Racer dies in accident at NHRA SuperNationals

[Daytona]

Around noon-ish today a Top Alcohol Funny Car driver died when his car failed to stop at Raceway Park today. I heard about it on the radio - NHRA is only saying that "a driver died of head injuries at the track" but wouldn't release any other info - and knew there was more to the story. Naturally, I called one of my long-time racing buddies who's there at the track and he had spoken to one of the track staff.

The fans there in the stands aren't being told the whole truth as to what happened and how he died, and the traps are far enough away from the end of the stands that people could only see dirt kicked up and all emergency personnel scrambling to the scene. Mike knew enough to talk to some of the staff to get the full skinny.

He told me that it was a red TF/FC (didn't recognize the driver's name) and the throttle had stuck. The chute didn't deploy either. When the car hit the sand traps it was still going over 240mph. The top of the blower got caught up in the net and ripped back, killing the driver. Those nets are secured pretty tightly to prevent cars from advancing so it was a rough one.

They're working on resetting the traps and resuming racing again @ 4pm.

Here's the official AP Release:

OLD BRIDGE, N.J. — A drag racing driver ran through a net at the end of a track and died of head injuries in a crash during a qualifying round at the NHRA SuperNationals at a New Jersey raceway Friday, state police said.

The driver, whose name has not been released, crashed at Raceway Park in Old Bridge, N.J., Sgt. Stephen Jones said.

Spectator David Farrah of Manalapan said it appeared the driver couldn't stop.

"It looked like the chute just didn't open and he couldn't stop," Farrah said. "The car was just crushed. It was tragic."

Another spectator, George Tompkins, 63, of Metuchen, said he left the stands shortly before the crash. He didn't see the wreck, but said he heard it.


"You heard that sound and knew right away that it was bad," he said.

Racing was suspended for more than three hours while the crash was being investigated. NHRA officials said they planned to resume qualifying races at about 4 p.m.

Friday's accident comes nearly two years after top racer Scott Kalitta died when his Funny Car burst into flames and crashed at the end of the track in central New Jersey.

Kalitta's Toyota Solara was traveling at about 300 mph when it burst into flames.

New Jersey State Police investigators determined that "catastrophic mechanical failure" caused the fuel-fired explosion.

The 1994 and 1995 Top Fuel season champion had 18 career victories.
In February, a spectator died after being hit by a tire from a crashing dragster at the NHRA Arizona Nationals. The woman was watching a first-round Top Fuel run when Antron Brown's Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster went out of control on the strip and its left rear wheel came off.

[Vic28]

Wow pretty sad and sry to hear this, second one on this dragstrip that i know off..

[Redog]

Was it just last year when that other driver died at RP, due to a nitrous backfire or dropping a valve into the block?

Also didn't you tell me one time about a funny car blowing thru the sand trap, thru the wall, down Pension Road, and stopped on someody's lawn and caught fire?

[Daytona]

Originally Posted by Redog

Was it just last year when that other driver died at RP, due to a nitrous backfire or dropping a valve into the block?

Also didn't you tell me one time about a funny car blowing thru the sand trap, thru the wall, down Pension Road, and stopped on someody's lawn and caught fire?

2 years ago Kalitta died when his TF/FC blew up and then careened off the traps and into a pole. At last year's Nationals another TA/FC hit the traps at 240+ but she got out of the car unscathed.

And it was in the early 1990's when a funny car did go off the track, but that was WAY before we had sand traps at the end. Back then, the track eventually curved away to the left and became part of the return road. A guard rail was all that existed at the bend and there was nothing alongside the "road" at the very end. The funny car went all the way down the bend, through some fencing, and puttered up Pension Road, eventually stopping and burning on some lady's lawn.

In '95 or '96 I also chased after a jet dragster that couldn't stop and went into the woods. I was helping push cars off the track by the turnoffs during one of the Wednesday night events. A JD screamed past me and tried to scrub the wall to slow after his parachutes didn't deploy. They're then told, if scrubbing doesn't work, to literally roll the car on its side. He rolled alright, and bounced right OVER the guardrail at the bend and into the woods. He went through the trees, through the fencing, and into a ditch alongside Pension Road. I was the first one over the fencing and saw the fireball as one of his tanks or lines exploded. The car's nose was across the street in a field. He was conscious and just suffered a severe compound leg fracture.