Alabama’s Atmore Dragway is the scene for this wild and violent in-car video. We find ourselves in the cockpit of a race car as the driver fires it up and prepares for a burnout. The description of the video claims that this is the third run on the car and that it was a high four second/150mph neighborhood car. When watching the guy driving the car, it seems like his third time to the track as well. He’s missing his fire gloves, seems to be genuinely new inside the car, and ultimately makes a massive mental error that could have killed him.
Pay close attention to the shifter as the driver comes trough the finish line of the run. Instead of knocking it up into neutral like we thought he was going to do, the guy yanks the lever in the wrong direction and either kicked it into second or first gear depending on the transmission type. He quickly pushed it in the other direction but his fate was sealed. The car was immediately upset by the move and the driver was soon on a bad ride, sliding this way and that across the course until the body tore off and it barrel rolled a bunch of times.
The driver was OK and essentially walked away from the crash. We wish that there was out of car footage of this because it would probably be amazing to see the car slide like it did before catching air and tumbling like crazy. You’ll notice that the driver kept his hands on the wheel the whole time. While not the worst idea, tucking in with your hands and arms is the best decision.
Think we’re right? Think that the brain fade reverse shift movie screwed him up enough to cause the car to wreck out there? Watch the video, analyze, and give us your best answer!
Man he needs to invest in some better door locks. His door blew open as soon as he took off..
Don’t ya know that opened doors helps ya go faster? 🙂
The thing shutting off . . . trying to tell’em to abort . . . .
that wasn’t looking good from the start
High perfomance car, low performance driver.
Isn’t much of a Vette now!
http://www.dragcoverage.com/?p=8882
I think he needs to let someone else drive and just stick being the money man!!
Also put ‘er on the chip for a coupla seconds before deciding to shift.
Well…2 things…one is obvious…GLOVES?….and #2… Either his shoulder harnesses weren’t tight….or even ON…I think you can see a silver flash under the neck collar…but he’s moving around a lot before launching….my guess..NEW CAR…new driver….and no sense!…who messes with the shifter “AFTER” the pass…..you should “NEVER” down shift a car in the shut down area…
looks like a full moon over head @ the end of the video…..
Thank goodness he wore a helmet.
He don’t have to worry about that window lock anymore….
Maybe you should re adjust your statement because the driver has been racing faster cars for many years. I personally watched the crash and you don’t know the entire situation
After racing “faster cars many years” one could reasonably expect that the driver would have been more relaxed and composed than it appears and certainly would have not have even touched the shifter after crossing the finish line!
Just because he has been racing faster cars for year does not make him a competent driver, it just makes him a lucky one…looks like his luck ran out. He has no idea as to what he is doing, panics too much. I drove Nitro funny Cars and Comp Altereds and have been involved in Drag Racing for more than 40 years…a cool head handles a hot car!!! Funny thing is I’ve seen many racer select reverse gear and they always seem to find some excuse, diff locked up, gearbox seized, rear wheels stopped turning, motor locked, clutch locked up, sun was in my eyes etc. Anonymous…if you know the whole situation, then why don’t you enlighten us. It will be interesting to see!!!
I know he was rowing gears like a 4 speed when he was shifting a PG…. And…if he has “FAST” car experience…where F*@! were his gloves?… 3 cards short of a full deck….
And how many of those other “FAST” cars have met the same faite as this one?
Why wasn’t the shift solenoid being used for the upshift gear change?
It probably was…..he was in a life or death struggle with it….IT WON !!!!
You see in the video he disconnects the air line to the solenoid.
Judging by the poor fitting Lexan window on the door, all I can say is what a cobbled together POS of a race car.
Two words for this idiot. Frank Hawley
Looks to me like he needs a Lenco if he plans to continue drag racing…
A crew member or track personnel shut off the power to stop him so he could close the passenger door. That’s why the car shut down.
Was this his first time shifting a Powerglide?
The construction of the body didn’t impress me. The interior controls seemed to awkward, especially for a fast cart like this.
Brian Lohnes, if you ever feel the desire to write a True and Accurate article about my wreck and details thereof, feel free to contact me anytime. (Being how I kinda got the inside scoop an all.)
Best Regards,
The No Racing, Incompetent, Rookie Driving Mudphucker That Wrecked This POS.