Big crash at Hallett

[dp35]

The legend of "the bitch" lives on.  Amazing no one was hurt/killed.

Full story & photos here:  http://jalopnik.com/5390934/mustang-cover-boy-tries-to-corner-flips-over-tire-wall

[Wmcmanus]

Pretty scary the way that rollbar just punched right through the floor.  As someone commented at that site, the seats must have dropped down a bit as well.  That had to hurt at least a little. 

Which way were they running the course?  I'm trying to identify in my mind which tire wall that is and where the car ended up when it stopped.  Looks to me like the were running in the normal direction and he went off much before the bitch (which you can see in the road ahead that he never made it to), and then ended up over towards turn 4 (or in that general direction anyway).

[McFred]

I like the bumper.  "Look better, go faster."  Might have helped if it was, "Go faster, look better."  Put the money where it counts not appearance.  At the least I hope no one was hurt.

[Heywood-Yablowme]

Looks like they were a full time zone off the line..  guess they had better spec heavier bars next time..

[Terry Kennedy]

[quote="Wmcmanus"]
Which way were they running the course?  I'm trying to identify in my mind which tire wall that is and where the car ended up when it stopped.  Looks to me like the were running in the normal direction and he went off much before the bitch (which you can see in the road ahead that he never made it to), and then ended up over towards turn 4 (or in that general direction anyway).
[/quote]

Looks like CCW (normal) and he lost it before the bitch. From observing maybe 2 weeks of runs at Hallett, both Atoms and other cars, it seems that the heavier cars tend to lose it earlier on if they lose grip, and head pretty much in the direction of the shops. Atoms seem to get further along and spin somewhat more toward the first set of bleachers coming up into the main camping area. But this doesn't look like a loss of traction - more of a CFIT, or a failure of the steering system.

In picture 5 you can clearly see the ads that line the entrance to the bitch - compare the crash pic with this still from my video:





It looks like he came up over the rise before the sea turtle and continued turning left.

[Wmcmanus]

Thanks, Terry.  That's what it looked like to me as well.  Seems that he went off as he was coming up the hill on turn 7, and never got to turn 8 (where the report says he went off).  I was having a hard time understanding it because I had no problems there at all, even though I had a spin at nearly every other corner on the track!  What you're saying about weight shifting with heavier cars makes a lot of sense.  He was obviously moving!