In the wake of the tragic death of Dan Wheldon at the season finale of the IndyCar season, Robert and I were talking about how IndyCar overcomes this accident. This is the first IndyCar fatality since 2006, and truthfully it seems like IndyCar has a driver death about every three or four years, on average.
If you look at Formula 1, you'll see that the last driver death was in 1994. Granted, it was a bad weekend for F1 at the San Marino Grand Prix. During Friday qualifying Rubens Barrichello crashed hard into the tire wall, injuring himself and missing the race. He very nearly died in the wreck. Then, a few minutes into the final qualifying session on Saturday, Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger crashed hard into the wall and was injured so badly that he later died at the hospital. But the horror was not yet over. After a restart during the race, Ayrton Senna, one of the greatest drivers of all time, left the course in the Tamburello turn and slammed hard into the wall. Debris from the car struck his helmet and he too later died at the hospital.
It spawned calls for revisions to the Imola race circuit, and after safety reviews and upgrades, it also became the last time a Formula 1 driver died in a race. NASCAR has had deaths since, the most notable being Dale Earnhardt dying on the last turn of the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. IndyCar and Champ Car have had several deaths since then. Each racing series has upgraded safety measures after each death. NASCAR required Head and Neck Support (HANS) devices for each driver. The oval courses saw the installation of Steel And Foam Energy Reduction (SAFER) Barriers.
But when the time came for IndyCar to roll onto the course at Las Vegas, the drivers themselves began to raise concerns. The track was too smooth and it would lead to tight racing. The reason? Such a smooth course would not offer the challenge that would allow the good drivers to separate themselves from the inexperienced drivers, leading to pack racing that is not common in IndyCar.
Also, the race promoters had offered a special "bounty" on the race of $5 million, to be split between the winning driver and a fan...so long as the winning driver was not a series regular. This lead to an expanded field of 34 cars, far more than is common for an IndyCar race, especially on so short a track. Las Vegas Speedway is 1.544 miles in length.
So on race day, these insanely fast cars reached the eleventh lap before tragedy struck. Some of the cars tangled and some went airborne. At the back of the pack, working his way rapidly to the front, was Dan Wheldon, a former series champion and 2-time Indy 500 winner. He couldn't slow down in time and catapulted over a slowing car. His car barrel-rolled and slammed into the catch fence. As a result of the accident, Wheldon suffered head injuries that ultimately caused his death. He had spent most of the year testing the new Dallara chassis and his feedback was critical to the company. He had also just signed a multi-year deal to replace Danica Patrick, who was departing full-time into NASCAR.
The race was red flagged and Wheldon was life-flighted to a local hospital. After nearly two hours the drivers were called into a special meeting. Anyone familiar with motor sports knows that when a race is stopped and then the drivers are summoned to a special meeting, it usually is not a good sign. IndyCar officials announced that Wheldon has succumbed to his injuries. The drivers went out and did a five lap tribute to Wheldon as "Amazing Grace" and Danny Boy" were played over the speakers.
But to the point Robert and I were discussing: How does IndyCar recover? When Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger were killed, the F1 season was only three races old. They had a whole season to rebuild their safety reputation and image. IndyCar doesn't have that luxury. The season is over and all that is left are questions.
NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson voiced his opinion that IndyCar does not belong on ovals. I actually agree with him, because these cars are built for speed and downforce better suited for road courses and street circuits. The fact that IndyCars would do 225 miles per hour on a 1.544 mile oval is terrifying. Formula 1 cars, which are among the most technologically advanced on the planet, rarely top 200 miles per hour for extended periods. There are a few long straights, but most of the courses have enough slow turns to keep the cars in check.
IndyCar's premier event is, of course, the Indianapolis 500, which is run on a rectangular, oval course. The track has some bumps and that allows the field to separate itself. There are other ovals, like Kentucky Motor Speedway, that provide some great action. But my preference is road course racing, which IndyCar does, and may have to increase in light of this incident. There are great road courses in the US: Road America, Road Atlanta, Sebring, Homestead Miami, Watkins Glen, Laguna Seca, Sears Point, Miller Motor Sports Park. It's not like IndyCar will be lacking for road courses. IndyCar also runs street circuits, like the Streets of St. Pete and the new Baltimore street circuit. It may be time to to look for some new road courses, as well.
Perhaps the leading factor in the Wheldon accident was the size of the field. IndyCar usually has a 26 car field, perhaps 28. Formula 1 only recently bumped up to 24 cars in the field. NASCAR has always been the outlier, typically running events with 43-car fields. But NASCAR is a lot slower then IndyCar, and also has enclosed wheels, meaning a difference in downforce and accident potential. It was rapidly reported that drivers were complaining about so many cars.
The track at Las Vegas had SAFER barriers, but in this case the SAFER barrier meant very little, because Wheldon's car was airborne and was higher than the top of the barrier. He hit the catch fence with such force that the roll bar at the top of the car was torn off. It may be that IndyCar has to take a long, hard look at chassis construction. The new Dallara chassis that Wheldon was testing may require upgrades to the safety features to push it above the level of safety these old style cars attained.
Truthfully, I'm not sure how IndyCar overcomes this. They've got to work hard at it, because there isn't another race to help the healing process. In fact, IndyCar will not take to the track again until late March 2012. The best course of action is for IndyCar to put their public relations machine in motion and really tout the virtues of the Dallara chassis and its safety measures.
Race commentator Marty Reid signed off the ABC broadcast by saying: "People ask me why, when I sign off I say 'until we meet again'. Because goodbye is so final. Goodbye Dan Wheldon." We, too, say goodbye to Dan Wheldon. He was a fantastic driver, and it is a sad day across all motor sport when a driver dies. Our hope now is that IndyCar uses the passing of Dan Wheldon to improve the safety and quality of their vehicles.
