO, It could have been worse with a retaining wall, The way he propelled nearly at a straight angle into that guardrail it took the shock of the impact, A wall would not & most likely trapped him in the car if it crumpled up or just the shock of a hard solid hit on his body could have done serious damage, not too mention it kicking to the side & slamming the drivers side against the wall, Thats 2 hard impacts, not good. The only negative was it rolling, BUT it landed on grass. Either way its good to know he's OK.

There was a similar crash at a track we used to race at in Ubly, Mi.. A guy with a fast T-Bird made a hard left and launched the car into an end over end crash that almost went over the fence. VERY scarry to see in person.

Randy

We had a bad wreck a few weeks ago at PRP. The car launched over the guardrail and came down down were spectators and racers usually are. Very lucky day. I didn't see it but my son did.

There was a bad one on you tube from Carlsbad (RIP). Couldn't find it, but it was a nitrous Chevelle PSCA car, IIRC. The guardrail came thru the car inches from the driver.

The guy that wrecked had a ladder bar break and that is what caused him to shoot across the reack like that. He actually hit the tow vehicle of the guy he was racing when he hit the fence by the pits. He got out under his own power and only had some cut and bruises.
We raced at Denton the next day and the track hooked fine. I have raced there well into the night and had not problems hooking.
I hope they replace the guardrail with retaining walls this winter.

A couple years ago,I watched a guy racing his motorcycle hit the steel guardrail at a local track. He came off the bike and slid across the top of the rail until he hit an I beam that supported it and it killed him.
My wife's uncle races Harley's and watched a good friend of his lose a leg by hitting a steel guardrail at speed at another track. Most motorcycle racers HATE guardrails.
I love being surrounded by a rollcage and figure those guys have way bigger kahunas than I do.
Keith

Hey John,

Was there a You Tube video of Barry Donnelly's Cuda wreck this year???

thats a bad one.......

Mike,

I'm GLAD that Dad was OK after what I heard about the crash!!

He told me at Norwalk that Randy did a SUPER job on the car!!

Kind of strange about the issue of the upper control arm as well!!

Are you guys coming to PRP for the Halloween race??

Years ago, at CFR, Terry Stumpf's Mustang got sideways into the armco near the first turn off. Terry died at the scene. I was there, and can still see it. He died in front of his family, who were there, in his permanent track parking spot. A sobering reminder to be ultra safe, and an even sobering reminder, that horrible accidents can happen.

Thanks. He’s fine now, he had some bruised ribs (might have been broke but he didn’t get it checked) and a concussion from his helmet hitting the cage so hard (and yes the cage was padded). Ironically in this case the cage did more harm then good! He also wasn’t good enough to drive afterwards so I drove his rig home.

And yes, Randy did a fantastic job getting it fixed, and in only 6 weeks which was astonishing! Replaced the fender and lower rear quarter but he did save the door, amazingly enough.

I think you’re referring to the lower control arm. After he did get the body fixed and a new rack & pinion (still CAP Auto) he took it out to BSD for Flashback Friday. Following a run he went to back the car into his pit, turned the steering and the lower control arm broke! Good thing it wasn’t on the track this time!!!!! So between that and the Rack & Pinion issue it’s my opinion that CAP produces a horrible product that can cause the loss of life and limb!

We both plan on coming out to PRP for the Halloween race. He obviously ripped the CAP front end out and replaced it with a stock unit done up similar to a SS/AH car. He has it all together but is only waiting on Barton making him an oil pan for it which should be done today actually.

Got guard rails at MUNCIE DRAGWAY, which is where I race alot. The guardrails act like a lanching pad when folks get into them.

The famed "CHICKEN HAWK' Studebaker mets its demise at the Muncie track. The guardrail catapulted him into the sky. It was the most violent crash i have ever seen in person or on TV.

The guardrails are exactly why NHRA won't have any kind of race there.

Good for NHRA
I believe they do a lot for racer's safety.
Those metal rails are terrible, I bet they are CHEAP though. Goes to show CHEAP isn't always the best way.
Don