Stewart-Ward video | Page 3 | Syracusefan.com

Stewart-Ward video

Having grown up in Ontario County I have been to that track on many occasions. My friend Ron was actually at the race and this is what he had to say:

"I was there and saw the whole thing kind of. Those turns are dark at that end of the track. I'm with you Tony had no intention on hitting Ward."
 
here guys check this out. Slo mo vid with sound clearly shows he turned the wheel right AND gunned it right BEFORE hitting him. This vid end up in the court case no doubt.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=C698ejUwG_M

Again I have no doubt he didn't want to hit him, but he probably wanted to scare him thinking there's no way the guy will allow himself to be that close to be hit, while Wards thinking theres no way he'll gun it and turn the car into him. If Stewart just stays the course he blows right by him.
I think your slo-mo confirms my suggestion that he turned right to avoid hitting him with his rear. Audio is too garbled to hear but the throttling occurs simultaneously with the front wheel right turn and likely had more to do with the "straightening" than anything Stewart could have done with the steering wheel. And it is indisputable that Ward clearly moved toward Stewart's car.
 
I don't think there's any question Stewart steered to the right, (by whatever method he was using to control the car). Cuseincincy suggested that the purpose of this was not to hit the guy with the front of the car but to get the back of the car behind Stewart rather than out to the side as it would normally be when making a turn in a sprint car race, so that the back of the car wouldn't hit Ward. But the was too close to Ward, especially as Ward continued to advance toward him. In other words, to the novice, it looks as if Stewart was turnign his car toward Ward but he may actually have been trying to evade him.

A tutorial on sprint cars:
think you guys are off. Read the comment from bmoccm in Ginnys link (who describes I'm assuming himself as a seasoned Sprint/Dirt driver) and it sums up what I'm saying :
http://www.motorsport.com/sprint/ne...river-who-was-killed-but-know-the-whole-story
 
I watched the video on my phone yesterday, I'm not going to watch it again. My thoughts-

When you ride that outside line, in these open wheel cars the berm can be your worst enemy.. You want to be able to ride that cushion, but if you get pushed into the berm you are going to go for a ride.

Going into turn 1, Tony had what looked to be a slower car riding the low side, causing him to move up to that middle line. Ward, on the outside would have saw that same car on the bottom, and would have known that Tony was going to try to take him on the outside. Which to me, someone who raced smaller versions of these cars in my younger days would have resulted in me either 1. checking up for a split second, and riding tonys ass around the slower car. or 2. checking up a little longer, trying to get to the low side of tony, hoping tony comes out of the corner high enough to leave room for me to go low of him, and pass the slower car high. (I'm just assuming that the car in front of these two was a touch slower, and Tony went into turn one expecting to pass and clear that car) As Tony took that middle lane, you can see his car start to drift high. There isnt much you can do about that, and still stay up to speed. So you ride it out. If I'm coming around a car on the outside, and that car starts to drift up, I'm checking up. Tony can hear Wards car, so he knows he's close, but doesnt know how close. I was always taught that the car ahead of you has the right of way. Ward stayed on the throttle, kept that high line, got into some loose stuff which sent him into the berm. I really dont see any evidence that shows they even touched tires. To me, this was a typical racing accident, and not something that should have resulted in getting out of the car, and confronting the driver on the track.

I pulled into the pits once, and threw my helmet. I was p!ssed, and was planning on heading over to the other drives pit, to have a talk. After I threw my helmet, I went to climb out of my car. My dad was there, and practically drug me out of the car. "A kid that looses his cool, has no business on a track.. plus, your mother just bought you that helmet". I've never gotten out of my car on the track, unless the safety crew told me to. My dad would have killed me. There are a million things going on under caution. Checking gauges, changing the position of the wing, changing suspension, checking out different lines on the track, trying to spot your dad in the pit grandstands to get one of the many hand signals we had. The last thing you need to worry about is somebody standing there. The only damage I noticed was a flat right rear. Should have sat in his car, got towed back, had the tire changed, and I'm sure they would have let him back on the track during the next caution.

So. now Ward is on the track. walking down the track. I mentioned the things you are dealing with going around the track under caution. The right side view is blocked pretty good by the wing. I'm 90% sure Tony didnt see him until it was too late. It does look like he hit the gas, which kicked the rear out, making it look like he turned to the right. I didnt watch the slow mo video, but I'm pretty sure the only reason it looks like he turned to the right, is because the rear end kicked out, the front tires stay where they are, and the rest of the car kicks to the right, when you let off, it straightens out.

Idk. I wasent there. This just seems like a freak accident that could have been avoided if the kid would have stayed in the car.
 
I think your slo-mo confirms my suggestion that he turned right to avoid hitting him with his rear. Audio is too garbled to hear but the throttling occurs simultaneously with the front wheel right turn and likely had more to do with the "straightening" than anything Stewart could have done with the steering wheel. And it is indisputable that Ward clearly moved toward Stewart's car.

I don't understand anyone making an argument based on sound from these videos. This wasn't shot on a professional camera with a boom mic that was focused just on Stewart's car. As someone just said on the radio here, that could have been any of the other cars downshifting because of the caution flag in between the camera and the accident. Sorry cuseregular, I know the point you are trying to make, and if Stewart was trying to show up this young kid, he should be punished for it, but these videos are just not nearly enough "evidence."
 
Having grown up in Ontario County I have been to that track on many occasions. My friend Ron was actually at the race and this is what he had to say:

"I was there and saw the whole thing kind of. Those turns are dark at that end of the track. I'm with you Tony had no intention on hitting Ward."

I grew up going to a small track outside of Harrisburgh, PA called Silver Spring. It's since been bulldozed but that and most every other track I've been to (~ a dozen) have little to no lights in the corners. The fact that there aren't more accidents than there are is simply astounding and what makes dirt racing so damn interesting to watch.
 
I don't understand anyone making an argument based on sound from these videos. This wasn't shot on a professional camera with a boom mic that was focused just on Stewart's car. As someone just said on the radio here, that could have been any of the other cars downshifting because of the caution flag in between the camera and the accident. Sorry cuseregular, I know the point you are trying to make, and if Stewart was trying to show up this young kid, he should be punished for it, but these videos are just not nearly enough "evidence."

no downshifting in these cars. Pedal down, car goes fast. That's it. As these cars run caution laps, they are constantly punching the throttle, kicking the car sideways. Keeps the tires warm. The reving sound heard on the video could have been any of the 20 some cars on the track.
 
no downshifting in these cars. Pedal down, car goes fast. That's it. As these cars run caution laps, they are constantly punching the throttle, kicking the car sideways. Keeps the tires warm. The reving sound heard on the video could have been any of the 20 some cars on the track.

Exactly what I meant to say. You couldn't figure that out?

By the way, text me the picture of me and my fish if you still have it!
 
no downshifting in these cars. Pedal down, car goes fast. That's it. As these cars run caution laps, they are constantly punching the throttle, kicking the car sideways. Keeps the tires warm. The reving sound heard on the video could have been any of the 20 some cars on the track.
not with this being the only vid clip don't think it's any new one (meaning a new rev of the engine from someone else). People at the track right there said it was TS car that reved not anyone else all who were slowing down. On that vid at regular speed it's timing is right when the same rev up was heard so think it has to be his car in combo with what people right there have said.

I know you don't want to watch it again but you have to if you want to see what's up. Now as you point out maybe the in the caution TS is doing all you said and holy sees the guy running down and reacts out of fear and not of malice to hit or to scare him, so maybe it was just bad luck and bad choice to do the one thing that brings him closer to Ward. I'd conclude this for any other person, with Stewart I'm not so fast to give this benefit of the doubt. Regardless this piece of tape will attempted to be used as the money shot for the plaintiffs.
 
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I'd conclude this for any other person, with Stewart I'm not so fast to give this benefit of the doubt. Regardless this piece of tape will attempted to be used as the money shot for the plaintiffs.

I have to believe Stewart's attorneys are already hard at working putting an offer together to cut this one off at the pass.
 
Why were they going so fast. Shouldn't the race have been under caution?
 
Honestly watching that video a few times I think ward got hit by Stewarts car right behind the front tire and got sucked under. Might have pulled the car to the right giving the impression he turned into him. Heck maybe he hit the gas real quick to regain his slide. Then realized it was a person not a pot hole in the track which these dirt tracks have tons of.
 
If those cars are running, they don't go any slower then 40ish mph.

Low gear they could but the tires would go cold and the engine would try and melt itself without ample air flow.
 
Just look at the steering input into and out of a corner. Seems both are pointing right. (I know the Stewart incident was under yellow) but I assume it would be the same ?

 
think you guys are off. Read the comment from bmoccm in Ginnys link (who describes I'm assuming himself as a seasoned Sprint/Dirt driver) and it sums up what I'm saying :
http://www.motorsport.com/sprint/ne...river-who-was-killed-but-know-the-whole-story

Not sure how that article contradicts anything that i was saying:

"It appears Stewart saw him at the last second, and swerved, but still hit Ward hard enough to toss him like a rag doll at least 20 feet down the track. An autopsy is pending, but it seems likely Ward suffered a broken neck, though he still had his helmet and head restraint device on, but the device only works when you are strapped into your car. Stewart stopped about a hundred feet down the track. Emergency workers were there in second. Indeed, Stewart may have hit the gas, but you steer sprint cars with the throttle more than with the steering wheel. The idea that he accelerated trying to hit Ward is beyond the pale.

How could this happen?
I have driven winged sprint cars, and as you can imagine, visibility to the side is horrible. Ward was wearing a mostly black fire suit and a black helmet. The idea that any driver would purposely hit another over what was a comparatively minor, that’s-racing incident is hard to swallow. That Tony Stewart would do it on purpose? That is unthinkable."

The article does bring up the subject of head restraints a guy interviewed on the local news who is both a former dirt car driver and lawyer pointed out that head restraints restrict side-to-side head motion and thus the driver's peripheral vision.
 
Just look at the steering input into and out of a corner. Seems both are pointing right. (I know the Stewart incident was under yellow) but I assume it would be the same ?


When you watch that video, notice how far down the the wing comes on the driver's right side and estimate how little peripheral vision he would have on that side.
 
Not sure how that article contradicts anything that i was saying:

"It appears Stewart saw him at the last second, and swerved, but still hit Ward hard enough to toss him like a rag doll at least 20 feet down the track. An autopsy is pending, but it seems likely Ward suffered a broken neck, though he still had his helmet and head restraint device on, but the device only works when you are strapped into your car. Stewart stopped about a hundred feet down the track. Emergency workers were there in second. Indeed, Stewart may have hit the gas, but you steer sprint cars with the throttle more than with the steering wheel. The idea that he accelerated trying to hit Ward is beyond the pale.

How could this happen?
I have driven winged sprint cars, and as you can imagine, visibility to the side is horrible. Ward was wearing a mostly black fire suit and a black helmet. The idea that any driver would purposely hit another over what was a comparatively minor, that’s-racing incident is hard to swallow. That Tony Stewart would do it on purpose? That is unthinkable."

The article does bring up the subject of head restraints a guy interviewed on the local news who is both a former dirt car driver and lawyer pointed out that head restraints restrict side-to-side head motion and thus the driver's peripheral vision.
re read my post. Wasn't referring to the article but the comment below from the sprint car driver bccom found down below in the comments.
 
When you watch that video, notice how far down the the wing comes on the driver's right side and estimate how little peripheral vision he would have on that side.
at full speed you're right, at the start at low speeds the visual fields are much better.
 
Short of a confession, there is absolutely no chance that a prosecutor could overcome the reasonable doubt standard. We shouldn't be wasting our time with criminal discussions.
Agreed. Case is a DA's worst nightmare...
 
Having grown up in Ontario County I have been to that track on many occasions. My friend Ron was actually at the race and this is what he had to say:

"I was there and saw the whole thing kind of. Those turns are dark at that end of the track. I'm with you Tony had no intention on hitting Ward."
No offense but racing expertise aside no one knows what anyone's intent was...
 

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