Sad news at LRP

[dalyduo]

Drove over to LRP late Saturday to see if any TJR members had made it up for the Endurance Karting event and passed the track ambulance exiting in full emergency mode. All was normal at the autocross where Johann and Karen were distributing the final podium awards but as I left the track about 45 minutes later a state trooper was arriving with his emergency lights on. I couldn't imagine a positive scenario for that kind of arrival so late in the day and sadly found this in a CT news report.

This sad tragic news begs one obvious question: Was the driver wearing a HANS device?


Amateur Racer Killed In Crash At Lime Rock Park
September 26, 2005
By DAVE ALTIMARI, Courant Staff Writer

A 36-year-old Pennsylvania physician died from head injuries sustained in a two-car crash that occurred during a weekend club racing event at the Lime Rock Park racetrack in Salisbury.

It was the first racing fatality at the park in seven years.

Dr. Adam Zimmerman of Allentown, Pa., died instantly Saturday afternoon after the car he was driving struck another car that had come to a stop on the track after striking a side wall. The accident occurred at 4:41 p.m. on the track's uphill turn, approximately 10 minutes before the completion of the Eastern Motor Racing Association race, track officials said Sunday.

Zimmerman was taken to Sharon Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Cause of death was attributed to head injuries, the chief medical examiner's office said Sunday.

The other driver involved, 46-year-old Phil Johnson of New Haven, was treated at the track for minor injuries. State police from Troop B in Canaan were investigating the accident.

Lime Rock general manager Steve Potter said it is common for track officials to rent the track to private racing clubs such as Eastern Motor. Potter said he didn't know whether Zimmerman had ever raced at the track, but he said Zimmerman had been racing as an amateur for about eight years so it is likely he had been to Lime Rock before.

"He was a guy with a lot of experience; his crew told me he had won some amateur racing championships," Potter said.

Potter said state police took measurements at the track and interviewed witnesses. Potter said weather wasn't a factor in the crash.

Officials from the Eastern Motor Racing Association were unavailable for comment Sunday. A message posted on the club's website read: "With great sadness we must tell you that EMRA lost one of its own, Adam Zimmerman, at Lime Rock September 24. Our prayers, thoughts, and condolences are with his family and friends."

Zimmerman, who leaves a wife and two children, is the first fatality at the track since June of 2003 when a 68-year-old man died from a massive heart attack. It is the first fatality caused by a racing accident since 1998.

[MJAmok]

That really sucks. A bit of a reality check, no? Racing at our level is serious business.

Whether or not Dr. Zimmerman was wearing a HANS, this should be a message to take safety seriously.

[WatertownNewbie]

Originally Posted by dalyduo

This sad tragic news begs one obvious question: Was the driver wearing a HANS device?

From the Allentown Morning Call newspaper's online site
(http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-...6,0,8071.story for the full article)
is the following:

''It was a freak thing,'' Trooper John Green said, adding that Zimmerman may have died from a head injury akin to the one that killed NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt in 2001. The case will remain open until the cars can be inspected for mechanical problems, Green said, and toxicology test results come back.

--------------------------------------

If this in fact was an accident that could have been moderated by a HANS device, that is all the more reason for us to press the Skippy powers-that-be to make sure that those of us who wear the HANS will find cars that are configured to make the device properly functional (e.g., the harness positions, seat, etc.). As the HANS literature and owner manual stress, to be effective the device must be worn correctly.

[arig]

i have talked with some of the instructors about Skip Barber not mandating the use of the HANS Device and they told me that if they were to mandate it and a racer was injured in an accident due to the malfunction of the HANS, skippy was liable because they had mandated the use of it. It sounds extremely stupid and something needs to be done about it. I just hope it doesn't take the same incident like Earnhardt's death to make NASCAR open their eyes to change Skip Barber's view.

Sorry to hear about Dr. Zimmerman. Condolences to his family.

[cheekychica]

Just came back from LRP, and heard from some of the guys who were there on Saturday that Dr. Zimmerman was wearing a HANS, and that the injury he sustained was probably a basal fracture. There's a chance the straps might've been too loose or that they'd slipped during the race. Also, Dr. Zimmerman was in a DRZ (DMZ?) and he hit an Acura (Integra?); one car that's meant to break apart at impact, another that's meant to absorb impact. Not a good combination. Dr. Zimmerman's car, apparently, didn't even look like it had been in a particularly injurious crash, let alone a fatal one. Supposedly, this was EMRA's first fatality in 20 some-odd years.

[dalyduo]

Loose or displaced belts are akin to having no HANS device on at all.
Unless the safety crew who unstrapped Dr. Zimmerman paid particular attention to the position of the HANS and his shoulder straps before releasing them we'll probably never have a definitive answer on what happened.
I'm sure HANS will be looking very closely at this to understand what happened.

[JonMiller]

I read about this accident on another forum. From what I've read, the witnesses say that the driver who died was in a Radical and that he hit an Acura Integra from behind in an endurance race and literally "drove under him."

Reports are also saying that he WAS wearing a HANS Device.

We'll have to see what facts eventually come out, but I'm just reporting what I hear.

Very sad.

[dalyduo]

Thanks Jon,
The Radical is a low slung open cockpit sports racer and if his car "drove up under" the Integra you can easily imagine a scenario outside of the scope of a HANS device. Thanks for the update.

Here's a picture of a Radical.

[OLDMAN]

Years ago I was telling some of my working associates about a friend of a friend who died in a skydiving accident. One the persons at the table wanted to know if she was wearing a helmet! The point is that at 90 MPH (or whatever speed a car goes over the uphill) there is lots of kinetic energy. Sometimes racing suits, helmets, HANS devices or whatever are just not enough.

The uphill turn at LRP is fast, narrow and unpadded. The management at LRP should consider the possibilites of making it safer. During my second year with SB, Tony Monk died in that corner. Most Skip Barber racers of today have never heard of him. In a few years the name Adam Zimmerman will also have been forgotten.

Last year I wrote to Thompson Speedway regarding the fact that they use unpadded Jersey Barriers to protect light poles in their infield, I got no response. Does the name Tom Baldwin ring a bell with anyone out there? Tom hit one of those Jersey Barriers at speed and was killed; he was driving a "modified". He also had on all the safety equipment required.

It's a dangerous sport in which we participate. Be prepared, be careful.

OLDMAN

[sydude]

Originally Posted by cheekychica

Zimmerman was in a DRZ (DMZ?) and he hit an Acura (Integra?)

The Radical runs in the 'DSR' ('D Sports Racer') class in SCCA and EMRA.

[cheekychica]

Thanks Sy! I knew my acronym wasn't right, but I couldn't find it referred to anywhere, so I went with my best guess.

[arig]

yeah bob, tom baldwin was the father of kasey kahne's crew chief. he died last year. i remember when that happened.

[arig]

who is tony monk? i found this website, but it didn't give much information. http://161.188.204.190/charlotte/rd/index.asp?F=t

[JonMiller]

Update from the rumor mill:

What I'm hearing now is that the driver who was killed crested a blind hill (the uphill) and ran into the back of a stopped/spun/crashed car (the integra).

HANS or not, that was probably a nasty crash that may or may not have been survivable, given the circumstances.

That's got to be one of the most dangerous corners around... high speed, uphill, blind and armco just inches from the edge of the track. Yours truly was leading his first race when he found the uphill armco.

Should the chicane be more commonly used? I know it would make that particullar turn a little safer, simply by forcing you to slow down more for it.

[WatertownNewbie]

Originally Posted by JonMiller

Update from the rumor mill:

What I'm hearing now is that the driver who was killed crested a blind hill (the uphill) and ran into the back of a stopped/spun/crashed car (the integra).

If this is true, then where were the yellow flags?

[OLDMAN]

When I do Drivers' Ed with the Porsche Club they don't even man all the stations! I'm not sure if they man the uphill or not. This club may not either.

OLDMAN

[LimeRockRacer]

The various persons that run the amateur racing series throughout the country, as well as the track owners, have a responsibility and moral obligation to make sure there is a full disclosure and availabilty of safety equipment and safe track conditions to every participant.

As MA stated these type of incidents are a wake up call that shit happens even in the amateur series levels. It is a cop-out for any owner of a track to ignore improving obviously unsafe corners or for a series to hide behind the threat of illusory liabilities when it comes to providing amateur drivers and students education and availability of equipment that can and will prevent injuries or even death.

The D word is an unspoken word in what we do for fear that it will decrease the number of paying customers willing to intelligently assess the risks and rewards. Even with re-engineered corners, HANS, and other safety equipment we still take a lot of risk. Let's at least control the risk that can be controlled by demanding that the owners of tracks and the various series start stepping to the plate where there are known solutions to known solvable problems.

So here I go again calling a spade a spade. These guys need to wake up and stop hiding. The next time we are walking across the street to go to dinner together, I would hope we can all have the confidence that if we stepped out into the crosswalk not knowing a car was closing in on us, that everyone would grab us by the collar to prevent our demise. Or do we need to just accept that every one else would stand there for fear of being sued if the didn't grab our collar fast enough?

[kwlorentzen]

If you don't man the Uphill, where do you man?! I agree with Jon that the uphill is one of the most dangerous corners; It's tricky AND you can't see where you're going untill you get there.

[birkmama]

It is sad and disconcerting, that our favorite passtime has cost a human life on one of our favorite tracks.

Where I need help however, is in understanding the extensive quest to blame the organizers or track owners. Lime Rock has an excellent track record in terms of casualties even though it has a couple of corners that lack runoff. I do not know the organizing car club so I cannot judge on their level of professionalism.

But when you go on a race track in order to drive, you make a conscious decision if the environment, the track, the equipment, the quality and quantity of competitors etc. suit your requirements or not. It is not unalike many other sports, think skiing or soccer. You are always taking a risk.

I do not know the details of the tragedy but racing with an open cockpit car and a sedan at the same time certainly offers less crash compatibility than a spec series. This is equally true for some of the professional series like GrandAm or ALMS. You are taking a higher risk.

When you drive on a track without fully manned corner stations you are taking a higher risk.

If you are not wearing a HANS (in a car that is suited to accommodate it) you are taking a higher risk.

But the judgment if this risk is bearable or not lays on the individual. No one will negate that there is always a residing risk but this judgment on what is acceptable and what not will remain highly subjective.

But I think we need to distinguish the reasons for the accident - which in this case as I understand was a stalled car behind a blind crest - and the potential improvements.

I do support all improvements in passive safety, be it driver safety equipment or runoff areas or any other crash absorbing measure at the limits of the track.

Manning corners is good but no life insurance either. I remember last year in May, when we had the big wreck in downhill - it is in the video gallery - there were yellow flags all over and still it happened.

But to me, making fast corners slow or staightening blind ones is not an interesting solution. It would take too much away from what gives me the thrill in driving on a track.

[LimeRockRacer]

I understand the risks and accept them and certainly did not intend to place all blame or repsonsibility on owners.

What I have an issue with is when there are corners or hazards that could easily be made safer and are not. ( Like the example Oldman gives. ) I am not suggesting we make the corners slower, or for that matter less fun, but rather safer. When we have a spot like the uphill at LRP with very little room for error and there have been many incidents there, some fatal some not, it would seem some steps should be taken to make either the runoff larger before you hit the wall, or try to put some sort of a safer barrier there.

In this instant you are correct that the incident seems to be unrelated to these issues. What this incident does do is make us all realize and re-think some other issues that need to be addressed.

Additionally, drivers certainly need to make choices about safety. Sy and I made a pitch last year to the Eastern Series drivers at LRP in August that they all consider Hans devices and like minded equipment. Sy and I each had a harrowing incident previously and decided we needed to encourage people to consider the investment. Many drivers went right out and purchased them and thanked us for stepping forward. Others made the decision to not purchase the device.

What we also encouraged was for SBRS and other series to consider making Hans devices available to newer drivers and students as an optional rental or some simialr program. Newer drivers and students need the educational aspect of what the risks are and what preventative measures are available. To not spend some time and a little money developing a simple program whereby students and amateur drivers are educated about what is available and to then provide them access is silly. The more experience and time someone has spent in the seat or series the less this is an issue. The bottom line is the majority of persons in each series has relatively little seat time each year and may not have the knowledge or equipment they need.

[Big Sexy]

Most sanctioning bodies separate 3000-4000 lb sedans and 900-1800 lb formula cars and sports racers. There are many reasons for this.

Lime Rock ties with Summit Point for the most dangerous track I have visited. This however doesn't appear to have anything to do with the track.

[badgersid]

maybe now you guys see why we want more than one corner worker on a corner.and nobody gets in the flagging van.

now about safety all racetracks are dangerous.it is up to the drivers to take care of themselves and fellow drivers.i know people who have raced at lime rock for years and never touched a wall. i have and know how it feels.

take care of each other

[Jimal Temus]

Call it my short attention span, but I didn't read this entire thread. The latest I heard today in the office about this accident was that 1) the flagging stations (or at least the stations on No Name) were manned, but that the driver apparently ignored the yellow flags, and may have passed several cars who were slowing on No Name in reaction to the yellows, and 2) that there might have been an issue with the way his harness was mounted in the car. While the driver was wearing a HANS, it doesn't help much if the shoulder harness can't hold you in.