Here you go, Dawn... from the Chicago Tribune:
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- A worker at Daytona International Speedway was struck and killed by a paraplegic driver going more than 100 mph during a race for compact cars Sunday.
The worker, 44-year-old Roy H. Weaver III, was standing in the middle of the track picking up debris during a caution period when he was hit by a car driven by Ray Paprota of Birmingham, Ala., track spokesman David Talley said.
Paprota, who doesn't have use of his legs and drives a car equipped with hand controls, was trying to catch up the main pack of cars after a two-car crash at the opposite end of the track brought out a yellow flag. Weaver was struck in turn two on the 2 1/2-mile trioval.
"The worker was standing right in the middle of the track when he hit him," said Jeff Tillman, who was behind Paprota when the accident occurred. "It flipped him over the car."
Several drivers said Weaver's body already was covered by a tarp as they continued to circle the track under a yellow flag. Eventually, the IPOWERacing 150 was red-flagged for about 1 1/2 hours, finally running to the finish under the lights after police investigated the scene and took pictures of Paprota's car in the garage.
Paprota was loaded into a wheelchair-accessible van and left the track without discussing the accident with reporters.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I can't say anything."
Weaver, the supervisor of track crew, had been with the speedway for seven years. He was the 36th person to die during an event at Daytona -- the first since Bryan Cassell was killed while practicing for a motorcycle race on Oct. 18.
Danny Bagwell, who won the Dash race, defended Paprota's racing skills.
"I think he's a capable race driver and I think everybody deserves an opportunity," Bagwell said. "He's a hard worker. We've tried to help him as much as we could."
Paprota lost use of his legs in a 1984 car wreck. He rehabilitated at the same Birmingham hospital where former NASCAR star Bobby Allison recovered from a serious racing crash.
"We learned about him through Bobby Allison," Bagwell said. "That's a pretty good reference."
Raymond Claypool, an executive vice president with IPOWERacing, said Paprota had raced in three previous Dash events and tried to qualify for a fourth.
Already cleared to run on five-eighth-mile tracks, he requested to compete this year at Daytona.
"We made the decision to allow him to come to Daytona for winter testing," Claypool said. "He attended a rookie meeting and went through extensive testing both on and off the track. We also asked other drivers ... and we felt very confident he was qualified to compete here."
Another driver, Wally Leatherwood, said the wreck shouldn't be blamed on Paprota's physical condition. Instead, he pointed to standard racing tactics used in all forms of oval racing while the yellow flag is out.
Drivers are encouraged to catch up to the line running behind the safety car, even after they duck into the pits for gas, tires or repairs.
Paprota wasn't able to start the race because of a faulty battery. He finally got going about the time Bill Clevenger and Tony Billings were involved in a crash in turn three.
Billings had to be cut out of his car and was taken to a local hospital for evaluation. Fortunately, he was awake and moving when removed from his battered machine.
