By Ken de la Bastide
CNHI News Service
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The tragic death of Peter Lenz at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway prior to a motorcycle race has raised the question of how old a teenager should be to compete.
Lenz, 13, died after he crashed during the warm-up lap for a United States Grand Prix Union event and was then struck by a 12-year-old rider.
It was an unfortunate accident that may or may not have been avoided. Lenz was not a novice rider; he was a nine-time national champion and had attended several training schools.
There was an incident on Saturday at Anderson Speedway that showed that officials in charge of such events take numerous safety precautions.
For the first time, young drivers, most under the age of 18, competed in a Bandoleros race on the full quarter-mile, high-banked oval. Lap times were in the high 16- to low 17-second range.
On the next-to-last lap, three of the drivers came off the fourth corner three-wide, resulting in one of the cars flipping down the front straight and landing upright. The first thing I noticed when the other drivers exited their cars was they were wearing the Hans device, a head and neck restraint.
Officials said the Hans device was mandatory for all drivers under the age of 16. A noteworthy safety measure, one that is not inexpensive, taken to insure the young drivers are not seriously injured.
The Hans device became mandatory in almost all forms of motor racing in the past decade.
There will be lots of discussion and debate about how young a driver should be to compete. Youngsters start racing quarter midgets and motocross at a very young age with officials always making safety the top priority.
Over the years, child athletes from the lowest levels through high school have either died or suffered serious injury playing football, baseball, hockey and basketball.
I would contend the use of aluminum baseball bats present more of a danger to young baseball players than a youngster competing in motorcycle races. Aluminum bats have not been banned because of the high cost of replacing wooden bats that can break.
Adults need to ensure all sports that youngsters are competing in are as safe as possible. If there wasn’t sanctioned events with safety rules, the competition would continue but without any thought given to the danger to the participants and the need for safety measures.
In other racing news
u This is another big weekend in Indianapolis with the NHRA U.S. Nationals at O’Reilly Raceway Park starting on Friday and ending on Monday. The Friday night event is always unique because it takes place at night, and the flames shooting from the exhaust pipes are impressive.
u Anderson Speedway is hosting the U.S. Air Force sponsored “Night of Thrills” with racing in a variety of unique events.
Contact Ken de la Bastide: 454-8580 or ken.delabastide @kokomotribune.com.
