Thompson Speedway tragedy

[GiveMeTimeMachinePlz]

For anyone who follows short track racing in the new england area, particularly open wheel cars such as modifieds or NEMA midgets, we lost another driver on sunday.

Shane Hammond, 27, was killed sunday during the running of the NEMA portion of the Thompson Icebreaker ( the season opener event ). Rumor has it that his throttle stuck wide open, which caused him to hit and touch wheels with another car going into the 3rd turn. Mind you, this track is 5/8's of a mile, so the straights are pretty long. When he hit the other car, it acted as a catapult, launching Shane's car into the air. It cleared the retaining wall and slammed into a large billboard, where the car got stuck. He was unresponsive when safety workers got to him, and they were performing CPR while trying to extract him from the car. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, though he more than likely died on impact.

RIP Shane, we'll miss you

[vince]

i was reading about this also a real shame in the article it also said there was another fatality at this track recently but didnt go in to specifics.i was at this track a couple of years ago.rip shane hammond

[GiveMeTimeMachinePlz]

It's true, about another fatality recently. It was a guy that I knew, one of the nicest people I have ever met. That was John Blewett III, and he died on August 16, 2007 during a Whelen Modified race in a crash that involved his own brother. They crashed in the first turn after a restart on lap 107 and somehow in all the chaos, Jimmy's ( John's little brother ) rear bumper broke loose and came through John's driver side window, and pierced his helmet. It was as freakish and horrible an accident as you can imagine. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about John and pray for his family....

RIP JB III
RIP Shane Hammond