Thread title is the AP story title; this is pretty bad news, folks:
From the link.
The race was an eighth of a mile (0.2 kilometers) long, and water-filled plastic barriers lined the course. But Amestoy said they didn’t extend past the finish line, leaving no protection between spectators and cars as they were slowing down at the end of the race.
How can people this stupid remember how to breathe?
“How do they find their mouths with the food?” is the question I ask about stupid people.
Complete lack of proper safety measures.Fans within 15 feet of the track, apparently at the fast end. What were they thinking?
Big surprise that it took place in the land of no regulation.
Someone wants to put on a race where cars drive as fast as they can at spectators? It would be dangerous overreach by the government to require them to put a barrier between them in case anything goes wrong!
How the hell did they get permission to hold this race without proper safety precautions? I can’t believe this event okayed by any racing sanctioning body.
This is Texas you’re talking about.
Freedumb!!
I do realize that. But it’s pretty unusual to have a race without one kind of racing “sanctioning body” to green light the safety practices of an event. Even when I’ve been involved in putting on small, local events, the county requires insurance and the insurance company requires minimum safety standards. There are only a couple of insurance companies who handle race events.
The event, which was for amateur drivers, was put on by Flyin’ Diesel Performance, an auto customization shop in Kerrville. The shop is located adjacent to the municipal airport.
Maybe someone thought they didn’t need sanctioning or insurance for amateurs.
Read an article about the first of this race series:
The promoter is a college dropout who became a diesel mechanic and later started the auto customization shop. He just didn’t have the knowledge and experience to think about safety when setting up the races.
Sounds to me like Flyin’ Diesel Performance is about to become Flyin’ Defendant…
From Google it seems the event was listed at the Kerrville Visitors and Convention Bureau page Calendar of Events (but has since been removed) as
“Airport Race Wars 2 -
An action packed, family-friendly day of all out No Prep Drag Racing. Come see some of the fastest drag cars compete for over $8000 in total prizes.”
By “No Prep” I assume it is a come-as-you-are type event, just show up with your vehicles, sign the waivers (I mean, at the very least they must have had waivers to sign, they don’t sound like imbeciles) and take them to the line?
“No-prep drag racing is racing on a surface that has not been “prepped” with solutions that improve traction.”
Ah, ok, thank you! So it means racing on normal pavement. IgnoFought!
Think of the barriers, separating cars from spectators, as a kind of large-scale mask. They don’t do masks in Texas!
Yes, that is what no-prep would be. We call it “Run what you brung,” but a whole lotta prep goes into some of these cars anyway.
Please, let the folks have signed waivers, a standard practice in racing. Geez, do I feel bad for this organizer. I’ve organized plenty of events but I had others to guide me in what needed doing when I started out.
I may be different in Texas, but often waivers don’t get you out of gross negligence. And I how no one who was injured signed any kid of waiver.