Has a Safety Car.......

[Streetrod]

Quick question for all you F1 historians, Has an F1 Safety car ever crashed or spun off whilst leading the cars around?

[hornetrider]

I thought this question was going to be "...ever been so pointless as the first one yesterday".

My reasoning being that the debris was cleared before everyone got behind the thing. Was a bit of a farce I thought.

[curlie467]

I am pretty sure one spun off at one of the motogp rounds.

[FourWheelDrift]

Not F1 but I remember a safety car (new M6 I think) crashing on the parade lap while following the bikes at Jerez for a MotoGP race a few years ago. They had to delay the start.

[freedman]

Jean Ragnotti at Monaco?

[crossle]

Indy 500, 1971, Pace Car crashed and injured several photographers.

Yes, I know it's not F1....

There was another incident in the USA, not at Indy, in the 1980's but I can't recall the details just now...

[StevieBee]

Yes. Canadian Grand Prix. Can't remember exactly when but early to mid 90s. Was actually during qualifying IIRC. Slid off into the gravel by the chicane just before the pit straight. All the drivers applauded as they came into the pits.

[crossle]

freedman said:

Jean Ragnotti at Monaco?

Good effort!

MAY 29, 1995
Jean Ragnotti's crash course car
SATURDAY morning practice in Monaco was disrupted by a bizarre incident when French rally driver Jean Ragnotti crashed into Takachiho Inoue's Footwork - when it was being towed back to the pits.

Ragnotti was driving a souped-up Renault Clio course car with FIA External Affairs Department boss Francesco Longanesi as his passenger. Eyewitnesses report that Ragnotti was driving far too fast when he arrived in the Swimming Pool complex to find Inoue's Footwork trundling along behind a tow truck.

Ragnotti braked heavily but slid into the Footwork, this caused the car to roll, with Inoue still in the car, wearing his crash helmet but not his seat belts.

The combined effect of the roll and the tension of the tow rope caused the rollhoop to collapse, destroying the Footwork chassis.

Inoue was taken to the Princess Grace Hospital in Monaco where he was found to have no serious injuries but he was not allowed to practice in the afternoon because of concussion.

The accident comes under the jurisdiction of the Automobile Club of Monaco which will now have to reach some form of settlement with the Arrows team to pay for the damage caused by the flying Frenchman.


ETA: OK, so a course car isn't a pace car or a safety car, but still...

Edited by crossle on Monday 30th March 14:27

[tomTVR]

I remember a few years ago someone crashed into the safety/doctors car. The door was open at the scene of an accident and another F1 car slid into the side of it before the bloke could get out!

[DangerousMike]

that was heidfeld.

yesterdays safety car was very suspect - they normally react within 10-20s but waited until JB had had his pit stop before bringing it out. I wonder why...

[Chassis 33]

DangerousMike said:

yesterdays safety car was very suspect - they normally react within 10-20s but waited until JB had had his pit stop before bringing it out. I wonder why...

I'm not the only one to notice that then
Regards
Iain

[Streetrod]

Hey you guys are good, I am very impressed.

Now what would happen if this happened this season, those things dont hang around as they have to keep the F1 cars moving so they dont overheat and the tyres get too cold. What would be the procedure? Would another safety come out and what would the drivers be expected to do?

[NathanE]

Nurburgring 2007... it was raining a lot and I remember seeing the SC car take evasive action to avoid a F1 car aquaplaning out of control.

Not a crash but it was shockingly close.

Edited by NathanE on Monday 30th March 14:42

[Munter]

I'd swear someone smashed a Dr car or one of the Merc saloons into the armco at monaco during a practice session in the last 10 years..... I just can't find the photos...


edit: America does this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1XM-lOY4u0

Edited by Munter on Monday 30th March 14:44

[StevieBee]

Streetrod said:

Hey you guys are good, I am very impressed.

Now what would happen if this happened this season, those things dont hang around as they have to keep the F1 cars moving so they dont overheat and the tyres get too cold. What would be the procedure? Would another safety come out and what would the drivers be expected to do?

The lead car would take the role of safety car until a second was deployed.

They tried using this as a permanent feature in UK club racing a few years back - showing a yellow flag with a black cross, but there were different interpretations as to what constituted a "safe speed" ranging from 10mph to the waving of a hand to acknowledge sight of the flag and then promptly ignore it.

[sniff diesel]

Heidfeld ripped the door off the medical car in 2002:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUUUKuo8hXs

[sniff diesel]

And who can forget Inoe being hit by a course car:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PJsFyLQXr4

[furtive]

How not to deploy the safety car:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHf3qgmvMNc&fea...

[groomi]

Not F1 (and I've posted this before) but I was driving a pace kart to bring the pack around for a rolling start. My job was to lead them round at a steady pace, then pull a decent gap over the final two corners so I could pull off the circuit just after the start line to let them go.

I took too much kerb on the final corner and crossed the line backwards with the pack going either side of me!

[s3fella]

curlie467 said:

I am pretty sure one spun off at one of the motogp rounds.

Yes, I think it was a Z8 at Sepang!! Just stuffed it in the barriers as he came off the big left hander before the start!!
Plank!