Drivers anticipating their fate?

Hello there,

I hope this thread is not too macabre, and I certainly don't mean to upset anybody.
It just struck me that several race car drivers who died in their cars had in some way foreseen their death.

A member of this board has a sig in which Ronnie Petterson says something like "If the end comes, I hope it's spectacular".

I also remember having read that Senna once said if he ever has to die early he wants it to be at 200mph while leading a race. I don't remember the quote exactly, but it went like that.

Maybe it is just that among racing drivers there is a higher-than-normal percentage of men leading an aggressive lifestyle and having a more fatalist view of life.

Do you know of any others who in some way commented what would be their own death?

A.

Originally posted by anbeck
Hello there,

I hope this thread is not too macabre, and I certainly don't mean to upset anybody.
It just struck me that several race car drivers who died in their cars had in some way foreseen their death.

A member of this board has a sig in which Ronnie Petterson says something like "If the end comes, I hope it's spectacular".

I also remember having read that Senna once said if he ever has to die early he wants it to be at 200mph while leading a race. I don't remember the quote exactly, but it went like that.

Maybe it is just that among racing drivers there is a higher-than-normal percentage of men leading an aggressive lifestyle and having a more fatalist view of life.

Do you know of any others who in some way commented what would be their own death?

A.

A few months ago I started a thread more or less like this one: "Premonitions"

Oh no, not this again

Hey Anbeck,

You have to be kidding.

Okay, misunderstanding. I didn't mean to provoke discussions on supernatural matters, thus I should have named this thread "drivers commenting on their own death".

Such as:
* Gilles Villeneuve mentioning the tyre-rules in qualifying probably killing somebody
* Senna talking about dying while leading a race

So, well.... forget it.

Can a moderator delete this thread? I tried, but couldn't.

Yeah! Everytime I got in a race car and everytime I was getting to start a football game. It's called pre-game jitters.

I think you can just credit such views of life, to the attitude held by many that:

It is better to live a full short life, than a long empty one.

Bob

I remember readiong something, not sure where - maybe even here - about drivers acting strange the day before hours before their ultimate demise...

I think it had some quotes from Mario Andretti mentioning how Ronnie Peterson was acting a little differently on the grid before he we killed...

Like I said, I cant remember where this info came from, maybe it was a video, or perhaps something written... Anyone else know what im on about?

Originally posted by anbeck

Okay, misunderstanding. I didn't mean to provoke discussions on supernatural matters, thus I should have named this thread "drivers commenting on their own death".

Such as:
* Gilles Villeneuve mentioning the tyre-rules in qualifying probably killing somebody
* Senna talking about dying while leading a race

So, well.... forget it.

Can a moderator delete this thread? I tried, but couldn't.

Don't worry; you have a valid comment. There have been drivers who have talked about such things - for example, I remember Niki Lauda expressing his surprise at Piquet's comments along such lines in one of his autobiographies. And I think Patrick Depailler also made similar remarks.

As for drivers and their behavioural quirks, my personal experience is in the linked thread.

I've re-titled this thread in the hope it's a little more specific.

Originally posted by anbeck
Okay, misunderstanding. I didn't mean to provoke discussions on supernatural matters, thus I should have named this thread "drivers commenting on their own death".

Such as:
* Gilles Villeneuve mentioning the tyre-rules in qualifying probably killing somebody
* Senna talking about dying while leading a race

So, well.... forget it.

Can a moderator delete this thread? I tried, but couldn't.

anbeck,

First, welcome to TNF.

One of the special things about this forum is the attempt to keep the thread count at its minimum. By doing so there is a smooth flow of information and a real concise record of motor-sports history. The members "police" this policy and my hand has been slapped more than once.

As late as six months ago I had a conversation with an individual who lost a family member on track with a world wide audience. The description of the 90 days leading up to the accident would very much support the topic of this thread.

Please continue to contribute to the forum.

Henry

Crikey that Premonitions thread turned into a right old duff up, and then became very boring....