Posted on 08/09/2014 10:16:55 PM PDT by smokingfrog
Yeah if you know anything about driving a sprint car, you know that is about the only way to turn them... I am pretty sure he was trying to spin his car to avoid him (the only way you really stop a sprint car) or by hitting the gas, is the quickest way to get the car to turn left (away from the kid coming at him)
Prayers up for This kids Family and Tony Stewart... He has to feel as bad about killing this kid as his parents do losing him, I sincerely doubt it was anything more than a tragic accident.
First off, in Tony’s Defense, I have to say, in most dirt track racing associations, if the kid had not been hit, he would have been watching for the next couple of weeks no matter what for running at moving sprint cars on the track.
And now some information for those of you that don’t know, This is not your typical car like you drive to the store every day. It is specifically made to race on a dirt track. Depending on the association, 5-600+ horsepower in a 1500# car, that has no gearshift or clutch, if the engine is running, the back tires are under power, period, The driveshaft is connected straight to the flywheel. On a dirt track, you can’t just turn the steering wheel to turn the car, especially under low speed, rolling around the track... Anybody seen the kids movie Cars... it’s true, you point the front tires into a hard right turn to make a left corner with these sprint cars, The right rear tire is bigger than the left rear so these cars turn by stepping on the gas pedal or turn the wrong way by letting off it too quickly when you are at racing speed... the brakes don’t do a whole lot, they will slow you down, but not really stop the car... mostly used to get the car set in the corner. If a sprint car wrecks on the track, the car behind him, hits him unless he happens to spin the car out and avoid the accident, very rarely does one steer out of the way...
I keep reading Tony had to have seen him too, but after seeing the video, I seriously even doubt that, with the safety equipment these drives are required to wear, they cant turn their heads, He came at him from the blind side and stepped out from in front of his car. I know the seat Tony uses in his cup car completely blocks their vision to the right side, not sure what his seat looks like in the sprint car though. Most sprint cars I see running here in Arizona, have a hard solid panel on that side of the car that keeps the driver from getting sprayed with mud though so I am just not sure, there are different variations on the cars.
Pure thuggery and I hope he goes to jail for a long time.
It doesn't remotely compare.
Jim Utter, a trusted motorsports reporter tweets...
Ward has passed (age 20)
Stewart cooperative, released, and investigation is not criminal.
they are reporting the driver tony clipped was dead on arrival..
Prayers go out on such a horrible tragedy.
https://twitter.com/PrescottRossi
I know. I want to see a different angle of the incident. My guess is that any other views have been taken by PD/SO for evidence and we may not see them for a while.
I don’t think it was intentional.
Right now I’m Praying for the Ward Family and Tony.
I think Stewart’s temper got the best of him again and he gunned it to scare Ward, myself. He certainly wasn’t slowing as much as other drivers.
What are you talking about? Jim Utter’s latest tweet says that the DA has been notified..no arrest but ongoing investigation.
We shall eventually see. Video has been pulled from YT. Any chance You downloaded it?
It only takes a few inches to go too far. That’s pretty much hat I saw but the camera shot had panned left and came back as it happened.
Shit happens in a split-split second at those speeds and distances.
Still in shock here.......
This will be a “wrongful death” suit at the least.
Video is still on deadspin.com
http://deadspin.com/reports-tony-stewart-ran-over-opposing-driver-during-1618893708
No, I didn’t save it. Watched it twice. Pretty certain there was something akin to road rage going on. If there’s more video preceding, I would not be surprised at all to see that there was something going on even before Stewart clipped Ward’s car into the wall.
Stewart killed him. He should be in jail.
https://mobile.twitter.com/jim_utter
Sheriff says Stewart at WG and cooperative.
I may have got the no criminal investigation part from Prescott.
Key thing I was trying to do was indicate an actual credible source was confirming the death, and that Tony was not in custody.
Thank You, It played and I got it with the phone video.
Will post it on My server. Not for the “gore” but to be available for later.
Thank You again
you are welcome
what a very sad incident.
The pain itself may not really compare... but imagine yourself hitting a little kid that ran out from between two cars in front of your car that you had no chance of even hitting the brakes... while yes it is a different pain for both of you, I am sure your pain would not be all that much less than the parents of the kid you hit... you both live with it the rest of your lives. You wondering what you could have done to change this, the parents knowing if they had taught or controlled their child, they would still have them...
This was an unfortunate racing accident that happened on track and after seeing the video, coming from somebody that has been on a dirt track going only about 1/3 as fast as these sprint cars go, If this 17 year old kid had controlled his temper tonight, he would have been at home in bed pissed off that Tony put him in the wall...
I just don’t see how any criminal charges can be filed against him or how Nascar could penalize Tony either... I have a feeling Tony will probably be in Civil court over this for wrongful death, but if he were judged by a jury of peers (other race car drivers) I seriously doubt he would lose, even then.
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