Random Other Sports Musings

[UMFan83]

He's not racing now

[OleMissCub]

Doubt he will ever be criminally prosecuted but he is gonna have a doozy of a wrongful death suit against him.

[Sosa21MVP]

Sports Center showed the video, knowing full well the other racer died.

 

Wow.

[Derwood]

Haven't seen the video, only heard about it on the radio (last night and today). No one on the radio made the slightest suggestion that Stewart might have done it on purpose, so I'm surprised that's everyone's interpretation.

[Sosa21MVP]

Haven't seen the video, only heard about it on the radio (last night and today). No one on the radio made the slightest suggestion that Stewart might have done it on purpose, so I'm surprised that's everyone's interpretation.

 

I don't think the video clearly establishes intent, I think there is a lot of assuming being done based on Stewart being a known hothead.

[Derwood]

Haven't seen the video, only heard about it on the radio (last night and today). No one on the radio made the slightest suggestion that Stewart might have done it on purpose, so I'm surprised that's everyone's interpretation.

 

I don't think the video clearly establishes intent, I think there is a lot of assuming being done based on Stewart being a known hothead.

 

So media jumping to conclusions? Yawn

[Sosa21MVP]

Haven't seen the video, only heard about it on the radio (last night and today). No one on the radio made the slightest suggestion that Stewart might have done it on purpose, so I'm surprised that's everyone's interpretation.

 

I don't think the video clearly establishes intent, I think there is a lot of assuming being done based on Stewart being a known hothead.

 

So media jumping to conclusions? Yawn

 

It isn't the media pushing forth these conversations, it is the public discourse on message boards and such.

[Derwood]

Haven't seen the video, only heard about it on the radio (last night and today). No one on the radio made the slightest suggestion that Stewart might have done it on purpose, so I'm surprised that's everyone's interpretation.

 

I don't think the video clearly establishes intent, I think there is a lot of assuming being done based on Stewart being a known hothead.

 

So media jumping to conclusions? Yawn

 

It isn't the media pushing forth these conversations, it is the public discourse on message boards and such.

 

Either way, they just said they're not pressing charges

[Sammy Sofa]

Did you ever even see the video?

[Derwood]

Did you ever even see the video?

 

I'm not interested in snuff films

[Sammy Sofa]

Then this is still a classically hilarious Derwood tangent.

[Derwood]

Then this is still a classically hilarious Derwood tangent.

 

Tangent? All I said was that the coverage I had heard of the incident mentioned nothing about intent, then I come here and everyone is talking about intent. There's a disconnect between how it's being covered and how it's being discussed.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

The descriptions I read before I saw the video made Stewart sound soooo much worse than the video justified, imo.

 

Maybe he was a reckless [expletive] who did something to contribute to the accident, but you'd have a helluva time proving it from the video.

[Smack]

It seems like most of the people that actually know about sprint cars and how they work think it was an accident. His hot head personality really makes you question it though. My gut says he tried to scare the kid and hit him. I don't think he'll be prosecuted and we'll never know what was actually going on in Stewart's head.

[Sammy Sofa]

Then this is still a classically hilarious Derwood tangent.

 

Tangent? All I said was that the coverage I had heard of the incident mentioned nothing about intent, then I come here and everyone is talking about intent. There's a disconnect between how it's being covered and how it's being discussed.

 

So what? That happens all the time. It's just ridiculous how easily you're swayed without even knowing what happened.

[Derwood]

Then this is still a classically hilarious Derwood tangent.

 

Tangent? All I said was that the coverage I had heard of the incident mentioned nothing about intent, then I come here and everyone is talking about intent. There's a disconnect between how it's being covered and how it's being discussed.

 

So what? That happens all the time. It's just ridiculous how easily you're swayed without even knowing what happened.

 

Wait, what? Which way do you think I was swayed?

[Janelle-Alexis]

It takes a special kind of evil to purposely run someone over with your car because they're gesturing at you. No matter how big of a dick or hothead he is, I wouldn't assume that about Stewart unless some other evidence came out.

 

But he absolutely intended to gun the engine and swerve towards Ward. Maybe he was trying to scare Ward or spray dirt on the kid, but his intentional and reckless actions killed someone. I don't understand how there are no charges against him. And I don't see how NASCAR, after the investigation and due diligence, can let him race for them ever again and still publicly maintain that driver safety is number one priority.

[Smack]

It takes a special kind of evil to purposely run someone over with your car because they're gesturing at you. No matter how big of a dick or hothead he is, I wouldn't assume that about Stewart unless some other evidence came out.

 

But he absolutely intended to gun the engine and swerve towards Ward. Maybe he was trying to scare Ward or spray dirt on the kid, but his intentional and reckless actions killed someone. I don't understand how there are no charges against him. And I don't see how NASCAR, after the investigation and due diligence, can ever let him race for them ever again and still publicly maintain that driver safety is number one priority.

 

The flip side of this is that gunning the engine is also exactly what you do to steer a sprint car. The throttle is the primary way to steer. If he saw him at the last second and wanted to avoid him he would hit the throttle hard. If he wanted to scare him he would hit the throttle hard. You can make guesses about intent. Like I said above I think he tried to scare him but I'm not certain. I don't think he would swerve towards him on purpose.

 

I think the visibility issue is the main thing here. At night. Dark track. Guy on track wearing black suit and helmet. Caution lights flashing. Very limited visibility out of a sprint car and he was wearing a helmet giving him tunnel vision. In addition the guy that got hit was to Stewart's right and visibility is further reduced to the side. If he saw him in advance and tried to intimidate him then he should face legal repercussions. We don't know what Stewart saw.

[Smack]

Take a look at the narrow field of view and take into account that the overhead wing extends lower to the drivers right further reducing visibility. The driver primarily steers by looking to the front left and directly to his left out the open window without the wing in his way as they race on counterclockwise ovals.

 

http://www.stickthisgraphics.com/images/Sprint%20Car%20Side%20View%201%20(Small).jpg

[Guest]

Looked like fucked him up on purpose to me

[Guest]

Rickie Fowler is only the third player in history to finish in the top-5 of all four majors in one year. Jack and Tiger both did it twice, however they won a major each of those years.

[OleMissCub]

Rickie Fowler is only the third player in history to finish in the top-5 of all four majors in one year. Jack and Tiger both did it twice, however they won a major each of those years.

 

Phil:Tiger

Rickie:Rory

 

Perhaps that is the future for Rickie

[OleMissCub]

Looked like [expletive] him up on purpose to me

 

Agreed.

 

Well...I'll support the idea that he may not have intended to actually hit but rather wanted to scare him.

[RynoRules]

Looked like [expletive] him up on purpose to me

 

The reports I have read indicate he isn't facing charges "yet" and that the local prosecutor is consulting an "expert"(presumably on how these particular machines behave when operated). There's no statute of limitation on a murder/manslaughter charge and there is no upside to charging Stewart right away; he's not a flight risk. Better to have your ducks in a row. Stewart is not out of the woods here at all.

 

By the way, his initial reaction smacked of callous indifference to the situation and/or a naive attempt to distract the general public from his potential culpability. It was a sort of, "Oh well, these things happen on the track. See you tomorrow!"; when in reality he was thinking, "I need to act like I did nothing wrong and hope people will buy it."

Edited August 11, 2014 by RynoRules

[RynoRules]

Looked like [expletive] him up on purpose to me

 

Agreed.

 

Well...I'll support the idea that he may not have intended to actually hit but rather wanted to scare him.

 

Then its manslaughter rather than murder.