Oops! GM Vp crashes ZR1 pace car

[Mystic ZR-1]

A GM VP crashed the ZR1 pace car on the pace
lap of the Detroit Indy Car race!
That's what happens when ya leave the hyphen out...
Check UTube for video!

[Riviera]

Yes I watched it. They keep replaying it during race.How embarrassing. The commentators cannot recall this ever happening before.

[Ccmano]

Lol... with the speed and power of this car, VP’s and celebrities have no business driving unless they have experience!


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[Mystic ZR-1]

Lol... with the speed and power of this car, VP’s and celebrities have no business driving unless they have experience!


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Same can be said about a few of the racecar drivers.... 😋🏁

[Young1]

I watch the video closely. It appears he came over the rise hit the gas because the tires are smoking and spinning while he's trying to control the drift by turning right but it kept on coming around. Bang. Cold tires can get you. I agree no business driving high-performance cars unless you had some experience with that car.

[RodB]

He should not have been driving a pace car. The pace car is suppose to keep the field tight to the start at 55 or 45 or whatever the course officials deem as safe. He was just hot dogging on a race track. There were times before the crash that he was nearly out of site of the field. I thought he was trying to get his lap back!! I’ll bet Indy car race officials will take pace driving more seriously now. At least the drivers didn’t drive into the debris field.


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[RussMcB]

<snip> The commentators cannot recall this ever happening before.I think Johnny Rutherford did it. Googled briefly and didn't find it, tho, so I may be mistaken.

Can you imagine what the internet would be like tonight if the pace car crash today had been a Mustang!? :-)

[Paul Workman]

Lol... with the speed and power of this car, VP’s and celebrities have no business driving unless they have experience!

Well, he won't be the first to out drive his abilities in that car!:-({|=

Question:
Wasn't his father, Lloyd Ruess, that played a hand in the C4 ZR-1 saga?? (Or was that a different Ruess?)

[rush91]

Did anyone see the oh crap look on his face?!!?? This had me laughing all afternoon.....Now I'm giving the guy the benefit of the doubt. He is the VP of GM product development mind you, so I'm sure he has driven some powerful cars. BUT.........BUT going as fast as he was, around that corner, he should of known what was next. He was pacing too fast, by the fact he almost caught the 2 seater Indy car. Came around the corner to fast, you can see the rear tires leave the ground, he looks up and sees the 2 seater.......that was some lovely television!!

[spork2367]

Lol... with the speed and power of this car, VP’s and celebrities have no business driving unless they have experience!


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From Fox News:

Along with his engineering background, Reuss is an accomplished racer who has driven pace cars at major events before. But Indy 500 champion Will Power told the Indianapolis Star (https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/motor/2018/06/03/pace-car-crashes-ahead-second-indycar-chevrolet-detroit-grand-prix/667651002/) that the turn Reuss crashed in on the Belle Isle street circuit is a tricky one, with a crest in the middle of it that can upset a vehicle.Reuss thanked well-wishers in a Facebook post that he also used to apologize for the gaffe:
"I have driven this course many many many times. I have paced this race in the wet, cold, hot, and calm. On [Corvette] Z06's, Grand Sports, and other things. It is never a casual thing for me, but an honor to be asked. Today I let down my friends, my family, Indycar, our city and my company. Sorry does not describe it. I want to thank our engineers for providing me the safety I know is the best in the world."

[Hog]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNoMcL5Zsw8


Driver was a lil sore upon egress, but he hid it well. He was afterall in the middle of a huge unplanned Chevrolet safety demonstration.


I would love to see a comparison of this exact event between the 2019 ZR1 and the mid engine C8. But no matter the drive config, once the WOW(Weight On Wheels) decreased coming off the rise, it was curtains regardless.

[WARP TEN]

As noted earlier, Mark Reuss is an experienced and professional driver (certified factory driver on the North course of Nurburgring, and head of development for Cadillac V series and others). He is a VP of GM, which is not a title given lightly to anyone. (Yes Paul, he is also the son of former GM president Lloyd Reuss). What bothered me about this situation is that when he got out of the car he does not have a race suit or helmet on. To me that seems very unprofessional and dangerous. Surprised they let him drive like that. F1 would not allow that. --Bob

[jss06c6]

So if he had the Nanny's on, why wouldn't the vehicle correct itself? I understand the slight lift off the track of the rear tires, but would think the system would register this as a loss of traction and adjust accordingly.. if, however, he was in full track mode, he's put himself in a no win situation. I was at Indy this year and the car paced well, but not the same track and not a grand prix race..

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[BigJohn]

Yes I watched it. They keep replaying it during race.How embarrassing. The commentators cannot recall this ever happening before.

1971 Indy 500 pace accident
1971 Challenger

Can not imagine the Press forgetting this!

[rush91]

1971 Indy 500 pace accident
1971 Challenger

Can not imagine the Press forgetting this!Exactly what I was thinking!!! Who could forget that mess...758475857586

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[Riviera]

Well they did. I quoted them exactly. To be fair, one of the commentators Scott Goodyear would have been about 12 years old in 1971. They were also live and not able to do a Google search.