During the Busch race on Friday night, the No. 88 car was involved in a nasty wreck that shot his car into the wall. The driver, Brad Keselowski, driving for JR Motorsports, was hanging on as his car became airborne for a split second, then sucked itself up against the wall and slid for what seemed forever…all while flames were shooting out from the back and undercarriage of the car.
Fire, the most dreaded enemy of a racecar driver.
Miraculously, Brad was okay, but it took awhile for us to find this out…he was airlifted to a hospital with suspected broken bones, but later released, bruised and battered, but with nothing broken. Thank you NASCAR for those softer barriers, fire suits, fire proof underwear and the HANS device, all things that I am sure helped save the life of this young driver.
The Cup race began much the same as the Busch race, everyone fussing about the heat, little umbrellas being held over our drivers, and normally well coiffed reporters looking a bit wilted out in the garage area. Ceremonies were awesome, and the race got going.
More talk about the heat, and unfortunately, more fire on the track. Michael Waltrip, driving in the No. 55 blew a tire while going full speed around the track. With the heat and the speed working together, they shredded the tire and shot pieces up into the underside of the car, taking out whatever was in the path. Apparently a few oil lines were in that line of fire, because before the car came to a stop, there was fire in the back, under the hood and even a little creeping into the cockpit.
I watched as it seemed like forever for Michael to finally climb out of the smoke filled car, cursing at my TV because it sure looked like those rescue guys were doing more standing around than actual rescue work. It was probably just because I was caught up in the moment, but dang…it sure seemed like it took a long time before someone actually reached out to help Michael get out. At any rate, Michael did get out, and later emerged from the infield care center looking soaked in sweat and a little out of breath, but all in one piece and not a burn to be seen.
Thank goodness for safer barriers, safe cars, those hot annoying fire suits and fire proof underwear. As hot as it was in Fontana this weekend, it wasn’t near as hot as it could have been if those fires had gotten to our fellows.
So fuss all you want about the heat, it’s nothing compared to what the real heat of fire can do. If keeping that wicked enemy at bay means wearing layers of fireproof stuff in the 100-degree heat then so be it. I’d much rather listen to the whining than listen to the hospital report…and I’m sure the guys behind the wheel would too.
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