A member of our local Porsche Club was killed while driving during an event held at Watkins Glen International raceway this past weekend.

While the details of the crash are still under investigation, reports gathered during our instructor meeting at the track indicate that the driver lost control under braking in the "laces of the boot" area of the track.

The crash was a single car incident. It was head-on into the tire barrier at the bottom of this downhill turn. Reports confirm that the driver's helmet was partially removed from his head after the crash, but remained intact.

The driver was in our green run group, which is our beginner run group. Speeds in this turn are around 70-80mph for beginning drivers.

I am making this post because the hobby of attending Driver Education events at racetracks has grown tremendously over the last decade, and I know a lot of forum members here participate in them.

For those people who may not be familiar with Driver Education events, they are organization run lapping days at racetracks. You bring your own car and run at speed with other cars on the racetrack. Passing is limited to straight-aways and only with a permission signal from the driver being passed. They are not competitions, and therefore do not really qualify as a sport. They are for enjoyment and for furthering one's skills as a driver.

I have been participating in track events for 13 years, and am a nationally certified driving instructor with the Porsche Club of America (PCA). I have been driving primarily with the local Porsche Club region, the Riesentöter Region of the PCA. I have also driven with at least a dozen other PCA club regions, Audi clubs, and independent driving clubs throughout the years, and have instructed at most of them, too.

Our club is one of the better ones in terms of organization and safety, in my opinion. I say this not to criticize the other clubs, but to show that even in the best run organizations, fatal incidents can happen during Driver Education events.

In our club, a minimum of five point safety harnesses are required for the intermediate run group and higher. We have five run groups, and the first two qualify as beginner. Helmets must be a Snell Rating of 95 or 2000 and all drivers must wear long sleeve natural fiber shirts and pants as a minimum. We have no other requirements as far as safety, but most experienced drivers do use many more safety items in their cars or on their bodies, such as racing seats, neck collars, nomex race suits and boots/gloves, roll bars/cages, and neck support devices.

This incident may cause our club to change our safety equipment mandates, or it may not. What concerns me is that there may not be a full realization among participants on how risky this hobby can be. If a fatality can happen at the beginner level of our club, it can happen in any other club, too. Ultimately, unless clubs start instituting stricter minimum requirements, it is up to you as the driver to ensure that you are properly equipped for safety. Currently, the minimum requirements may not be enough.

Reports at the track from eyewitnesses to the crash and the immediate aftermath suggest that a neck support device may have saved this man's life. I am nervous to state this in public, as it may be premature considering that no official coroner report has been issued, and the incident is at this time still under investigation. But I was at the track, and the information that prompts me to make this statement is not from third or fourth hand accounts, altered or blurred as it passes from person to person. It is the best info available at the time, and I do not feel that the recommendation for more safety devices can be reckless. I do not want to suggest that the driver was somehow negligent in not using a neck support device, either, as I myself have not been using one, not have most of the instructors, let alone drivers, that I see at events. I know that it is treading almost on forbidden territory to start making conclusions or statements about someone's death so soon after it happened and how it possibly could have been prevented, and I thought long and hard about writing this. I am writing this with the best intentions and due respect.

There are a few neck support devices on the market at this time. They gained in use especially after Dale Earnhardt died in a crash at the Daytona 500 in 2001. It is commonly believed that Dale died of a basilar skull fracture, which has become recognized as a very common cause of death among race drivers. Whether or not a neck support device would have saved Dale, this device was designed to minimize the chance of this type of injury. With the Watkins Glen fatality this past weekend, the fact that the driver's helmet had lifted forward off his head in a frontal impact may suggest that a neck support device may have helped here, too. I am not qualified to make definitive conclusions about this incident, but once again, I do not feel that I am out of line suggesting more safety when participating in these type of events.

In all the years I have been participating in Driver Education events, I have only witnessed two injuries serious enough to require emergency medical treatment and hospitalization. Considering the number of track days I have attended and the number of participants these events assemble, that is not a lot. This past weekend was a wake up call for a lot of us. Many of my fellow instructors were in tears, as was I, and all of us were in shock and disbelief.

Even Ben's tragic incident this year may not have been enough for some of us. Hopefully, this post will continue to help the message hit home.

If you plan on attending a Driver Education event for the first time, or have been attending them for years, please take the extra time to reassess your safety protocols. A lot of safety equipment is still expensive, but any piece of equipment that is certified has been proven to provide protection for the driver if used properly. Neck support devices are still an expensive piece of equipment, and there are three different designs that I know of, but I now believe that they should be on the short list of mandatory pieces of equipment, even for first timers. Instructors should note, however, that not every design allows use with three point safety belts, and a lot of beginner drivers requiring instructors only have these type of belts in their cars. Perhaps five point harnesses should now be mandatory even for even first timers.

There is a degree of self regulation involved with every activity, and of course that applies also to Driver Education events. Ultimately, you need to look out for your own best interests.

I don't know if mandatory regulation is the answer here, but I feel more education is certainly needed. Reminding people of the real dangers of this hobby is one form of education.

If your club does not mandate certain safety items, do yourself a great favor and research them on your own. It is your life and health at stake, and what is the price you put on that? It can be a private decision, but it should be made consciously and seriously.

I just want to reiterate that this post is in the interest of increasing awareness about safety. I am not an expert regarding safety design or accident reconstruction. I do not wish to make hard conclusions about how this incident occurred or how it may have been prevented.

All I can say is that fatal incidents can occur at Driver Events even with the best clubs and at the mildest speeds.

As a participant in these events, it is ultimately your responsibility to be CONSCIOUS and AWARE of the potential dangers and take appropriate measures to minimize them. Whether that be through better safety equipment or slower driving.

Bengt-Erik Wilholm, the driver killed this weekend, was a customer of ours. Our prayers are with his family.

 

A brave post, but necessary. There is too much emphasis on hush-hush around accidents, imo. People need to know these things. Sure we don't want to be filling the boards with rumors and speculation and wild accusations, but I think we err too far the other way in these instances.

People need to know. The "health" of our hobby, and even our livelihoods, cannot be bought with people's blood, and possibly their lives.

 

Todd,

Your post is well written and should lead each of us who does this type activity about upgrading our safety equipment. My prayers are also with the family. Where there any injuries to the instructor?

 

Thank you for posting...great information, and a good starting point for doing research for me, as a new track is being built near my home.

 

CONDOLENCES TO HIS FAMILY...

 

Todd:

Thanks for the courage to post and my deepest condolences to his family. I would appreciate any technical info you can suggest from your observations ... even if they are guesses so we might better protect ourselves and learn as much as possible from this tragedy.

 

Some insight by one of our local track hounds:

WGI is a dangerous track. He had on a 5-point harness one of the Rennlist threads said. I know the area he crashed it. Bottom of a hill with walls all around. That is the problem with Pro-tracks. Much more dangerous than a club track like MSR.

The real danger is people going from our events at MSR TO dangerous pro-tracks that are less forgiving like Sebring, RA, WGI. They might not realize the penalty for spinning or putting wheels off is not just a dusty car and some rock chips.

(For reference, "MSR" is Motorsports Ranch, a local country club track with plenty of run-off room and generally nothing to hit. Our PCA region uses it for most of our DE events.)

 

I first wish to offer my condolences to the gentleman's family.

I also want to echo Adrift's comments regarding the courage and applicability to write what Todd wrote.

Since Ben's death, I have foused on head and neck restraints with the intent to purchase one for my next DE. This event fortifies my decision. Whether the accident was due to a mechanical failure or driver error, the bottom line is that ANY accident puts the occupants at risk of BSF if a solid object is struck at any appreciable speed. Couple that with the fact that your head now weighs more with a helmet on it!!!

So, after thoroughly researching the three most prevalent head and neck restraints

• Hans Device
  
• Isaac Device
  
• R3 Device
  

I have decided on the R3. It is a simple yet effective structural design and it has, of the three, the sole ability to be transferrable to any car, whether the car has a 5 point harness or regular 3 point street belts.

Upon speaking with Todd at AWE earlier, they will be looking into becoming a dealer of this product.

 

Todd, Thank you for taking the time to write about your first hand experiences about this tragic event. All of your points are very true and should be taken seriously from anyone who puts thought into attending a track event. Its unfortunate that it takes a accident to change rules, but when people see it can happen at any time, changes are made. I have been racing for almost 2 years now, and I've used a Hutchens head & neck restraint, it was a entry level system. After what happened to Ben I purchased the Hans device, costing almost $1k but I think my life is worth more then that. Todd as a instructor sitting in the passenger seat your life is the hands of that driver, I would think all instructors should wear mandatory restraint systems. Thanks again for the post, and my sincere condolences to the mans family.

 

It is sheer speculation, but it has been postulated that perhaps the gentleman had some sort of "episode" prior to losing control...? Until the medical examination is in, we don't even really know if it was the impact that killed him or not.

I can't even begin to imagine what it must have been like at the track after it happened.

 

RIP to the driver. I too feel bad about his family. Which model was he in?

My comment below are not specifc to this accident but is just my observation and opinion in general:

When I got on the track for the first time, I was surprised how much crap was on the track and how much elevation changes on different parts of it. As a novice, I drove very modestly as if I were on the street. Most people think it's OK to race since they are on track and there are no police. I don't think being on track is safer actually since a track is more challenging and speed builds up easier.

I also feel that a full visual safety inspection should be performed at the pit as should a certificate of mechanical inspection be provided. I don't think either are done as a rule, but I am not sure.

I suppose neck brace is customized? If not, why not offer as rental so it's more afforable to have for occasional drivers?

I went to a BMW USA hosted autocross that did not offer helment or requirement on clothing. Basically, you can wear a flip flop and shorts driving 80 mph w 4 other people. There was only 1 fire extinguisher at the whole parking lot put away somewhere. How's that for ignorance?

 

That is what we thought to be a definite possibility initially after the incident, given his age, but as more reports came in from different sources that were at the scene, it seemed less likely that it was an "external" cause.

The official report is still out though, so anything is possible.

I felt the need to post because evidence was strongly pointing in the direction of a track incident. The dislodged helmet and the ~80mph front impact speed especially resonated with me. Instructors are going through that turn 20-30mph faster, and an 80 mph head-on shunt with the torso only secured by a 5 point harness is frightening enough to think about.

The instructor had signed off this student after 6 run sessions. This student had also been to the track before, and had done other events with the club. We should not point fingers at the instructor.

 

Wow, 80 on impact. Braking going downhill is definitely a bit of an advanced skill, as I learned the hard way myself. But fortunately for me, all I did was kick up some dirt and pick up some grass as I ran off.

 

Does HANS device require a 5-point harness?

 

Tim,

I am hesitant to make any further comments or analyses than I already have, given that I was not at the scene when it happened, nor did I get to inspect the car (it was impounded by the track for sheriff inspection immediately).

As I mentioned above, the fact that the helmet was lifted forward on the head, and it was a front impact at a relatively high speed part of the course puts a spotlight on the possibility of a basilar skull fracture, which the neck support devices are designed to address.

The helmet may have been too large or the strap too loose, but the fact that it rotated forward indicates serious g-forces at work to the head.