Las Vegas IndyCar Race

[Machungwa63]

First of all, R.I.P. Dan Wheldon. I didn't have time to sit down and watch the race today, but I did pick him to win this race. Keeping him in thoughts and prayers. I hate to take advantage of such a situation, but does anybody know anyone who was at the race today? I am in a media class and I'm just wondering if there's a possibility of interviewing someone from JMU/Harrisonburg who was at the event. Not sure what I'd get out of it, but I just thought I'd throw it out there.

[Ryan T]

First of all, R.I.P. Dan Wheldon. I didn't have time to sit down and watch the race today, but I did pick him to win this race. Keeping him in thoughts and prayers. I hate to take advantage of such a situation, but does anybody know anyone who was at the race today? I am in a media class and I'm just wondering if there's a possibility of interviewing someone from JMU/Harrisonburg who was at the event. Not sure what I'd get out of it, but I just thought I'd throw it out there.

I'm sorta appalled by this thread. Using someones death, in a race that you didn't even watch, to try to improve your grade in some class? Deplorable. But that's just me.

[Mike]

Ryan, uhhh... relax? He's hardly taking advantage of Wheldon's death. It's a topic that interests him and wants to somehow work it into his schoolwork. He's not asking his teacher for an extension on an assignment or something because he's so, so affected by the incident.

Mach, I'm pretty certain nobody from the club was there.

[D_Eclipse9916]

Ryan, uhhh... relax? He's hardly taking advantage of Wheldon's death. It's a topic that interests him and wants to somehow work it into his schoolwork. He's not asking his teacher for an extension on an assignment or something because he's so, so affected by the incident.

Mach, I'm pretty certain nobody from the club was there.

Somebody needs a valium :lol: Just playing Ryan.

Its amazing so many people came out unhurt, and such a shame someone died. We do these sports knowing they are dangerous, knowing the risks; but at least he died following what he loved to do. I hope all of us have the opportunity to pass away doing the things we love and not regretting a thing.

[Goodspeed]

Always sad to hear of someone dying during a race, and, IIRC, its been a while since that has happened in top-tier professional motorsport.

I don't really follow Indy, but I know a fair number of people grumble about open-cockpit cars such as those doing oval events at 225mph. The risks are obvious, so I can't really say I'm too surprised by this happening. Sad...I wonder what will come of it for the sport/series.

[Apoc]

Unfortunately, whether it's due to fanbase or infrastructure, the American racing circuit relies pretty heavily on ovals.

F1 made safety a priority after Senna's death and haven't had a fatality since. Indy has had 4. (Nascar - 7)

Remember when four cars did F1 @ Indy because they didn't trust the tires?

[Machungwa63]

Honestly, I can understand where Ryan T. was coming from. I was very hesitant to post this thread because I knew it could be interpreted that way. What made me post it was the knowledge that whenever the media gets the word out, more people have a chance to sit down and think about it. I'm a little worried that this story will go under-covered by news media that don't deal with sports/motor racing. If nobody knows anyone that I can interview though, I'll remove this thread.

[G.Irish]

It's a real shame Dan passed away. Just one of those freak deals where he got caught up in something and was unlucky. Indy racing is one of the last truly dangerous forms of motorsport and there's only so much you can do to mitigate that risk with 220 mph open wheel cars.

BTW, I don't think there's anything wrong with trying to interview someone who was at the event for class. It was a major event, if it's pertinent to class, why not?

[NTIman]

Sometimes it takes a true superstar to get hurt badly or killed to make a difference in safety. I hate to say it, but it is true that the consequences and subsequent changes in safety are wholly dependent on who the driver killed was. Remember Dale Earnhardt? I'm sureyou do, whether you like NASCAR or not, but how many can name the other few drivers killed in the same time period as that from the same injury. Nothing was done until the superstar was killed.

So the good thing is that I'm sure Indycar is already looking into how to improve the safety of their cars. Indycar was not at fault; 34 cars is a lot, but the same style accident could happen with 10 cars. Racing is dangerous, and there is a false impression that drivers are almost invincible at this point, which is the worst thing that people can think because it doesn't move safety forward.

[BLINGMW]

Nothing wrong with covering a story, I don't see the problem either.

Its amazing so many people came out unhurt

no joke! hock: I think it's really cool that the safety is as good as it is. The in-car camera views of the wreck are terrifying. I would think someone would die at every race, like Isle of Man TT kind of stuff. Apparently 7 died at this year's race.

[Cody]

The most interesting part of the story I've heard so far is that some of the more seasoned veterans were a little more sketched out than normal and started spacing out a little bit more leading up to the wreck. This is a sport where the consequences are known but rarely experienced first hand, everyone is aware of what they're getting themselves into and push their bodies and minds to the limit. 220mph+ is an unfathomable amount of speed while on the ground that requires superhero like reaction times when everything goes south. It's amazing how safe the cars are on the ground but once in the air it's just hang on for the ride and pray.