Wendy says, "Added to the Archive. The person
who wrote this submission did a splendid job."

For most people, the knowledge of the danger of high speed roads is typically common sense, enough that very few people will attempt to cross a major multi-lane highway such as an interstate. Because of this, it is rare to hear about people who die from doing exactly that.

For race car drivers, this is even more the case; with cars inside of a compact oval, and moving at even higher speeds, the drivers know that their specially designed vehicles are meant to take a beating, so that they can survive, and the knowledge of staying inside a vehicle until track personnel arrive to protect the crash site is common knowledge for even everyday drivers involved in a crash.

...And then there was Kevin Ward.

You see, Kevin Ward is a Sprint Car racing driver, one one of the more popular forms of racing in the United States. As a Sprint car driver, one must realize that, as they are driving on a dirt track, in machines that are designed to drift around corners, that the traction of the road surface is much, much less than the traction of an asphalt surface of other types of roads and racing tracks.

This, combined with the fact that he was wearing a black helmet, a black jumpsuit, and was racing on a dimly lit race track at night, would probably instill the fear of death on many drivers after an accident.

...And then there was Kevin Ward.

On Sprint Cup racing, the race vehicles move quite quickly, drifting through corners, and collisions, as well as spin outs, happen quite frequently. Unfortunately for Kevin, his vehicle was bumped by Tony Steward, which caused his vehicle to spin around and knocking it into the wall. With the damage taken, Kevin's vehicle was out of the race. For most people, being knocked out of the race is a time of reflection, time of ensuring that the vehicle is safe, and time of considering what to say after the end of the race to discuss it with the driver who knocked you out.

...And then there was Kevin Ward.

In a rage that defied common sense, not only did he exit his vehicle, not only did he not consider the type of track he was racing on, not only did he not consider the way that Sprint Cup vehicles drove around corners, not only did he not consider the color of his uniform and helmet, and not only did he not consider the fact that Sprint Cars typically turn at the near limits of their traction...

...But he decided to confront Tony Steward. And he wanted to do it right then. In the middle of a race. That was still moving.

Even during a yellow flag, the race cars will move quite quickly, and in the case of Sprint Cup, even when they are moving slower, they won't turn or stop on a dime, as the roads are made of dirt. And walking onto the middle of the track, he saw his target, and made many gestures at him as Tony Steward was coming around the bend. However, Tony didn't see him, probably because of his dark jumpsuit, and the fact that his car was behind a second car, as the cars will line up in single file during a caution lap. The car in front of him saw Kevin, and dodged just in time. But Tony, not seeing Kevin until the last second, attempted to dodge him, but it was at that point where Kevin's luck ran out; in an attempt to swerve, and probably accelerating to attempt to pull the car out of the way to the left, the car slid sideways, hitting Kevin with the back of his vehicle, and knocking him flat on his back. Unfortunately for Kevin, it was the last race of his life.

Moral of the story? Stay off of busy roads. Especially dirt track racing ones, when you're in a professional sport.

Sources: http://www.cbssports.com/general/eye-on-sports/24655180/reports-authorities-investigating-crash-involving-tony-stewart http://www.foxsports.com/nascar/story/police-investigating-sprint-car-incident-involving-three-time-nascar-champion-tony-stewart-081014 http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiamond/2014/08/10/tony-stewart-kills-fellow-driver-in-tragic-on-track-accident/

Submitted on 08/10/2014

Submitted by: The Legacy
Reference: Varies - See Below. 08/10/2014

Copyright © 2014 DarwinAwards.com

Bruce said:
Definitely Keep: Darwin Award
I saw a news report of this incident just this morning and I couldn't believe how Ward climbed out of his car, walked directly into the path of the oncoming cars and started gesturing at the driver he felt had caused the crash. As a professional race car driver he should have been well aware of the dangers of walking into the midst of the oncoming cars, and for that I definitely think he's worthy of an award. Thanks for the submission, and for the great writeup!

Candi said:
Definitely Keep: Darwin Award
Oh, wow. Thank you, and I like the write-up!

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