The Jules Bianchi accident

George Anderson5 said:This is truly harrowing. The driver was tossed about violently; if he manages to pull through this, he deserves nothing less than total admiration.
I can only hope he possesses the inner strength required for such a recovery.
Furthermore, the footage speaks volumes. One has to wonder at the competence of a race official acting with such frantic instability, waving a green flag at entirely inappropriate moments.

The official waved it exactly

with a yellow flag right in front of the crash site, then the green one immediately after.

That green flag marks where the accident zone ends—it was like 20-25 feet past the wreck.

Standard procedure. The official isn't even at fault here. He used the right flags.

It’s on the race organizers for not having cranes stationed along the track, and Charlie who didn't mandate them—instead, they just let them drag the cars out with construction equipment.

ruggedhawk20 said:The official waved it exactly

with a yellow flag right in front of the crash site, then the green one immediately after.

That green flag marks where the accident zone ends—it was like 20-25 feet past the wreck.

Standard procedure. The official isn't even at fault here. He used the right flags.

It’s on the race organizers for not having cranes stationed along the track, and Charlie who didn't mandate them—instead, they just let them drag the cars out with construction equipment.

If they had called the SC because of Sutilov's car, we’d probably all be whining about how they call the SC for every little thing and why they're protecting racing... No one would have predicted an outcome like this.
Secondly, using an excavator is just cheaper than a crane or a lift, and they're easier to move around. We live in a world ruled by the bottom line... the only logical solution is the cheapest one.
Thirdly, there was heavy rain and the track was wet. The car was sliding, but it was moving, and as spectators, we want to see movement... you always wonder what happens to those rain tires when they switch to intermediates almost immediately anyway (which is what happened here).

When you add it all up, you get what happened today. Generally speaking, nobody is really to blame... you can't point a finger at anyone with 100% certainty. Because you can't.

That video of Stravićan... gave me chills.

I honestly can't wrap my head around how he managed to reach that excavator so fast. There was sand everywhere, he was braking before the turn, and yet—wtf.

this photo tells you everything you need to know

1) the officials were waving those flags perfectly—I mean, look, the steward booth is clearly right behind the crash site
2) Bianchi didn't slide off into the gravel, he went straight onto the asphalt—just like how the cover explained it to Mary

Jacob White49 said:Video

http://esporte.uol.com.br/f1/ultimas...-de-suzuka.htm

Goddammit...
Good grief, that loader had to be carrying at least two or three tons in the back, yet Digel picked it up like it was nothing. 😱
Man, that was some insane speed. What a horrific wreck. 😢

Maybe I’m just being dense or my eyes aren't what they used to be, but if that red dot marks where the accident actually happened, and assuming he was traveling in a straight line—which, you know, is usually how things go when you lose control—he would have spent most of his momentum flying through the gravel trap before finally ending up in that excavator sitting right on the asphalt. 🤔

What a complete and utter string of bad luck. 😢
Bianchi, you absolute legend... 🙂
The race itself doesn't even matter right now—it was a great one, honestly, really solid—but it’s totally irrelevant compared to this.

You hit the nail on the head, Joe. Looking at that clip alongside the image you posted with that yellow sector highlighted, it’s pretty obvious that Bianchi hit a patch of aquaplaning right in the dead center of that zone. After that, he was essentially just a passenger for those few seconds while sliding through the gravel before finally hitting the excavator.
In a scenario like this, brakes are completely irrelevant—it doesn't matter if they can drop a car from 180 mph to 40 mph in a heartbeat.

Nobody has bothered to tell me where the damn onboard footage is; those clips would clear up a lot of this mess.

I just hope his cameras didn't malfunction, much like how Senna's did at Indianapolis before that impact.

@ ruggedhawk20, I wasn't aware the Donelly call was invalid; I caught a replay and it looked to me like he managed to pull away.

If Bianchi survives this nightmare, he’ll never be the same driver again—assuming he even recovers enough to get back behind the wheel.

After the incident at Barber Motorsports, Berger was never quite at his peak again, and he admitted as much himself.

Let’s just pray this turns out okay for Jules. The kid was pushing hard, driving with real grit, and possessed genuine talent. It’s a massive tragedy.

That exit remains a total mystery to me. Why hit the excavator at such high speed? He really should have scrubbed more velocity, if nothing else by braking before the turn on the track itself. The whole thing looks surreal; it seems like he just flew off, similar to what happened to Senna at Indianapolis, and then lost all steering control after hitting the gravel, flying off again. Makes no sense.

I shall make use of this GIF I stumbled upon while browsing another forum:


Furthermore, I have found several images which clearly illustrate the moment his helmet makes contact with the vehicle, though one is left wondering just how much force was involved in such an impact:



This piece of heavy machinery appears to be a CAT 910H, and if my memory serves me correctly—though I would certainly welcome a correction from anyone more knowledgeable—its weight exceeds six tons.

While traversing other discussion boards, I also encountered some information—unsupported by official sources, I am afraid—suggesting that Mika Salo, acting as a race steward, remarked that Bianchi was traveling at speeds in excess of 200 mph at the moment he left the track; there was even a suggestion that the fault lay with him for failing to decelerate despite the yellow flags, which appeared to be double yellows. Speaking of which, Autosport published an article back in March (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/113153) that delves into the complexities of yellow flags and the requirement to slow down on the circuit: essentially, the track is divided into twenty sectors, and under a yellow flag, drivers are required to reduce their pace by two-tenths of a second relative to their best lap time, whereas under double yellows, they must slow by as much as half a second.
It is alleged that at the point of impact, his speed was approximately 50 miles/h. This particular GIF is from an application that displays live telemetry:
http://www.gfycat.com/TediousConside...egianelkhound# (though, naturally, one must question the reliability of such software)

I can't believe it—it’s like some giant magnet just yanked him straight into the backside of that machine.

graniteharbor502 said:I shall make use of this GIF I stumbled upon while browsing another forum:


Furthermore, I have found several images which clearly illustrate the moment his helmet makes contact with the vehicle, though one is left wondering just how much force was involved in such an impact:



This piece of heavy machinery appears to be a CAT 910H, and if my memory serves me correctly—though I would certainly welcome a correction from anyone more knowledgeable—its weight exceeds six tons.

While traversing other discussion boards, I also encountered some information—unsupported by official sources, I am afraid—suggesting that Mika Salo, acting as a race steward, remarked that Bianchi was traveling at speeds in excess of 200 mph at the moment he left the track; there was even a suggestion that the fault lay with him for failing to decelerate despite the yellow flags, which appeared to be double yellows. Speaking of which, Autosport published an article back in March (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/113153) that delves into the complexities of yellow flags and the requirement to slow down on the circuit: essentially, the track is divided into twenty sectors, and under a yellow flag, drivers are required to reduce their pace by two-tenths of a second relative to their best lap time, whereas under double yellows, they must slow by as much as half a second.
It is alleged that at the point of impact, his speed was approximately 50 miles/h. This particular GIF is from an application that displays live telemetry:
http://www.gfycat.com/TediousConside...egianelkhound# (though, naturally, one must question the reliability of such software)

I honestly thought maybe he had enough time to brace himself—you know, tuck his head or something--😢 but instead of a front-end impact when he stopped, he just gets smacked in the head immediately.😢

I mean, when you really sit back and look at it, it’s just mind-blowing that he’s even still with us... that footage is absolutely brutal, honestly just horrific 😢

Hang in there, Bianchi 🙂

Dammit, LdM is actually claiming Bianchi should’ve been behind the wheel of a Ferrari back in 2015...
I mean, seriously, what kind of curse is following anyone trying to land a seat with that team? First it was Kubica, and now it’s Bianchi. 😢

But honestly, what really bugs me about that footage is that damn loader and that hunk of metal sitting there meant for towing or whatever hellish purpose it serves...

I'm worried he hit his head—or rather, his helmet—right against that chunk of iron. 😢
You can even see it in the photo; something definitely slammed into the floor pan because the paint is clearly scraped off right there. 😢

stormybadger8 said:Dammit, LdM is actually claiming Bianchi should’ve been behind the wheel of a Ferrari back in 2015...
I mean, seriously, what kind of curse is following anyone trying to land a seat with that team? First it was Kubica, and now it’s Bianchi. 😢

But honestly, what really bugs me about that footage is that damn loader and that hunk of metal sitting there meant for towing or whatever hellish purpose it serves...

I'm worried he hit his head—or rather, his helmet—right against that chunk of iron. 😢
You can even see it in the photo; something definitely slammed into the floor pan because the paint is clearly scraped off right there. 😢

If you examine the GIF above or just look at those still images, it becomes quite apparent that the airbox collided with that section of the chassis.

Exactly. The helmet slammed right into the back end.

If that helmet had made contact with that section of steel, Bianchi would have ended up just like Tom Pryce.

The only reason we can even discuss the possibility of survival is because his head hit that angled part instead. Otherwise, that piece of heavy machinery acts like a counterweight that’s usually part of the integrated track assembly; if you walk into one of those while it's moving, you're looking at a fatal injury.

So, I was just reading what Gary had to say about these flags:

I’ve been saying since 2010 that flag discipline is deteriorating, and it’s deteriorating fast. And no one is making properly vigorous efforts to re-establish it.

It seems like at every single driver briefing, the guys just badger Charlie for specific numbers—stuff like, “hey, how fast am I allowed to go under yellows?” or “what about double yellows?” They even ask things like, “am I going to get penalized if I’m 0.2 seconds slower through this sector compared to my last lap?” I guess they just want everything spelled out for them.

Full post over here: http://formerf1doc.wordpress.com/

According to Wikipedia, diffuse axonal injury (DAI) stands out as one of the most frequent—and honestly, most heartbreaking—kinds of traumatic brain injury out there.

The reality is quite grim: it often leads to a coma, where more than 90% of people suffering from severe DAI never actually regain consciousness. Even for those lucky enough to wake up, they are usually left facing significant, long-term impairments.

It’s just not right, plain and simple. One ought to maintain a sense of optimism, but I find my own reserves are starting to dwindle. It’s a peculiar sensation, really—the desire to be proven wrong. Sometimes, you actually find yourself wishing you were mistaken.

Here is what Hartstein is saying:

http://formerf1doc.wordpress.com/1...axonal-injury/