I caught a glimse of this news on my phone at work. It was really distressing not knowing more of the story. Thanx for the update, and a speedy recovery to you Tim.
I caught a glimse of this news on my phone at work. It was really distressing not knowing more of the story. Thanx for the update, and a speedy recovery to you Tim.
Jeff Handley
Reynard 84sF
cainesgrandad@yahoo.com ยท www.reynardowners.com
"Luck is when preparation meets opportunity."Roger Penske
Hi all,
Spoke with Tim's brother Brian last. He stated he has six broken ribs, a fractured left tibia, deflated left lung, badly bruised left shoulder and both arms are very bruised, but is expected to make a full recovery.
He also was trying to piece together what happened. I passed on what saw and heard, but I know he would like to see any on-board from any of the cars from behind that may have seen the crash. If you have something to share, feel free to post here or contact me and I'll see about getting a clip to the Gaffney's.
Cheers,
Allan Craighead
eFormulaCarNews.com Managing Editor
(226) 808-9472 Cell
acraighead@howdenmediagroup.com
Only 1 "big one" at Rd Am - a rollover caused by a halfshaft left on the track after a previous wreck in the '99 June Sprints. Had a couple of "small ones" though.Originally Posted by R. Pare
I still have the 87F-type cast bellhousing. I have not yet taken off the body (it's all intact except for the nose and the undertray), but superficially, everything appears to be straight - all the body panels are still fitting as they did originally.
I had a lousy qualifying due to not discovering that I should have been running different GY front tires than I started with, and once I changed to them, the 3rd qual was very short, and my best lap was slowed by having to dive inside an FE at 5 (I was down to 2100 RPM) to get through.
Dave Weitzenhof
Brain fade?
For some reason I thought that the changeover to the Zetec included the new bellhousing.
So what was the other crash I was thinking of?
I think my brain may be fading along with my original hair color!
Maybe the 2 big Nelson Ledges crashes (2002 & 2004)? I did have a small one at Rd Am - bent a front wing on the 1st lap in (I think) 2004 or 2005....So what was the other crash I was thinking of?
I think my brain may be fading along with my original hair color!
Dave Weitzenhof
Close ups of Biner's car.
2003 VanDiemen FSCCA #29
Follow me on Twitter @KeithCarter74
That's right - the other one I was thinking of was at Nelson.
The pictures of Biners car hurts my eyes! I hope his recovery goes well.
I finally did get a a chance yesterday to see Dave Steven's in-car video of the crash which the St. Clair guys were kind enough to show me. I dont know if they will post the video or not, but since there are always 2 sides to every story, I will keep my editorial comments to myself and simply state that my impression is this was an accident waiting to happen right from the start of the race with some very aggressive driving going on.
The crash itself happened right at the kink, A black car, I assujme Gaffney's, went inside a white/light colored car at the apex of the kink touching off a chain collision with cars and parts flying everywhere. Dave Steven's's car ended up with another white colored car on top of his nose, but remarkably came away with only minor damage, which is more than most of the others can say about their cars.
First lap of a long race, cold tires, the pack bunched up, trying to pass in the kink, not a good idea.
Tom
Hard to believe but...
It is hard to believe but according to PF he walked away from this one.
Ingredients: Nothing but Barley, Hops, Water & Yeast.
As i wrote before, after inspecting Biner's car none of us could find any fault with how the driver safety pieces performed. Everything behind the fuel cell was broken in many places, but the driver's compartment did everything it should have.
The same could be said for DaveW's Citation. Also, Johnson's VD took some mighty hits, including DaveW going right into the left side pod hard. Johnson looked very comfortable when i spoke with him at the bone yard.
So the modern cars showed their merits.
On the otherhand, one view of Gaffney's rollbar, and one can only conclude one of two things; 1. There was a construction or design flaw, or 2. The forces of that accident exceeded anything imagined at the time of the design.
OBTW, two years ago I had the driver's side areas of my Reynard re-enforced. The hell with the extra weight.
Hey y'all
I was right behind Gaffney at the kink. We both had a very good start; he was behind me at the green and we went for the inside lane. At T5 I tried to pass the Van Diemen inside/outside and he moved left and right and I didn't make it. Gaffney stayed on the inside and took advantage of the situation and got a good momentum. We went side by side and then he got by ("better than crash" I thought at that point); we entered the Carousel and Gaffney gained momentum on the Van Diemen and decided to go to the right of it - inside at the kink. There was not much room and he put the two right wheels on the grass, tha cars touched (wheel to wheel) and shot to the left wall. I saw Gaffney car climbing over the other and could see his floor rotating with the roll cage on the wall/catch fence side. Pieces coming; at first it look like the Van Diemen was going back in the middle of the track and I slowed down. When I thought I could make it through I got hit from behind. Nonetheless, I still made it with minor damage all considered. With an aerodynamically challenged car that wasn't shifting well after the hit and a vibration on the rear we still took the restart and at that point I thought it was worth it just to see the checkered flag!
I thought the worst for Gaffney then and I am happy he is going to be okay! I also wish Keith Roberts a speedy recovery for his hand!
As for us, we didn't have a good week, but after all looking back at the race we probably had a lucky one- it still rolled in the trailer.
Ross
P.S. My video stopped working, but David Stevens might put his on youtube this week.
P.P.S. Hey Chuck, maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to pull off at the start...
I was helping crew for one of the accident victims and we're pretty interested in seeing what happened.
Keith Roberts' weekend started badly and steadily got worse. Even though he was never able to get a decent lap in qualifying (due to a dozen different reasons), we expected to have a good race and move up a lot and salvage the week. Instead, well, you know what happened. Keith arrived back in GA a few hours ago and headed straight to a specialist to schedule surgury on his hand tonight or tomorrow.
The Runoffs is a great event, but it's too bad it often ends in disappointment for so many. As I write that, I'm thinking particularly of some very talented drivers and teams in FF & FC. I guess their only consolation is there are a lot of people who know they are great, even if they don't come home with medals.
Racer Russ
Palm Coast, FL
In Car Footage
I have in car footage that I will do my best to post on YouTube tonight (depending on my kids time availability) and post the link when it's up. I also won't hold back my editorial comments.
After a couple of horrible qualifying efforts, and stuggling to get the car right, I thought we finally had found an excellent balance in the set-up to make a nice run up the order during the race. Then I went and made a poor start to boot, so I'm still kinda ticked for putting myself in a position to be caught up in an incident like we saw at the kink.
I was the third third car in-line behind the incident (Rossella was first on the scene, followed by Smart, myself, Dave W, then the rest of the field.) My first thought was disbelief that someone would make that move, quickly followed by the realization that this was going to be really bad.
As I saw Gaffney go under Johnson, make contact, and the explosion of pieces and parts start, I lifted, and got turned sideways (still not sure if I got tagged from behind or not.) As my car got straightened out, Smart's car was moving across my field of vision from left to right (minus his rear wing) towards hard contact with the inside wall eventually coming to rest partially on top of the front of my car. I really don't know what happened behind me, other than Dave told me afterwards that he got hammered from behind while checking up, and knocked into a car in front of him, which means it's conceivable he clipped me and then hit Smart, turning Smart hard right across the track into the wall in front of me.
Keith, I spoke with your crew Saturday evening, while you were still in hospital to see how you were doing, hope you heal up quickly. (I didn't recognize Defer's old car with the new colors on it, the flourescent green accents are way cool!)
While I'm glad to hear that Gaffney is going to be OK, and I could be politically correct and describe his move as an overly optimistic overtaking attempt gone bad, but the bottom line is, it was a STUPID move to divebomb somebody into the kink, especially on the first lap, on cold tires. There was realistically a zero percent chance of that move ever working, and in the meantime he put himself in the hospital (and luckily not the morgue,) destroyed his car, and tore up thousands of dollars of other people's equipment.
While my assesment of his judgement may be harsh, my best wishes for a complete recovery do go out to Mr. Gaffney also.
Dave
PS: After getting out of medical, I had time to get down to turn 5 and enjoy watching most of the restarted race. Congratulations to all of the Podium finishers, excellent drives by all, with a really impressive outside pass by Pritchard at T5 for second. Congrats to Cole for bringing the Swift home 4th, right on the heels of the fight for second and third.
Last edited by Dave Stevens; 09.29.09 at 12:01 AM.
Did the Stewards take any action regarding this event? Were any protests filed against the driver that caused this accident?
Rossella:
Is that one of your special setups for high-banked ovals?
Glad to hear that everyone is going to be fine, with a bit of a recovery period.
Hey Rick,
You should've come up, it was a great time
I am not aware of any protest but I have wondered the same thing. We were all released from the boneyard after a couple of hours and I had the feeling that maybe the stewards were satisfied that no one got killed and decided to leave it at that considering all the damage. As far as I know no statements were taken or footage confiscated to assist with the investigation. I wouldn't want to see a witchhunt but in my opinion this sucks as this was(again in my own opinion) an unecessary event.
I'm very glad that Tom and Keith were the only ones seriously injured and that both of them are expected to recover to 100%. I hope that all involved recover from thier bruises and have the resources to rebuild thier efforts and contuinue racing. There was a lot of carnage, work, expense, and discouragement to go around.
Outside of the massively arduous week which ended far worse than I could imagine at the time it was great to be at the Runoffs and get the chance to meet and hang out with so many people from here and all over the country that love racing. RA is an awesome venue and the Runoffs will always be a special event.
Congrats to Niki, Justin, and Revere on a well run race. Congrats to Rossella and Phil for perseverance, and congrats to all involved for working to make it happen. Sucks that C Moran broke, I was really looking forward to seeing him rock it in the rocker arm car....
-William
Last edited by GrandMarnier; 09.29.09 at 8:25 PM.
Only once did I hear anyone mention protest, and it was met with a shrug. I took it to mean that it wouldn't really improve anything.
This might be nitpicky, but the doctor told Keith his hand (left hand & he's left handed) will never be as good as it was.
Keith had surgery this morning. I haven't talked with him today, but assume and hope it went well.
Racer Russ
Palm Coast, FL
Dave's Vid
I saw that Dave was going to try to post this last night and it seems he did but never posted it on here for everyone to see. I am not sure that I can see very much of what happened from this position but still looked awful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLuRhk5k8oI
-Nick
He did, just in a new thread.
http://www.apexspeed.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36282
2003 VanDiemen FSCCA #29
Follow me on Twitter @KeithCarter74
The only car I hit was Johnson's, after I got launched from behind.
I was just a little too far back to see the start of the incident, but I was trying REALLY hard to get cleanly through the 1st lap and then, hopefully, start moving up after things settled down.
Considering how hard I got hit and then impacted Johnson's car, my car came out remarkably good. All the rear damage was to the rear wing, rearmost part (the separate extension piece) of the undertray and a couple of strakes, and rear trans cover. The front damage was to the front wing (destroyed), nose & nosebox (both destroyed), and master cylinders. No major (edit) suspension or frame damage. The rear hit was hard enough to fry my DAQ steering wheel display.
Same for me. Regardless of who was to blame, I'm really glad everyone will be (mostly) OK.
Last edited by DaveW; 10.01.09 at 8:51 AM. Reason: Found some minor suspension damage
Dave Weitzenhof
Thanks for the clarification Dave. I know your car was on the left side of the track, but couldn't remember it's position in relation to the other cars involved. Glad to hear your car's not too bad, all the cars looked pretty rough after the accident.
Dave
Dave actually DROVE his car back from the Bone Yard.
Currently Without Car
Sorry to hear about the accident and the damage to all the cars - not to mention people.
I have met Tim, he is a friendly individual who helped me track down some parts for an Royale RP3 project about 15 years ago. I have seen him race several times and he obviously is a tallented driver.
That being said, there is a difference between talent and judgment. It takes both to be some one I want to race with and admire. While the account is second hand, the description of the accident given by one of Tim's sponsors - Autoexremist.com and attributed to him is far from contrite.
http://www.autoextremist.com/fumes1/
I had a very similar move pulled on me at the ELVF just two weeks before - dive bomb to the inside of the kink on the first lap. Difference was I saw it coming and backed out but that other driver certainly was taking a long chance I was going to cooperate. It is one of those things you file in your mind and you will probably always assume that driver is capable of making the same poor choice again.
Some times I think we all just need to remember just how bad hospital food tastes.
Mark Silverberg - SE Michigan
Lynx B FV & Royale RP3 FF
240Z Vintage Production Car
PCR, Kosmic CRG & Birel karts
Thanks for the link Mark.
While poignant and touching that account may be, resolute or contrite it is not. No race has ever been won or will ever be won on the first lap, and those who contest matters in that way are short-sighted at best and recklessly dangerous at the worst.
I'm sure that Tom is a great person to know who shares the same passion that brings us all together. With that being said- to waste the efforts of unforeseen numbers of people needlessly is a shame. Perhaps passion gets the best of someone in the heat of the moment, I don't know.
Blame is easy to assign, and hard to accept.
Last edited by GrandMarnier; 09.29.09 at 8:26 PM. Reason: spelling
But according to Tim's words, he came up on a competitor in the long right-hand sweeper "who bobbled a couple of times," so he got along side of him on the inside - exiting the Carousel. Just as Tim got along side of the other driver, he bobbled again which forced Tim to put his two right side wheels in the grass going into the infamous "Kink"
This explination of the incident doesnt make much sense to me. The other driver/car "bobbled"? What does that mean and why would this other car/driver "bobbling" cause Tim to put his right wheels off into the dirt? The only thing I can imagine "bobbled" would mean is that the car had an electrical problem and was mis-firing? But why would this other car having that type of problem cause Tim to put two wheels off in the kink?
-Nick
In Tim's defense it is a second hand account of what he articulated and it does not sound like he remembered much.
Peter De Lorenzo (Mr. Autoextremist) is entertaining and insightful - but also at times full of . . . . hyperbole.
Ultimately though, drivers are accountable for the actions of their crew and words attributable to them through their crew.
If he was that much faster that the car in front he would have easily passed after the kink.
Mark Silverberg - SE Michigan
Lynx B FV & Royale RP3 FF
240Z Vintage Production Car
PCR, Kosmic CRG & Birel karts
Thats Tim?
Sh*t, Tim came down a couple times and talked to me in Arms Up, what a great guy. Sorry to hear about your bad luck, hope to see you back.
"Bobble" as defined by Joe Tovo who has driven the carousel at Road America.
The point at which you realize that you cannot take this turn at full throttle because of either under-steer or over-steer. Usually realized as you attempt to hit the apex and pray for your life and that you never hit the outside wall which looks really close at speed.
I bobble in the carousel every lap of Road America. I want to take that turn at full throttle every lap. And each lap, I have to breathe a little somewhere and then get back on the throttle.
Racers: Dont ever go two wide in the kink, sit back, plan ahead and get a draft to pass the car. If you go two wide in the kink all you are doing is letting the driver sitting back watching get a run on you into 12.
Look at the top 4.
Coello VD / Pinto
Pritchard VD / Zetec
Greist VD / Zetec
Morgan DB6 / Pinto
For the most part, those are the top 4 drivers / cars in FC. Period. Great job to all. Lesson to be learned by some.
Two wide though the kink..
I had a couple FM's try to go two wide though the kink during Q1 and Q2 (I was in an S2). I let them though...and blew prob my fastest laps based upon data. (Although it didnt matter due to the terrible stumble during the race)
Not worth it - Esp during qualifying.
Corky!
With the amount of "clag" (as DH would put it) that collects on the outside of the kink, there is very little that would make me want to run two wide there ESPECIALLY if I'm the guy on the outside. Some may not have a whole lot of experience at Road America, but learning a lesson like that obviously results in a very expensive one in terms of finances and health.
2003 VanDiemen FSCCA #29
Follow me on Twitter @KeithCarter74
Hi guys and girls,
Unfortunately I was the T5 single-car accident on 9-23 at Road America. Just wanted you all to know that I did, indeed, walk away from this slightly horrific crash with no major injuries. I have a sore left knee, sore back and ribs. The entire left leg is turning into a very entertaining rainbow of colors: black, blue and now yellow!
Previous descriptions of the accident on this forum were pretty accurate with the exception of me talking to my crew on the car's radio. Don't have either. I got out of the car as soon as I fiqured out what had happened.
I would like to thank some people, if I may.
Ivan Utrera for his support and picking me up at Medical. I scared the crap out of him!
My wife, Julie, for being there.
Jim and Carol Roemer for their support after the crash. Those beers, pizza, and 'Aleve' were gifts from the Gods!
EMT Rick and the entire RA Medical and Safety Teams are AWESOME! Good people! They mentioned something about how lucky I was. Something about if I wasn't wearing the HANS device I would be dead.
Anyway, thanks for your concern! Give me a couple of months and I will be back!
Terry Biner
Would Tims' accident have anything to do with starting at the back on a rolling start? Often, if you time it right, you can get a huge jump on the traffic ahead and end up too crowded later on in the lap. I think standing starts are safer in this regard.
Terry,
We all were amazed and thankfull it turned out so well. As I have said in my own life cross out one of your nine lives and proceed with eight more to go.
Brad, In a word NO. Turn one OK, 2 Miles later just hard charging through a field that was respecting a turn on cold tires.
Last edited by jim morgan; 09.30.09 at 8:37 PM. Reason: more
Keith:
I could not agree with you more. Passing in the kink is a very very low percentage move especially in traffic not to mention slower. The only way two cars get through side by side is if they are both going slower than if they had gone single file. So even if you do get through you pay with lost speed all the way to Canada and are then a sitting duck for those behind who had better judgement. I have done it a few times when the car I was passing was going very slowly but even then I realized that I had been dumb to not be more patient.
I am just glad everyone survived without major injuries.
Congrats to all who ran. Hats off to Nikki, Justin, Revere, and Cole not to mention all the Arms Up guys I run with. These guys are not only good to race with but good to just be around.
Hey Terry
Happy to hear you are OK. Hope to see you again soon at a Cal Club event.
Take care
Dion Johnston
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