Driving fatality at Grattan

RedRider · 08-19-2008, 09:34 PM

72 years old...RIP

Quote:

8/17/2008, 5:28 p.m. EDT The Associated Press

BELDING, Mich. (AP) — A 72-year-old racer has died in an accident at the Grattan Raceway in northern Kent County.
WOOD-TV says about 2,000 spectators watched Saturday as Jack Drews was traveling more than 110 mph, when he lost control in a turn and crashed into an embankment.
Drews, from western Illinois, was driving his 1961 Triumph when he drove straight off the track and crashed. His son was racing right behind him.
An investigation is ongoing.

Racer dies at Grattan Raceway in N. Kent County - NewsFlash - mlive.com

DUX · 08-19-2008, 09:36 PM

Sad to hear, but 72 and still racing? Sign me up!

Wonder if he died in the crash, or something happened to him before he went off?

CBRVFR · 08-19-2008, 09:44 PM

Saw that in the paper, and told my wife that guy has all my respect.
I think she understands.

luvtolean · 08-19-2008, 09:47 PM

I don't.

72 years is too damn old to be on a race track, he had no business being out there.

RIP.

DUX · 08-19-2008, 10:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luvtolean

I don't.

72 years is too damn old to be on a race track, he had no business being out there.

Tell me that when you're 71.

luvtolean · 08-19-2008, 10:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DUX

Tell me that when you're 71.

ALL of us are just too slow at that kind of age.

No matter how fit I am, I will not be on the track at 72. Our synapses are just not firing fast enough anymore...

DUX · 08-19-2008, 10:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luvtolean

ALL of us are just too slow at that kind of age.

No matter how fit I am, I will not be on the track at 72. Our synapses are just not firing fast enough anymore...

I agree....I just know it will be tough to admit it.

Shenders1 · 08-20-2008, 08:18 AM

I dunno - I attended the SCCA Runoffs in 1995, and watched as 76 year old Dan Carmichael ran away with the Formula Atlantic National Championship race. For those unfamiliar with SCCA jargon, Formula Atlantic is the absolute top-tier of amatuer formula-car competition. You don't win the national championship in this class without a bunch of skill.

So I think there's a lot more to it than chronological age.

RIP Jack.

Heavy-Dee · 08-20-2008, 08:45 AM

Remember Oldgoat? He was at Grattan in 04 (?) and faster than a lot of us.

CBRVFR · 08-20-2008, 09:30 AM

I won't be racing, but if I'm not a danger to anyone else, I'll be out there.

ONEvcs · 08-20-2008, 10:40 AM

If I had a choice, that'd be my way to go, too.
RIP.

HondaGalToo · 08-20-2008, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CBRVFR

I won't be racing, but if I'm not a danger to anyone else, I'll be out there.

Likewise.

BobcatSig · 08-20-2008, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ONEvcs

If I had a choice, that'd be my way to go, too.
RIP.

+2
Either that or heli skiing.

luvtolean · 08-20-2008, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ONEvcs

If I had a choice, that'd be my way to go, too.
RIP.

I totally agree, beats most of the alternatives.

But on a race track you can take other people with you.

70 is just too damn old. Many people find out they're too tired at the end of a hot trackday only when they crash. You know you're tired, but you want to go just one more time. I have a feeling you find out you're too old and (reactively) slow the same way.

Smokey Yunick went on a pretty good rant about this in one of his books after watching too many old "heroes" wipe out and kill themselves and others; he convinced me.

ONEvcs · 08-20-2008, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luvtolean

I totally agree, beats most of the alternatives.

But on a race track you can take other people with you.

70 is just too damn old. Many people find out they're too tired at the end of a hot trackday only when they crash. You know you're tired, but you want to go just one more time. I have a feeling you find out you're too old and (reactively) slow the same way.

Smokey Yunick went on a pretty good rant about this in one of his books after watching too many old "heroes" wipe out and kill themselves and others; he convinced me.

I agree with your reasoning up to a point, but if you're at the track, whether racing or just a track junkie, you should know what you're exposing yourself to. It don't have to be a 70 year old who hurts you. I'm more afraid of riders with little track experience.

CBRVFR · 08-20-2008, 01:12 PM

At 70 plus, I might be in a car or a kart, but if I can't do a track day, I shouldn't be driving at all.

And if I can still get under 1:40 on a bike at Grattan, I'll be there as well.

(goddamned whippersnappers, I'll show you some reactions...

And get the F off my lawn!!!!!!!!! )

SheepOfBlue · 08-20-2008, 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luvtolean

I don't.

72 years is too damn old to be on a race track, he had no business being out there.

RIP.

At what age do we ban you? I think it is cool if he was in good health. Even cooler that he was able to race with his son

Hope he is at peace and his son can remember all the great times I am sure they had

luvtolean · 08-20-2008, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CBRVFR

At 70 plus, I might be in a car or a kart, but if I can't do a track day, I shouldn't be driving at all.

And if I can still get under 1:40 on a bike at Grattan, I'll be there as well.

Come on. Put the bifocals down for a second. Things happen way the hell faster on a racetrack at 150 MPH than they do on a public roadway.

abtech · 08-20-2008, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luvtolean

Come on. Put the bifocals down for a second. Things happen way the hell faster on a racetrack at 150 MPH than they do on a public roadway.

Yeah, but most of the time people are going in the same direction on the racetrack

CBRVFR · 08-20-2008, 03:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luvtolean

Come on. Put the bifocals down for a second. Things happen way the hell faster on a racetrack at 150 MPH than they do on a public roadway.

I am not talking about competing. At a trackday, I can participate in a group in which I'm comfortable.

I have had to react just as fast on the public roads to a revealed or unexpected danger than I have on a track...in fact, racing karts taught me to be a much better street driver.

If I'm too slow to participate, I'll know enough to hang it up and just brag about how much faster I was than... I was.

Or I'll just sit at home and watch the flesh drop off of my bones... or shoot at young folks who get too close. I'll need some crotchety second-amendment guy for advice on that, probably... You know, bifocular correction on a telescopic sight, that kind of thing.

Also, I skipped out of most of my math classes, but it seems to me two cars closing at 75 is about the same as a stationary or relatively fast object at 150.. So again,

luvtolean · 08-20-2008, 03:43 PM

<Muttering> F'ing whiney "I'll never be old" baby boomers.

Just put a kid on your bike and enjoy developing tomorrow's generation. A geriatric on a race track makes no sense.

SheepOfBlue · 08-20-2008, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luvtolean

<Muttering> F'ing whiney "I'll never be old" baby boomers.

Just put a kid on your bike and enjoy developing tomorrow's generation. A geriatric on a race track makes no sense.

So what is the cut off?

CBRVFR · 08-20-2008, 04:06 PM

We have a couple of people on the track that make no sense...

ONEvcs · 08-20-2008, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CBRVFR

We have a couple of people on the track that make no sense...

hey, hey, hey, whoyoutalkingabout, Willis?

SheepOfBlue · 08-20-2008, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CBRVFR

We have a couple of people on the track that make no sense...

Verbally or speed......

08-19-2008, 09:36 PM	#2
DUX Join Date: 12-28-2006 Age: 37 Bike(s): '07 R1200 GSadv,'04 RC-51 Posts: 655	Sad to hear, but 72 and still racing? Sign me up! Wonder if he died in the crash, or something happened to him before he went off? __________________ Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire. -Reggie Leach

08-19-2008, 09:44 PM	#3
CBRVFR Godspeed, #20 Join Date: 12-13-2006 Age: 55 Bike(s): VFR750 SV650 TZ250 Posts: 5,015	Saw that in the paper, and told my wife that guy has all my respect. I think she understands. __________________ "...the TV also never took away the screwdriver and shoved it up the repairman's ass." Our own Mr.2nd Amendment, explaining the difference. Perfectly. Rich Herald, the Gentle Giant

08-19-2008, 09:47 PM	#4
luvtolean Join Date: 12-13-2006 Location: SF Bay Area, CA Bike(s): 2008 BMW GS-A Posts: 6,308	I don't. 72 years is too damn old to be on a race track, he had no business being out there. RIP. __________________ Someone needs to present the facts and the physics rather than just the rhetoric. Poor old Carmelo doesn't understand the physics of a motorcycle. - Jerry Burgess, on spec tires and changing engine rules

08-20-2008, 08:45 AM	#9
Heavy-Dee The Murph Join Date: 12-17-2006 Age: 31 Bike(s): 2004 GSXR 600 Posts: 2,685	Remember Oldgoat? He was at Grattan in 04 (?) and faster than a lot of us. __________________ Epic Fail

08-20-2008, 09:30 AM	#10
CBRVFR Godspeed, #20 Join Date: 12-13-2006 Age: 55 Bike(s): VFR750 SV650 TZ250 Posts: 5,015	I won't be racing, but if I'm not a danger to anyone else, I'll be out there. __________________ "...the TV also never took away the screwdriver and shoved it up the repairman's ass." Our own Mr.2nd Amendment, explaining the difference. Perfectly. Rich Herald, the Gentle Giant

08-20-2008, 08:18 AM	#8
Shenders1 2 Cylinders, 4 Valves, No Waiting Join Date: 01-14-2007 Location: South Lyon, MI Age: 43 Bike(s): Ducati HM Posts: 968	I dunno - I attended the SCCA Runoffs in 1995, and watched as 76 year old Dan Carmichael ran away with the Formula Atlantic National Championship race. For those unfamiliar with SCCA jargon, Formula Atlantic is the absolute top-tier of amatuer formula-car competition. You don't win the national championship in this class without a bunch of skill. So I think there's a lot more to it than chronological age. RIP Jack.

08-20-2008, 10:40 AM	#11
ONEvcs Bull Fighter Join Date: 12-18-2006 Location: Ft. Worth Age: 40 Bike(s): '05CBR1000RR. Posts: 2,452 Images: 99	If I had a choice, that'd be my way to go, too. RIP.

08-20-2008, 01:12 PM	#16
CBRVFR Godspeed, #20 Join Date: 12-13-2006 Age: 55 Bike(s): VFR750 SV650 TZ250 Posts: 5,015	At 70 plus, I might be in a car or a kart, but if I can't do a track day, I shouldn't be driving at all. And if I can still get under 1:40 on a bike at Grattan, I'll be there as well. (goddamned whippersnappers, I'll show you some reactions... And get the F off my lawn!!!!!!!!! ) __________________ "...the TV also never took away the screwdriver and shoved it up the repairman's ass." Our own Mr.2nd Amendment, explaining the difference. Perfectly. Rich Herald, the Gentle Giant

08-20-2008, 03:43 PM	#21
luvtolean Join Date: 12-13-2006 Location: SF Bay Area, CA Bike(s): 2008 BMW GS-A Posts: 6,308	<Muttering> F'ing whiney "I'll never be old" baby boomers. Just put a kid on your bike and enjoy developing tomorrow's generation. A geriatric on a race track makes no sense. __________________ Someone needs to present the facts and the physics rather than just the rhetoric. Poor old Carmelo doesn't understand the physics of a motorcycle. - Jerry Burgess, on spec tires and changing engine rules

08-20-2008, 04:06 PM	#23
CBRVFR Godspeed, #20 Join Date: 12-13-2006 Age: 55 Bike(s): VFR750 SV650 TZ250 Posts: 5,015	We have a couple of people on the track that make no sense... __________________ "...the TV also never took away the screwdriver and shoved it up the repairman's ass." Our own Mr.2nd Amendment, explaining the difference. Perfectly. Rich Herald, the Gentle Giant

08-20-2008, 04:23 PM	#26
CBRVFR Godspeed, #20 Join Date: 12-13-2006 Age: 55 Bike(s): VFR750 SV650 TZ250 Posts: 5,015