I think most people talking about a cage are also referring to all requisite safety equipment. Gotta love the internet, start off with "all due respect" and then follow it up with name calling. Guess what, people can have a different opinion than yours and not be "loony"
Crash & Death at the NOLA Wannagofast 1/2 mile today (RIP Jeff Hagaman)
- Thread starter earico
- Start date
I think most people talking about a cage are also referring to all requisite safety equipment. Gotta love the internet, start off with "all due respect" and then follow it up with name calling. Guess what, people can have a different opinion than yours and not be "loony"
In my first post I indicated I feel it’s a drivers responsibility to mitigate all means of safety. Word tracking in my second post referenced a cage but yes more goes into it then just that.
75% of the time isn’t worth much when one dies so yea my personal belief is that when you build a car to be utilized at such high speeds you equally equip with safety equipment and along the way the vehicle becomes less and less of a street car.
To each their own though. I definitely agree the drivers should be given the opportunity to either walk the track or do a sighting lap just to get a feel for the surface.
I also understand that if the rules change and dictate more safety equipment, many people will loose interest in the events as many simply don’t want to vest into that equipment for many reasons right or wrong
Go back and read this thread again. There are several posts eluding to just a cage. But regardless, this was literally about the only car Jeff owned that wasn't full caged and spec'd out for this type of racing. His Cobras, CTS-V, and even his Corvettes I believe had full cages. This was a showpiece 'look what I can do' type car. And unfortunately it bit him.
Also, if the being called the word loony offends/upsets you, the internet and racing may not be for you. That wasn't even an insult or something to get riled up about.
That's horrible. Hopefully they, at least the kids, were kept far away from the crash scene.
I finally have time to write how I feel about this.
First of all my heart goes out to Jeff's family. I can't even begin to imagine the pain and void they are feeling. My family has seen me run at the half mile at 185 mph. It must have been horrifying for his family to witness that crash. We all know, family included, that there is risk when you race. We just never expect the risk to become a reality. May he rest in peace.
After the crash, on the WGF Facebook page they posted that the event was cancelled for the weekend. If you read thru the comments on that post you will find that Blake, the owner of WGF, knew about the bumpy area at the end of the 1/2 mile finish line. He actually warned everyone about it at the driver's meeting. There are also pics posted of this bumpy area and it's really bad. Like Treynor said in the normal configuration you would already be slowing down before this area to make upcoming turn on the road course. The way WGF set this up these bumps were at the beginning of the braking zone for cars travelling 200+. That's just ****ing stupid! We all know what happens when the rear end of a car get's light under hard braking. Throw in 5" bumps that bottom out a cars suspension travel and it's a disaster. WGF also made the decision to only run 200+ mph cars as solo runs. This was a good decision but it also shows you they had concerns. Bottom line is a 1/2 mile event should have never been run at this facility.
About 4 years ago I posted on the GTR forum that we needed more safety at these events. I had just participated at WGF Horseshoe Bay and the finish line was where the spectators were positioned. Afterwards, someone in a Lambo had just spun out at 200+ at a different event just before the finish line. We were discussing this spin out on the forum and it got me thinking about what if that had been Horseshoe Bay and he spun out into the spectators at the end? That's when I voiced my concerns and I suggested that WGF, No Fly Zone, Shift S3ctor and others form a committee together. They could setup minimum shutdown distances, safety equipment requirements and etc. The speeds of these cars was getting faster and faster. It was just a matter of time before someone died. Pretty much everyone in that thread balked at my suggestion for more safety.
Jeff's car didn't have a cage. Obviously with a 2000+ hp GTR costs is not an issue. However as others have commented the decision to put a real cage in a car officially retires that car from street duty. A full cage requires you to wear a helmet and fully strap in every time you drive or ride in the car. I have no doubt a full cage would've probably saved his life. To not install a cage was his choice and unfortunately he paid that hefty price.
First of all my heart goes out to Jeff's family. I can't even begin to imagine the pain and void they are feeling. My family has seen me run at the half mile at 185 mph. It must have been horrifying for his family to witness that crash. We all know, family included, that there is risk when you race. We just never expect the risk to become a reality. May he rest in peace.
After the crash, on the WGF Facebook page they posted that the event was cancelled for the weekend. If you read thru the comments on that post you will find that Blake, the owner of WGF, knew about the bumpy area at the end of the 1/2 mile finish line. He actually warned everyone about it at the driver's meeting. There are also pics posted of this bumpy area and it's really bad. Like Treynor said in the normal configuration you would already be slowing down before this area to make upcoming turn on the road course. The way WGF set this up these bumps were at the beginning of the braking zone for cars travelling 200+. That's just ****ing stupid! We all know what happens when the rear end of a car get's light under hard braking. Throw in 5" bumps that bottom out a cars suspension travel and it's a disaster. WGF also made the decision to only run 200+ mph cars as solo runs. This was a good decision but it also shows you they had concerns. Bottom line is a 1/2 mile event should have never been run at this facility.
About 4 years ago I posted on the GTR forum that we needed more safety at these events. I had just participated at WGF Horseshoe Bay and the finish line was where the spectators were positioned. Afterwards, someone in a Lambo had just spun out at 200+ at a different event just before the finish line. We were discussing this spin out on the forum and it got me thinking about what if that had been Horseshoe Bay and he spun out into the spectators at the end? That's when I voiced my concerns and I suggested that WGF, No Fly Zone, Shift S3ctor and others form a committee together. They could setup minimum shutdown distances, safety equipment requirements and etc. The speeds of these cars was getting faster and faster. It was just a matter of time before someone died. Pretty much everyone in that thread balked at my suggestion for more safety.
Jeff's car didn't have a cage. Obviously with a 2000+ hp GTR costs is not an issue. However as others have commented the decision to put a real cage in a car officially retires that car from street duty. A full cage requires you to wear a helmet and fully strap in every time you drive or ride in the car. I have no doubt a full cage would've probably saved his life. To not install a cage was his choice and unfortunately he paid that hefty price.
...and this is why street racing takes place. Tracks are available to race with as much safety and emergency care as possible afforded the racers and audience. Despite this, people that do not meet track requirements meet on the street.
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Exactly, guess I just do not understand the 1500+ horsepower street car idea other than do it cuz I can... The sport is infinitely more fun with purpose built cars and DD's
You think a guy with a 2,000HP GT-R and 1,700+HP CTS-V didn't have at least one other car he could daily? You guys are losing touch with our new reality and what makes this hobby fun. Especially for wealthy people.
Great post. This is a real catch 22 in regards to safety with these cars that are also street driven. There was a guy a while back killed when he was side-swiped on the street and hit his head on his funny car halo of his 25.5 cage without a helmet on.
This....the car was meant to be a 'street car'
Rollcage = 'not street car'
Its a risk he took, and lost.
However, the bumps are a completely avoidable danger (that the staff should have remedied ie with flattening, or finding another venue, as this place seemed doomed from the start)
The video that I saw off the crash was all cut up, but there just didn't seem to be near enough of a run out based on what I saw for me to feel comfortable going those speeds. IMO you need enough to allow you to slow down mechanically in case the chute fails. But I am not familiar with where they were running at, and I am not into drag racing in any case.
I think you missed my point. For me 1500+ horsepower is pretty useless 9.99x out of 10. Considering he clearly had the money why not just build a car that does the same thing safely. You cant use that much power on the street.. Its entirely pointless and makes our community look bad. I think of it the same way as going into a police station with an AR cuz its your right to do so. Doesnt mean you should
no, we get your point.
You don't like 2000hp cars on the street.
Other people do.
That's the whole point.
Some of you guys are living in ancient times......Tx2k, SCT (that's THIS week in Atlanta) all have 1000-1500-1800hp cars running on the street....this isn't 1987 anymore. You can make fast shit hook on the street.
Here's a 1900whp Lamborghini from YEARS ago in Atlanta.....this is on the street....
You guys need to come to Atlanta. For real.
No, he definitely missed my point..
Nice 150mph flyby of that car on the street..
People say "die doing what you love" not as ignorance but as the morbid SOBs we are. We are well aware that any day, any time, anyone one of us will die and we will all die eventually.
It sucks that a day intended for fun an excitement ended in terror and misery but it can always be worse. Far more people will get to enjoy finding out their father has cancer, spending two years trying to treat it, spending every penny they have. All the financial and emotional stress, hoping he gets better. Soon they will lose hope as they see him begin to lose weight, his memory becomes so foggy he doesn't recognize you anymore. He'll be in constant pain. You'll then have to make all sorts of Hospice arrangements and sign papers and make preparations... then when you least expect it, he'll be choking to death in lung fluid, gasping to breath, he'll shit himself and then die. You then call Hospice and the funeral home. Hospice will arrive to collect medication and verify the death. The funeral home will bag him up. Whatever other mess is left on the couch or bed, you'll get to clean up.
I think it's much better to remember your father having gone out in blaze of glory, riding triumphantly across the rainbow bridge into the gates of Valhalla top a 2,000hp screaming GT-R.
It's not about having the money for safety equipment. These guys are dropping a half million on these cars and the sport. Its about the adrenaline rush and one-upping someone else. If they don't do it on the track, they'll do it in "Mexico".
This is like wondering why a guy buys a Hayabusa and then proceeds to blast down the interstate in shorts and a t-shirt. Or the kids int he ghetto with the dirt-bikes popping wheelies.
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