95 replies to this topic

[Giraffe]

Poignantly now, Dan was giving a special autograph at Goodwood in July commemorating his recent Indy 500 triumph with his starting number, #98.


By giraffe138 at 2011-10-18

You'll be much missed on both sides of the Atlantic, Dan.

Edited by Giraffe, 18 October 2011 - 20:08.

[Phil Mackley]

RIP Dan, such tragic news.

There seems to have been a lot of the coverage in the UK, which there should be. But as a mate of mine commented, it's a shame it took his death for the general media to recognise such a great talent and an even greater person.

[faaaz]

Not sure if this is the right place to put this...

But what an amazing line up in a junior karting level, who knew they would all go on to be so successful.

RIP Dan Wheldon

[E1pix]

Thank You, Faaaz, all my karting friends will be seeing this!

[zeb911]

Agreed, and a terrible thing to happen. What's been even worse though is some of the press coverage that has followed. The Daily Mail isn't noted for its high journalistic standards, though apparently it sells a lot of papers, and I found this piece on their website quite upsetting, for reasons that are all too obvious. How could anyone write an article like this and refer to the deceased as 'Mr Wheldon' throughout?

http://www.dailymail...-Las-Vegas.html

And if your stomach is strong enough, have a look at some of the comments left by Daily Mail readers, I gave up after the first few. After a very sad event, it really quite tragic that any human can think the way some of these people do.

its not journalism though is it?....its the daily mail, its the sun without tits.


RIP Dan...a sad sad loss.

[Peter Morley]

its not journalism though is it?....its the daily mail, its the sun without tits.

Surely you mean without pictures of tits, plenty of them write for it...

[Phil Rainford]

http://news.bbc.co.u...ne/15376777.stm

The views of Mark Webber on the tragic news....



PAR

[HiRich]

its not journalism though is it?....its the daily mail, its the sun without tits.

No, it's the Metro, but with the cheek to ask for money.

[Jimisgod]

Daniel Clive Wheldon

22.06.78 - 16.10.11



And some people are whining about papers, Ho hum.

[Pedro 917]

Dan Wheldon at this year's Festival Of Speed :



























God speed Dan !

Pictures copyright : Luc Ghys

[red stick]

Can't quite make out the guys in the ballcaps in the group shots--who were they?

[Flat Black 84]

Marvelous pics. Thanks for sharing.

[Flat Black 84]

Can't quite make out the guys in the ballcaps in the group shots--who were they?

Parnelli on the left and Lone Star JR on the right...I think.

[red stick]

Parnelli on the left and Lone Star JR on the right...I think.

I was guessing Sneva on the right . . . hard to tell.

[Collombin]

Parnelli on the left and Lone Star JR on the right...I think.

Yes, definitely.

[JacnGille]

Pictures copyright : Luc Ghys

My guess: Castroneves Dixon, Weldon. Luyendyk, B. Unser, Parnelli Jones, Sullivan, Rutherford, Fittipaldi, Franchitti, and Cheever.

[Flat Black 84]

Cheever, eh? That was the one I couldn't figure.

[Vitesse2]

For those UK TNFers who have Sky Sports, there will be a one-hour Tribute to Dan Wheldon broadcast tonight at 10pm on Sky Sports 2. It's repeated tomorrow at 10am on Sky Sports 1.

[Cirrus]

In a very sad twist of fate, Bernard Baxter who worked with Dan Wheldon in his Formula Ford days, died suddenly last night. Bernard was a 24 carat good bloke who could build a mean engine and was a pleasure to share a beer with in the paddock.

A very sad week...

[thatguy0101]

My guess: Castroneves Dixon, Weldon. Luyendyk, B. Unser, Parnelli Jones, Sullivan, Rutherford, Fittipaldi, Franchitti, and Cheever.

I think the guy in street clothes on the tire in the other photo, missing from the "wins" photo, is Kenny Brack (1999 winner).

[B Squared]

Luc -

Thanks for posting your photos. Days like those will be well remembered.

[Giraffe]

In another cruel twist of fate, Ayrton Senna’s manager Julian Jakobi is attending to Wheldon’s funeral arrangements and family statements.
Jakobi was Wheldon’s manager, too.

[E1pix]

So much pain when a community's so tight as ours....

[mrchanbong]

[hipperson]

Wonderful photographs as ever Luc..........

[Pink Snail]

I have held back with my post all week. I am still pretty much gutted that we have lost the legend that is Dan Wheldon. What Dan achieved stateside and the fans he had over in America says everything...and more. I have driven my wagon all week with the words `RIP Dan Wheldon` displayed in my passenger side window. I have mixed emotions about the various conflicts of opinions that have been in the press this week, Dan Wheldon was a race car driver, a true legend and held in very high esteem by all the motorsport family worldwide.
His legacy will indeed be the new generation of car he has developed with Dallara, the DW001. That you should be taken from us in such circumstances Dan, we must all feel robbed, our sport empty for you loss.
My sincere condolences to all the family and trust that you Rest In Peace Dan Wheldon .....a true legend and a great loss to us all .

[Giraffe]

Dan's funeral is in St. Pete's (St,Petersburg, Florida) tomorrow, a town I know well. My thoughts will be with him whilst I'm at Silverstone.

[E1pix]

I hope and pray the family and all concerned can find Peace in this terrible, awful tragedy.

[Giraffe]

Interesting story about Dan Wheldon and his life in St Pete from his local paper that I picked up from a Tweet by TNFer Adam Cooper.......


http://www.tampabay....er-pace/1197971

[MCS]

Interesting story about Dan Wheldon and his life in St Pete from his local paper that I picked up from a Tweet by TNFer Adam Cooper.......

http://www.tampabay....er-pace/1197971

Thanks for that, Tony. I've spent a bit of time in that part of the world - some familiar places named, certainly. How very sad all of this is.

I have always been upset that I didn't get to pay my respects to Jim Crawford who died in Tierra Verde, not that far away from where Dan and his family lived. I hope to one day though.

I read this the other day from "our" F1 correspondent: http://www.telegraph...-his-death.html

[kayemod]

A slightly sad note from practice for tomorrow's Indian GP. Both the Ferrari drivers carried a tribute to Dan Wheldon on their helmets, but they'd spelled his name wrongly, missing out the 'H'.

[Glengavel]

A slightly sad note from practice for tomorrow's Indian GP. Both the Ferrari drivers carried a tribute to Dan Wheldon on their helmets, but they'd spelled his name wrongly, missing out the 'H'.

While I admire the sentiment, part of me thinks...actually, I'll just keep quiet about what I'm thinking...

[Giraffe]

A slightly sad note from practice for tomorrow's Indian GP. Both the Ferrari drivers carried a tribute to Dan Wheldon on their helmets, but they'd spelled his name wrongly, missing out the 'H'.

While I admire the sentiment, part of me thinks...actually, I'll just keep quiet about what I'm thinking...

Actually, I think Dan would be somewhat amused by this.............

[LB]

I noticed that too, bit sad but the sentiment is there I guess.

Someone should tell Arie in that great photo that his two wins should really be the other way round ;)

[E1pix]

I noticed that too, bit sad but the sentiment is there I guess.

Yes... just a vendor's mistake unnoticed 'til too late. Another thing added to the checklist in a "booked full" weekend, for someone else to get right and then not enough time for reversion when not.

Hate typos myself, but the good intentions are far more important... IMHO. It happens at every level.

RIP, Dan.

[Pedro 917]

A wonderful statement written by Arie Luyendyk, taken from his Facebook page :

IndyCar, it's officials, it's drivers, team owners, fans, sponsors, vendors, car manufacturers, engine manufacturers and everyone else affiliated with IndyCar were all shaken to the core by Dan Wheldons death in Las Vegas.
The impact has been overwhelming for IndyCar officials and directors dealing with the safety issues which challenge them.
A lot has been said about Dan going for 5 million Dollars and that it was part of the reason of the crash, not so I say, Dan was a racecar driver, an IndyCar driver in particular, a Champion of the series and a two time Indy 500 Winner. IndyCar drivers know the risk of high speed, wheel to wheel racing on ovals. IndyCar is defined by ovals and as a driver if you choose to drive in that series you know what you're up against.
Racing on ovals is not for faint hearted, it takes a different kind of driver who is willing to race on ovals, a driver who realizes the rewards are beautiful when you win but also the crash consequences can be everything but beautiful.
Dan loved Indy, he was fantastic there but I bet you Dan as all the other drivers only love it when you walk away from that place or any other oval for that matter in one piece and preferably with a good result.
Dan was driving in Las Vegas because he was a professional IndyCar driver and where the races are held that’s where the drivers race, simple as that, even if they don't like the track and know it's dangerous.
What happened in Las Vegas is what everyone involved in IndyCar feared, the big one finally happened, a big crash involving many, many cars.
Dan had no chance to avoid it and was launched into the fence.
Critics have blamed IndyCar officials for racing at Vegas and that too many cars were in the race but I have to disagree with all those accusations after the fact. Everyone was nervous before the race not much different than before a race at Texas, Chicago, Kentucky or Indy.
At Indy in 2010 Mike Conway made contact with Ryan Hunter Ray and flew into the fence. Mike was badly injured but recovered to come back this year and win at Long Beach, he came back to race and if Dan had survived he would have come back, it's in the nature of the drivers, it's in their DNA.
Conways crash was a two car crash, not a pack of cars and that shows us that these crashes happen in all kinds of situations and all kinds of tracks, just like the crash Tony Kanaan had at Baltimore's street race this year after losing his brakes.
If Tony had hit Helio Castro Neves at a different angle it could have been fatal.....IndyCar racing is dangerous, any kind of racing is dangerous.
I was in Le Mans this year and saw some of the biggest crashes which could have resulted in many deaths not just drivers but also spectators.
Le Mans cars have fenders yet Allan McNish touched another car and flew through the air into a tire barriers and almost landed in a crowd of photographers.
What I'm trying to say is that looking to blame anyone is unrealistic and unfair, IndyCar has done so much for safety and will never stop at that.
We can learn from the tragedy at Las Vegas as we can learn from all accidents.
We all were shocked in Vegas, it was like a tornado had touched down and minutes later it was quiet but we knew it was bad.
Looking at the screens in the suite I knew it was bad, I did not know It was Dan who was critical but at that moment I was just concerned about so many drivers because it looked like a scene from a plane crash.
Slowly rumors surfaced that Dan had passed and my wife and I left because I did not want to be there, it's a situation I could not handle and still have trouble with. Dan was the only driver I gave a fist bump to because I had to hurry to up to the suite to watch the race, normally I hang around driver introductions.
When I was racing Scott Brayton passed away at Indy and it affected me a lot but not as much as Dan's passing. I don't know why because I knew Scott better than Dan, maybe it's because I'm retired and older now and have more time to reflect, when you're an active driver you react different that might be the answer, as a driver you get back into the car after an event like this and concentration takes over and it's out of your mind and eventually you get so caught up in your own job the impact of a colleagues death fades away slowly.
I remember not even wanting to drive after Scott's death on the same day but the next day the track opened for practice and as I drove through turn 2 I looked at the wall and thought about Scott, I did that for maybe 2 laps and put it out of my mind and concentrated on my laps around Indy, you had to block it out. The IndyCar drivers all have the whole winter to reflect about Dan and their own careers and it will be a tough and a long winter. If there would have been a few more races on the schedule it would have taken their minds of the events and it would have been a good healing process.
Dan's death has grabbed me like no other, it has had a hold of me ever since that black day in Vegas, I look at his beautiful family and grieve for them, I grieve for his parents.
The outpouring towards them from the racing community worldwide has been amazing and I'm proud to be part of that family.
I will never forget Dan Wheldon and his abilities at Indy, he won this year with a small team and beat the best teams, it must have felt amazing, a 'take that' moment but my memory of Dan being " the man" at Indy was when he dominated Indy in 2006 only to lose the race because of a puncture. He was magic that day as he was so many days, he was also magic to his family, he was their champion in life.
RIP Dan

[E1pix]

Fabulous, Pedro, thanks for posting this.

[Lemnpiper]

OUTSTANDING comments from someone who has been there . Even more insightful is how he admits his reaction may be different now since he no longer races when he reminds us of Scott's death and his reaction then.

Time may heal all wounds , but this one will take a bit longer than most.



paul

[Vitesse2]

For anybody interested, there will be a Dan Wheldon Memorial Kart Event at Daytona, Milton Keynes on December 5th. Jenson Button, Dario Franchitti, Anthony Davidson, Guy Smith, Rob Huff and Johnny Mowlem will be among those taking part. Proceeds to Alzheimer's charities.

http://indycar.com/n...ce-draws-stars/

http://www.daytona.c...-kart-race.html

[E1pix]

That is too cool. Wish I could.

Thanks, V2.

[B Squared]

Dan Wheldon's 2005 Indy 500 winning car is being restored.

http://indycar.com/n...ration-process/

[Little Leaf]

For anybody interested, there will be a Dan Wheldon Memorial Kart Event at Daytona, Milton Keynes on December 5th. Jenson Button, Dario Franchitti, Anthony Davidson, Guy Smith, Rob Huff and Johnny Mowlem will be among those taking part. Proceeds to Alzheimer's charities.

http://indycar.com/n...ce-draws-stars/

http://www.daytona.c...-kart-race.html

It seemed to go down pretty well

http://news.bbc.co.u...rt/16046911.stm

http://www.dailymail...ing-driver.html

RIP Dan

[Richard Jenkins]

One of the more tragic side-stories after Dan's death was that his mother, Sue, suffered from early on-set dementia and maybe wasn't aware of his death. Sadly, for those of you who knew the young Dan and remember his parents Clive and Sue, Sue  finally lost her fight a short while back http://www.tampabay....s-awake/2173684

[Henri Greuter]

 

One of the more tragic side-stories after Dan's death was that his mother, Sue, suffered from early on-set dementia and maybe wasn't aware of his death. Sadly, for those of you who knew the young Dan and remember his parents Clive and Sue, Sue  finally lost her fight a short while back http://www.tampabay....s-awake/2173684

Reminds me a bit about the 1948 Ralph Hepburn tragedy.
Unaware of his son's death, Ralph's father died 4 days later.
Father and son had a single, common funeral

More back on topic to Dan, It surprises me to read that there is talk about making changes to the Indycars in the future so they are able to break the current track records., this in order to attract people.
One would think that people may have learned from Dan's death.
But obviously not.


Henri

[Jim Thurman]

 

Reminds me a bit about the 1948 Ralph Hepburn tragedy.
Unaware of his son's death, Ralph's father died 4 days later.
Father and son had a single, common funeral

 

I've read of this sad story.  There was no common funeral though. Ralph's funeral was at 1 p.m. with his father's funeral at 2:30 p.m., both in the same chapel    So, possibly their funeral services were consecutive, but not common.

[Henri Greuter]

I've read of this sad story.  There was no common funeral though. Ralph's funeral was at 1 p.m. with his father's funeral at 2:30 p.m., both in the same chapel    So, possibly their funeral services were consecutive, but not common.

 

 

I've understood they were together but you're better informed ten I it seems.

Thanks for filling me in.

 

 

Henri