[midmad68]

i was there and saw the accident, but not the whole thing. there was a car that got upside down going into turn 1 and everyone slowed down to miss him including Michael. Michael then hit the flipping car and instantly accelerated. i didn't get to see the contact but i did see him accelerate toward the fence. playing it over in my mind, it seemed as though something probably hit him in the head off of the flipping car that caused him to lose consciousness because there was no indidcation of the throttle sticking from what my dad said. i didn't get to see the helmet, but i heared that it had damage which again leads me to believe that something hit him. what i am speculating is that he might have been hit by the flipping car's rear bumper causing the helmet damage and facial damage. it's hard to say if the contact with the other car caused the head injury, but most likely it was when he hit the wall. every factor that we considered led to this conclusion...but we might never know for sure.

Note: SPECULATION ONLY...BUT THESE FACTORS SHOULD BE LOOKED AT IN THE FUTURE

[Charles Nungester]

Originally Posted by safetyworker Fortunately or unfortunately, the forces in play in sprint and midget crashes are not unique to open wheel incidents. Force is force whether open or closed cockpit...dirt or asphalt...winged or non-winged...NASCAR or USAC. What really matters is learning how to manage the energy that needs to be dissipated in crashes. The amount of force that causes severe neck injuries, or a basilar skull fracture (what killed Earnhardt and many others) is the same no matter the vehicle involved. How that force is transmitted to the driver does vary. Get over it folks, head and neck restraining devices save lives and reduce serious and critical injuries! Being angry about being told you need to use HANS-type devices is a waste of time!!! Spend your time learning about state of the art safety devices and concepts. Look at your belts, seat, roll cage, and the distance between the top of your helmet and the bottom of the the halo bar. Let's focus on productive efforts!

You've completely jumped the shark on this one. People are asking if your heads still got forward motion when the hans stops it suddenly thus causing the face to impact the helmet. Certainly not as much as hitting a object inches of feet away but is that a side effect of the device?

Nobody said you shouldn't use them.
Chuck

[safetyworker]

The potential for foreign objects entering the cockpit is another reason for updated seats and side nets on both sides...not total protection but better than without...also reinforces the lateral head supports. If that did happen, the HANS would not be much help.

No one said Steve's opinion doesn't matter...but if Steve listens to my suggestions for setting up his sprint car...well, let's just say my many yrs in racing safety makes me far more qualified for head injury discussions than spring and torsion bar rates! <G> A veteran drivers opinion is very valuable...no doubt about it.

[midmad68]

just to make a correction on my story: the rear bumper isn't what hit him in the head. it turns out that they hit cage to cage. michael slid sideways to miss him and hit the flipping car in the back of the cage. still something must have hit him in the head right then to knock him out.

MJ

[YeleynSmoke]

Originally Posted by midmad68 From Chris Swanson: scrafan.com I spoke with Michael's Mom "Donna" today. Michael is doing Very well now. He is alert and the ventilator tube is being removed. They are starting to prep him for a move to Kaiser Hospital in Anaheim very soon. She said that a surgery will be performed to make repairs to his eye socket, but the great news is that there is no eye damage. Keep him in your thoughts and Prayers. We will keep you posted on his recovery. Thx CS www.swansonmotorsports.com

Thanks for the update. I am glad to hear he is doing well.
whewwwwwww

hey everyone this is michael burba and i wanted to thank you all for your prayers and thoughts, everyone helped. I am doing very well and recovering remarkably quick i have no braindamge or any problems needless to say i got very lucky and thank you all agin

[YeleynSmoke]

Wow Michael, Its like a holiday miracle to see you here.

We were all very worried for you and thrilled that you are doing so well.
YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY and God Bless.
Karen S

[rachasin]

Originally Posted by midmad68 just to make a correction on my story: the rear bumper isn't what hit him in the head. it turns out that they hit cage to cage. michael slid sideways to miss him and hit the flipping car in the back of the cage. still something must have hit him in the head right then to knock him out. MJ

I was there that nite in the 1st corner. When it happened it looked like to me that the impact of him hitting the stoped car is what knocked him out. He was hard on the gas after the car came down. Then it was straight into the wall head on.
Glad to hear your doing good :applaud::applaud: Mike Hope to see you at the races. :checkered:

[dirtnonwingfan]

Wonderful news, Michael!!! Thanks for letting us know. Have a great Thanksgiving.

Frank Daigh