8 dead several injured @ California 200

[dunefreak]

Funny how the media tries to make the Vegas to Reno race that is "STILL GOING ON" to be some sort of shocking news. Of course it's still going on. Does I-15 re-open after a fatal crash??? duh

[Bryan M]

first off guys there is lots of blame to go around for everyone....

yes it was a race but Brett Sloppy saw the crowd and should have lifted(utimately the driver is in control of the vehicle)specially when the truck right in front of him DID slow for the crowd..

MDR(promoter) knew b4 hand that the RockPile was a hot spot for fans and should have controlled it, its not 50 miles of desert its a known trouble area in ALL of their past events....

BLM is referring all blame back on the promoter(REALLY?) you guys wrote over 40 tickets in this exact same spot, same race, one year b4 and had no ranger presence there THIS year??? hmmmmmm def. not a good job of overseeing the event...as most people know young men dont obey very well unless you have a badge, gun and siren...

SPECTATORS what are you thinking??? yes I know you consumed adult beverages but that doesnt give you the excuse to lose all common sense...you chose to stand next to a RACE vehicle going very fast in unpredictable terrain(its rumored that there were signs and fencing at the 75' mark but the crowd pushed forward and knocked them down)... the opportunity for many things to go wrong is not a maybe but a when...do you reach out and touch cars on the freeway or trains on railroad tracks?... NO...and thats smooth pavement/rails....

It all boils down to "personal responsibilty"

and last but not least SHAME on the enviro. groups(CBD PEER and others) that are using this... A NON ENVIROMENTAL ISSUE... to further their own agendas...YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED of yourselves for so many reasons!

Edited August 18, 2010 by Bryan M

[desertskyz]

first off guys there is lots of blame to go around for everyone....

yes it was a race but Brett Sloppy saw the crowd and should have lifted(utimately the driver is in control of the vehicle)specially when the truck right in front of him DID slow for the crowd..

MDR(promoter) knew b4 hand that the RockPile was a hot spot for fans and should have controlled it, its not 50 miles of desert its a known trouble area in ALL of their past events....

BLM is referring all blame back on the promoter(REALLY?) you guys wrote over 40 tickets in this exact same spot, same race, one year b4 and had no ranger presence there THIS year??? hmmmmmm def. not a good job of overseeing the event...as most people know young men dont obey very well unless you have a badge, gun and siren...

SPECTATORS what are you thinking??? yes I know you consumed adult beverages but that doesnt give you the excuse to lose all common sense...you chose to stand next to a RACE vehicle going very fast in unpredictable terrain(its rumored that there were signs and fencing at the 75' mark but the crowd pushed forward and knocked them down)... the opportunity for many things to go wrong is not a maybe but a when...do you reach out and touch cars on the freeway or trains on railroad tracks?... NO...and thats smooth pavement/rails....

It all boils down to "personal responsibilty"

and last but not least SHAME on the enviro. groups(CBD PEER and others) that are using this... A NON ENVIROMENTAL ISSUE... to further their own agendas...YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED of yourselves for so many reasons!

And they call me A Mother Hen :rant_on: :rant_on:

but I do agree with you 100%

[cheeto]

first off guys there is lots of blame to go around for everyone....

yes it was a race but Brett Sloppy saw the crowd and should have lifted(utimately the driver is in control of the vehicle)specially when the truck right in front of him DID slow for the crowd..

MDR(promoter) knew b4 hand that the RockPile was a hot spot for fans and should have controlled it, its not 50 miles of desert its a known trouble area in ALL of their past events....

BLM is referring all blame back on the promoter(REALLY?) you guys wrote over 40 tickets in this exact same spot, same race, one year b4 and had no ranger presence there THIS year??? hmmmmmm def. not a good job of overseeing the event...as most people know young men dont obey very well unless you have a badge, gun and siren...

SPECTATORS what are you thinking??? yes I know you consumed adult beverages but that doesnt give you the excuse to lose all common sense...you chose to stand next to a RACE vehicle going very fast in unpredictable terrain(its rumored that there were signs and fencing at the 75' mark but the crowd pushed forward and knocked them down)... the opportunity for many things to go wrong is not a maybe but a when...do you reach out and touch cars on the freeway or trains on railroad tracks?... NO...and thats smooth pavement/rails....

It all boils down to "personal responsibilty"

and last but not least SHAME on the enviro. groups(CBD PEER and others) that are using this... A NON ENVIROMENTAL ISSUE... to further their own agendas...YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED of yourselves for so many reasons!

I agree Very well said Brian, Could not have said it better myself. I think the RESPONSIBLE offroader/duner that has any vested interest in the sport does not put themselves in that position let alone there family. Look at Glamis drags I would have to say the separation between vehicle and croud is substantial however still sketchy "it all boils down to personal responsibility" I heard this quote the other day and it kind of ties together "pray as if everything depends on God but act as if everything depends on you"

[FNOFFROAD]

Thought I would share this great write up I found on another site.

QUOTE

August 17, 2010...2:58 pm

After the Dust Has Settled

Jump to Comments

In light of the recent tragic accident at an off-road race in Lucerne, my wife asked me to write a little something to the blog to help our friends better understand this sport amidst all the negative media hype. Above all, our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families, as this has hit very close to home. Donations made to support the families can be made here: Fast-aid.org

The dust has settled from last weekend’s tragic racing accident in Lucerne, but the media continues its onslaught of rabid speculation without fully understanding the history or nature of the sport. The world demands change based on a two minute and seven second Youtube video which is all the exposure it has ever had to the sport, and apparently, all that it needs to cry out for the end of this sport they understand so little. False accusations, inaccurate reporting, and slanderous depictions of the racing community fly around unchecked. One local news outlet even went as far as to incorrectly state as fact that “currently there are no rules or regulations for this type of racing”. Nothing could be further from the truth, which sadly should go without saying. My generous postulation is that the outside world does not understand our sport, and therefore is scared of what they do not understand. To them, two minutes of grainy cell phone footage depicts an out of control crowd of spectators too close to an out of control race vehicle, a combination they cannot fully comprehend. What the general non-racing public does not understand is that in this sport, the fine line between spectator and participant is blurry, if not non-existent entirely. With guardrails and barriers a logistically impossible precaution for most of the open desert race course, fans automatically press as close to the action as they can get, fulfilling an innate desire to be close to the action and to co-exist with the racers. It is this co-existence and open participation that, until Saturday, made this sport so unique, so great. In what other sport can a fan show up for their first event, and if in the right place at the right time, help a downed racer change a flat tire, or lend a hand that makes the difference between winning and losing? It happens all the time. It has happened to me. The walls and fences of NASCAR, while there partly for safety, are purpose built to keep the fans OUT. To further define the castes of celebrity racer and average fan. The same can be said for the yellow-jacketed security officers at an NFL game. Their backs turned to the action so they can focus on preventing an over-zealous fan from getting too close to their favorite athlete. Not so in off-road racing. For the most part, the pits are open for fans to come and go as they please. To get an autograph from the biggest names in the sport; names such as Robby Gordon, Ivan Stewart, and celebrities such as Jesse James and Patrick Dempsey. To peer with curiosity mere inches away at the inner workings of a million dollar trophy truck. This sport thrives in its allure of the attainability of greatness. A NASCAR fan can buy a sticker for their truck. A football fan can buy a jersey of their team’s star player. On the other hand, a novice off-road racing fan can spend a relatively small amount of money to buy a race car and enter a race, and in a few weeks be rubbing shoulders with the same driver that was signing their shirt at the previous race. It’s a grassroots sport that differs from others in it’s achievability of fame and glory. There is no qualifying and little application criterion for the world-renowned Baja 1000, the sport’s infamous pinnacle and the longest point-to-point motorsports race in the world. This is not an unregulated backyard sport of hillbillies, but rather an epitome of the American dream. A sport that allows the fans, if they choose, the freedom to feel the adrenaline and rush that results when a race vehicle flies by in a blur of dust and exhaust smoke. The freedom to become a part of that race as a spontaneous pit crew or even as a competitor. As raw and primal as the sport may seem however, there is still an overwhelming urge for safety, for all participants involved. Pit areas are well-marked to keep crowds away from vehicles lurching off the starting line. Flagmen are present at all public road crossings to ensure that race vehicles and civilian cars pass safely by. Each race entrant must pass a strict technical inspection that requires safety equipment such as five-point harnesses, fire extinguishers, first aid kits, and hazard triangles. Every race begins with a mandatory driver’s meeting where race organizers urge race participants to pass along vital safety guidelines to their crew and guests. As with all dangerous sports, safety is not an afterthought, but rather a priority. On numerous occasions drivers have pulled over mid-race to help a fallen motorcycle rider or to provide mechanical assistance to a competitor. Imagine that at a NASCAR race or the Tour de France.

To be sure, Saturday’s accident was a horrific tragedy that will affect off-road racing forever. But it was, in every sense of the word, an accident. The participants who were driven by the rush that comes from inching closer and closer to the action, this time got a little too close and a racing accident occurred, sadly claiming the lives of eight individuals who died enjoying the freedom to weigh for themselves the inherent risks involved without barriers or restrictions. As the condemnatory media looks backwards with 20/20 hindsight they ask how could this have been avoided and why is this allowed to continue? Could this have been avoided? The answer to that question will always be, “perhaps”. The race organizers take every possible precaution to ensure all participants’ safety, but this type of event has so many variables that are difficult or impossible to control, including the vastness of area the event covers, the harshness of the elements, the unpredictability of machinery, and the open nature of the race course. It would be impossible to fence off 100 miles of open desert. And if it were somehow done, it would destroy the uniqueness of the sport by forever burning into the desert sand a line that separates and labels “civilian” and “celebrity”. It would become like so many other sports that snubs its fans by urging them to “keep their distance and let the professionals do their thing”. Do not be mistaken, safety in this sport is forever evolving, and massive change is inevitable after this tragic event. There has always been a fine line when it comes to allowing crowd participation at a safe distance, and what was displayed at that one tiny section of race course at the California 200 was the exception, not the rule. Still, even historically safe races with stricter guidelines than those in place last weekend will scrutinize themselves in an effort to become even safer. But if racing were to be shut down completely at the whim of the uninvolved, it would be the next great tragedy in racing after Saturday’s accident. For it would mean that the eight tragic deaths would be the lasting saga of a sport so rich in history, a sport with so much to offer. Their deaths would be the only snapshot of this sport in the minds of most of the world, with no chance at redemption. Races such as the M.O.R.E Powder Puff Race for the Cure which features all female drivers and navigators and raises huge sums of money for breast cancer research would also cease to exist, without ever getting the news coverage they deserve. So many causes that are supported by pledges and sponsorships would feel a major burden at the loss of racing, not to mention the enormous economic impact that would reverberate throughout the southwestern U.S if racing were shut down. It would be a travesty for a moratorium to be called down on off-road racing based on one event that, while tragic, is not at all an accurate depiction of over forty years of off-road racing history. It would be just as irresponsible to demolish a freeway after an accident or to close indefinitely a public beach after a drowning – daily activities that claim many more lives than off-road racing.

The dust has settled and the sun has set on off-road racing’s darkest day, and while the tight-knit racing community gathers as a family to support the victims, we collectively refute the notion that our unique sport should cease to exist based upon what the general public thinks they know from two minutes of Youtube footage and inaccurate reporting. The final legacies of eight fallen from our community depend on it.

[FE135]

The dust has settled from last weekend’s tragic racing accident in Lucerne, but the media continues its onslaught of rabid speculation without fully understanding the history or nature of the sport. The world demands change based on a two minute and seven second Youtube video which is all the exposure it has ever had to the sport, and apparently, all that it needs to cry out for the end of this sport they understand so little. False accusations, inaccurate reporting, and slanderous depictions of the racing community fly around unchecked.......

What is this but an emotional diatribe to “please understand us” without helping our cause at all. If anything, If I were anti off-road, I would use this as ammo to get everything closed down. I understand the authors’ intention and respect that but to try and state there is some sort of symbiotic relationship between racer and spectator to the point that all this was just an unfortunate accident is nuts.

Bryan M’s post above was 100% correct and accurate; he should have used that instead.

[goodguys75]

why does there have to be rules, people are just plain stupid to stand next to the road course......the people that died from the accident were almost asking for it....that is the cold hard facts.....take it for what it is worth....you dont point a loaded gun to your head and squeeze the trigger to see if the gun works do ya.. why are people so ignorant...then they want to blame everyone else for there F ups ..............