Tragedy at 24 Hours of Lemons

[exigeracer]

Such a shame that the perfect representation of grassroots motorsports enthusiasm now has a tragic on-track death associated with it.

Jalopnik reports that one of the competitors at the 24 Hours of LeMons race at Altamont has tragically died in an accident on the course. At present, the identity of the victim, who was driving the #39 Volvo 242 Turbo pictured above, has not been released. According to Jalopnik's Murilee Martin, who is reporting on-site from LeMons and also competing in the event, the #39 car collided with a wall at high speed, and rescue personnel cut off its roof to extract the driver. Following the incident, LeMons organizers reportedly called off the rest of Saturday's racing. We don't know what's planned for Sunday, and strongly recommend you check Jalopnik for updates. Autoblog extends its heartfelt condolences and prayers to the fallen racer's family, friends and teammates.

Best wishes for those left behind.

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/05/11/report-racer-dies-in-24-hours-of-lemons-crash/

http://jalopnik.com/389296/tragic-death-reported-at-altamont-24-hours-of-lemons-race

 

[JohnBM01]

Uneducated and uninitiated folk would ask, "don't you mean the 24 Hours of LE MANS? And isn't that in June?" The 24 Hours of LeMons is actually a very funny (and rather sad) motorsport event. Unfortunately, it's not funny when lives are lost. And so was the case as there was a casualty in the race. I, too, extend my deepest thoughts and prayers to the fallen racer.

 

[nd 4 holden spd]

Such is motorsport I guess. Doesn't change the fact that:

 

[Robin]

Im sure that car doesn't exactly have the amazing safety features seen on modern race cars...

Robin

 

[Jim Prower]

I'm sure that we're gonna see full cages and the like pretty quick, here.

 

[Omnis]

Well that's a damn shame. These cars don't already have full cages and appropriate safety gear?

 

[Jim Prower]

There's a budget limit, so, no, I think only a partial cage is used.

 

[Omnis]

Wow, you'd think they'd deduct a full cage from the budget.

 

[Sniffs]

MT covered the LeMons held last year, and participated in a...I believe 98 Olds Acheiva. it was said that the alloy wheels were worth more than the car!

I know that there was a budget limit of 500 bucks for the car, but I think that was for EVERYTHING. I was tempted to find a place to post, as we have a LOAD of old LeMons qualifiers. including a Topaz hatch!

 

[Pupik]

UPDATE: It has now been made known that the driver who passed away as a result of the crash is Mr. Court Summerfield, age 47, of Alameda, CA. Again, we extend our deepest condolences to Mr. Summerfield's wife, Vickie, and their family and friends.

It's a pity this happened, but when you race cars that average 20 years old, they're not going to be the safest cars in accidents due to the years of wear and tear, and then thrown into the heat of battle on a budget. (A US-spec Volvo 242 is about 20-25 years old.)

According to Car & Driver's write-ups on the events, there is no budget limit on safety equipment for the cars (brakes, tires, rollcages, driver's helmets/firesuits, extinguishers), so you could theoretically spend as much as you wanted those sorts of things. The $500 limit is for the car purchase including basic maintenance, repairs, and tuning.

Again, it's a shame, and I hope the racing continues, because it seems quite an entertaining form of historic/vintage racing.

 

[TheCracker]

Skimping on a rollcage is pure stupidity. In a saloon/sedan a full welded in cage is an absolute necessity. A roll hoop behind the driver just won't cut the mustard. Dying in a racing accident is usually an unfortunately freak occurrence. Dying because you've implemented the bare minimum of safety precautions is an avoidable tragedy.

 

[Keef]

Wow, you'd think they'd deduct a full cage from the budget.

The race is a pretty slow and simple one. There's lots of bumping and grinding, but the idea of a crash that could take a life is quite surprising to me. I've read about the race for the last two years, and I never expected to see anything like this at a for-fun event.

 

[buickgnx88]

MT covered the LeMons held last year, and participated in a...I believe 98 Olds Acheiva. it was said that the alloy wheels were worth more than the car!

Actually that was Car and Driver, and they had an Olds Aurora (I have the issue ).

 

[jammyozzy]

Guys, they don't skimp anything on safety kit for these races. The $500 limit excludes anything considered safety equipment, including but not limited to tyres, brakes, helmets, clothing, extinguishers and roll cages. The cars have to have fitted 6 point cages with padding, a 2.5lb or larger fire extinguisher, high quality helmets, 5 point harnesses and fire proof clothing. There's no skimping on safety what so ever, the safety gear costs many times the cost of the base car. See section 3 here: http://www.24hoursoflemons.com/rules/

The general consensus seems to be that the guy had some sort of medical emergency while driving, and made no attempt to stop or avoid the wall. It's sad and his family have my condolences, but this wasn't caused by a lack of safety gear.

 

[Jim Prower]

Hm...well...

yeah, not a good day.

 

[Omnis]

Guys, they don't skimp anything on safety kit for these races. The $500 limit excludes anything considered safety equipment, including but not limited to tyres, brakes, helmets, clothing, extinguishers and roll cages. The cars have to have fitted 6 point cages with padding, a 2.5lb or larger fire extinguisher, high quality helmets, 5 point harnesses and fire proof clothing. There's no skimping on safety what so ever, the safety gear costs many times the cost of the base car. See section 3 here: http://www.24hoursoflemons.com/rules/

The general consensus seems to be that the guy had some sort of medical emergency while driving, and made no attempt to stop or avoid the wall. It's sad and his family have my condolences, but this wasn't caused by a lack of safety gear.

I see. So did they actually release the cause of death? Heart attack or something?

 

[superberkut]

Actually that was Car and Driver, and they had an Olds Aurora (I have the issue ).

I have it too. They had good coverage on the event.

A real tragedy, then that the lighthearted image of this fun race had to be tarnished with an on-track accident that proved fatal. The budget may then see an increase to perhaps accommodate a roll cage or other safety equipment, or hopefully it happens.

 

[jammyozzy]

No official report yet as far as I know. Whatever happened I feel sorry for the guys family, it's a really sad event.

 

[exigeracer]

The budget may then see an increase to perhaps accommodate a roll cage or other safety equipment, or hopefully it happens.

It already does. You can spend as much as you'd like on safety equipment. The 500$ is exclusively for purchase and performance expenses. You can have a 8,000$ cage and harness setup and still be eligible. There are security requirements to begin with, including the cage, appropriate harnessing, helmets, suits etc.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

I wonder if they do any sort of health tests for the participants.

 

[Pupik]

I wonder if they do any sort of health tests for the participants.

That's tough to do; you obviously can't see a heart attack or stroke, for example. It's simplified motorsports, and I doubt the organizers are going to go as far as request physical exams on the participants of a racing involving cars that rarely get above highway speeds on the racecourse.

By the way, Denny Hulme, the 1967 F1 World Champion, died of a heart attack during the Bathurst 1000 back in 1992; and I have read that it has occurred in a few other cases, due to the physical activity and the increased heart rate and stress that racing brings about. It's best to be fit and in top shape, of course, but you can't exclude people from racing unless they can't fit in the car.

If this is indeed the case of this 24 Hours of Lemons race, then at least he died having fun.

 

[Dave A]

It's unfortunate, all the reports are saying he died of a heart attack at the wheel and then hit the wall. It's sad but there are worse ways for a race driver to be killed.

 

[3-Wheel Drive]

It already does. You can spend as much as you'd like on safety equipment. The 500$ is exclusively for purchase and performance expenses. You can have a 8,000$ cage and harness setup and still be eligible. There are security requirements to begin with, including the cage, appropriate harnessing, helmets, suits etc.

Indeed. I've read their website, and safety gear is not skimped, as it shouldn't be. If the modifications are for safety, you can spend however much you want, and full cages, Snell helmets, and fire extinguishers are actually required to even compete.

As slow and quirky as the LeMons is, it is still racing, and is still inherently dangerous. Though sad, it is far from shocking. Accidents happen.