Jody Scheckter wants son Tomas to quit series

[Rex Monaco]

Tomas Scheckter's father, Jody, wants him to quit racing in the Izod Indycar Series following the death of Dan Wheldon earlier this week at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The younger Scheckter won’t go that far--but he wants to be heard by those making changes to the equipment package for 2012.

...

Scheckter said Indy-cars need more horsepower to allow drivers to get away from each other during races, particularly at high-speed, high-banked oval tracks.

IndyCar: Jody Scheckter wants son Tomas to quit series amid safety concerns - Autoweek (http://www.autoweek.com/article/20111021/IRL/111029969)

[ShiftingGears]

With this proposal I get the impression that the benefits of reducing pack racing would be negated by the fact that when someone does hit the wall it's going to be much harder due to the higher speeds...

Unless this goes hand in hand with less mechanical/aerodynamic grip and/or slower ovals, I don't buy it as a good idea.

[FIAT1]

To much obout a dude that does one race a year. Self promo?

[Ranger]

Back to the point, this is an extract from a brilliant article by Alex Zanardi:


"At Las Vegas it wasn't a race between drivers anymore. It was a pack of cars moving all together, bunched up with no chance of breaking off. Now, when you race for five minutes with your rival right next to your side, at the point that you notice if his sponsor stickers are not straight, when it's too easy do drive even on the outside line...

"At that point it's like driving with a tutor. An obscenely idiotic thing, because then you distract yourself for not concentrating enough. After a while, even if you are travelling at 340 km/h, you don't realise it anymore."

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95688

[FIAT1]

Drivers and fans know that manufactured racing is no good. Back to speed and skill would be good start.

[Nikki Katz]

But surely Tomas is one of the worst offenders of pulling off silly moves at high speeds?

[numanoid]

But surely Tomas is one of the worst offenders of pulling off silly moves at high speeds?

Yeah, I told my wife the same thing when she told me about this article. He goes 3 and 4 wide on the high side if possible and caused at least 1 accident this season in doing so.

[heliocastroneves#3]

The younger Scheckter won’t go that far--but he wants to be heard by those making changes to the equipment package for 2012.

What does this mean?

I think Tomas is a great driver, if he wasn't such an inconsistent driver, then he would have won the Indy 500 in his debut year. He's good, but very (too) inconsistent.

[Phoenixent]

[i]Tomas Scheckter's father, Jody, wants him to quit racing in the Izod Indycar Series following the death of Dan Wheldon earlier this week at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

I would like to know if Jody's father asked him to do the same when he was in Formula 1? When Jody was in Formula 1 nine drivers (Roger Williamson, François Cevert, Peter Revson, Helmuth Koinigg, Mark Donohue, Tom Pryce, Brian McGuire , Ronnie Peterson, and Patrick Depailler) lost their lives. He accepted the dangers and won a championship but right now he sounds like he is full of bull... Every driver accepts the danger but believes it will happen to the other guy to continue racing some it affects and quit the sport but parents are not innocent in thinking racing is safe but know it's not then the act like they just discover it's dangerous..

[BDunnell]

I would like to know if Jody's father asked him to do the same when he was in Formula 1? When Jody was in Formula 1 nine drivers (Roger Williamson, François Cevert, Peter Revson, Helmuth Koinigg, Mark Donohue, Tom Pryce, Brian McGuire , Ronnie Peterson, and Patrick Depailler) lost their lives. He accepted the dangers and won a championship but right now he sounds like he is full of bull... Every driver accepts the danger but believes it will happen to the other guy to continue racing some it affects and quit the sport but parents are not innocent in thinking racing is safe but know it's not then the act like they just discover it's dangerous..

Because people accepted the dangers then doesn't necessarily mean that they do so now. These are very different times regarding the expectation of safety compared with even Jody Scheckter's time in racing, let alone earlier.

[Phoenixent]

Because people accepted the dangers then doesn't necessarily mean that they do so now. These are very different times regarding the expectation of safety compared with even Jody Scheckter's time in racing, let alone earlier.

Then they live in a dream world..... Pilots of aircraft still die everyday even though it's safer now than 1903. Drivers still die today even though safety has advanced greatly as most should know motorsports lost three drivers in a week after Dan died.....

[BDunnell]

Then they live in a dream world..... Pilots of aircraft still die everyday even though it's safer now than 1903. Drivers still die today even though safety has advanced greatly as most should know motorsports lost three drivers in a week after Dan died.....

Yes, they do still die — and, as I have said time and again, will continue to do so — but not with the same frequency as used to be the case. This to me is the key point.

[Phoenixent]

I agree with you on this.. I just think the Jody was living in a dream world or in shock at the time he made that statement...

[BDunnell]

I agree with you on this.. I just think the Jody was living in a dream world or in shock at the time he made that statement...

I believe it to be a perfectly natural reaction on the part of a concerned father, no matter whether said father was a racer at a far more dangerous time or not.