NASCAR Cup Series

Wild ride: Drivers discuss big crashes

Published Feb. 12, 2010 10:44 p.m. ET

foxsports

A tap, a blown tire, a gust of wind and suddenly a race car is on an unpredictable collision course at over 190 miles per hour.

“There’s nothing you can do,” says Juan Pablo Montoya, who has experienced crashes in all types of racing vehicle from go-karts to Formula One machines. “You just go from driver to passenger. One minute you’re in control and the next you’re not. There’s nothing you can do, you just enjoy the ride – relax, hang on and know it will be over with. That’s it.”

Although car engines are restricted at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway to decrease the horsepower on these high-banked tracks, these two venues still experience crashes that occur in a split second and change the course of history.

That was the case in the 2001 Daytona 500 when Dale Earnhardt lost his life in a crash on the last lap. And that loss triggered the biggest safety initiative in NASCAR history. While some drivers – particularly in open-wheel series – were already using HANS (head and neck safety device), development moved forward on seats, energy-absorbing protection for walls and sturdier race cars.

“The SAFER barriers, certainly in some of the wrecks that we’ve seen over the last two years, have saved some lives,” said Clint Bowyer, who slid across the finish line upside down in flames after hitting Casey Mears at the 2007 Daytona 500. “There’s no question. That car does make you feel maybe not invincible, but safe. The seats are safe. That’s the biggest thing they’ve done with the new car is to make it safe.

“We’ve seen some horrific accidents – Carl Edwards’ wreck at Talladega, my teammate Jeff Burton and Jeff Gordon at Watkins Glen. There’s been some hard hits that people have walked away from and I think it’s because this car and that wall.”

There’s no doubt that diminishing the potential for danger will increase the longevity of drivers’ careers. But have the safety advances also created a false sense of security among the younger generation of drivers?

Brad Keselowski will make his Daytona 500 debut on Sunday. The newest Penske racer, who turned 26 on Thursday, scored his first Sprint Cup win at Talladega in just his fifth start. However, with Carl Edwards’ car vaulting toward the stands in Keselowski’s mirror, the rookie’s victory was somewhat overshadowed.

Keselowski has endured several bone-jarring incidents in his short career, including a multicar crash in Fontana, Calif., which ended with the driver being airlifted out of the racetrack.

“That was one of the biggest wrecks anyone could conceive,” Keselowski said. “Then I had a couple of wrecks like that in the truck series and in Late Models. Over time, with the (current race car) and all the safety devices we have, I’ve gotten to the point where I just feel invincible.

“Nobody is invincible. The important fact is to feel that way, otherwise you can’t drive a race car and be on the edge. You need to get in that race car and feel like you’re the baddest mother to ever step inside one and that nothing is going to touch you. That’s what it takes to get the job done.”

For young guns who receive that big break, the bottom line is to make the most of the opportunity – whatever it takes.

That was the case for Michael McDowell at Texas Motor Speedway in 2008. McDowell was qualifying for his second career Cup start when he hit a patch of track-drying compound on his second lap and barrel-rolled through Turns 1 and 2, before shooting head-on into the SAFER barrier and moving the concrete wall behind it before his flaming car came to a stop.

As the accident unfolded, he wasn’t considering the impact.

“For me, it was more flames when it first hit because the motor obviously being in the front, caught on fire,” McDowell said. “I'm not a tough guy, but I wasn't really worried about getting hurt or any of that. When it finally stopped rolling, I was really afraid for my job. It was my second Cup race, I was a rookie and obviously at that point in your career you always hear of guys that were really good before they had that big wreck. You hear that all the time in our sport. And I did not want to be that guy, there was just no way.

“If I was hurt, I wasn't going to show it and I would just jump back in the car like I had to. My deal was that I was getting back in the car and I was not even letting fear get in the way of it because I didn't want to be one of the statistics. I didn't want to be one of the guys that had a good career going and then had that big wreck. That was really the only thoughts that I was thinking about and just getting back in the car.”

Miraculously, McDowell did walk away. Like any determined racer, he won’t let that moment haunt him. But every time he drives around Texas Motor Speedway and sees the remnants of rubber on the track he’s reminded how fortunate he was that day.

“It was important to (drive) the next day and luckily I wasn't injured so I could,” McDowell added. “That part of it was good, but I don’t really think about it a whole lot. We still talk about it a lot and I'm sure we still will for a long time. For me, I moved on the next day. I was ready to go.

“No matter what, with or without that crash, every weekend you still have to prove yourself."

With 43 drivers competing for the top spot in a race, there is no foolproof way to completely stay out of harm’s way on the racetrack – no matter what the venue. However, with the necessity to draft in tight packs on a track where the surface has seen better days, Daytona is treacherous at every turn.

Drivers and their decisions will make the difference between green-flag runs and caution-filled delays.

“You always have to think ahead of your moves – that you’re clear to the inside, that you’re clear to the right side and that no one is looking there and will clip your rear bumper when things happen,” said former Cup champion Kurt Busch. “You always have to stay a step ahead. When you’re not a step ahead, that’s when you’re vulnerable for getting wrecked.

“Even if you get passed and find yourself running fourth and there’s a lap and a half left, that means there are six straightaways that things can happen on with different things that you need to prepare for. You might think two straightaways ahead on what you’re going to do the next time around. So, it is like a chess game.”

Veterans such as Busch can almost anticipate when the dynamic of the race begins to change. Drivers have an intuition that fine-tunes over time.

“There’s really no prepared moment when you know you’re wrecking, you just hope not to put yourself in the position to get wrecked,” Busch said. “When you feel like you’re in too hostile of a draft, those are the moments before you go, ‘oh, something might happen.’”

When the lap evolves from racing to wrecking, there’s very little a driver can do to stop the motion or protect himself. Most drivers have a routine, but there’s very little control over the situation.

As Carl Edwards says, “you’re just along for the ride.”

"Once I realized that I am not going to be able to gather this thing back up then you go into a breathe out, relax Mode) — put your hands and feet in and wait for the impact because all you can do at that point is get hurt so you just want to make sure to minimize the risk of that,” Edwards said. “Mentally you're just like, 'Well, here we go.'"

Ryan Newman was highlight-reel fodder at Daytona in 2003 – five years before he won the 500. Newman ran just 56 laps before flipping on the frontstretch and landing on his lid. Newman had a similar experience at Talladega last fall and admits there was still grass in his hair when he showered following the race.

Newman refuses to obsess about past mishaps.

“You think about it, you learn from the experience and you move on,” Newman said. “At the end of the day you just need to push the gas pedal and turn left.”