Race Safety - Was "How young is too young?"

[LandSpeeder]

Re: How young is too young?

This right here. As you may or not know a gentleman got hit with a rock from my buggy at a recent race. He went into surgery in pretty serious condition. I can tell you now I am not a very sympathetic person usually just who I am. But I have not stopped thinking about this gentleman since I seen him laying on the ground from something I dont think I could have pervented but defiantly involved in. I cant imagine being a younger person and having to deal with these emotions/feelings. Just my opinion from a recent experience.

He was part of this past weekend's recovery crew. I spoke with him, and he still has the scars. He does not hold you responsible.

 

[creepycrawly]

Re: How young is too young?

For this sport to "grow" you have to have people there that aren't a part of it. How are they to know that a buggy is capable of jumping 20 feet into the air and landing in the crowd? Even guys who are into wheeling that I bring to these events for the first time are completely taken by surprise by how crazy it can get. Someone just coming to watch that knew nothing would never have an idea of where to self-designate a safe-zone. That's where it becomes SRRS's responsibility IMHO. Part of that is establishing and enforcing reasonable safe zones and not allowing obviously high-risk drivers to drive.

What is some full-blown mentally retarded person wanted to run? Maybe some parents has a 4-year old down-syndrome child who has dreamed of driving an 800hp race buggy up Cable hill his entire life, but he's never even driven a car on the road? Is that cool, too? Crowd's fault for not staying behind the blue tape?

You make a valid point that some may not be fully aware of the capabilities and what a "safe distance" is. I'll give you that one.

Let's be reasonable...seems like the girl was just as capable and in control as the majority of the other drivers. No, we can't turn a 4 year old loose. I don't have the magic # for what should be legit age. I am pretty sure Clyde and the SRRS guys have seen Sydney drive and didn't object.

SRRS has a responsibility to provide guidance, but you can't deny there is some inherent risk involved in spectating. Pretty sure everyone signed a waiver to get in. How many took the time to read it??

 

[patooyee]

Re: How young is too young?

You make a valid point that some may not be fully aware of the capabilities and what a "safe distance" is. I'll give you that one.

Let's be reasonable...seems like the girl was just as capable and in control as the majority of the other drivers. No, we can't turn a 4 year old loose. I don't have the magic # for what should be legit age. I am pretty sure Clyde and the SRRS guys have seen Sydney drive and didn't object.

SRRS has a responsibility to provide guidance, but you can't deny there is some inherent risk involved in spectating. Pretty sure everyone signed a waiver to get in. How many took the time to read it??

Haha, re-read my post. I just realized I had a very contextually imperative typo.

 

[TBItoy]

Re:

There was a local woman sitting beside us at BND that had never even heard of rock bouncing. Someone she knew told her there was a comp this weekend and she stopped by. Said she had been driving past the entrance for grayrock for years and never knew what it was.

She literally had zero knowledge of the drivers, vehicles, or how the comp worked... So yeah, when rigs started rolling and jumping she was a bit surprised

 

[civicmindedex79]

Re: How young is too young?

He was part of this past weekend's recovery crew. I spoke with him, and he still has the scars. He does not hold you responsible.

That is completely incrediable to hear. I am so glad he was out there. I have been speaking with a guy on here keeping decent updates but have felt like I was bothering him with all of the messages. Really kicking my own ass for not going now. I would like to shake his hand atleast and have a few words with him. I will catch up with him soon.

 

[creepycrawly]

Re: How young is too young?

This right here. As you may or not know a gentleman got hit with a rock from my buggy at a recent race. He went into surgery in pretty serious condition. I can tell you now I am not a very sympathetic person usually just who I am. But I have not stopped thinking about this gentleman since I seen him laying on the ground from something I dont think I could have pervented but defiantly involved in. I cant imagine being a younger person and having to deal with these emotions/feelings. Just my opinion from a recent experience.

Creepycawly you must be crazy if you think that sheet of paper holds that much weight when it comes to something as serious as a DEATH of someone. I good attorney will rip and pick that thing to pieces. I have always thought it would be a smart move for any promoter, event organizer or park owner to make it known at drivers meeting what you signed and what your liabilities are while doing this.

No sir. I am not naive enough to think that it absolves anyone of any liability. But I feel that it SHOULD. That is part of the problem we have in this country. If you sign a waiver acknowledging that you are participating in something dangerous and unpredictable and you declare the park and the participants to not be liable, that absolutely SHOULD stick for anything less than deliberate acts. It doesn't and we all know it. It isn't notarized, there was no witness of signature etc.

It speaks to your character that you have been concerned for the individual who was hurt. Obviously it wasn't intentional, but you still feel sympathy. That's awesome. You probably won't be suing any of the park owners if you get hurt while assaulting cable hill either.

 

[kmcminn]

Re: How young is too young?

That is completely incrediable to hear. I am so glad he was out there. I have been speaking with a guy on here keeping decent updates but have felt like I was bothering him with all of the messages. Really kicking my own ass for not going now. I would like to shake his hand atleast and have a few words with him. I will catch up with him soon.

Was he the guy with the helmet on?

 

[patooyee]

Re: How young is too young?

Ya'll please don't misinterpret what I am saying as saying that I think SRRS did a bad job. This whole "sport" is still being developed. I thought overall they did a great job with what they had to work. I'm just bringing up things that might need to be considered as elements get mixed into the "sport" that haven't previously been in large quantities.

 

[BUG-E J]

Re: How young is too young?

I promise you she scares me much less than people that show up with a **** load of money and throw it at a bouncer then hop in it and go wfo up a hill. I know she has wwwaayyy more seat time than anyone realizes.

 

[LandSpeeder]

Re: How young is too young?

I promise you she scares me much less than people that show up with a **** load of money and throw it at a bouncer then hop in it and go wfo up a hill. I know she has wwwaayyy more seat time than anyone realizes.

click click BOOM. bullseye

 

[civicmindedex79]

Re: How young is too young?

Was he the guy with the helmet on?

I have no clue wasnt there.

 

[civicmindedex79]

Re: How young is too young?

No sir. I am not naive enough to think that it absolves anyone of any liability. But I feel that it SHOULD. That is part of the problem we have in this country. If you sign a waiver acknowledging that you are participating in something dangerous and unpredictable and you declare the park and the participants to not be liable, that absolutely SHOULD stick for anything less than deliberate acts. It doesn't and we all know it. It isn't notarized, there was no witness of signature etc.

It speaks to your character that you have been concerned for the individual who was hurt. Obviously it wasn't intentional, but you still feel sympathy. That's awesome. You probably won't be suing any of the park owners if you get hurt while assaulting cable hill either.

This I agree with ALOT. I totally took what you wrote earlier out of context.

 

[creepycrawly]

Re: How young is too young?

It's the interwebz...that happens.

 

[kmcminn]

Re: How young is too young?

I have no clue wasnt there.

Sorry clicked wrong quote that was for Eric.

 

[LandSpeeder]

Re: How young is too young?

Sorry clicked wrong quote that was for Eric.

Hell, I can't remember. LOL. I just remember the scars on his face. The conversation was faster than when you walked up, then I turned around and you was gone! Seems to be the theme of the weekend. Seeing folks for 15 seconds and then gone.
But yeah, he was telling us about it cause we were all joking about being sprayed by someone getting sideways at the finish line.

 

[Shortbus]

Re: How young is too young?

As stated before anyone with the money could enter with no experience.

I'm not judging or saying should shouldn't.

All parties should understand the risk and what could happen. Everything went fine but there's always the what if and can everyone handle and live/deal with it. Maybe that's where the age really comes into play, experience taken out.

True there was a wavier but we live in the sue nation.... CYOA and hope for best. Any ambulance chaser claim negligence and where would our sport be with that publicity. Look at Tony Stewart, media wanted to hang him.

 

[al1tonyota]

Re: How young is too young?

I just watched the video of Sydney and from the bottom she was driving all the way to the top ledge when it got up on the left side of the hill she seems to have kinda just went for the top of the hill understandably excited! Can't really say this was an age thing but maybe an experience thing as mentioned before there are several older drivers that scare the **** out of me so much as to where I don't want to be anywhere on or around the hill they are on. I've been pretty fast in a buggy nowhere near as fast as some are going now but you have to keep an eye on A LOT of things at once! The hill and the crowd are the two main ones! Nobody is making a living that I know of rock bouncing so it's not so serious that you can't let off or steer away from a bad situation! Being able to stay calm and pay attention is something that only comes with experience!

 

[twizt3dfuc]

Re:

Seems to be the general consensus as to the crowds are what is wrong at these events, you have to take into consideration that the parents give the say so on who drives what rig, if they are comfortable with a teenager driving a high hp buggy up the hill so be it. Regardless of the age a 40+ driver could just as easily hit a spectator as a 14-18 driver.
The parents hold the guilt if something happens to their child when they are driving. So that is the age in question.
When does a parent believe their child can handle the rig, it will greatly vary dependent on parent.
It would be stupid for an org to have a age requirement, it would only anger people that have put so much into the sport

 

[AW10]

Re: How young is too young?

She killed it in my opinion. I had no idea she was that young. It was funny when she blew past the start line and didn't stage up like she was supposed to haha. Like several people have stated earlier, age isn't the issue. Everyone puts in on the floor and hopes for the best. She didn't do anything a grown man hasn't already done. Hell... one guy hit a tree not 15 feet up the trail and broke. He didn't just glance it... he ran straight into it lol. I hope madram or BK posts that video up. I laughed for a while at that. I felt bad for the guy but it was really funny to me. I watched plowboy run over some people on Twister 3 at WITC a few years ago. In my opinion.. if your going to stand somewhere you could get hit and you do... then you cant bitch about it. It sucks you can sue for just about anything and get away with it these days...

 

[ldwoodruff]

Re: How young is too young?

Me and my brother had this conversation on the way home . I have mixed feelings about a age limit because Sydney can drive as good as most men can looks like to me but I'm sure that they are very few 15 year olds that can!!!! But with this sport and crowds growing bigger by the day it blows my mind that they don't run a remote shut off like the monster trucks do. Witch I'm sure is a Hugh exspience and pain in the ass!!! The reason I say that is look at Jordan tanner at dirty turtle when he got knocked out in his buggy thank god he didn't land on the throttle who knows what would have happened to him or a crowd of people.