Tassie Targa crash RIP

[tomo]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-27/targa-tasmania-mt-roland-crash/101020740

[hugh]

Tragic. 

[Zelrik911]

The mad media will make sure to scare the politicians & sponsors into cancelling the Targa.

I suppose the husband/wife team were not your typical motor sport competitors - I wonder who was driving?

[TwoHeadsTas]

I won't speculate any further about the causes of the crash, or the experience of the driver & navigator, however as service crew for a top 10 competitor I attended the competitors briefing this morning.  The remainder of TT has been downgraded to a tour, and it appears Mark Perry had to fight hard to retain even this.  To paraphrase what he said, it was basically:

"don't be dicks out there, keep to the posted speed limit which now applies to the tour.  If you don't, any prospects of retaining the event will be gone".  

Probably 2/3 of the competition cars have elected to continue with the tour, but judging by the cars still there 1/2 hour ago, none of the top 10 cars have done so.  

[NAC911]

Condolences to all affected by this tragedy.

The aftermath of this will be very hard to process i think.

Some serious pressure is going to be applied to not only TT but all other Targa style events. 

 

[reedminor]

Terrible after last year.

 

and I understand that organisers adopted all of the recommendations that they could (21/23) from the enquiry. The remaining 2 required Cams /fia action.

I sincerely hope the event continues, but am wondering if the modern cars are just too fast for the roads now?

jr
 

 

 

 

[grantmr]

what sort of car was it that crashed?

[TDW911]

From the photos it looked like a lime green Lotus Exige I think. 

[NAC911]

8 minutes ago, reedminor said:

Terrible after last year.

 

and I understand that organisers adopted all of the recommendations that they could (21/23) from the enquiry. The remaining 2 required Cams /fia action.

I sincerely hope the event continues, but am wondering if the modern cars are just too fast for the roads now?

jr
 

 

 

 

The cars have been too fast for some time now, but that isn't the issue imo, the stopwatch entices people to push from 9/10th to 11/10ths.... 

 

I don't have the answers and will wait for a report on what caused this, but it's clear you can't have an event with yearly fatalities involved. 

[TwoHeadsTas]

2 hours ago, reedminor said:

Terrible after last year.

 

and I understand that organisers adopted all of the recommendations that they could (21/23) from the enquiry. The remaining 2 required Cams /fia action.

I sincerely hope the event continues, but am wondering if the modern cars are just too fast for the roads now?

jr
 

 

 

 

Justin, I think the reality for TT is that it is programmed at least 1 month too late.  End of February / earlier March would at least reduce the chances of the wet weather we're currently experiencing here, and which is pretty usual for our Autumn.

[tomo]

Driver identy confirmed .Navigator wife ok.

Targa Tasmania 2022 fatal crash driver named as Tony Seymour, as organisers examine race future - ABC News https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-28/targa-tasmania-fatal-crash-future-of-event/101021350

[OBRUT]

I tarmac rallied for about a decade. Loved it. 3 targa tas. 
 

I can’t see how the event will come back from yet another tragedy - maybe tour format only?

 

[NAC911]

1 hour ago, OBRUT said:

I tarmac rallied for about a decade. Loved it. 3 targa tas. 
 

I can’t see how the event will come back from yet another tragedy - maybe tour format only?

 

They need to go back to the old format and remove the outright speed component, set break out times for each section so drivers need to pace themselves to hit a time. 

[Coastr]

I love the version of the world where these events exist, and don’t want it to change.  I also agree a fatal event every year is not sustainable.  Cool heads must prevail so a solution is found and the spirit of the event can be kept.  Motorsport remains dangerous but so are many things. It’s important to keep perspective and allow the families the space to grieve. 

[LeeM]

  Any death in motorsport is an absolute tragedy, yet we/they all know and accept the very real risk of things going wrong. 

 Not sure if this is the place, and sorry if I offend anyone here (happy to delete this if you are offended), yet F1, Indycar, GT racing, MotoGP and even club racing doesn't stop after a tragedy, so why should Rallying be scrutinised to the point of being cancelled permanently?  

 Are the 'powers that be' minority just trying to stop Targa rallies because people might hurt themselves on a closed public road? 

RIP to the driver

 

[Arne Krix]

I guess after 4 fatalities in 2 consequent events /years you got to have discussions  about  safety , format processes, and so on.

Imagine 2 F1 seasons and 4 drivers dead.

[OBRUT]

1 hour ago, NAC911 said:

They need to go back to the old format and remove the outright speed component, set break out times for each section so drivers need to pace themselves to hit a time. 

With respect, where is the fun or real challenge in that?

[NAC911]

8 minutes ago, OBRUT said:

With respect, where is the fun or real challenge in that?

Targa never used to be about outright speed, it started as an amateur enthusiasts tour to enjoy their cars on the best roads in tassie, now  sheep stations are on the line but the same dangerous roads. 

[hugh]

Everyone knows the risks. Indeed nobody expects to die but the risk is always there, like so many aspects of life. As tragic as this news is, I don't see any rally racer wanting to be the cause of an event like this to be cancelled for ever. It's ultimately going to be the call of the stakeholders though. 

Its a shame all round, not just for Targa but for closed road rallying in general. 

 

[NAC911]

4 minutes ago, hugh said:

Everyone knows the risks. Indeed nobody expects to die but the risk is always there, like so many aspects of life. As tragic as this news is, I don't see any rally racer wanting to be the cause of an event like this to be cancelled for ever. It's ultimately going to be the call of the stakeholders though. 

Its a shame all round, not just for Targa but for closed road rallying in general. 

 

The bureaucrats will step in and stop it, like cannonball run, because its happening on (closed) public roads.

Like it or not 4 in 2 years is a red flag.

Somewhere an insurance company or regulatory body will be lining up pineapples for the organizers.

That won't end well.

[TwoHeadsTas]

15 minutes ago, NAC911 said:

Targa never used to be about outright speed, it started as an amateur enthusiasts tour to enjoy their cars on the best roads in tassie, now  sheep stations are on the line but the same dangerous roads. 

I drove a 308GTB in the very first event which was great fun, but I don't think I'd even consider going in the competition side now as it is 20 x more serious now with big $ backings for many drivers.  I would consider the tour, but not at posted speed limits which would just be a procession.  The 130kmh limit which I think was in force for tour cars initially is probably about right, even though for many drivers enthusiasm exceeds ability as there's always a few prangs each year in the tour, albeit with much less damage and risk usually.

This year I was just happy to be crewing for a couple of mates who had run for many years in a range of P cars, and had a great prospect of a top 5 finish this year

[NAC911]

16 minutes ago, TwoHeadsTas said:

I drove a 308GTB in the very first event which was great fun, but I don't think I'd even consider going in the competition side now as it is 20 x more serious now with big $ backings for many drivers.  I would consider the tour, but not at posted speed limits which would just be a procession.  The 130kmh limit which I think was in force for tour cars initially is probably about right, even though for many drivers enthusiasm exceeds ability as there's always a few prangs each year in the tour, albeit with much less damage and risk usually.

This year I was just happy to be crewing for a couple of mates who had run for many years in a range of P cars, and had a great prospect of a top 5 finish this year

That would have been a lot of fun! I first started taking notice of TT when my mates uncle was racing his V8 Supercar powered Mustang (Len Cattlin). He and Jim Richards used to do very well. They both stepped away when it got too serious (and dangerous).

[OBRUT]

34 minutes ago, NAC911 said:

Targa never used to be about outright speed, it started as an amateur enthusiasts tour to enjoy their cars on the best roads in tassie, now  sheep stations are on the line but the same dangerous roads. 

I disagree, it’s always been a competitive event. It started with classic cars but it’s been open for all cars for a long time.  Take out the competition and you may as well do a Targa Florio style touring event. Nothing wrong with that but totally different event. Modern cars aren’t necessarily the problem either, many classic cars have run very near the pointy end in outright terms (without the benefit of ABS or crumple zones etc).  

Of all the tarmac rallies I have done (about 15) I don’t even rate TT as the most dangerous.  That distinction goes to Mt Buller!

I always thought Classic Adelaide was a more fun overall event, but the sense of accomplishment from finishing TT well was second to none.  My TT “gold” plate is one of the only bits of memorabilia I have hanging in my garage.

 

 

[hugh]

1 minute ago, OBRUT said:

Of all the tarmac rallies I have done (about 15) I don’t even rate TT as the most dangerous.  That distinction goes to Mt Buller!

I'm yet to do a Targa Tas and hope to do one soon enough. Baw Baw is definitely up there in terms of technicality, tightest & highest corner ratio of them all. Matched with a very patchy surface and it's definitely 'busy' in the cabin! 

Tarmac rallying is the best. The community around it is reflective of this also. 

[TwoHeadsTas]

58 minutes ago, hugh said:

Tarmac rallying is the best. The community around it is reflective of this also. 

I observed a huge amount of camaraderie between teams and within teams (service crew / driver / nav) and clearly there were some close friendships.  Also a lot of support for each other after the news of the crash emerged.