Tony Stewart Hits and Kills a Driver

[URGatorBait]

Brad is exactly correct in post# 66. Whatever people think they know about driving a car, it's not the same in a sprint car. Also, in packs of cars, visibility is reduced not only because of the lack of lighting, during the night, with a guy wearing a blank fire suit running around the track against the backdrop of his own black car, but these cars also have the wings on top. These wings are not small, and tilt forward, a lot!

In packs, or even somewhat spaced out, visibility is reduced ahead. The initial wreck was in a turn, not a straight away. With cars in front of Stewart, it's likely he didn't see the driver on the track until the very earliest, when Tony entered the turn. Which would literally only leave seconds. Now consider the other driver is jumping around unpredictably. It's not as if this kid was standing still. Brad is correct, you do indeed have to rev the engine, if not gun it, in order to really move the car around...it is essentially drifting on dirt. You'll notice that exactly when Tony gunned it, the rear went to the left (Tony Stewart's left), effectively turning the front of the car to the right. This was an attempt by Stewart to kick the rear end of the sprint car to the left and avoid the driver on the track at the last second. Also, the right rear tire can often be the largest tire (width) on a sprint car. There is a lot of force that is put on that particular wheel because of how these cars drive.
The actions of Stewart were a direct result of Ward Jr's actions. There is no simple swerving in a sprint car to avoid things, at least not without reasonable notice.
If you also watch the video again, there was another car (white and red) that nearly hit Ward Jr (no I'm not talking about the blue and white #45 car), you may have to pause it to see it, that was higher on the track and running faster than Stewart was at the time of the accident.

I absolutely hate to say negative things about those that have passed on, however Ward Jr. passed as a direct result of his own actions.

 

[WillGetIn]

My take is this. Seems like a squirrel incident to me. You only have a second or two to decide what you're going to do. Sure seemed to me like Stewart was on the same line as the car in front of him. Ward runs down the track causing the car in front to brake and swerve low. Quickly, you must decide is the dude continuing down the track? Do you follow the guy who just did a maneuver around something low in front of you and potentially hit whats low? Or do you take a higher line to go around what you think is low? I think he went high because he thought Ward was going to continue low. Then realized that Ward was high and gunned it to get by Ward before Ward jumped in front of him too, like Ward did to the first car...

There is no way Stewart can be charged for this, unless audio within his car or crew captured him saying something stupid. If Stewart was charged without evidence other that what you see in this one video, you'd have to start charging other drivers who put people into the wall and cause damages or injuries. Same for any civil case. Without proof that Stewart maliciously hit Ward, I can't see any judge allowing a civil case to move forward. If you try to couple it with the fact that Stewart intentionally put Ward into the wall, which is obvious from the tape, then again, you'd open it up for every driver thats been put into a wall to sue for damages. That ain't gonna happen!

 

[oxrageous]

Same for any civil case. Without proof that Stewart maliciously hit Ward, I can't see any judge allowing a civil case to move forward. If you try to couple it with the fact that Stewart intentionally put Ward into the wall, which is obvious from the tape, then again, you'd open it up for every driver thats been put into a wall to sue for damages. That ain't gonna happen!

You obviously haven't been paying attention to the legal system. We USED to have judges that would throw out frivolous suits, not anymore. They'll hear anything.

 

[8802Gator]

I just talked to my friend that racrs dirt and has raced sprint cars in the past and he brought up some things I had not thought of. He said he seriously doubts that Tony saw the guy until it was too late. The sprint cars have wings on the top and bottom that limit the vertical visibility, and those wings have the vertical caps on the end that leave you with no sideways visibility. Plus the new full containment seats that are required now wrap around the head. That leaves you with a very limited forward view and no sideways view. I also asked him about tony revving the engine and he said the only way to make those things react quickly is to hit the gas. The way those cars are set up hitting the brakes and turning the wheel does nothing.

 

[bradgator2]

I just talked to my friend that racrs dirt and has raced sprint cars in the past and he brought up some things I had not thought of. He said he seriously doubts that Tony saw the guy until it was too late. The sprint cars have wings on the top and bottom that limit the vertical visibility, and those wings have the vertical caps on the end that leave you with no sideways visibility. Plus the new full containment seats that are required now wrap around the head. That leaves you with a very limited forward view and no sideways view. I also asked him about tony revving the engine and he said the only way to make those things react quickly is to hit the gas. The way those cars are set up hitting the brakes and turning the wheel does nothing.

check out 3 posts before yours....

 

[Captain Sasquatch]

Apparently there are rumors starting to swirl that Ward tried to kick the side of Stewart's car and got his foot stuck, which in turn sucked him under the tire. I guess there's also a camera angle that shows it, but it hasn't been released yet.

Just rumors, though.

 

[westflgator]

Brad is exactly correct in post# 66. Whatever people think they know about driving a car, it's not the same in a sprint car. Also, in packs of cars, visibility is reduced not only because of the lack of lighting, during the night, with a guy wearing a blank fire suit running around the track against the backdrop of his own black car, but these cars also have the wings on top. These wings are not small, and tilt forward, a lot!

In packs, or even somewhat spaced out, visibility is reduced ahead. The initial wreck was in a turn, not a straight away. With cars in front of Stewart, it's likely he didn't see the driver on the track until the very earliest, when Tony entered the turn. Which would literally only leave seconds. Now consider the other driver is jumping around unpredictably. It's not as if this kid was standing still. Brad is correct, you do indeed have to rev the engine, if not gun it, in order to really move the car around...it is essentially drifting on dirt. You'll notice that exactly when Tony gunned it, the rear went to the left (Tony Stewart's left), effectively turning the front of the car to the right. This was an attempt by Stewart to kick the rear end of the sprint car to the left and avoid the driver on the track at the last second. Also, the right rear tire can often be the largest tire (width) on a sprint car. There is a lot of force that is put on that particular wheel because of how these cars drive.
The actions of Stewart were a direct result of Ward Jr's actions. There is no simple swerving in a sprint car to avoid things, at least not without reasonable notice.
If you also watch the video again, there was another car (white and red) that nearly hit Ward Jr (no I'm not talking about the blue and white #45 car), you may have to pause it to see it, that was higher on the track and running faster than Stewart was at the time of the accident.

I absolutely hate to say negative things about those that have passed on, however Ward Jr. passed as a direct result of his own actions.

Most reasonable post I've read so far. It is very reasonable to believe he may not have seen him until the last minute due to his line of site being limited on the track from the cars in front of him. This happens to people all the time on the highway. There are cars in front of you blocking your view and all of the sudden one of them swerves to go around a recapped tire laying in the road and you can't see it until the last second, and then you don't have much time to respond. Same type of thing may have happened here. Just because you can clearly see Ward coming down the track from the camera angle perched high above the track, doesn't mean Tony could see him. I am by no means a Stewart fan, but to label him a murder without having all the facts is ridiculous...

 

[The Original DC]

Apparently there are rumors starting to swirl that Ward tried to kick the side of Stewart's car and got his foot stuck, which in turn sucked him under the tire. I guess there's also a camera angle that shows it, but it hasn't been released yet.
Just rumors, though.

The first guy swerves to miss him, and then he kicks at Stewart's car as it goes by. Certainly not trying to make light of the unfortunate incident, but jumping out of a perfectly secure racecar, jumping into oncoming traffic, kicking at a car driving at about 50mph, with a dude that has been known to not suffer fools very well to begin with behind the wheel, is the sort of dumbassedness that gets you killed.

 

[westflgator]

My take is this. Seems like a squirrel incident to me. You only have a second or two to decide what you're going to do. Sure seemed to me like Stewart was on the same line as the car in front of him. Ward runs down the track causing the car in front to brake and swerve low. Quickly, you must decide is the dude continuing down the track? Do you follow the guy who just did a maneuver around something low in front of you and potentially hit whats low? Or do you take a higher line to go around what you think is low? I think he went high because he thought Ward was going to continue low. Then realized that Ward was high and gunned it to get by Ward before Ward jumped in front of him too, like Ward did to the first car...

There is no way Stewart can be charged for this, unless audio within his car or crew captured him saying something stupid. If Stewart was charged without evidence other that what you see in this one video, you'd have to start charging other drivers who put people into the wall and cause damages or injuries. Same for any civil case. Without proof that Stewart maliciously hit Ward, I can't see any judge allowing a civil case to move forward. If you try to couple it with the fact that Stewart intentionally put Ward into the wall, which is obvious from the tape, then again, you'd open it up for every driver thats been put into a wall to sue for damages. That ain't gonna happen!

What you have stated to be so "obvious", might not be as obvious as you think. From other angles Tony never touched him, yes he may not have given him any extra room on the track, but he never hit him, although it looks like it from a side angle view of the incident.

 

[Zambo]

You steer almost any kind of dirt car with the gas. Those cars race in a constant sideways drift and are set up to do just that. You can turn the wheel all over the place in some setups and the car will just keep going straight unless you load up the front end by tapping the brakes and kicking the rear out with a **** of power.

 

[Ray Finkle]

Next time grey bush gets out of his car someone should flatten him too. He's a hot head and killed a kid. Not too much more to it than that.

 

[bradgator2]

Next time grey bush gets out of his car someone should flatten him too. He's a hot head and killed a kid. Not too much more to it than that.

Grey bush?

 

[WillGetIn]

My take is this. Seems like a squirrel incident to me. You only have a second or two to decide what you're going to do. Sure seemed to me like Stewart was on the same line as the car in front of him. Ward runs down the track causing the car in front to brake and swerve low. Quickly, you must decide is the dude continuing down the track? Do you follow the guy who just did a maneuver around something low in front of you and potentially hit whats low? Or do you take a higher line to go around what you think is low? I think he went high because he thought Ward was going to continue low. Then realized that Ward was high and gunned it to get by Ward before Ward jumped in front of him too, like Ward did to the first car...

There is no way Stewart can be charged for this, unless audio within his car or crew captured him saying something stupid. If Stewart was charged without evidence other that what you see in this one video, you'd have to start charging other drivers who put people into the wall and cause damages or injuries. Same for any civil case. Without proof that Stewart maliciously hit Ward, I can't see any judge allowing a civil case to move forward. If you try to couple it with the fact that Stewart intentionally put Ward into the wall, which is obvious from the tape, then again, you'd open it up for every driver thats been put into a wall to sue for damages. That ain't gonna happen!

westflgator, Stewart's front tires turn to the wall and then back, causing Stewart's car to move towards the wall. Whether or not Stewart's car made contact with Ward's car is irrelevant. Stewart doing that nod towards the wall is what caused Ward to hit the wall, even if it was just the inexperience of Ward that couldn't control and handle his car. I'm pretty sure Ward wouldn't have committted suicide if Ward didn't feel Stewart was at fault...

 

[deuce]

You can't cure stupid!


Wouldn't be dead if got off the track.

 

[Concrete Helmet]

A day later and I've started to change my mind on this a little. I saw a zoomed version of this video and if you see it you will notice that not only does Ward get out and come down the track he actually 2 steps toward the line that Stewart had committed to. Stewart was very close to the car in front of him and these cars have a high profile making it difficult to see around them. By the time his line of vision was clear the kid was already in his grill. I think his engine revving was a knee jerk and too late of a reaction to get away from Ward. Bad mistake by Ward that cost him his life but.....the only thing Stewart was guilty of is his past hothead reactions that will leave many wondering his true intentions.
If this had been Dale Jr. or Jimmie Johnson there would be no story other than a tragic death.

Disagree Alex, most other drivers are limited by their contract to do any other kind of motorsports. This is the only reason Stewart left Gibbs Racing and became an owner himself. Most other drivers like Johnson, Kahne, Gordon and such absolutely love these cars because their power to weight ratio make them a blast to drive. Most of these drivers are allowed to do a once a year charity event at Stewart's race track and say they would love to do more.

 

[Concrete Helmet]

That's not already a rule?

Funny thing is most of the time you want to see a driver get out of his car after a crash. It's a signal to everyone that he is ok. I think they also do it because of fires that happen in crashes. Now I can see NASCAR or some other sanctioning body in motorsports adopt safety gear that restricts drivers from exiting their car only to be burned up in a crash.

Alex, if you watch the races the drivers almost always get out before the safety crew arrives once they are sure the track is clear. They do it to show the fans that they are alright and you always hear a round of applause from the drivers fans or all fans if it looks like a bad crash. Fire suits WILL NOT keep you from getting burned to death in a race car....you often won't see flames from racing fuel as it does not burn like regular gasoline.

 

[westflgator]

My take is this. Seems like a squirrel incident to me. You only have a second or two to decide what you're going to do. Sure seemed to me like Stewart was on the same line as the car in front of him. Ward runs down the track causing the car in front to brake and swerve low. Quickly, you must decide is the dude continuing down the track? Do you follow the guy who just did a maneuver around something low in front of you and potentially hit whats low? Or do you take a higher line to go around what you think is low? I think he went high because he thought Ward was going to continue low. Then realized that Ward was high and gunned it to get by Ward before Ward jumped in front of him too, like Ward did to the first car...

There is no way Stewart can be charged for this, unless audio within his car or crew captured him saying something stupid. If Stewart was charged without evidence other that what you see in this one video, you'd have to start charging other drivers who put people into the wall and cause damages or injuries. Same for any civil case. Without proof that Stewart maliciously hit Ward, I can't see any judge allowing a civil case to move forward. If you try to couple it with the fact that Stewart intentionally put Ward into the wall, which is obvious from the tape, then again, you'd open it up for every driver thats been put into a wall to sue for damages. That ain't gonna happen!

Oh, I agree 100% that Ward thought Tony was at fault. And I'm sure most casual observers saw it that way as well, and I never said that it wasn't his fault. The point that I was making, is that people jump to conclusions based on one camera angle that makes things appear to happen a certain way, but when you look at the same event from multiple angles, (including an in-car camera) it's tells a different story. My point is it may not be as "obvious" as you thiink from the one angle that most of us have seen...

 

[westflgator]

Next time grey bush gets out of his car someone should flatten him too. He's a hot head and killed a kid. Not too much more to it than that.

Stupid comment. I hope you've never served on a jury. How about waiting for all of the camera angles and the rest of the facts to come out before making such a stupid statement. He is a hot head, and I have never liked him, but he usually takes his aggression out after the race in the pits or in front of the mic. He is not known (anymore than any other driver) for taking it out on the track.

 

[Ray Finkle]

Next time grey bush gets out of his car someone should flatten him too. He's a hot head and killed a kid. Not too much more to it than that.

He hit the kid with his car, which killed him. What was stupid or off about that comment? All facts.

 

[westflgator]

Next time grey bush gets out of his car someone should flatten him too. He's a hot head and killed a kid. Not too much more to it than that.

Your statement is still just as ignorant, because your logic is flawed to say the least. Yes he ran over the kid and killed him, but if you apply your logic across the board, you would be saying that if a kid ran out in front of you and you ran over and killed him, then you should also be killed. Irregardless of the rest of the facts surrounding the incident; like maybe your line of site was limited by another car and you didn't see him until the last second. But just becuase your ran over the kid and he is dead is a fact, you should be ran over and killed as well?? Like I said STUPID logic! And I don't even like Stewart, not even a little bit, but people jumping to conclusions and becoming judge & jury over this tragic accident without seeing all the camera angles and other related facts is ridiculous...