Herbert
Glenn Dick, Jr., 56, of Birmingham, Alabama, was killed at the Road
Atlanta race track Saturday after his car went off the track near the
back straight. According to reports, Dick was immediately airlifted from
the track, but succumbed to his injuries upon arrival at the hospital.
Dick was driving at a High Performance Driver Education (HPDE) event from the National Auto Sport Association when he lost control of his 2003 Ford Mustang. Opposite Lock member e3pres was at the event when the incident occurred:
Saturday, I stood in the paddock at Road Atlanta as a medical helicopter landed to tend to an HPDE 2 driver who had crashed on the back straight. We all hoped for the best, but assumed the worst. When the last race and final two DE sessions of the day were cancelled, that told me everything I needed to know.
The incident was independently confirmed by the local Gainesville Times:
“Herbert Dick Jr. struck the wall in turn 10 and was pronounced deceased at the hospital,” Hall County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Deputy Nicole Bailes wrote in an email. “It was estimated that Dick was traveling at speeds approximately 120+ mph.”
While track days can all be good fun, they can still be incredibly dangerous events. Head on over to Opposite Lock for
e3pres’s look into the world of HPDE events, and how a nearly
inconceivable tragedy like this one affects the wider automotive world
around it.
Photo credit: Hans Enderle
Source: http://jalopnik.com/driver-killed-at-road-atlanta-track-event-1722117428