Sad News; Drag Racer Scott Kalitta Killed at Englishtown

[Larry L.]

This sad news is from Drag Racing Internet Magazine. He was a great racer, a friend, father, husband, son, and will be missed.

R.I.P. Scotty
Larry

KALITTA FATALLY INJURED
Written by Bobby Bennett
Saturday, 21 June 2008

Scott Kalitta was fatally injured in a high-speed crash during the NHRA Lucas Oil Supernationals in Englishtown, N.J. The former Top Fuel world champion was competing in the Funny Car division when his Toyota Solara exploded an engine, resulting in a parachute malfunction.

The remnants of the race car then sped towards the sandtrap and cleared the catch net.

Kalitta, 46, of Palmetto, Fla., was transported to Old Bridge Township Hospital where he was pronounced dead from multiple injuries.

Kalitta’s first professional start came ironically in 1982 at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park. His best finish at the track came in 1995 when he finished runner-up.

Ironically Kalitta was in the opposite lane when Top Fuel drivers Blaine Johnson [1995] and Darrell Russell [2004] encountered fatal accidents.

Kalitta is survived by wife Kathy, sons Cory (14) and Colin (9). He was the son of drag racing legend Connie Kalitta and cousin to current Top Fuel racer Doug Kalitta.

His death represents the second Funny Car fatality in as many years. Eric Medlen died in April 2007, the result of injuries sustained in a testing accident.

[BJ Cavin]

Sad news indeed! However, I'm happy to see that the article's writer, Bobby Bennett, is still out there doing his thing. Bobby is an old friend of mine from up in South Carolina and an excellent writer.

[afr1]

very sad R.I.P
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DziJdGwFQjU
the car blew up and never slowed down

they do what they can for run off

[flraceguy]

hmmm

That is really too bad about him... Especially since the family has been a part of dragging for a long time... It is a great loss to all of racing...

Hmmm maybe that will convince some more to come back and turn left again...

[Jane]

They had the crash on last night and it was disturbing to say the least. I don't know if the fence had not been there, he would have died or not. His chute came out, the engine was definitely on fire but it looked like he ran out of room and hit the fence and literally exploded. It was very sad to see grown men crying but they were. He evidentally was very loved and respected and only 46 years old. My heart and prayers go out to his wife, his sons, and his father. It takes alot of guts to get into one of those funny cars and they have all my respect.

God bless you Scott and your family. Racing is racing no matter round or straight and our family has felt this death along with your's.

[JackTripper]

I hate to see anything like that happen, since I've known a few dragracers in my time, but let me ask a potentially stupid question. Why wasn't there a very long runoff area of sand at the end of the track so he didn't have to hit the wall like that? Is a ton of sand impractical? Dangerous?

[Osmosis Jones]

Englishtown....

I'm not a drag racing fan by any means, but like any motorhead I can appreciate the technical side and the engineering aspects that go into most of the top classes of cars that still compete in heads-up, fastest guy wins types of races. Top Fuel, Funny Cars, Pro Stock, etc.....

Just watching that video causes me to question the responsability of the sanctioning body(NHRA), the track and the racers themselves. And by "the racers" I mean anybody who runs fast enough to need chutes to slow their rides down. On the video, the track there at New Jersey barely seems long enough to get a TF or a Funny Car slowed down on a run where nothing goes wrong at all. Throw in an engine explosion with a considerable amount fire and those chutes become non-existent, as in Scott Kalitta's case. I don't know any more about the crash than anyone else who has watched the YouTube clip above but I do know that motors coming apart and a few seconds of fire are pretty common in those cars. And at that kind of speed things are already happening pretty quick. An experienced racer like Kalitta though, I would think, was probably dealing with these issues as well as any other racer does at this level. But you can't just stomp on the brakes of a race car like that as hard as you can and back it down slowly. Especially not blind and moving at 250+mph. And really, that's anytime. Fire or no fire.
This is why I can't understand racing cars with this capability of speed on a track that clearly doesn't have an adequate run out area to handle them. Of course, that said, racing has been going on at Englishtown for quite some time now and these men and women who race the cars are all adults and should be fully aware of the risks their profession presents. So again, I say where does the responsability lie?

That said....
How many of us, as oval track racers, have competed at a track where we KNEW beforehand that the safety equipment afforded by the track was sub par and questionable?
How many have pulled onto a track to run without ever checking where the safety team was staged or if there was even one on hand to deal with an incident?

Yeah, we've all done it. The "that can't happen to me" bravado takes over and we race anyways. Hoping that the safety precautions we've taken in our own cars is enough but knowing in our hearts they won't be. Triple-layer, quilted driving suits. Aerospace, rubber-bladdered fuel cells. On board fire-supression systems. Head and Neck restraint devices. These are all great developments in the protection of a driver and it would be great if everyone took advantage of the products that are out there.
But in the real world, safety costs money and so do the things needed to go faster. Hmmmm. What do you think usually wins those arguments. Uh-huh.
I can remember watching my dad driving his Late Model wearing his work shirt and pants from his auto repair business. Of course, just about every other driver was wearing close to the same thing. Look at the drivers in a lot of these old pics that Mr. Westerman and others are posting. Were the cars built any safer back then? I gotta think that no they weren't.

Okay, I'll wrap up.....I tend to go on too long for message board posts, I know.
My point here is, I guess, is that your personal safety in a race car has to start with you. The driver. Until you have taken all the safety precautions you can (as they become available to you through technology and/or your finances), don't rely solely on the track and it's equipment to save your ass.
And just when you start getting complacent and thinking you are invincible, that's the time when you should really stop and take another look at your plan.

In closing, my sincerest condolences to the entire Kaliita family. An extended racing family who has experienced just about everything that drag racing has had to offer through the highest of highs and now, sadly, the lowest of lows.

Matt

[Frasson118]

Jim Head made a good observation. He noted that many of these tracks were built back in the 50's and 60's, when top speeds were only about 150 MPH, where now they are nearing 340 MPH. The cars have advanced much further than the tracks (and the property they sit on) can keep up with. He suggested that if lengthening the run-off area wasn't an option, than shortening the length of the run should be imposed. He went as far as saying that many of the drivers would prefer going to an 1/8 mile run, rather than the full 1/4 they run now. And with tears in his eyes, said "I'm getting sick of burying my friends".

I'm sure I've seen races (on TV) from Englishtown before, but had never noticed the wall at the far end. Looking at this crash, I can't believe that these racers are expected to drive a land-based missle directly towards an immovable object like that. Why nobody has been kiiled there before, in these same type circumstances, is beyond me. Now, everyone knows what can happen at the end of that track, and it must be mental torture to have to aim at that spot, go over 325 MPH, and pray that Lady Luck is in your car at the moment. Bravery is one thing... Russian Roulette is another.

As a devout oval track fan, I am one who has been converted into a Drag racing fan, and now have the utmost respect for these drivers and teams. If you've never seen them in person, you will never understand what kind of nerve and skill it takes just to strap into one of these rockets. To be good at that sport, takes an extra-special kind of person. Scott Kalitta was one of the best in a sport where only the bravest compete, and only the outstanding become winners. He became a Champion.

John Force makes winning Championships look easy, but just ask ANY other NHRA racer how tough it is to become The Best, even if only for a single year. Scott knew all-too-well the life & death risks that he faced every time he launched off the line... he was running side by side with both Darrell Russell and Blaine Johnson, when each of them lost their lives in the opposite lane as he was on.

The Kalitta family has been in drag racing about as long as Petty's have been in Nascar. We may have seen the last of them, and who could blame them if they didn't come back. But, they aren't quitters, and I don't think Scott would want them to quit now. I'll be keeping Scott and the entire Kalitta family in my thoughts, and for those of you so inclined, please keep them in your prayers.

RIP Champ!

[Todd McCreary]

His chute came out,

the chutes were burned and never deployed properly. there's some question as to whether Scott was even conscious at that point. regardless, it doesn't appear that he applied the hydraulic brakes. given the extent of the damage when the engine blew the brake lines could have been taken out.

so you've got figure he got to the end of the runoff area somewhere north of 200mph. i'm not sure what sort of run off area or catch fencing is supposed to save him at that point. how long would a run off area have to be so that a car could coast down from 300mph to even 100mph?

i suppose you could suggest deployable air brakes .......