MINI at Targa Newfoundland 2008
#4
10-09-2008, 04:53 AM
The driver, Jim Kenzie and his co-pilot Brian are both completely fine. Here is the full article form the Toronto Star...
Targa Newfoundland - a sad end... by Jim Kenzie
***
In four Targa Newfoundland rallies, I haven't put a mark on our 2004 Mini Cooper S JCW. Still haven't.
In the fifth Targa, I didn't put "a'' mark on the car - more like several million marks, unfortunately.
Coming back from Leading Tickles, I took a 159 km/h bend at about 160 km/h, which launched the car down an embankment and into the trees.
From the damage, it looks like the right front wheel caught in the gravel, dug in, flipped the car end-over-end, and it landed on the upper left rear corner, turning it into a replica of a Mini El Camino.
It then landed wheels-down in a grove of saplings, maybe three cm thick, all too close to a swift-flowing river.
Brian was alert and fine, but because I had obviously been unconscious for a few moments, they decided to take me to the hospital in Grand Falls for evaluation. Apart from the siren making 'way more noise than was necessary, and a hint of nausea, we got there in short order with me in decent shape.
The staff there was quick, efficient, and - as you would expect from Newfoundlanders - friendly.
I was released and driven back to the hotel in Gander.
I feel so badly for having wrecked it, and for having let the team down.
Everyone from Lindsay Duffield, president of BMW Canada, to Stephen McDonnell, head of Mini Canada, to Brian Bourbonniere, crew chief Rob Dexter, our mechanic Mark Krajnac, my fellow competitors, Targa officials, friends and family - they all said variations on "that's racing", and that the car was metal, glass, rubber and plastic - the important thing was that Brian and I were OK.
True enough, I guess.
But our goal was to finish and finish well, and we did not, because I made a mistake.
Among the amazing things we learned from the crash was how strong the car is, augmented for sure by the incredible roll cage that Frank and Dan Sprongl of Four Star Motorsports in Georgetown Ontario built for us. Despite the terrible pounding the car took, the cage didn't budge a bit. The five-point harnesses held. The helmets did their job, although they're toast now (after a biggie like this, a helmet has to be discarded).
Our rally was over 'way too soon. The entire team stayed on to help the finishers celebrate their success.
My heartfelt thanks to so many people. To Brian Bourbonniere, the best right-seat guy in the field, for putting up with me all these years, and for orchestrating my extraction. To Andrew Comrie-Picard and Jen Horsey, for stopping to assist. To the paramedics and staff at Grand Falls Hospital, whose names I sadly did not get. To Rob Dexter, Mark Krajnac and everyone at BMW/MINI Canada, for their unfailing support.
To all the Targa staff, for setting and enforcing safety regulations with respect to equipment, procedures, and on-site medical support staff. As they say, 'human exhaust emissions' happen - the purpose of precautions like these is to turn a potential tragedy into a mere incident.
And thanks to countless fellow competitors, friends and family who sent their best wishes.
I'll be thinking about this for a long, long, time.
Just as my favourite charity SMARTRISK says, when you're going to indulge in potentially dangerous behaviour, then among other things "buckle up" and "wear the gear".
The organizers of all motorsport events demand that competitors equip their cars and their personages with safety equipment appropriate to the event.
In our case, we went above and beyond.
First, all Targa cars must have roll cages. But our roll cage was built by Frank and Dan Sprongl of Four Star Motorsports in Georgetown Ontario. These guys have (a) been national and international rallying champions for ever, and (b) have had their share of big crashes, including one last year which has at least temporarily put Dan out of action. They know a thing or two about roll cages.
I have had several American competitors examine our cage, and comment on its design and the fabrication skills that clearly went into it. If you're going to have a biggie like we did, you want a Sprongl cage on your side.
From this photo, you can see how crunched the back end of our car was. But the damage stops right where the cage begins. The doors open and latch. The windshield, which is glued to the body shell in this and most modern cars, is not even cracked.
That's one tough little car.
Second, our seat belts are full five-point harnesses, as required by the rules. Any racer will tell you the last thing you do before starting off is tug on those shoulder straps one more time. I also do it again any time there is a bit of a straight stretch.
Third, both Brian and I had new-last-year Bell helmets. We think Bell is the best name in the business, although their products are expensive. As the old joke goes, if you have a $150 head, buy a $150 helmet.
Fourth, although the Head and Neck Support (HANS) device is not yet mandatory for Targa Newfoundland (rumour has it that it will be for next year, and it should be), we both had one, me for the second year, Brian for the first. After seeing what happened to us - i.e., nothing - I can't imagine anyone not wearing one.
You never know what contribution any particular component of the safety system might have made the difference. But you try to put the odds in your favour.
And we do know that you only get one crash per lifetime which needs a HANS device if you don't have one. OK, Dale Earnhardt didn't even appear to have his helmet done up, but if he had AND had been wearing a HANS device, he'd still be racing.
So, lucky?
No. If we had been lucky I would have made the corner, we would have finished the rally and probably carted home another nice trophy.
Divine intervention? Sorry. Not buying that either.
Just playing it smart.
Targa Newfoundland - a sad end... by Jim Kenzie
***
In four Targa Newfoundland rallies, I haven't put a mark on our 2004 Mini Cooper S JCW. Still haven't.
In the fifth Targa, I didn't put "a'' mark on the car - more like several million marks, unfortunately.
Coming back from Leading Tickles, I took a 159 km/h bend at about 160 km/h, which launched the car down an embankment and into the trees.
From the damage, it looks like the right front wheel caught in the gravel, dug in, flipped the car end-over-end, and it landed on the upper left rear corner, turning it into a replica of a Mini El Camino.
It then landed wheels-down in a grove of saplings, maybe three cm thick, all too close to a swift-flowing river.
Brian was alert and fine, but because I had obviously been unconscious for a few moments, they decided to take me to the hospital in Grand Falls for evaluation. Apart from the siren making 'way more noise than was necessary, and a hint of nausea, we got there in short order with me in decent shape.
The staff there was quick, efficient, and - as you would expect from Newfoundlanders - friendly.
I was released and driven back to the hotel in Gander.
I feel so badly for having wrecked it, and for having let the team down.
Everyone from Lindsay Duffield, president of BMW Canada, to Stephen McDonnell, head of Mini Canada, to Brian Bourbonniere, crew chief Rob Dexter, our mechanic Mark Krajnac, my fellow competitors, Targa officials, friends and family - they all said variations on "that's racing", and that the car was metal, glass, rubber and plastic - the important thing was that Brian and I were OK.
True enough, I guess.
But our goal was to finish and finish well, and we did not, because I made a mistake.
Among the amazing things we learned from the crash was how strong the car is, augmented for sure by the incredible roll cage that Frank and Dan Sprongl of Four Star Motorsports in Georgetown Ontario built for us. Despite the terrible pounding the car took, the cage didn't budge a bit. The five-point harnesses held. The helmets did their job, although they're toast now (after a biggie like this, a helmet has to be discarded).
Our rally was over 'way too soon. The entire team stayed on to help the finishers celebrate their success.
My heartfelt thanks to so many people. To Brian Bourbonniere, the best right-seat guy in the field, for putting up with me all these years, and for orchestrating my extraction. To Andrew Comrie-Picard and Jen Horsey, for stopping to assist. To the paramedics and staff at Grand Falls Hospital, whose names I sadly did not get. To Rob Dexter, Mark Krajnac and everyone at BMW/MINI Canada, for their unfailing support.
To all the Targa staff, for setting and enforcing safety regulations with respect to equipment, procedures, and on-site medical support staff. As they say, 'human exhaust emissions' happen - the purpose of precautions like these is to turn a potential tragedy into a mere incident.
And thanks to countless fellow competitors, friends and family who sent their best wishes.
I'll be thinking about this for a long, long, time.
Just as my favourite charity SMARTRISK says, when you're going to indulge in potentially dangerous behaviour, then among other things "buckle up" and "wear the gear".
The organizers of all motorsport events demand that competitors equip their cars and their personages with safety equipment appropriate to the event.
In our case, we went above and beyond.
First, all Targa cars must have roll cages. But our roll cage was built by Frank and Dan Sprongl of Four Star Motorsports in Georgetown Ontario. These guys have (a) been national and international rallying champions for ever, and (b) have had their share of big crashes, including one last year which has at least temporarily put Dan out of action. They know a thing or two about roll cages.
I have had several American competitors examine our cage, and comment on its design and the fabrication skills that clearly went into it. If you're going to have a biggie like we did, you want a Sprongl cage on your side.
From this photo, you can see how crunched the back end of our car was. But the damage stops right where the cage begins. The doors open and latch. The windshield, which is glued to the body shell in this and most modern cars, is not even cracked.
That's one tough little car.
Second, our seat belts are full five-point harnesses, as required by the rules. Any racer will tell you the last thing you do before starting off is tug on those shoulder straps one more time. I also do it again any time there is a bit of a straight stretch.
Third, both Brian and I had new-last-year Bell helmets. We think Bell is the best name in the business, although their products are expensive. As the old joke goes, if you have a $150 head, buy a $150 helmet.
Fourth, although the Head and Neck Support (HANS) device is not yet mandatory for Targa Newfoundland (rumour has it that it will be for next year, and it should be), we both had one, me for the second year, Brian for the first. After seeing what happened to us - i.e., nothing - I can't imagine anyone not wearing one.
You never know what contribution any particular component of the safety system might have made the difference. But you try to put the odds in your favour.
And we do know that you only get one crash per lifetime which needs a HANS device if you don't have one. OK, Dale Earnhardt didn't even appear to have his helmet done up, but if he had AND had been wearing a HANS device, he'd still be racing.
So, lucky?
No. If we had been lucky I would have made the corner, we would have finished the rally and probably carted home another nice trophy.
Divine intervention? Sorry. Not buying that either.
Just playing it smart.
Last edited by Big Daddy; 10-09-2008 at 05:20 AM.
#5
10-09-2008, 05:38 AM
You may not have gone home with a trophy, but you did go home. Scares me to see competitors scimp on safety for the sake of cost, comfort or weight savings. After surviving an accident like that you don't consider a single element of your safety precautions 'excessive.'
Well done Jim, et al.
Well done Jim, et al.
#6
10-09-2008, 03:05 PM
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#7
10-09-2008, 07:47 PM
Followed Jim's driving exploits for the MINI team with great interest for several years now and remember the JCW Competition Edition being launched in conjunction with Targa fall 2006. Now have one of the JCW CE's of my very own and sad to see the MINI team have such a serious "off". Glad both driver and navigator are ok and looking forward to a glorious return to form in 2009!
The Targa is something I have vowed to drive myself with a good friend, though we're planning to run a turbo miata (in the "Grand Touring" class) if we're going to do this. (It was actually very cool to see Keith Tanner run a miata this year since I've known Keith since the local miata club years and years ago.)
So even with the "off", Jim has inspired a lot of canucks to try their hand at the Targa!
The Targa is something I have vowed to drive myself with a good friend, though we're planning to run a turbo miata (in the "Grand Touring" class) if we're going to do this. (It was actually very cool to see Keith Tanner run a miata this year since I've known Keith since the local miata club years and years ago.)
So even with the "off", Jim has inspired a lot of canucks to try their hand at the Targa!
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#8
11-08-2008, 01:19 PM
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I caught SpeedTV's coverage of that race two year. Man they drive those cars hard for that. I seriously started thinking about converting/prepping my C43/55 for running in that. If I won the lottery & didn't need to work to pay for all my expenses, it would happen. Serious bummer on of the MINI's end in this year's run.
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