Slow Down Speed Racer 🚦

In the world of NASCAR, fans had a shocking moment this week with the crash of NASCAR driver Ryan Newman at the Daytona 500. The crash happened Monday, during the final laps. Newman was leading the race when he "skidded out", (Some fans say he was pushed from behind causing his car to lose control). Newman slammed into a wall and flipped over multiple times. While his car being flipped around, he was then hit by another car from behind, causing his car to fly into the air, slide on its roof and catch on fire while still upside down. The Daytona 500 is a serious race taken by many of drivers and bring stress to every driver on the track. This brought up a similar incident that happened in 2001, that killed NASCAR Legend Dale Earnhardt. Some may say it's the curse of the Daytona. Dale was killed a couple days after Ryan's crash in the same corner, and towards the end of the race. Dale's crash sparked the change to have cars changed, to protect drivers encase of a dangerous crash. Thankfully for Ryan he was released from the hospital two days after and was reunited with his daughters.

Although this accident did not end with a fatality; it has shaken the world, (Nasar fan or not). What is the safety for these drivers, and is the sport on the rise for being dangerous? As a Nascar fan, I see two sides to this story. On one hand, it shows how dangerous the sport really is. Many people don’t realize these cars are racing at a HIGH rate of speed, and one wrong move, you're in the wall, or in on your roof. So much can wrong, but that’s the love we as fans enjoy. We want that need for speed and enjoy watching these cars take off. The positive to this situation is it did bring love and attention to the sport. Random people were talking about Nascar, especially in a city that see the world of automotive sports as “Not important”.