Thread: Countdown to US adventure

Might be a contender to buy one of those new bare shells off Honda USA as reported elsewhere on here?

OK folks - am going to make one post on this one as I am keen to move on and put it behind me. First and foremost, this was my cock up. I made a mistake, admittedly a small one, and the consequences were huge for me, the other drivers Alan, Trevor, Tim and Martin, for Noel who was there fettling the car and for the six mechanics (all US Honda Cup boys) we had on board to help. The car was/is/will be awesome - a totally different animal from anything I have driven before and very strong - in every aspect. Right now though, it's a mess and I buggered up the event for everyone involved.

The track itself is amazing and incredibly fast and exhilarating - but one problem is that there is a drop off at the edge of the track itself - in parts sometimes as much as three or four inches (because the ground at its edges has not been compacted properly, or at least how the circuits in NZ have been) and basically if you go off you have to carry on going off until there is a negotiable bit of track edge to get back onto the track with. This takes practice as it is not your 'natural' instinct. Much of what I am about to tell you is based on what the guys in the team have told me from the in car video (Racekeeper system) which I have not had the stomach to watch as yet. In addition,there was video in a couple of the following cars and marshal reports etc etc.

We had all been very aware in testing that there was a huge variety of vehicles out there and consequently a large speed differential. Think Group C cars, NASCAR saloons, NASCAR trucks, Mazda Miatas, Hondas, full race BMWs,Le Mans spec Porsche GT3 and GT2 vehicles, Radicals etc and hopefully you will be getting the idea. Anyway, we were all spending a lot of time listening to the radio and looking in our mirrors whilst trying to learn the track. I think we were all doing pretty well and the car was running like a dream. There is a wonderful wiggly section that goes up and over a 'humpy' hill and then turns left and heads up the a much longer hill that has a small, almost imperceptible left followed by a very, very fast left (flat chat in fifth). The whole sequence I have just mentioned is taken in fourth with the occasional lift and dab on the brakes before you grab fifth and go hard on the gas up the long hill. You could use third and probably have more power over the initial section I mentioned, but the torque on this car was amazing so we were losing about half a second by using fourth,but obviously protecting the engine for the 25 hours. Anyway,it's all very fast, and very long.

As far as I can piece together from what the team have told me, and what I can now remember (still not much), I came over the humpy hill and was aware a NASCAR truck was following me some 100 metres behind after a radio message. As I turned to head into the very fast section uphill I had another look in my mirrors to see where the truck was so I could gauge when to let it pass me. This is the last part I can remember at all, let alone with clarity. On the video I was holding onto fourth with one hand ready for the shift into fifth and still looking in my mirrors as the almost non existent left got closer (It's actually probabaly less of a corner than even the kink on the straight at Puke). I spot the corner and start the turn but the car is doing 150-160kph at that point and I ran out of time.I put two weels off the edge (only two) and then brought it back.The front came back as you would expect, but unfortunatly it looks like the rear drivers side wheel didn't like being dragged up and over the steep track edge and it flicked the car into a viloent whip. I started to correct it, but it was already on the way around. It spun across the track to the vast infield pointing in the wrong direction. It crossed the track and headed sideways off with the drivers side wheels the forward facing 'edge'. The wheels dug into the soft ground and flicked it up and over.It landed heavily on the front passenger side and rolled a further three times before coming to rest against the barriers upside down. The crash speed was 165 kph and the car travelled about 150 metres during the accident. By this stage I was unconscious. Next thing I remember is a fit bird cutting off my new overalls and shoving needles into me. I knew the car was alongside me and I could see bodywork but no wheel, so initially thought I might have knocked a corner off. I had no idea at that stage the car was inverted. There were a lot of people around but I couldn't hear or see them (radio plugs in my ears and my glasses had been removed) and then I must have drifted off again. I woke up in the helicopter on the way to the hospital with Top Gun staring down at me upside down. He was pretty cool and reassuring and I can remember just about everything from that moment onwards. My left ankle took a major battering and my left shoulder was hyper extended and has lots of tendon and muscle damage. No broken bones. I have a decent concussion on the top right hand side of my head, and there is a corresponding mark on the car roof and on my helmet. We think the cage had to do its job four times in a row and did it excetionally well, but that my head smacked the roof at some stage.

Anyway, it was a horrible experience and not cool in any way. In the helicopter I knew I had had a major and was asking if my hands and feet were still there because I couldn't see or feel them. I then thought about my family, the boys, my fuck up and the medical bill for an uninsured chopper ride with paramedics in the USA... And that's pretty much all I have thought about since.

The boys were at the hospital (45 miles away) less than an hour after the crash itself, and it had taken some 10 minutes to stabalise me and fly me out. They were awesome. I don't want to go into the emotions of this, but at a moment like that your friends are everything and my friends were just fantastic - particularly Martin Dunn and Alan Stewart. I felt very blessed to know them and I still do.

I stayed overnight in observation and discharged myself around lunchtime the following day. I have bruises all over my legs and my shoulder kills. I get wobbly everytime I move and all of my gear is wrecked.

We went to unpack the car today and although it is a considerable mess, one thing that struck me immediately was how well the cockpit area had stood up. Hondas are strong cars in race mode, and I would recommend seam welding to everyone. There is simply no doubt in my mind this adds considerably to the integrity of a vehicle in a 'major' and that the construction of the car, the Shroth belts and my HANS device protected me from much more serious injury.

The car WILL live again and the team have already spoken about going back for another crack next year (The team still has a mountain of unused gear). That will be without me however. I have a lot of thinking to do about whether I want to drive competitively again - I certainly will not compete on that circuit again, even if they asked me to, which they almost certainly wouldn't!

Looking forward to a coupleof days R&R before the wife and kids arrive (as was scheduled).

I am a lucky boy in so many ways.

Rich

The main thing is you aren't too badly hurt and im most certainly glad to hear that Richard

Yes very glad to hear your alive. All the best with the recovery....

Get yourself right and worry about any bills later.

Sobering read mate. I hope you manage to put this nasty experience behind you and are somewhat reassured when Chels and the wee-uns arrive. Don't worry about the future, what you will or won't do, or what the financial implications are..... there's plenty of time for that, reflection and life-plans once you're back home and the dust has settled. With Dad's accident in April, we were just living day to day hoping that his neck would stabilise and that swelling wouldn't relieve him of the use of his legs, arms, heart and lungs, and it's easy to make rash decisions at these times about what your future holds.

Looking most forward to catching up with you when you're home for a beer and a long well-overdue chat mate, give me a yell when you're back and settled in here and I'll make sure I can get down to see you.

Until then, as the natives would say, kia kaha.

Good to hear your sweet mate. If i/we can do anything to help let us know!

Sounds brutal. I can completely understand how you feel right now (I had a major accident when I was young and inexperienced, broken back etc) but as others say don't fret about the financial stuff right now, just concentrate on recuperation and be thankful you lived to fight many more days.

As has been said, you have your life and use of your body, which is plenty to be happy about considering how bad the accident could have been. Woulda taken serious balls writing up about what happened. Take care, make sure you recover properly and rest up.

Glad your ok Rich,get plenty of rest mate... warm regards. dave moodie.

Just arrived back from California . Noel and I stayed behind for an extra three days to get the car, spares and misc gear loaded into a container .
Things didnt turn out as planned but we still had a great time and met a bunch of great people both in LA and at the track .
All I can say is Rich is a very very lucky guy - Martin and I were expecting the worst as we drove to the hospital .
He was extremely lucky to come away with only a sprained ankle, sore shoulder and concusion .
Ritch went off on a very fast section of the track - the data on the incar showed he spun at just under 180kmphr . The in car cameras lasted one roll before shutting down but still registered 4 rolls on the builtin g meter .
The Americans may be over the top with safety gear but the window net and sprintcar saftey net inside the car really did contain the driver and the compulsory hans and new fully adjustable scroth enduro 6pt harness we installed also did their bit .
The car is due back in around 4 weeks and at this stage we are definitely going to repair it .
We have had numerous offers of assistance from racers in USA who want to see us back , our sponsors are keen for us to run again and at this stage its really unfinished business for the whole team.

Rich was definitely feeling the after effects when I last spoke with him on Monday but he's a racer and I know he will be back .

Al

Good to hear Al.

Thoughts on these? Good for those in the states

Maybe a good base from which to build version 2?