PHOTO: RICK BELDEN
D.I. COLUMNIST
The Real Deal with Tommy D'Aprile
Well, here it was, a beau
tiful May day in Florida
and I was at the racetrack
spending time with my
kids. All three are in different cars and
we needed some test time on the track.
Carrying three cars in one trailer was a
little tight, so we were not able to bring
our golf cart, but I had purchased a
scooter so we would still have transportation.
The only issue was that I would
use the golf cart to pull the Jr. Dragster
back after a run.
Now with the scooter I was wondering
how I would solve this issue. No worries – I had seen a couple
of people pushing their Jr. Dragsters with their hand or foot while
riding a scooter. So I said to myself, “If they can do it, I can do it too.”
So off I went, after my daughters run, to pick her up. I managed to
push her back, although it was very uncomfortable. I thought, I don’t
know how people do this.
After the second run my daughter made, I again went down to get
her and decided this time I would use my foot like all the cool dads
do to push her back. It was a little easier, but as we came through the
pit area I somehow got caught on the back of the dragster. There was
a curve coming up and as my daughter turned the corner, I remember
thinking this was not good.
My foot was caught on the car and when she turned it took my
balance. Over the handle bars I went, landing on the paved staging
lanes. My right arm took the impact, as was evident by the immediate
swelling, and I knew I was hurt. My foot had been dislodged so it
was OK, but my right arm was hurting badly. The scooter got caught
in the Jr. Dragster also, which caused the car to flip on its side. My
daughter was unhurt, but this looked like a movie stunt gone bad.
Guys and girls, I am sharing this story with you to help you open
your eyes. I was the one who would say that someone is gonna get
hurt pushing those cars and bikes with a scooter. Instead of listening
to my own advice, I threw caution to the wind and did it anyway. Too
many of us are just doing stupid things and not expecting anything
to happen. We say, “That won’t happen to me,” but it can and does.
After my incident I decided to do a little research and found that
hundreds of these pit accidents happen. It’s even against most track
policies to push a vehicle that way.
So here is the real deal. Stop being stupid before it’s you that gets
hurt. I am very active and in great shape and thought that I could
handle it, but I was wrong. I don’t want to see more of these avoidable
accidents happen in the future. It was my own stupidity that
caused this accident, and I was very fortunate to have escaped with
minor injuries.
Here is the part I didn’t tell you. Before I pushed the car back, we
could not find a place to put my daughter’s helmet, so I just wore it.
That helmet took a direct impact on the asphalt that day. If I were
not wearing it, I don’t know if I would be writing this column today.
It was by the grace of God I put that helmet on, and also why I was
not seriously injured.
This was hard for me to write, but I am urging you to make some
changes if you are using your pit vehicles in the wrong way. I fabricated
a mount on the back of the scooter to where I can now safely
tow the Jr. Dragster using a dolly. Unfortunately I was reactive instead
of proactive. I am blessed to be OK and knew I had to share
this story to save someone else the pain these types of accidents can
cause. Do what you need to do to create a safer environment for you
and your family at the races.
The choice is yours to make.
Email Tommy at
[email protected]
June 2020
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