Angry

[motomadness]

I don't know how everyone else feels about Daijiro Kato's death, but I am both saddened and angry.  

I am sad because I will miss watching him race.  I believe that if he had been given an RC211V earlier in the season last year, he could have won a race or two.  Remember how he rode the NSR last year against Rossi on the RC.  I even remember all of the 2002 pre-season hype when Daijiro was lapping many circuits faster than Rossi right out of the box.  May we all learn from his example.  Funny note:  I read once that Daijiro used to sleep a lot, like 14 hours a day.  I think he even attributed his rest to part of his success.  May we all be so fortunate.

Now the angry part...

I, like the rest of the viewing public, have only be allowed to see the few brief moments after Daijiro had crashed when the corner workers were rushing him off of the circuit.  I remember seeing them lay the gurny down next to him.  Then they reached over, grab his body and, quite frankly, plopped him down on the gurny.  No one even held his head steady during the entire maneuver.  Then they hoisted the gurny about waist high and rushed off of the track.  In no way was this safe - no neck brace, no isolation of the spine, no care for his well being in my mind.  I saw racers carried off in a similar manner in the past at Suzuka or Motegi and similarly, the race kept going.  

Yes, the track is dangerous, at least that is what the racers have said, but did the corner workers screw this up with their carelessness.  F#$k the race, save the racer.  It appeared as though they were only concerned with getting (or under pressure to get) him off of the track so the race could continue.  From the reports of Daijiro's death, it was mentioned that his death was directly attributed to spinal injuries.  Did the corner workers exacerbate the injuries related to the crash, thereby reducing his chances of survival?  Now that I think about it, the only reason, I have ever seen a Motogp race red-flagged was because of a change in the weather (dry to wet).  I could be wrong though.  

If an interruption changes the outcome of a race, then so be it.  The racers in Motogp are paid millions of dollars for a reason - they are the best.  Entertains us, but not at the cost of people's lives.

I know and have seen that the corner workers in the Mid-West don't take any chances.  When I was knocked unconscious at Gateway last year, the corner workers didn't move me, nor did they even remove my helmet until the EMTs arrived.  

Thank you.  You may have saved my life.

-------------------

Right now, I bet Daijiro and Acapelo are having a good time racing in heaven.  R.I.P. guys.  You will be, and have been missed.

[spyderchick]

If you read other forums, you'd see that you are not the only person expressing these thoughts. It would be my guess that these corner workers were not trained in CPR or as first responders. This is not acceptable, obviously.

Did the way Daijiro was handled contribute to his death? Not being there, I won't say definitvely, but an educated guess would be, yes, it did. CPR protocol is different if there is one person as opposed to more than one, (there were at least 2 corner works on the scene) but Daijiro should have been immobilized and CPR started before he was in the ambulance, not after.

I've watched alot of races (bikes and F1) from Europe and Asia over the years, and this is the way they handle everyone, conscious, unconscious, hurt or not so hurt. The one exception was Senna's death at Imola. Hell, they didn't even immediately red flag the F1 race two weeks ago when two cars were in pieces across the track, tires and suspension everywhere. It took another two cars crashing inot the debris to finally convince the race directors to take action.

The FIA and the FIM have enough money to solve any problem. They need to evaluate their safety procedures and fix it.

I will point to CART as a shining example of what dedicated safety personael can do. Two years ago Alex Zanardi lost both his legs in a horrific crash in Europe. The CART medical staff saved his life as he coded and lost 70% of his blood on the track. He is alive and well, walking again with his protheses, and plans to race again.

[Super Dave]

I think we have unbelieveable care for the injured in the US.  

So, did they cause his injuries?  I believe that for some spinal injuries, the aorta can be ripped apart causing a quick end.  I think it comes down to luck at that point.  Their movement of his body would pale in comparison to the actual cause of the injury.  Their movement may have possibly caused his nerves to be injured, but the potential for internal blood loss and the loss of that blood to the brain was probably the actual cause of his death.

[spyderchick]

Here's a link to the Speed article on Kato.

http://www.speedtv.com/articles/moto/motogp/5943/

It it interesting that Rossi and Gibernau have said they will never race at Suzuka again. I guess we'll never know the true cause of Kato's death.  

[K3 Chris Onwiler]

Alex Zanardi   He is alive and well, walking again with his protheses, and plans to race again.

YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I KNEW MY BOY WOULD COME BACK!

Also, I say once again that our CCS Midwest corner workers are world class.  I've worked with and even trained some of them, and it's their skills that give me the confidence to really hang it out there.

[motomadness]

Check out what was written in RRW.com:

http://venus.13x.com/roadracingworld/scripts/NewsInsert.asp?insert=5892

[K3 Chris Onwiler]

I don't know what to say.  After all my years corner working, that urinates on everything I ever stood for or believed in.
Many of you racers don't really get to know the corner workers.  I am lucky to have worked corners for many years before I began racing.  You wouldn't believe the hardship, suffering and risk that they go through to do their job for us.  Their pay ranges from zero to $50 per day.  If they get paid, they are then taxed by Uncle Sam.  Devide $50 by the 10 hours they stand there and you know it's not about the money.  I have seen and been a part of lives being saved in the dirt alongside racetracks.  I've seen corner workers go through months of post-traumatic stress after a bad incident.  Our CCS workers are loyal, dedicated, and trained in what to do and WHAT NOT TO DO after an incident.  They deserve our great respect.
Usually, the only time a rider mentions the workers is when he feels that they didn't do their jobs well enough.  "Why wasn't there an oil flag?"  Let me tell you all now that spilled oil is very hard to see from the corner station.  A 2 inch wide ribbon of fluid looks just like a stripe of rubber from 100 feet away.  Usually, the workers first clue to a fluid spill is when a bike slides in it.
There is a saying:  Corner working is hours of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror.  Imagine what it must be like for a group of workers to go from relaxed to full-throttle in one second.  That they function so well as a team is a testament to their professionalism and trust in one another.  Their body armor is a waving yellow flag and the belief that we as riders will try not to run them over.  Rest assured that what happened in Japan will never happen here.  Our workers are much better than that.
Maybe each racer should occasionally wander by the Saturday night worker party to say thanks.  Maybe even drop off a case of beer.  Those workers will be out there either way, but they sure do love it when you let them know that you appreciate them!
K3

[Super Dave]

Check out what was written in RRW.com:

http://venus.13x.com/roadracingworld/scripts/NewsInsert.asp?insert=5892

I had read a release stating some of those things.  Obviously, what I previously thought about his crash was completely incorrect, and it does appear that the haste of those workers potentially might have been a mitigating factor in his death.  

We are lucky here in the US.

[OmniGLH]

Well let me say that having experienced our corner workers first hand a few weeks ago at bhf... they are definitely top notch - especially in comparison to what I hear about the guys at suzuka.  Heck the corner workers wouldn't even let me take my gloves off without the consent of the EMT's.

Thumbs up to the safety crew in the midwest  :)

[dwilson]

Most countries outside the United States don't hold the same high standard of life that we do.  We're spoiled that every human life is considered precious, lots of other countries could care less if people get killed, let alone injured.  I wouldn't consider it such a big suprise that we have superior medical treatment.  

[TZDeSioux]

Most countries outside the United States don't hold the same high standard of life that we do.  We're spoiled that every human life is considered precious, lots of other countries could care less if people get killed, let alone injured.  I wouldn't consider it such a big suprise that we have superior medical treatment.  

Also don't forget that the U.S is probably the only country where you can sue someone else for your own actions.

[Bernie]

I gotta give props to the MARRC corner workers at Summit.  They are great and I always feel a strong sense of security when I see them on station.  MARRC has a corner worker incentive program whereby racers can donate items to be given to corner workers.  I'm sure other orgs have a similar program.  I try and give something that can be given out.

I just hope I only see them on Saturday night or during lunch this year.  I'm on a first name basis with Glen, the turn one corner captain.  He probably knows my correct answers to "whats your date of birth", "whats your middle name" blah, blah blah. :-/