I was at the crash site too. My best to Richard. I carefully reviewed the course and I have to say I believe it was safe. I would drive it today without hesitation. If there is legal action over this it would disgust me. This is a world class event. The effort that went into preparation was phenomenal. Money was generated for Utah families to send children to college who would otherwise never have the opportunity. Money went also to families of the Utah State Troopers - a fabulous bunch of people who really make very little. Their families are pretty much left in the lurch if they are killed or injured - and there have been a fair number of them. Racing at 200 mph has inherent risk. We all know that when we get involved in this sort of thing. Additionally, the course was well described. The tricky parts of the course were emphasized (tricky if you chose to drive flat out). I certainly knew what to expect, where to keep things in check and where I could let things out. I have nothing but good wishes for Richard but please keep the lawyers out of it ! It is just wrong. It would be absolutely unfair to the Millers who put in a tremendous effort, ruin a world class event and deprive the families of deceased State Troopers a small reprieve, as well as deprive the several kids who got a college fund set up. That is twisted. One more note - the first person to sign up for next years event was Richard Losee. I hope my application will be number two. Dave P
I would say excessive speed on the up side of the hill. But I did not see it happen. The hill was marked with warning cones for that specific reason. Dave P
I went to the hospital today to see Richard and by the time I got there he had been released. His mother said he was in a ton of pain but he must be improving nicely
Richard Losse told a mutual friend of ours that he thought he was out of the section that he wad been warned about. He open up the car and then realized that he hadn't quite passed through the rolling hills yet and was in the process of slowing things down when the front end, "got light." From there the car went airborn and now you see the mess left over. Anyhow, nothing but my best wishes to Richard. I hope to see you at events again in the near future, even if you aren't yet driving your beautiful cars.
This is what I figured. The same thing happened to Dietrich, I mean Stefan.... Glad the guy's alive. He'll have some time to mill this over a million times in his head but it's best to get well and try to just move on. He sounds like a good person and one who takes responsibility. I'd be surprised if he tries to sue over it.
Mr. Lossee sounds like a really great guy, I hope that someone can pass on another best wishes to him...
looks like a lot of good information in this thread, hope no one has posted this yet, if so than i apologize for the repost http://www.autoblog.com/2006/08/03/t-top-enzo-destroyed-in-high-speed-crash
The update protion of that looks pretty close to accurate. The 200 MPH figure is closer to 170, but Richard himself said he was slowing down and that 170 was last number he remembers seeing before he blacked out.
Any unforeseen occurance that causes loss of the car's aerodynamic downforce will drastically and immediately have an adverse effect on the handling and road holding ability of the car. Becoming airborne cresting a rise would qualify as a scenario were downforce would be lost and wouldn't be regained until the car was back in a stable attitude.
Has anyone ever heard of "Gas Station TV"? It was so strange, I pulled up to a gas pump today and there was an LCD screen above the gas pump. They were showing footage of several Ferraris at a rally and then there was a shot of Richard Lossee getting into his Enzo! They even had his name on the screen. It was kinda surreal. The sound was very muffled so I couldn't tell what the purpose of the piece was. Right after that there was a graphic for "Gas Station TV" and they started showing the weather forecast. I wonder if this was a news story that was being displayed, or some previously shot footage of a different event that just happened to be playing, with no relevance to the accident.
Good news that Richard is mending, all our best to him. There's an element of this accident that bothers me, however. In short: preparation of cars, drivers, and the open-road course. A bit more detail: open-road racing is a risky and dangerous endeavor. I've personally run in the Silver State Classic in a 94 Lamborghini Diablo at 170 mph (fall 1999). Everything about that route and event is highly controlled - road surface, road inspections, debris checks, along with an extremely rigorous tech inspection of the cars, including certification of roll cages, tire inspections, and rigorous driver licensing requirements (including required driver training and evaluation by racing instructors). Even under these conditions, there's accidents, though they have been minimized since the early few years of this event that did have a few tragic, fatal accidents (including the terrible Testarossa crash that killed a driver and wife). Did the Utah organizers go to this rigor? To contemplate supercars capable of 200+ mph being let-loose on (closed) public highways without that level of preparation seems, very, very reckless at best, and arguably negligient. I've also run in numerous state rallys such as this, and in none of them have they even had a simple tech inspection! (of course, none of the rallys I ran had a closed-road event, either). Perhaps the lesson to be learned is that anytime you envision an unlimited-type event (open road, track, or otherwise), you'd be advised to control the variables as best you can. Allowing these cars to open-it-up with a known, dangerous section of road (apparently marked by cones) and not following up with driver training and course-familiarization is risky. For example, in the Silver State Classic, before you can run the event, you have to watch a video of the course at least three times and be able to identify a section called "the Narrows" which is just as it sounds. Further, they post a flagman at the Narrows who's sole job is to wave a huge, red flag to get your attention before you enter 7 curves that must be taken below about 120 mph. There's considerably greater tech and licensing requirements for anyone entering classes above 140mph. The risk of tragedies such as these can be reduced.
For the record, I have absolutely no affiliation with the Miller's, or anyone else in Utah for that matter. There was a mandatory driver's meeting which described the course thoroughly with emphasis on the hills. The more difficult parts of the course were re-emphasized the night before with emphasis again on safe speed. Additionally there was a written description which everyone received which clearly delineated the chance of cars at excessive speed becoming airborne. That is comprehensive in my view. I do like your idea about a video. That would be a worthwhile addition. Course preparation was excellent. These people were really on the ball. I was one of the first people through after the crash. There was absolutely no debris except for the smashed Enzo pieces. I really cannot say enough about that. Let's see this for what it is. This was not the fault of the course. Again my best to Richard and his family. Dave P
Some good points here. Obviously if this kind of thing were held on a closed course or say air strip then it would greatly reduce the risk. In this guy's case his adrenalin was pumping and he pushed it too far. Would this have happened on a totally flat course? Probably not, but I wasn't there either. It's nice to have these Highway Patrol things but when you consider all the man-hours involved, choppers, etc. on the taxpayer's dime, is it really worth it? Yes, they reap the donations etc. which is a good thing. If there was a death here then the law suits would be flying for sure. Once again, who do you think picks up that tab? Don't get me wrong, I'm all for fun but you have to think about the consequences if things go really bad.
Mr. Losee my sincerest condolences and I wish you a complete recovery. You have brought joy to more car enthusiasts then you will ever know Sir; please do not beat yourself up about the accident too bad. This is the very definition of "accident." You drove that car EXACTLY the way it was meant to be driven and I, along with just about the entire racing community, applaud you for it. Now . . . as soon as you're better . . . don't wait, get back on that "horse"
For a European driver, putting the blame on the organizers seems quite tough. We drive high speeds on public highways, every day of the week. Nobody asks us whether we drive better than the average beginner. If our cars pass inspection every other year, they are deemed fit for the job, too. We should bear in mind that it is our and only our risk if we go fast. Nobody forces us to do so. Anatol P.S. Nevertheless, my best wishes to the driver. And may he keep the joy of fast driving.
Here's a picture I took of MM Enzo on a rally last summer. I'm glad to hear Mr. Losee is doing better. I'm anxious to hear about a complete recovery. Again my best to the Losee family. Image Unavailable, Please Login
YES, in fact they did go to this rigor, there was a mandatory inspection for all of the cars that entered in the trip. They were professionally inspected for high speed tires etc.. if the cars did not pass the inspection they were deemed un-qualified for the trip and the went on to the next person on the applications list.
How can this be negligent and very very reckless by the organisors? Has the level of comprehension, intelligence and responsibility which can be expected from a mature US adult degraded to the level of a pre-school kindergarten kid?
Perhaps we should start with the ski hills - cut down all those dangerous trees, flatten the entire hill even - that will keep speed down. It is all just too dangerous. As for pools and swimming areas - drain em all. Come on - the risk is, to some degree, why we do these things. And yes, as organizers we do need to minimize the risks. I think these kinds of events are fantastic. I could not have had more fun. And I believe the Fast Pass people did more than enough to make the event safe. We have to assume personal responsibility. If we eat too much and dont exercise we get fat and have a heart attack. Why should that be the fault of McDonalds ???!? The same goes for this event. Dave P
lets keep onb traack and not argue, Mr Losee had an aCCIDENT AND THANK GOD HE IS OK, AND LET IT END THERE.
