Dan Wheldon, winner of Indianapolis 500 dies

[BRVoice]

Indianapolis 500 Winner Dan Wheldon Dies After Massive Crash


Published October 16, 2011
| Associated Press

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• 
  AP/Las Vegas Review-Journal
  Drivers, including Dan Wheldon (77, in air at left), crash during a wreck that involved 15 cars during the IndyCar Series' auto race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2011.

LAS VEGAS – Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon died Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after his car became ensnarled in a fiery 15-car pileup on Lap 13, flew over another vehicle and landed in a [COLOR=blue !important][COLOR=blue !important]catch [COLOR=blue !important]fence[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR] just outside turn 2.
The 33-year-old British racer was a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner, including this year's race.
Three other drivers, including championship contender Will Power, were hurt in the pileup.
Weldon was airlifted from the track to University Medical Center; about two hours later, his colleagues were told of his death.

• 
  FILE - In this Sept. 27, 2011, file photo, Dan Wheldon talks about the 2012 IndyCar vehicle, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2011.

"IndyCar is very sad to announce that Dan [COLOR=blue !important][COLOR=blue !important]Wheldon[/COLOR][/COLOR] has passed away from unsurvivable injuries," IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with his family today. IndyCar, its drivers and owners, have decided to end the race."
In his honor, drivers took part in a five-lap salute around the oval.
IndyCar has not had a fatality since Paul Dana was killed at Homestead in 2006. He died after a crash in a morning warmup.
Sunday's wreck left Townsend Bell upside down while smoldering cars and debris littered the track nearly halfway up the straightaway of the 1.5-mile oval.
The track was red-flagged following the accidents while crews worked on fences and removed smashed cars.
Wheldon started in the back of the pack but quickly worked his way through the 34-car field before the wreck.
"It was like a movie scene which they try to make as gnarly as possible," said Danica Patrick, making her final IndyCar start. "It was debris everywhere across the whole track, you could smell the smoke, you could see the billowing smoke on the back straight from the car. There was a chunk of fire that we were driving around. You could see cars scattered.
Drivers had been concerned about the high speeds at the track, where they were hitting nearly 225 mph during practice.
Their concerns became reality when contact on Turn 2 sent cars flying through the air, crashing into each other and into the outside wall and catch fence.
"I'll tell you, I've never seen anything like it," Ryan Briscoe said. "The debris we all had to drive through the lap later, it looked like a war scene from Terminator or something. I mean, there were just pieces of metal and car on fire in the middle of the track with no car attached to it and just debris everywhere. So it was scary, and your first thoughts are hoping that no one is hurt because there's just stuff everywhere. Crazy."
It was Wheldon's 134th career start, but only the third of the season for the two-time Indianapolis 500 winner.

[BRVoice]

I was watching here and it was the worse race crash that I've seen in my life.

15 cars were involved, and 34 cars were participating in this race.

[BRVoice]

R. I. P.

[catfish]

Wow, that has to be one of the worst I've ever seen.

[Ryan Ruck]

Being a car guy, it might be surprising to some that I'm not a big Indy (or track race) fan but I respect the skill it takes to drive like they do.

Of the crash footage I've seen before though, that is definitely one of the worst.

Hopefully when they return in January, Top Gear will do a nice tribute to Mr. Weldon as they did recently for Ayrton Senna.

[BRVoice]

I didn't see live but the crashes of Niki Lauda in 1976, Gilles Villeneuve in 1982 were terrible.

Personally the crash of Ayrton Senna in 1994 to me, as a brazilian, is very hard to forget.

Look at this interview of Ayrton:



BTW - this interview is not from 1994 but is from 1987-88 before his first title in F1

[BRVoice]

Niki Lauda in Nurburgring, West Germany, 1976. He was the champion of the previous year. Fortunately he escape alive and won the title in the following year 1977 and in 1984

[Ryan Ruck]

BRV,
You ever see the piece Top Gear did for Ayrton? Very well done...

YouTube: Ayrton Senna Top Gear Tribute

[BRVoice]

Sure Ryan I've downloaded this special. Amazing stuff man!

[BRVoice]

I don't know if any of you has watched the movie about Ayrton Senna made in 2010. It's absolutely amazing also.

To me it brings very special memories and also very deep emotions.

[BRVoice]

This is a movie on board of Senna and Vettel driving in Suzuka, Japan. It's nice to watch the evolution in F1.

[BRVoice]

A tribute to Dan Wheldon. That his family find peace of mind and that the light of God almighty gives them strength in this terrible hour.

[Luke]

I love auto racing. That being said I have to wonder why the promoters would not consider that their track was not designed for Indy Cars? The track at Indy is 2.5 miles, Las Vegas is 1.5. This is why NASCAR uses restrictor plates at Talladega. Yes, it makes for some boring races, but if you want to watch cars crash go to a demolation derby. The thing that comes to mind is something my Dad told me after we put a 289 in my first Mustang. Just because your car can go over 100mph, doesn't mean you have to go 100mph.

[Ryan Ruck]

I don't know if any of you has watched the movie about Ayrton Senna made in 2010. It's absolutely amazing also.

To me it brings very special memories and also very deep emotions.

Resurrecting this thread to post about this.

Just got done watching the documentary Senna.

As I said, I'm not a huge racing fan and Senna's career was a little bit before my time but, judging from the documentary, he was quite a remarkable individual.

It is definitely worth a watch, even if you aren't a race fan.