(Having been to this track several times, and been involved with the NEMA Midgets in the past, I think this guy hit the nail on the head. Sometimes common sense...it just ain't so common.
David.)



April 09, 2008
Don't Blame The Racetrack For Racing Tragedies

The knee jerk reaction was nearly automatic when word started to spread Sunday that NorthEastern Midget Association driver Shane Hammond had been killed in an accident during the season opening Icebreaker at Thompson International Speedway.

Automatically people were pointing fingers at the track.

Three lives lost in less than 4 years at Thompson.

It’s not surprising that people, almost immediately following the news of Hammond’s death, came out firing against Thompson, blaming the track, calling it an unsafe place to race.

But was it fair?

Absolutely not.

The big picture is that three drivers, Hammond, Tom Baldwin Sr. and John Blewett III, have been killed in accidents since Aug. 2004 at Thompson.

But look beyond that very general statement for a second. All three were killed in wholly different types of accidents with each situation having its own unique set of rare circumstances surrounding it.

If you could tie those accidents together, point to a common thread between them for why they happened, then there would be a basis for an argument that there are serious problems at Thompson.

But there is no common thread between them other than the track where they happened. There is no bullseye mark to point to and say ‘That’s what’s wrong.’

And what gets lost in calling out Thompson, or calling out any track for that matter, is the fact that nobody was or is forced to race at the facility. There’s no mandate telling someone they have to get behind the wheel of a car at Thompson, or any racetrack for that matter.

It’s a chosen right by those who participate.

And surely they know the danger that lies when something goes wrong at speed.

Shane Hammond didn’t put a firesuit on Sunday because he thought he’d look good in it. He didn’t put a helmet on to keep his head warm and he didn’t wear a harness system because it made him more comfortable.

Hammond did those things because he knew the sport he was about to participate in was dangerous.

Like the other 200 or so drivers on hand at Thompson on Sunday, surely he knew the risks involved in racing.

And nobody made him, or anybody else at Thompson that day, go out on the track and race unwillingly.

The goal in racing is to take a machine solely built for speed and performance to its ultimate limit. That limit lies directly on the edge of control. The fastest one will go is at the line just before control is lost.

Racing is a constant dance with the laws of physics. Dance on the edge and stay on that edge as long as possible. Go over the edge and control is gone. When one is playing chicken with the laws of physics, the nature of control and trying to tame a machine they’ve built to ride narrowly on the edge of untamed there’s no rhyme or reason for what happens when it all goes bad. When control is gone sometimes bad things happen. Sometimes very bad things happen.

And it’s the goal of every racetrack out there to ensure that they are prepared to minimize the consequences when that dance on the edge goes bad. But there’s no way any track can be prepared for every scenario.

Is Thompson an unsafe track?

Absolutely it is.

To say its safe would be saying that there’s no chance whatsoever someone could get hurt or killed competing there.

Now, show me the list of tracks that are 100 percent safe.

Show me the list of racetracks where you know unequivocally before an event takes place there that there is no possible way someone could get hurt or killed racing there.

To say even that it would be a short list is wrong.

There is no list because there is no such thing as a safe racetrack.

Racing at Thompson is dangerous, just like racing at Stafford Motor Speedway is dangerous, just like racing at the Waterford Speedbowl is dangerous, just like racing at Daytona International Speedway is dangerous. Racing was dangerous 50 years ago, it was dangerous 10 years ago, it was dangerous Sunday and it will be dangerous next week. That fact will never change and Thompson isn’t to be blamed for it.

Shawn Courchesne, 2:27 p.m.

So true. I'm waiting for the do-gooders in this state to attempt to start a campaign against Thompson and its owners.

You make many good points in your posting. To blame the "track" without knowing more about the situation is misguided and unprofessional...and to "accept" this kind of situation without critical evaluation is also not valuable. Our sport needs to look at all serious incidents in a measured, professional way. Everything from the driver's safety equipment/car to the track's physical facility to the safety team's response to the incident needs to be examined. We need not look for perfection, as we will not find it. We need to look to learn from it...to avoid the same mistakes...and make our sport even more safe. If we do not improve, we are going backwards. Our thoughts and prayers are with this driver's family.

The only thing especially dangerous about Thompson is that it's the fastest track in New England. Therefore, when an accident happens, it's more likely to be serious. I wasn't there, but I've talked to people who were and read a number of descriptions of the incident. Shane went over a wheel, up in the air, and over the wall. It appears he never touched the track surface or the wall. I guess you could blame the billboard he hit, but at the speed he was going, he probably would have hit something very hard, even if the bill board wasn't there.

I'll bet that, if he had survived, there would be people saying, "Thank goodness for that billboard. It caught him before he hit the ground."

My Dad told me one thing that I have always lived by when it comes to racing and life in general. When it is your time to go, it is your time to go.

My mother told me the same thing. I have always hoped that when I die it will be doing something I really enjoy like watching racing. Who wants to die filling out your taxes? Tragedy in racing is always there when you are flat out on the pedal and something goes wrong. Thoughts and prayers for all those who have suffered through this untimely death. RIP Shane.