Deer 1... BMW 3 Series 0 at VIR

[iambhooper]

I do not know who, or which car, but my father works for VIR and told me that a BMW (3 series race prepped car... black 27 or something) hit a deer between start and the braking marker on the front straight at VIR today... at full throttle... about 140mph! YIKES! The car is totaled, and the deer was punted some considerable distance off of the track.

So, this brings up a concern I've had for some time, about deer at VIR.

hoop

[MIKEGTR]

ouch is the driver ok??? what chassis was it? e30, e36 or e46???

too bad about the car... hope the driver is ok

Mike

[Knestis]

I worry less about wildlife at VIR than many places (Summit, for example) because at least there is some distance between the track and woods. Still - a huge suck moment.

K

[JeffYoung]

I was there for a club day in the Exige. Happened in my run group, I had just come in to switch drivers.

I didn't see it happen but my family did. The deer hit was violent. Driver was ok, happened right before the brake markers. Car did look totalled -- it wasn't just a 3 series, it was a brand new E46 M3. Hood destroyed, car bent bad.

Really nasty.

They warned us in the morning about deer, and about a pack of hunting dogs that had gotten loose. Apparently, deer have been a big problem this fall at VIR. THe deer came from Nascar (Turn 3), crossed the grassy area between the front straight and turn 2-3, and jumped the concrete wall onto the track.

Again, really nasty.

[iambhooper]

Jeff, thanks for the clarification on the incident. Dad had said it was an M3, but I didn't want to report anything right or wrong. So if it was a new race preped M3... that was not a cheap accident.

There was a deer cross track on the front straight, at nite, during the 13 hour race. Several years ago, after the last event during either an SVRA or an HSR event, 2 dear were seen in the climbing essess. Best part about that event, the Formula 1 and 5000 rides had just finished the day.

During March Memories, and again during the Double SARRC weekend, we had numerous turkey sightings.

hoop

[CaptainWho]

At the Petit le Mans in 2000 or so a deer got on track during the race. It came out of the gate by the T10 flag station (from the infield) and crossed the gravel pit on driver's right, crossed the track in the middle of a bunch of cars, and when up and over the hill toward T11. I don't know where it went after that. I've got a series of about four pictures of it somewhere. Luckily no one hit it, but one of my photos shows it crossing the track as a 911 goes past just a handful of feet away.

A few years ago, during a practice session (I think) for the AMA Super Bikes at Road Atlanta, one of the riders hit a deer in The Esses and basically cut it in half. The rider wasn't hurt, and rode back to the pits to be hosed down and get the bike inspected and was back out in later sessions. There is supposed to be video of this incident floating around.

[JeffYoung]

Hoop, I think they are going to hve to do something to address this. The track workers said that this has gotten worse adn worse since the track opened. Not sure what CAN be done other than a fence a la President Bush.

Maybe "Deermen" patrols in teh woods? Black helicopters?

Seriously, something to consider at VIR. Note that this one happened in a VERY unexpected way --deer jumped over the INSIDE concrete wall on teh front straight headed across the track and away from it. You'd expect the deer to be track left, it was track right and the BMW never saw it I think.

[m glassburner]

I know most of us here have a windshield in front of us....but what about the open wheelers ??
Last I heard christiano de matto (sp?) is planning on making a return next year

[charrbq]

Only a few years ago, two deer came bounding over the fence at Road Atlanta from outside the track between the old 9 and 10. They jumped the fence on both sides and ran through the woods, across the infield, and over to the other side of the course between 2 and 3. One made the jump over both fences and across the track, but the other became confused by the cars and ran the length of the fence between the two turns. It finally made one jump onto the track, ran the fence some more and then jumped it. All this was going on during the qualifying for the fast plastic and winged things...as I remember it.

The workers did the only thing that made sense at the time...covered the area with yellow, white, and debris flags. There's not much you can do to prevent that from happening as long as we have to hide our race tracks in the woods away from human life forms. I'd rather take a chance on an animal invading our space (vice-versa) than dealing with people bulding next to "my" race track and then complaining about the noise.

[dj10]

Damn, bet you couldn't even get hamburger out of the deer.

[Knestis]

We had a Formula Ford driver and a karter killed at Westwood in BC by deer strikes , back in the '80s before the track closed. There's not much that CAN be done without getting pretty extreme. If you look at the "deer fences" on the interstate in Washington State, they have to be like 12 feet high to actually work.

K

[iambhooper]

problem is, it's deer season, and Caswell County is a big hunting area. in addition, i believe that the staff have been given permision to spend their off hours on premise... if you get the hint

[ddewhurst]

***A few years ago, during a practice session (I think) for the AMA Super Bikes at Road Atlanta, one of the riders hit a deer in The Esses and basically cut it in half. The rider wasn't hurt, and rode back to the pits to be hosed down and get the bike inspected and was back out in later sessions. There is supposed to be video of this incident floating around.***

Ya, sure.............. You know the ol saying about SHOW me the money. In this case SHOW me the video.

[C. Ludwig]

***A few years ago, during a practice session (I think) for the AMA Super Bikes at Road Atlanta, one of the riders hit a deer in The Esses and basically cut it in half. The rider wasn't hurt, and rode back to the pits to be hosed down and get the bike inspected and was back out in later sessions. There is supposed to be video of this incident floating around.***

Ya, sure.............. You know the ol saying about SHOW me the money. In this case SHOW me the video.
[/b]

It ain't AMA but it's a deer cut in two by a bike that keeps on rolling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOkYu04R_kQ...related&search=

[Racerlinn]

It's not just the picturesque (sp?) tracks that have this issue. Couple years ago we had deer get inside the fence in the area from T9 to T12 at IRP between qual sessions. Corner workers had to "shoo" it as well as possible until it made the jump over one of the 8 foot fences, fortunately not toward the paddock as it was heading at one point. That may have been the same day that a goose decided to plant itself about 5 foot of the line just past T8 during a SM qual session. Sat there for many laps, enjoying a close-up view of the girly-cars going by until it got bored and walked away. Amazingly, it was about the only thing that the SM's didn't hit that weekend...

[Bill Miller]

Deer used to be a big problem at Bridgehampton.

[CaptainWho]

Ya, sure.............. You know the ol saying about SHOW me the money. In this case SHOW me the video.
[/b]

I haven't seen it, but I've heard the story from several eye witnesses to the incident and at least one person who has seen the video.

[ddewhurst]

I see the deer making two spins on the ground & the Lone Ranger rides off into the sunset after half his cycle is left on the ground. Good stuff

[Wreckerboy]

Deer were a big problem at Summit during the FATT prior to the recent EMRA weekend on 11/18-19. Apparently two deer were struck, and one managed to catch and destroy two cars in the attempt.

The last few times we've been there over the last two years the dusk ride from the track into town has become very scary because of the huge number of deer that are there now. This time we watched one run right through 50 MPH traffic while coming from Inwood in the light afternoon. Last year, while leaving the track we actually stopped and waited for one to decide which way he or she was going, watched it go into the woods, only to have it turn and dart right into the van.

I prefer my stressful moments on the track, please.

[NutDriverRighty]

In regard to the deer strike on the motorcycle at Road Atlanta, I thought it was a Kevin Schwantz riding school instructor who did it. By my understanding, it happened in the dip/esses between T4 and T5. A Panoz racing school mechanic who saw the video told me about it.

Scott