# Tony Stewart hits Driver at Dirt Track **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [August 10, 2014, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216 "2014-08-10T04:58:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/21 "2014-08-10T15:22:47Z")
Not that it matters much, but per later reports, the guy who was killed is 20, not 17. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/22 "2014-08-10T15:55:16Z")
Yeah, I don’t follow any form of racing so to me it just seems insane that on a night race on a dirt track a guy in a black race suit is running around on the track screaming and pointing at people. That just seems like madness, I’m not sure at what speed these “sprint” cars go, but I know that even at like 60-70 mph which is normal highway speed the time to react to say, a deer that jumps out in front of you is very short–enough that many people simply will hit the deer. Not knowing enough about race cars, the video I’ve seen makes it look like Tony Stewart’s car is simply going around the curve, and then when it collides with Ward it “jerks” probably from the impact of hitting what I guess is a normal weight adult male, and probably Stewart himself jerking the steering wheel I would guess in shock from the impact. I don’t know if Stewart could have seen the guy or not, but it didn’t look like to me it was intentional in any way. ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/23 "2014-08-10T17:23:57Z")
Tony is an experienced driver. He knew what he was doing. He purposely drove closer to Ward (Of course he could see him!) trying to escalate the incident. And escalate it did. Two hot-headed morons doing moronic things. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/24 "2014-08-10T17:36:17Z")
I watched the video and I don’t think it’s fair to say he “ran over” the guy. It was a lot closer to “he sideswiped the guy”. But it was so fast, I believe it would be impossible to claim there was any intention to harm the guy. The cars were traveling so fast. Any contact between a car and a person was bound to cause great injury to the person. For people who can’t see the video, it’s probably good to say these were not full sized cars. I think you call them “carts”. My guess is they are about half the size of a regular NASCAR car. I wish I knew what the real name of these kinds of cars are. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/25 "2014-08-10T17:41:45Z")
> [@Charlie\_Wayne](#): > > I wish I knew what the real name of these kinds of cars are. Sprint cars. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/26 "2014-08-10T17:44:43Z")
> [@Bozuit](#): > > According to [The Guardian](http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/aug/10/nascar-crash-tony-stewart), Stewart is cooperating and has been released. > > And Kevin Ward was 20, not 17, according to the reports I’ve seen. > > Why would he walk in the middle of the track? That’s insane. I would guess he lost his temper and then lost his head. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/27 "2014-08-10T17:45:45Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > Sprint cars. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/28 "2014-08-10T17:46:39Z")
> [@Kinthalis](#): > > Tony is an experienced driver. He knew what he was doing. He purposely drove closer to Ward (Of course he could see him!) trying to escalate the incident. And escalate it did. > > Two hot-headed morons doing moronic things. Sounds like you have a lot of facts the rest of us are missing. Could you link us to this source please. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/29 "2014-08-10T17:50:09Z")
Do these cars have race cameras? I saw the video and it sure looked like a Darwin moment. But the moment he started walking across the track, they should have stopped all the cars immediately. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/30 "2014-08-10T17:52:09Z")
For anyone who may not know what The Darwin Awards are: > **[Darwin Awards](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin_Awards)** > > The Darwin Awards are a tongue-in-cheek honor that originated in Usenet newsgroup discussions around 1985. They recognize individuals who have supposedly contributed to human evolution by selecting themselves out of the gene pool by dying or becoming sterilized via their own actions. > The project became more formalized with the creation of a website in 1993, followed by a series of books starting in 2000 by Wendy Northcutt. The criterion for the awards states: "In the spirit of Charles Darwin, ... The Darwin Awards are a tongue-in-cheek honor, originating in Usenet newsgroup discussions circa 1985. They recognize individuals who have supposedly contributed to human evolution by self-selecting themselves out of the gene pool via death or sterilization by their own (unnecessarily foolish) actions. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/31 "2014-08-10T18:14:49Z")
What is the official penalty for stepping into the track like that (assuming he survived) Is there one? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/32 "2014-08-10T18:20:14Z")
13 turned out to be an unlucky number for that fool. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/33 "2014-08-10T18:48:14Z")
> [@Cell\_Guy](#): > > They just announced that Stewart will not drive today. Regan Smith will take his place. > > The bulk of my knowledge about the law is from watching “Law and Order” so forgive me for asking–is it weird that the police are investigating this as an “on-track incident?” I know the police need to investigate since there was a death, but wouldn’t it be a “death investigation?” Or am I looking for something that isn’t there? I think you are being a little nitpicky with the wording. Neither term has any legal weight. I think they called it that simply to differentiate it from a regular motor vehicle collision investigation. It differs from state to state but most motor vehicle laws are not applicable on private property. ---
**Author:** ![Teuton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teuton/32/3864_2.png) [@Teuton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teuton)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/34 "2014-08-10T19:57:53Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > Yes, drivers do it all the time under caution to point an angry finger at another driver, but jeez, at what cost? Do they? Serious question, do drivers in this particular motorsport make a habit of leaping out of their cars after a crash and go raging on drivers they think caused the crash? I can sort of understand more why he did it if there’s been a culture of it happening before ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/35 "2014-08-10T20:06:24Z")
> [@Teuton](#): > > Do they? Serious question, do drivers in this particular motorsport make a habit of leaping out of their cars after a crash and go raging on drivers they think caused the crash? “Habit” is probably too strong a word, but, yes, it happens. I remember one time seeing a NASCAR driver throw his helmet at the car he blamed for wrecking him as it came around again. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/36 "2014-08-10T20:06:43Z")
Teutron: It is quite common for confrontations to happen on the track. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/37 "2014-08-10T20:07:25Z")
Yes, it happens a lot. If you watch that video (which I don’t advise) you’ll see that no one in the crowd shouts “Holy crap! That dude got out of his car!” Or: “Holy crap!, that guy is angrily confronting an approaching car!” ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/38 "2014-08-10T20:12:29Z")
Anyone stupid enough to walk out onto the track is destined to come to a violent end. I can’t imagine that it is “quite common” for drivers to exit their cars and walk out into the middle of the track; if it were there would be a lot more of these kind of “accidents”. Suicidal. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/39 "2014-08-10T20:37:51Z")
Question from a non-racing fan: Is it normal for drivers to do something like this on the night before a NASACAR race? it seems like . . . I don’t know, like an NFL guy playing in a Park District game on Saturday night. And if it is normal, why? ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2014, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216/40 "2014-08-10T20:41:20Z")
Hopefully, there will be some rules made regarding leaving your car and walking on the track during a race. It seems like such an obvious thing that a rule wouldn’t be necessary, but we’ve seen otherwise. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tony-stewart-hits-driver-at-dirt-track/695216.md?page=3)