Track Day Host Sued for Accident Damages

[maytag]

Originally Posted by stephen wilson

My point is that what is pretty inconsequential to a car driver can be catastrophic (telephone pole) to a motorcycle. Not the same as your rain example, which should still have reasonably safe runoff areas. Performance driving is never 100% under control, even if it's due to a mechanical failure.

My friend, a sand bag to a motorcycle is NOT the equivalent of a telephone pole to a car.
As a professional myself, I'd tell you (as many others already have) that Kim was crashing with or without that sand bag. And I can tell you many, many people (including myself) have hit much, much worse on a run out, without crashing.

Could we say that the sandbag contributed to the severity of the accident? Quite possibly. Maybe probably. But it certainly did not cause the accident. Not even a remote stretch of the imagination could make it so. The cause of the accident is quite clearly Mr Kim running off the race track in a manner that was consistent with a crash. As I said below, he blew it. He blew it. He blew it long before he left the racing surface. And the moment he left the racing surface, he determined he was going to crash. You can see it in his failure to control the motorcycle on the asphalt, and his continued failure to control the motorcycle in the runoff. He blew it. He did it.

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[maytag]

Originally Posted by maytag

My friend, a sand bag to a motorcycle is NOT the equivalent of a telephone pole to a car.
As a professional myself, I'd tell you (as many others already have) that Kim was crashing with or without that sand bag. And I can tell you many, many people (including myself) have hit much, much worse on a run out, without crashing.

Could we say that the sandbag contributed to the severity of the accident? Quite possibly. Maybe probably. But it certainly did not cause the accident. Not even a remote stretch of the imagination could make it so. The cause of the accident is quite clearly Mr Kim running off the race track in a manner that was consistent with a crash. As I said below, he blew it. He blew it. He blew it long before he left the racing surface. And the moment he left the racing surface, he determined he was going to crash. You can see it in his failure to control the motorcycle on the asphalt, and his continued failure to control the motorcycle in the runoff. He blew it. He did it.

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I hit send too soon, haha.
I'll tell you furthermore, that your comment about still having safe runoff areas even in the rain, is inapplicable. Crashes in the rain rarely happen when you take the run off, because crashes happen on the racing surface in the rain. That's why many of us have trailered motorcycles all over the country, only to leave them in the trailer when we get there, because it's raining. Riding in the rain sucks. Haha.
I think my comparison is quite valid, because what it illustrates is that we, the motorcyclist, the track day participant, take the responsibility to ride in the conditions as they are presented to us. Reasonable precautions are made by the track owner, and the track day provider. The court has already ruled that the sandbag is a reasonable precaution, and that it contributed more to safety than as a hazard. So that question is no longer a question to anyone. Or at least it should not be one any longer.

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[Geof3]

Originally Posted by maytag

Riding in the rain sucks. Haha.

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Absolutely, totally sucks. And yeah, a telephone pole and a sand bag to divert runoff really are apples and oranges. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

[njbray]

Although I don't ride anymore I did many track days and had instruction - That guy on the vid was way off line and was going to crash anyway - no way to avoid it, it's sand!
The trouble with track days is people with fast bikes (& cars) who do not race and some may not even have had track instruction - it can be scary sharing a track with these people!
I hope this guys lawsuit does not win - it could ruin it for all of us!

It amazes me how the Nurburgring still gets away with it - they even make people pay for the damage when they crash!

[stephen wilson]

Originally Posted by maytag

My friend, a sand bag to a motorcycle is NOT the equivalent of a telephone pole to a car.
As a professional myself, I'd tell you (as many others already have) that Kim was crashing with or without that sand bag. And I can tell you many, many people (including myself) have hit much, much worse on a run out, without crashing.

Could we say that the sandbag contributed to the severity of the accident? Quite possibly. Maybe probably. But it certainly did not cause the accident. Not even a remote stretch of the imagination could make it so. The cause of the accident is quite clearly Mr Kim running off the race track in a manner that was consistent with a crash. As I said below, he blew it. He blew it. He blew it long before he left the racing surface. And the moment he left the racing surface, he determined he was going to crash. You can see it in his failure to control the motorcycle on the asphalt, and his continued failure to control the motorcycle in the runoff. He blew it. He did it.

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Well yeah, I was exaggerating a bit, and yes, it was a given he's going down. I'll defer to those that have actually raced their bikes, I just ride on the street !