Terrible. I don't know what safety precautions they take there, or the specifics of where the incidents occur. Maybe they did everything "right" and these were just "freak" occurrences. But every time I watch a rally video, I see spectators in really dangerous locations.
So sad RIP rally fans. My thoughts are with their friends & families. We do not yet know where these people were, quite possibly they were in a place deemed safe. Terrible stuff can & does happen.
In some ways the Euro rallies are similar to the running of the bulls, IMO. Part of the culture of the event is to be as close to the action as possible. Sooner or later there will be a collision of the participants and spectators in either case. The Dakar is very similar in this way. It will be interesting to see if they do begin moving spectators further away from the rally route. Reminds me of when the PBA began making inexperienced riders wear helmets. there was and is, tremendous push back because dangerous or not, the culture of the event demands the wearing of a cowboy hat..
If you think it is nutso now look back to the mid 80's. Portugal was the craziest especially the Sintra Stages. Michel Mouton after her win in Portugal was asked how she could drive so fast with all those people lining the roads? She answered you must not think of them as people, just trees.
It's sad but I thought that new Euro bumper stuff would have saved them. :ihih: They need walls to keep idiots off the course or this will continue to happen.
If you build walls it will not be rally. I am truly sad for the loss of life, but I figure folks make their own choices. Motorsport is dangerous.
Yup, motorsport is dangerous. And even the sort of barriers the knee jerk reactors are likely to demand will never be perfect. Here's an example from the Super GT race today at Autopolis (Japan). Imagine dozens of people packed shoulder to shoulder behind that armco. [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MCXgPs_A6s"]2014 AUTOBACS SUPER GT Round 3　オートãƒÂリス GT-R 大クラッシュ - YouTube[/ame] Now imagine the cost to line a couple hundred miles of road with both of those barriers...and try to justify that expense for once-a-year use...
Not the first time and won't be the last. 1961, Wolfgang vonTrip and Jim Clark in F1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=cP69nWsGtpY
Is it sad yes, do I feel sorry for them, NOT one bit they are idiots for standing that close. It was not an tragic accident it was GOD's was thinning the Hurd of stupid people.
We don't know the particulars of this event. It is quite possible those folks were where they were supposed to be & not being stupid or idiotic at all. To assume we know all from a little blurb on the internet is itself kind of stupid. Maybe we should wait for the facts to come out before condemning those who were killed & injured. Guess I'm an old softy, I do feel sorry for them, their friends & families.
Sounds like the people killed were in an area that had been blocked off in previous years... Police begin safety inquiry after Jim Clark Rally deaths | Sport | The Guardian
I cringe watching spectators at rally events, I keep waiting for someone to become a hood ornament. I have always wondered what’s going on in the driver and co drivers minds, I don't know how they do, it has got to get a little nerve racking at times. I have often wondered the same thing with pro golfers on the Tee and all those nimrods sticking their heads out in front of the direct path of the ball. I guess that’s why their pros and I'm not. Do that in front of me and see what happens.
Safety marshalling at major rallies here is good - dangerous areas are taped off and if you step over the tape a marshall will find you (and other spectators will speak to you). I've never spectated the Jim Clark so can't say what their level of safety is, but it sounds like an isolated mistake rather than dangerous procedure. Personally I'm a great believer in watching rallies from next to/behind a tree that looks strong enough to stop even a rally car. Some spectators seem to have a profound faith that rally cars will only leave the course where they expect (eg, outside of bends), whereas experience says they can and do go anywhere that is physically possible (eg, inside of bends).
People should say home and watch it on the TV if they cant use their brain once they leave the house. If you stand right next to a road rally you have a high chance of getting hit by a car and dying. Its just that simple, end of story.