10/17 PCA Autocross

The last Chesapeake Porsche Club autocross of the year ended up being a very memorable one - but for very much the wrong reason.

The day started off well, with a big crowd of 60 drivers and a nice collection of cars - a Lotus Elise, two Vipers, an NSX, and of course all the Porsches. With so many drivers, we split up into three groups, with me working the track during the first heat and driving during the third heat. Working the flag station was pretty uneventful. I was able to pick up on where the drivers were having trouble with the track which I figured would help when it was my turn to drive.

During the second heat I was getting my GoPro ready for my turn in the third heat when I heard a crunch out on track. I looked up to see a Porsche Cayman stopped out at the corner of the lot. My immediate thought was that he hit the curb out there, but there were car parts strewn around him and it was obvious that he had hit the concrete base of the light post. I didn't see it happen, but apparently he started fishtailing and, instead of jumping on the brakes to stop the car, continued to try to correct the spin as he careened into the light pole. The whole side of his car was wrecked and three airbags deployed.

It was clearly an expensive wreck, but it was really fortunate that nobody was hurt. Not only was the driver in danger (a couple feet to the left and he would have slammed into the concrete head-on), but that pole was also the flag station for the course workers so there were two people standing right there when it happened. In fact, that was the very pole that I was standing next to while working the course myself during the first heat.

Once the autocross chairs saw the extent of the damage, they called an end to the event for the day. The had to call a tow truck to remove the car, plus I think they had to take some measurements and pictures to document that the track setup itself wasn't a contributing factor to the accident.

The whole thing was a big reminder to everyone of what the risks are for something even as relatively controlled and safe as autocross is supposed to be. You have to be aware of where the dangerous obstacles are and make sure you aren't pushing the car in any kind of risky way when there's a danger of breaking the car or getting yourself or others hurt. It was disappointing to spend so much of the day on the event and never get to drive, but the important thing was that nobody was hurt. Hopefully the whole thing gets resolved as well as possible for the driver and the club.