NEWS & ANALYSIS
NHRA doctor credits non-mandatory restraint device with saving Ron Krisher’s life
Words by Glen Grissom
Photos by Michael Fischbeck
9/5/06
| When speaking with GM’s Fred Simmonds, he exclusively told DRO that the EMS doctor who extracted Ron Krisher from the car told Simmonds that the HANS device Krisher was wearing “saved his life.” |
The euphoria the fans and competitors should be feeling after one of the best U.S. Nationals in history is unfortunately somewhat tempered buy the fact that the drag racing family could have very easily been mourning the loss of Pro Stock racer Ron Krisher, and we would have another grim anniversary to remember at the next Nationals.
On the 10th anniversary of Blaine Johnson’s death here, and during the second round of Pro Stock Eliminations, Krisher’s Cobalt Pro Stock car went out of control near the finish line at speeds near 200 mph, barrel- rolling and then careening across the track from the right lane at top speed and violently impacted the guard wall on the left hand side of the track. Racing history tells us this is the kind of crash that can end a life.
The Safety Safari was immediately on the scene even before the burning Pro Stocker rolled to a halt, as were local EMS. When the safety teams and the doctors reached Ron Krisher, he was unconscious. But by the time he was extracted from the twisted and totaled car, he had regained consciousness and was responding to commands. He was air-lifted to a local hospital for further tests and observations. He certainly suffered a concussion but was reported to be basically OK.
As his mangled car was towed along the return road in front of the crowd at Indy, the virtues of how well the Pro Stock teams build their cars, how the rules of the NHRA in this class are such that they are built with surviving just for this kind of racing “incident,” and the merits of the NHRA Safety Safari were all broadcast. All worthy topics to be sure and one would expect no less after watching another drag racer cheat death. But it’s unlikely all that hooh-hah would have been mentioned if Krisher had died from a basal skull fracture in the crash.
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Fortunately, he had chosen to wear a HANS device, a thoroughly tested head and neck restraint mandated in almost all types of professional racing and even required at the club racing level by some car clubs, but amazingly not yet by the NHRA, whose race cars are the fastest vehicles in motorsports this side of the Bonneville Salt Flats. According to the lead EMS doctor at the crash scene the HANS “saved his life.” Maybe I missed it, but I don’t think I heard any mention as Krisher’s car was paraded back that the HANS or any other like-device in the NHRA rule book had contributed to his survival -- THAT’S BECAUSE THERE IS NO NHRA RULE REQUIRING THEIR WEARING BY ANY DRIVER!
It is a supreme irony that Dr. John Melvin, essentially the father of crash testing of race cars and the person who has the irrefutable data to back up why racers should wear head and neck restraints (in particular the HANS version) was visiting the Indy event.
It is time for the NHRA to wake up, step up, and make wearing a head and neck restraint mandatory in all classes that go down their tracks. Not next year but as soon as it is possible. The NHRA tech guru who is going to replace Ray Alley (who is leaving to crew Kenny Bernstein’s 2007 Funny Car effort) should make this his first rule change.
DRO has been an advocate of this rule for years, and you may be tired of our grinding about it. We are not going to stop. Safety issues and the safety of everyone at a drag race is our paramount concern.
Here’s what Pro Stock Indy winner Greg Anderson thought of Krisher’s crash post-race.
“I felt bad about the whole deal, I like Ron. The bottom line is: that one could have been prevented,” Anderson said. “The race track was not quite up to standard and he went out there and got caught by it. And after that we went out and looked at the race track and said, ‘Fix it!’ and then everyone was fine the rest of the day.”
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The only conclusion anyone can draw from that quote is that even though the track had been cleaned there was still oil on the track from Dave Grubnic’s Top Fuel car that had previously oiled that lane.
When asked if the HANS device helped Ron during the crash Anderson noted, “Absolutely, He does wear one, I wear one. There probably should be a mandatory rule for wearing of a HANS device or something similar to that.”
Anderson concluded, “You know, we don’t wreck that often in this class, but when we do, it’s pretty ugly. People can certainly get hurt, and thank the Lord he wasn’t. We owe that to GM. GM does a lot of work on safety and really pushes that. They’re the ones that talked me into wearing one. Thank you, GM.”
Ron Krisher is alive because he chose to protect himself with a proven safety apparatus. It is time for the NHRA to enforce the same kind of helmet safety rules that they do for the chassis and engine components for the protection of their racers. Make some kind of head and neck restraint device mandatory for all drivers. . .or just forget seat belt rules and helmet rules. If you are not going to make a head and neck device mandatory, why bother with the seat belts and helmets? 