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Sat Jun 21, 2008 4:13 pm

http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/racing/nhra/news/story?id=3455554

Sat Jun 21, 2008 6:14 pm

RIP Scotty...

I was just watching some of the earlier qualifying rounds... then saw the news blurb just now... damn... racing is dangerous stuff even with the best equipment and at the highest levels.

Sat Jun 21, 2008 6:20 pm

I havent seen actual footage but did he crash or did the motor blow kill him? Ive both on the net.

Sat Jun 21, 2008 6:42 pm

It looked to me that the initial explosion which caused the fire probably knocked him unconcious and the car never slowed before it hit the retaining wall at the end of the track. I've watched those cars at Englishtown and you really can't appreciate the speed they're traveling unless you're there in person. The impact at the end of the run was horrific and would have killed anyone. Poor soul, God be with his friends and family.

Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:03 pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DziJdGwFQjU

Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:13 pm

RIP

I was shocked to find this out earlier today.

Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:17 pm

Another white-trash, redneck hero bites the big one :cry:

Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:18 pm

NOTAHONDA wrote: I havent seen actual footage but did he crash or did the motor blow kill him? Ive both on the net.

He ran out of track. Hit the wall.

My prayers to his love ones

Sat Jun 21, 2008 10:53 pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DziJdGwFQjU

Met Scott and Connie a few times over the years, both guys very pleasant, easy to talk with/to, down to earth guys.

RIP, Scott.
Race In Peace.

Sat Jun 21, 2008 11:30 pm

Scott Kalitta was a helluva racer both in top fuel dragster and funnycar

its amazing/ironic how before the qualifying even began today it showed all of tommy johnsons and cruz and tony pedregons crash's that looked damn near identical, just there cars managed to slow down and there wasn't trees at the end of the sandpit.
i don't remember the name of the racer, but the crash is on and they walked away II, when i believe it was at englishtown where the funnycar hit the wall on the right side then followed it all the way into the trees and he survived after extensive time in the hospital, this crash however was much more intense. i'm guessing the explosion possibly could have knocked him unconscious then whatever happenned in that fireball at the end, is that blast sound the fuel tank erupting at the end?

Sun Jun 22, 2008 12:11 am

Just watched the vid, that was horrible! The inpact at the end made me gasp. Im really sorry for his family and fans.

Sun Jun 22, 2008 1:01 am

i dont care how good of driver you are or how much safety equipment you have shit happens at 300mph.

Sun Jun 22, 2008 7:01 am

At least he went out doing what he loved... racing. It is a dangerous sport, shit like that happens.

Sun Jun 22, 2008 10:38 am

RIP Scott, you will be missed.

I can think of worse ways to go, I doubt he even felt it. You run at 300mph you are cheating death every time you go out. I'm surprised there aren't more deaths in motorsports, regardless of the safety equipment out there. I'm amazed everytime I see a nasty crash and the driver walks away.

Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:20 am

Was at IRP 9 or so years ago, and a drag biker was killed, air got under him and ripped him right off the bike. The risks are there and they know it, still sad to see it happen.

Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:32 am

I imagine this will be discussed on many forums, many different times, but IMO The NHRA hasn't really kept up, as far as safety improvements, as compared to what the top dog cars, ie; Pro-Stock, Pro Stock Motorcycle, Funny Car, and Top Fuel Dragster cars, are capable of attaining in the way of speed at the top end, and elapsed time.
I know from having been to E-town, that Pension Road runs right at the end of the track, so extending the shut down area, given the prices of New Jersey Real Estate, would be cost-prohibitive... I also remember when the drag strip in, I believe it was Baton Rouge, LA, lost their NHRA sanctioning, and ultimately the track was shut down, because of safety issues that, for one reason or another, were not being addressed.
As much as Englishtown is a fixture, and an icon, in Drag Racing, it seems to me there are 3 choices..(1) make the track safer for the racers going 300+ mph, (2) slow the cars down, or (3) have the NHRA stop sanctioning races there.
Every time a racer gets in his car and straps himself in, whether it's a 14 second street driven VW, or a 330 mph Top Fuel Dragster, or anything in between, you run the risk of having something go wrong. All racecar drivers know this, and it's a chance that they know they take. Its the same in IRL, IndyCar, CART, Nascar, Off-Road, in every form of motorsports, there is an implied risk.
Scott could have made a good living, working for his Dad's Flying Service, but he WANTED to race.
I am deeply saddened by the loss of life, but I am even more saddened by the fact that his wife is now without a husband, and his kids are without a dad.
As I said in a previous post, Race In Peace, Scott Kalitta. You're now up there with Sneaky Pete Robinson, Eric Medlen and others.... always the perfect launch and tune up now, and never a red light... :( [-o<

Sun Jun 22, 2008 1:34 pm

mike yapps wrote: At least he went out doing what he loved... racing. It is a dangerous sport, shit like that happens.

He went out crashing in a fire ball, not doing what he loved. What he loved was winning races, not crashing.

I never understood this "he died doing what he loved shit". He died crashing and there isn't a racing driver in any type of racing in the world that likes crashing.

The man LIVED doing what he loved. He died when things went terribly wrong.

Sun Jun 22, 2008 4:07 pm

Dave wrote: I imagine this will be discussed on many forums, many different times, but IMO The NHRA hasn't really kept up, as far as safety improvements, as compared to what the top dog cars, ie; Pro-Stock, Pro Stock Motorcycle, Funny Car, and Top Fuel Dragster cars, are capable of attaining in the way of speed at the top end, and elapsed time.
I know from having been to E-town, that Pension Road runs right at the end of the track, so extending the shut down area, given the prices of New Jersey Real Estate, would be cost-prohibitive... I also remember when the drag strip in, I believe it was Baton Rouge, LA, lost their NHRA sanctioning, and ultimately the track was shut down, because of safety issues that, for one reason or another, were not being addressed.
As much as Englishtown is a fixture, and an icon, in Drag Racing, it seems to me there are 3 choices..(1) make the track safer for the racers going 300+ mph, (2) slow the cars down, or (3) have the NHRA stop sanctioning races there.
Every time a racer gets in his car and straps himself in, whether it's a 14 second street driven VW, or a 330 mph Top Fuel Dragster, or anything in between, you run the risk of having something go wrong. All racecar drivers know this, and it's a chance that they know they take. Its the same in IRL, IndyCar, CART, Nascar, Off-Road, in every form of motorsports, there is an implied risk.
Scott could have made a good living, working for his Dad's Flying Service, but he WANTED to race.
I am deeply saddened by the loss of life, but I am even more saddened by the fact that his wife is now without a husband, and his kids are without a dad.
As I said in a previous post, Race In Peace, Scott Kalitta. You're now up there with Sneaky Pete Robinson, Eric Medlen and others.... always the perfect launch and tune up now, and never a red light... :( [-o<

I am a "retired" drag racer, still go to many nationals and used to like all forms of auto racing. I think that drag racing is the ONLY pure form of racing left. Safety, yes....slow cars down NO. People die in this sport because they go fast! Its really that simple. NHRA has a really good safety record when you consider the number of quarter miles run with no incidents. When nitro went from 100 percent to 95 then to 90 then 85, the people that build these cars became "better" speed merchants and engineered more speed. Dave I usually agree with you but slowing these machines down amounts to what "social passes" are in school. It is and should be accepted as fact, this is dangerous and people are going to die. Stop racing if you dont want to go the fastest you can(at this level of competition) I am ALL for safer tracks but I want to see American enginuity make these machines fly. It may sound corny but we are Americans and we want to go faster, higher, and do thing better than anybody else. God bless Scot

Sun Jun 22, 2008 4:50 pm

drscope wrote: mike yapps wrote: At least he went out doing what he loved... racing. It is a dangerous sport, shit like that happens.

He went out crashing in a fire ball, not doing what he loved. What he loved was winning races, not crashing.

I never understood this "he died doing what he loved shit". He died crashing and there isn't a racing driver in any type of racing in the world that likes crashing.

The man LIVED doing what he loved. He died when things went terribly wrong.
I kinda agree with what you both have to say, but crashing is part of the game though, is it not? You might say no, crashing is not part of the game!....But, it is inevitable everytime an engine is fired up for that purpose. They are aware of, and assume those risks, knowing that one day it could be their last, but they continue to compete at that level because it is what they love doing, it is their life.

The same can be said about Sailors. The round the world races and Sydney to Hobart races recently have ended up fatal for some, when the storms turn the seastate deadly, boats lose their keels and lives are lost. But yet, year after year, sailors assume the risks, and sail anyway...

If going out in a fireball, or going down with the ship is the worse possible scenario, it still doesn't stop the killer-instinct of competing that burns in our veins. I don't want to make a comparison because these are two entirely different sports, but I've been thrown overboard during a race, during rough seas, and I thought I was gonna die, and I could have. But I still go out and Sail everychance I get because I love the sport. And if I die doing it, my wife and everyone else will think I was stupid and dumb, but I won't.

Sun Jun 22, 2008 6:28 pm

drscope wrote: mike yapps wrote: At least he went out doing what he loved... racing. It is a dangerous sport, shit like that happens.

He went out crashing in a fire ball, not doing what he loved. What he loved was winning races, not crashing.

I never understood this "he died doing what he loved shit". He died crashing and there isn't a racing driver in any type of racing in the world that likes crashing.

The man LIVED doing what he loved. He died when things went terribly wrong.

He WAS racing when he died! I think you're being way too literal. What he loved was racing, win or lose. Other drivers that were interviewed even said that's the way they would want to go. Not necessarily in a fireball ,but racing. They know that every time they strap themselves into their cars it may be their last ride. You're taking you life in your hands every time when you're going 300+ mph in a piece of machinery. They know that. If you can't accept that then you don't belong in that sport. Watch the interviews.