Swede Savage Indy 1973

Swede Savage Crashes at Indy 1973...unfortunately he dies 33 days later.
Tragically, one of his crew members who ran out across the pit lane was struck and killed by a fire truck rushing to the crash as well.
*Not My Capture*

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• Fatal
• Crash

[hamwinkie]

I was at this race. First time I got a ticket and stayed out of the hippy scene infield. Remember the start? 6-7 seconds in the crash, fire, spectators were killed. Tragic day. I was in what they call the paddock. Scary to this day. I can still smell that alcohol fuel.

[Slmjm884]

no spectators were killed...just burned badly by Salt Walther car.

[NolanBowlin]

I don't know if I've ever seen an impact like that. Beilive it or not Savage and was expected to live, he died 33 days later of contaminated plasma. Savage contracted hepatitis B from a transfusion, which later caused his liver to fail.

[rikw]

Swede got his only victory at Phoenix the year before when he passed Al Unser and Roger McCluskey on the final lap. I was there in Phoenix and he became my favorite driver. Cool name, cool guy. I was a freshman in HS and was listening to the race on the radio as it was not on live TV at the time. He had led this race and I was going crazy that he was doing so well. It broke my heart when he crashed and died. RIP Swede.

[zenmachinefilms]

I saw this as a boy and it scared the hell out of me. The whole race did with it's many horrific crashes. Still to this day one of the worst crashes ever.

[cjs3872]

@macdisciple

It wasn't shown live, but rather on same-day tape delay. Live coverage wouldn't come to the Indianapolis 500 until 1986, another bad year where rain is concerned, as that race was postponed twice and delayed a week due to rain.

[cjs3872]

@soylentteal

In fact, I'm uploading the '73 Indy race in segments,.but haven't gotten to this part yet when Savage had his crash, which was immediately followed by the tragic accident in the pits when Armando Teran, a crewman for Graham McRae, one of Savage's teammates, was struck and killed by a fire truck going the wrong way through the pits, trying to get to Savage's car, which was one reason why safety crews seemed slow in responding to the fire with Savage's car.

[cjs3872]

@1957thack

I don't know, Al Unser had just passed Savage for the lead five laps earlier. But Unser was about to pit and give the lead back to Savage when Savage crashed. The accident involving Swede Savage had an emotional impact on Bobby Allison and his wife Judy, as Bobby had gotten to know Savage when he drove for Holman-Moody when Savage was thinking about a NASCAR career. And until Trevor Bayne, Savage was the youngest man ever to drive for the Wood Brothers in the 1969 Daytona 500.

[1957thack]

At that horrible moment of the race. Swede along with G.Johncock had the two strongest running cars going.

[1957thack]

I know that USAC and now IRl have the best emergency crews in open wheel racing, But, It seems that a lot of precious time was lost not getting to Savage in time and putting out the fire from this video's perspective.

[Racecarwrecks]

@ftsjr Art Pollard died in practice.

[xrisku]

I look at the way these tracks are built and I really gotta wonder what they are thinking. You see Swede come around the turn and loose control (for whatever reason - I don't know the precise cause) and then he rams into a barrier in the infield which is essentially perpendicular to the general flow of the track. I've been watching many Indi/GP/F1/NASCAR crashes. In so many the same thing. I know you cannot make this sport 100% safe, but please design the tracks better. Leaves me wondering?

[ftsjr]

That 1973 race must've been jinxed. What with the opening lap disaster, and Swede's horrific crash. RIP Swede.

[soylentteal]

I was watching that day. My main memory is the tire flying high into the air and McKay screaming "Oh my God, it's Savage!" after he hit. I was 11 and was so shaken by what I had seen that I couldn't watch any more of it.