LRP Natl wreck Aug 2009

[Andrew09091990]

btw he did react, although there was no opportunity to do any more than just slam on brakes (as u can see his stop signals did light up). Sad thing is that he didnt notice or didnt pay proper attention to the yellow flag, which was shown just before the accident

I hope both drivers managed to recover and did well

[eggbertwaxman]

That was terrifying to watch, I can't believe how the driver felt when he saw the car he was doomed to hit.

[theapeman1989]

i dont get why the other car was going the wrong way,it looked like a 430

[thatnigga54]

shit that suck and their was nothing the miata could do, it was already to late

[jimhbs85]

you can see the corner worker frantically waving the yellow flag...

[BeastEd]

wow were these guys ok?

[cessnan121pp]

Shit, I was there for this. I remember it vividly

[MLGCODSTER24]

Wasn't the drivers fault, his view was obstructed by the car in front. SM has probably the best drivers in scca

[SSM188]

In the SCCA? You mean all around! Its the hardest most competitive class!

[SSM188]

I race an SSM car like Ken ( the car that was involved in the collison) I used to race a 2000 Miata like Mark, (the car infront of ken that ken went to pass) You can hardly see past them especially that station. Your not looking over at the infield you look where you want to be. Also who ever says Ken (flip car) sucks. Then why does he have 100 National wins? And god knows how many regional wins..

[YonMoor]

This guy was obviously trolling. Except irl.

[master9716]

Was that Real or Fake?

[vwzx7]

It doesn't get any more real than that. Glad both drivers survived...

[MLGCODSTER24]

@master9716 real dumbass

[whitestang99]

0:39 HOLY CRAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[kagetsukensuke]

What is the status of the drivers? That's an incredible accident. Honestly I don't think it could have been avoided easily, it's easy to say "you could see it over the bend" which you could, but for those who've never actually raced on a track before, you get tunnel vision, as has been said, by the time he spotted the other car and started braking, it was just too late.

[Bobsucks34]

This was my dad's buddy Ken Payson, he suffered a broken neck.

[Uberwagon]

How is he doing?

[wolfie83]

fucking ouch!

[jf065d]

it's funny how people on the internet think they would have acted differently. He went for the pass just like any racer would have and had no time to react. By the time the lotus was in his line of sight and his brain could process there was a stopped car within .3 of a second of him, it was too late. NONE of you would have avoided that car. He didn't even have time to attempt to avoid it. Spend a few hundred hours road racing before you go running your mouths.

[ShutupMr]

With all due respect to Ken (who has proven for years that he is a fine driver), this was all on the driver. It appears to be a momentary lapse where the driver was focused on the car ahead and not looking down the track or picking up easily visible flag stations. It is unfortunate and Ken has proven himself a highly capable driver for many years...but this was nothing but an error on his part.

It is his responsibilty to look down the track and pick up flags visually.

[jamesevanhenry]

Oh my god, that was absolutely horrendous to watch.

[sikkre2006]

This was one of those accidents that was very hard to avoid - just bad place and wrong time.The position of the flag point also obstructed the view, so I'm not surprised that Miata popped to the right and went straight into the other car - bad luck, glad they both will be fine.

[utbigred]

It's not an obstructed view. He must be an inexperienced driver considering he had a fairly large window of opportunity to see the corner worker waiving the yellow flag. After viewing the video several times, he should be able to notice the Lotus. In these type of races, you need to be aware of everything. One second makes a difference. This type of race has no business for people who has tunnel vision.

[zoslond]

sorta like how youtube has no place for people who have no grammar skills?

[MLGCODSTER24]

yeah, but did you factor in that he never saw the yellow? or the lotus?

[utbigred]

It's like Kontraone said, if he could see why couldnt the driver see it? Like I said, in this type of race, you need to be aware of everything. The error was on the driver. End of story.

[MLGCODSTER24]

mhm, cause ur always right, right?

[utbigred]

What does this have to do with if I'm right or wrong? It's just common sense. Get over it.

[MLGCODSTER24]

its not common sense, the only way to know for sure is to ask the SM driver. He was right behind "and to the left" of the other SM driver, his place behind the driver might have made it impossible to see the Yellow and the Lotus. So...

[utbigred]

Way to completely miss the point here. It has nothing to do with asking the driver if he saw it or not. The whole point here is to be aware of the surroundings. Around :34 sec, he should have noticed the Yellow Flag and the Lotus as he was coming around the corner. His aggressive driving and not noticing the flag is what lead to the crash. If you can't honestly see that then there's no point in arguing with you anymore.

[MLGCODSTER24]

i respect your opinion, im not gonna make you change it.

[DirectorGoss]

I had to rewatch the video before I saw the yellow flag, and the first time I watched the video I had no clue where the other car came from. The first pass of watching this video for any of you is the best expressed way of how you would have reacted as well. Did you see the flag the 1st time? did you see the car with time to react the first time?

[SSM188]

He was behind an SSB miata... No restrictor plate (more HP then SM) stock suspension (shitbag)

[SSM188]

Have you ever raced in Spec Miata. No. Didnt think so. You look where you want to be. Ask any racer, any autocrosser, or any rally driver. They will all say the same thing.

[SSM188]

He is not inexperienced. He has over 100 national wins and lord knows how many regional.

[utbigred]

Compared to him I am well out of his league, but one thing I do know is when I do race (for fun) is that I try to be safe. Even though we all tend to be aggressive, being aware is also important. In the end the fault is still his no matter how you look at it.

[SSM188]

Really champ? So thats why the Lotus protested Ken and lost the protest? Im quite sure an SCCA Steward, Or maybe it went to Topeka im not sure but they said its not Kennys fault... I expect to see you at Lime Rock this year, Im serious, We shall put you in this situation, And then you will realise going 85 mph you cant react on a dime, and the car was bare past the corner station, and it takes .3 of a second for your mind to register to take your foot off the accelerator to the brakeThat is true

[SSM188]

So there is no way he can do that, he ended up winning the NAARC championship even though he missed 1/2 the season, it is not his fault in anyway shape or form this is what a real racer says is a "racing incident" nobody can change it its everyones fault, Mark should have slowed and and wayved to show that there was a yellow, Ken should have been aware. No blame on one person. It is a "Racing Incident"

[utbigred]

@SSM188

Lol man you just don't get it. I don't care how good he is nor what he's capable of. Even a pro is human. With aggressive driving, it always comes with a price. Even you said it yourself, they look to where they want to be. That right there is a double edge sword.

[mante78]

damn thats what happens when you dont pay attention to the corner workers... dammmmmn

[MLGCODSTER24]

omg blam it on the driver, he didnt see the yellow, he was right behind the other car

[mjl2000ss]

No offense lightyearmx5, but that's a really bad idea, and it has nothing to do w/ continuing the race. Best thing to do in the situation is to leave it to the folks that are there to do what they're trained to do. Stopping is only going to add to more confusion and worst case could put you and others in more danger. Flaggers and Safety workers are there for a reason, stay out of their way and let them do their job!

[mante78]

agree'd totally!!

[lightyearmx5]

I think i would have stopped to help, not much point in continuing the race when a bad crash happens. You know they are going to stop the race anyway.

[jnmunsey]

Never ever stop to help, unless it is your best friend and he is trapped in a car on fire and none of the emergency people will help. Then go for it.

[hotmr2man]

that was nuts, hope there both ok!

[luckistryke13]

Richard Cullen said he had a front row seat when the car went airbourne. I came though a few seconds later and it was like a war zone...yellow flags waving, corner workers frantically running and waving their arms....then the red flag quickly displayed.

[Snakebloke]

wow that made me feel sick :(

what the f**k was the lotuse elise doing?

are the drivers ok?

[NHTacoma]

Lost control and snapped around..

[VeeArrSix]

Wow ca fessé dure!

[68ray]

That's hard to watch.

[Fizz826]

that yellow flag was very sudden. the location for the corner station needs improvement... maybe add another one before that one and work together.

[rennes6]

I think the same.

[MLGCODSTER24]

Payson did not see the yellow flag! he was right behind the other SM, there was no way he could have seen that. So glad hes recovering ok and the other driver.

[s4to335]

Whoa...I use to race SM and never got even close to that type of collision...hope they both are ok and can recover completely

[utubeyt]

It all happens too fast to be able to tell for sure. It does appear like Ken has been looking a bit too much on his rear view mirror or being a bit too focused on getting past that Miata in front. But who am I to tell - he did beat me in WGI two weeks ago... Get well soon Ken.

[robnimkoff]

The condition of the Miata was such that you would never believe the impact. The Lotus was completely destroyed up front but the Miata did not look that bad. It's a great testament to the Miata safety. Mabye because the Lotus front end is so low it just skipped over it. Who knows. In any case I viewed the aftermath from the hill and they were both lucky. I race SCCA myself (ITR BMW) and a agree it is tough to lay blame.

[Plagueth]

They called the race with 6 laps left on the board in lieu of the accident. Both drivers were transported to medical and believe were taken to the local medical facility in Sharon, CT. Upon leaving the track we were told that the Lotus Driver David Brand was released with no major injuries (except to his wallet). As far as Ken Payson, I am not sure if he was released but indications are that he had suffered a broken neck or back (not a 100% confirmed report).

[qu1z]

Wow crazy.

[vwzx7]

That was a massive hit....

Glad they will be ok and yeah, I agree it was just bad luck. I'm happy to see that the waving yellow was shown as I had heard that day it wasn't out yet.

[Ordie76]

Was the other car just turned around facing the oncoming cars? Looks like it was a head on collision.

[rocketpunch12210]

I hope both drivers are doing ok.

[mjl2000ss]

Actually the slowdown was more due to Ken catching up w/ lapped traffic as he and I were having a great race going, and he pulled out to set up a run down the back straightaway.

[miatastevef]

just bad luck, I hear Kens doing better, It looks like maybe they were slowing down judging by how fast they were being chased down by the car with the camera. Possibly pulled out to cool off the car from running right on the other cars rear bumper at the wrong time. prayers go out for a complete recovery.

[EricMorseRacing]

Holy shit! Wonder if they brought out the yellow for a few laps lol, Heard one guy broke his neck? Gl with recovery!

EvoM!!!

[scottperry69]

MW Rules! Crash not so good but the racing looks like fun.

[mjl2000ss]

It always amazes me the armchair quarterbacks that come out of the woodwork and say that it was all the drivers fault. Ken is a outstanding National Level competitor who has been racing 30+ years and has had top 10 and podium finishes at the Runoffs since 1982. Think about the view available from his vantage point directly behind another SM and what was occuring with lapped traffic. From my view it's just bad luck and a racing incident, no more, no less, and I would say I had a good view.

[vicktorvolpe]

I've got to second this statement. That corner station comes and goes very quickly, and especially with the lapped traffic things would have been very hard to see.

[tcamadel]

I still believe that there is no excuse for pulling out to make a pass when you drive by the waving yellow at station five when the incident was not even in view yet. It was apparent that the SM driver had a bit of the red mist and ignored the flag because he was too concerned with advancing his position, resulting in what was a very unfortunate incident

[MLGCODSTER24]

BUT he didnt see the yellow flag! he was right behind the other SM, look alittle closer

[tcamadel]

BUT the other SM wouldn't normally slow down for no reason on the back straight, Payson had no reason the believe that he was relinquishing the position

[MLGCODSTER24]

BUT he could have thought that he missed a gear, in a race situation, you take as much as you can, it wasnt his fault

[SSM188]

He wasent an SM it was Mark Scharff in his SSB car.

[amigoandtorro]

well, the yellow flag was out...

[KONTRAone]

sucks to see but its really the miata driver's fault for ignoring the local yellow

[delongedoug]

I don't see any time. The yellow comes out as he's in the corner, more to his side, and he then pops out from behind the other Miata to find a stopped car in his path. Hard to say it was anyone's fault.

[viergang]

You have to look ahead in racing. Not that I always do, mind you.

[KONTRAone]

if i can see it then so can he...

dont get me wrong, i dont consider it a major error on his part ( i know how hard it is to have your eyes EVERYWHERE all at once during a race) but it was HIS error that resulted in an accident.

[jf065d]

He came out from behind the leading car with no time to react. His sight was obviously blocked. Anyone who decided to make that pass would have ended up in the same spot. No one can react that quick. Spend some time racing on a professional level and get back to us.

[tcamadel]

@jf065d Spend some time racing at a professional level and you should notice a corner worker waving a yellow...and not decide to make that pass.

[ejhonda]

Yep - red flagged shortly thereafter. Race was called at that point since there was only 6 laps left.

[odortiz]

holly crap!!! did they red flag the race after that?

[dweebdad]

Both drivers got out of the cars under their own power. Driver of the Miata had 2 fractured vertebrae in his neck but he is ambulatory and expected to make a full recovery. Other driver was shaken but nit stirred. Cars, a Miata and a Lotus Elise, not so lucky