Ryan Hunter Reay...Status????

[Tim Northcutt]

I didn't recall hearing any reports on Ryan Hunter Reay after his accident...

Any word on the extent of his injuries???

That was a horrible hit...the worst possible impact angle in any form of open-wheel racing....

Hope he is OK

[luke]

Worst bit was, it took him ages to be taken out and also he was taken off by a strecher.

I hope he's ok and makes it for Portland.

[Sheila M]

Originally Posted by Tim Northcutt

I didn't recall hearing any reports on Ryan Hunter Reay after his accident...

Any word on the extent of his injuries???

That was a horrible hit...the worst possible impact angle in any form of open-wheel racing....

Hope he is OK

So far I have heard nothing other than his injuries are not life-threatening. Nasty incident though, dealt with in an extremely professional manner by the safety team.

[Sheila M]

Originally Posted by luke

Worst bit was, it took him ages to be taken out and also he was taken off by a strecher.

I hope he's ok and makes it for Portland.

I think the reason it seemed to take ages is that there was no immediate urgency and if there was a suspected spinal injury then it would be standard procedure to remove him to the medical centre via a board and stretcher.

[rustyfan]

The commentary I got reported that Hunter-Reay complained about some neck pains and was taken to a local hospital for further evaluation.

[Sheila M]

Purely precautionary then?

[gttouring]

what a wack! poor guy stuffed it well. This led me to think, he was attended to with utmost haste and job well done by the champcar safety team, and so quick.
and at least i saw his hands move and his legs shuffle a bit so it doesn't seem like it will be worse than poor bruno at INdy.
1) great track, so wide and good race, RHR did well until the slip- could it be he wasn't on the marbles? the way the right front broke maybe it was vibrating loose in the turn?
2) the best safety crew around.
3) Lola chassis held up as it should - but why is there no way to extricate the driver from these cars by lifting them in the seat ala F1? this is a must saftey requirement for any new open wheel chassis, this needs to be addressed now, if his injuries were very bad or so they could be made worse pulling him out. they took his helmet off?! in that crash i would wait until i got an Xray or CT scan.
Here's to your health RHR and see you on the track where you belong

[rustyfan]

Originally Posted by Sheila M

Purely precautionary then?

I would guess so - don't know any more than what I posted above and that he was taken there so they could take x-rays etc.

I personally think he's 'just' quite banged up and perhaps has suffered a concussion... if they tell us about the full range of his potential injuries, that is. Champ Car - or at least CART - has had a knack of neglecting to give out the full details sometimes.

[Sheila M]

Originally Posted by rustyfan

I would guess so - don't know any more than what I posted above and that he was taken there so they could take x-rays etc.

I personally think he's 'just' quite banged up and perhaps has suffered a concussion... if they tell us about the full range of his potential injuries, that is. Champ Car - or at least CART - has had a knack of neglecting to give out the full details sometimes.

Having seen the incident and knowing that he was wearing a HANS device I would suspect that Ryan is suffering from nothing more serious than a slight whiplash injury. However, this is just a personal opinion. Presumably more information may be forthcoming in due course?

[rustyfan]

Originally Posted by Sheila M

Having seen the incident and knowing that he was wearing a HANS device I would suspect that Ryan is suffering from nothing more serious than a slight whiplash injury. However, this is just a personal opinion. Presumably more information may be forthcoming in due course?

The HANS device won't matter much when you hit backwards though, since it's primary function is to stop the head from moving forward. If you hit backwards the straps connected to the rear of the helmet are rendered ineffective.

Seeing as he was complaining about neck pains a whiplash injury, as you mention, could definitely be one possibility though.

[TedN]

Good news about RHR ...

from the champcar official website:

Quote:
Ryan Hunter-Reay was transferred to Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital where X-rays and a CT scan showed no injuries. He was expected to be released from the hospital Saturday evening.

Ted

[marcus]

great news

[Muzza]

Originally Posted by gttouring

what a wack! poor guy stuffed it well. This led me to think, he was attended to with utmost haste and job well done by the champcar safety team, and so quick.
and at least i saw his hands move and his legs shuffle a bit so it doesn't seem like it will be worse than poor bruno at INdy.
1) great track, so wide and good race, RHR did well until the slip- could it be he wasn't on the marbles? the way the right front broke maybe it was vibrating loose in the turn?
2) the best safety crew around.
3) Lola chassis held up as it should - but why is there no way to extricate the driver from these cars by lifting them in the seat ala F1? this is a must saftey requirement for any new open wheel chassis, this needs to be addressed now, if his injuries were very bad or so they could be made worse pulling him out. they took his helmet off?! in that crash i would wait until i got an Xray or CT scan.
Here's to your health RHR and see you on the track where you belong

Interesting comments, gttouring.

A few notes from me:

- The design of the Lola chassis - size and location of cockpit opening, location of safety belt mounting points, shape of chassis - makes impossile to extricate a driver on his seat. Incidentally, the same happens to any other Champ Car so far designed.

- In my times as a marshal (a few years back) we were instructed to carefully (read "following the required techniques", and note that not just any marshal is qualified to move a driver/remove a helmet bar emergencial situations such as a driver locked/stranded in a car on fire, etc.) remove the helmet of an accidented driver or rider as soon as possible to ensure that the respiratory ways were not blocked or getting blocked.

A friend of mine who worked in the Milwaukee race overheard that Ryan also overextended/damaged ligaments on his shoulder (don't know which one, or if both).

Regards,

Muzza

[mountainstar]

Well hopefully when the new champcar is designed they'll factor in removable seats.

[BootsOntheSide]

Good news that he's okay, can we expect him back for the next race? and I agree that the ability to remove a driver by the seat would be useful in the case of more serious neck/back injuries, and probably not too difficult to factor in to a brand new design. Good thinking.

[GTRMagic]

When is a new design due??

[Kicking-back]

2007

[Liz]

Good news that RHR is generally OK. I thought of Bruno's accident right away when I saw that. I don't like ovals.

[Sheila M]

Originally Posted by mountainstar

Well hopefully when the new champcar is designed they'll factor in removable seats.

You mean like the ones they use in F1?

[JohnSSC]

I love the intensity of the ovals - especially the "bullrings" such as Milwaukee and Phoenix. I hope the new rules re: chassis safety reflect the removable seat. This will improve safety at all tracks, including road/street courses.

A solid chassis safety package will give the drivers added confidence - always a good thing!

[Liz]

On the other hand, the rate of injury has continued to go UP in hockey since the equipment has become 'safer'. Now the players are the dangerous part of the package (or would be if they weren't on strike.)

I heard on the Speed News that RHR had a bruised lung.

[macdaddy]

This is from the team's website:

Ryan Hunter-Reay is doing ok after taking a hard hit on Lap Five of the race this afternoon. The back end of the #31 Briggs & Stratton/Rocketsports Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone went loose as the defending race winner was seen making contact with the wall in Turn Two. He was taken to the Champ Car medical center on-site, where he was awake and alert with some pain in his mid-neck. He was then transferred to the Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital in Milwaukee to undergo preliminary x-rays.

Those x-rays returned negative as the young driver has sustained several bruises from the heavy hit. He has recently been released from the hospital.

[N I Tram]

Sounds like he probably won't miss a race, which is good news. Safety is perhaps the main area where ChampCars does hold an advantage over the IRL, although there is always a bigger risk on ovals.

[rustyfan]

According to Robin Miller Ryan Hunter-Reay was knocked out and suffered a concussion in the accident at Milwaukee. Funny how that wasn't mentioned officially, but then again, it wouldn't be the first time Champ Car has 'neglected' to mention such details.

[Tim Northcutt]

Concussion clearance would take at least a week to 10 days....

Let's hope it wasn't serious, and that he will be cleared to drive...