https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2wpdJWOXo8
For this wild drag racing flashback footage, we go to this dramatic 2014 Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event, where racers Monte Green and Don Kritzky were both involved in near-fatal wrecks.
It's hard to tell exactly what went wrong at first. It's clear that Green loses control of his vehicle just moments after a fast, clean start. The long, lean dragster tumbles towards the finish line before coming to a rest. Green was treated and released at the scene. Kritzky's dragster also went out of control -- possibly getting tangled in Green's parachute or happening during his attempt to swerve out of the way of the rolling vehicle -- and crashed near the finish line. Kritzky was alert and conscious following the incident and was treated at the North Memorial Medical Center in Minneapolis.
Some reports claimed that the track condition led to a lot of skating throughout the day, while others believe Green attempted to over-correct his vehicle's drift and headed into the wall.
Given that these vehicles can reach speeds of over 300 miles per hour in just a 1,000-foot run, it's clear that a lot of things can happen in just a few seconds, and at the slightest error.
The whole thing happened during a side-by-side race in Top Dragster eliminations. Thankfully, safety teams were on the scene and mobilized immediately once the vehicles stopped their fiery gymnastics down the drag strip. You can see workers put out some pretty scary-looking flames as Kritzy's vehicle rips into pieces. It's almost impossible to believe that either driver got out with their life, but thankfully, both did.
As if you need more proof that drag racing was no joke, this video should probably do it for you.
This post was originally published on April 28, 2017.