Its sad to see this happen because he got pretty messed up, but could you imagine if it was on a bike? http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/racing/08/03/damatta.crash.ap/index.html
I believe it was Opie Caylor who hit a deer at Road Atlanta a couple of years back, and Shawn Conrad hit a wild turkey at Road America early this year... it hit so hard it cracked his helmet!
Speaking of Shawn, has anyone heard how he is doing?
From what I've heard he hit it between 11 and 12 going close to 200MPH ouch! I dont know how the deer got over that 8FT tall catch fence
That's not a place I whan to hit anything at RA.... not that I want to hit anything on the track, but :ahhh:
I've seen deer jump fences that tall before.
We were at the AMA event a few years back where there was a deer on track between 13 and 14, who then scampered to the infield, and crossed back over the track after 14 just before the hill. Took him 4 or 5 tries to jump the fence, but he made it. Not a single corner worker saw it and there were bikes on track.
We've had snakes, turtles, small critters at every track I've been to. Deer are a hazard at the wooded tracks. That's why you need to always keep your focus.
According to the Journal Sentinel, he hit the deer in the entrance of T6. See the update here: http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=480253 (http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=480253)
We had a deer at Summit actually jump over a rider once between 3 & 4.
Deer at Road A? Oh, I've got one of THOSE stories! This story happened so long ago that Jamie James was the Yamaha factory rider. I was connerworking at station 11b, the flag station just before the braking area for 12. (Canada Corner) It was the first lap of the 600 race. As the lead group of four riders exited the kink, a momma deer and two does leapt out onto the track! I keyed the mike to call for a flag at 11a if only to warn the midpackers on back, but the lead riders were past there already!
Four 600 factory bikes, running in a side-by-side double draft. A blanket would have covered all four as they roared toward the deer at 160 mph. I was staring right at the action, but it all happened so fast that I can't really say what I saw. All I know is that four bikes went four directions, knifing into the gaps between the three deer before they had time to bolt. A moment later, the deer were gone, clearing the track before the fifth place rider even got there!
That surely was one of my top ten scary moments as a corner worker!
In the early 80's, a friend of mine hit a deer in a Formula Ford at The Westwood track in B.C. He was killed instantly. There are enough dangers in racing without worrying about hitting animals.