News : CR accident has organizers, drivers re-thinking safety of popular Fair events

School bus races, which took place in 2012 and 2014, are unlikely to return to future BC Fairs.

The fatal accident at Hawkeye Downs at the “Race ‘Em Or Wreck ‘Em” event at Hawkeye Downs in Cedar Rapids this past weekend has organizers and participants re-thinking the safety of such events, and may impact what kind of entertainment offered during future Benton County Fairs.

John Pickart, 68, of Norway, died during a school bus and RV race; that event has taken place twice in recent years at the Benton County Fair in Vinton, in 2010 and 2012. B & B Productions, which arranged the Hawkeye Downs event, was in charge of the local events those two years. A different promotion company arranged the Benton County Fair’s 2013 and 2014 “Night of Destruction” events, which included a variety of racing/demolition activities but not that specific event.

Those events are among the most popular grandstand attractions; the seats were full of fans cheering loudly as drivers raced and crashed vehicles.

Right now, said Susan Meyer of the Benton County Fair Board, it’s too early to tell what will happen next July. She said she has not discussed the issue yet with other fair board members, but offered her opinion about what may happen in the future.

“I don't know if it will impact our event or not,” said Meyer. “I am assuming if we have the Race 'em and Wreck 'em night again, there won't be any school bus or RV racing. It’s probably just too early to tell.”

Driver Josh Van Hamme of Belle Plaine won the 2014 Fair “trailer races,” which have taken places in recent years; he also competed in other area events and was at Hawkeye Downs awaiting his turn to drive when he witnessed the accident that killed Pickart.

Still shaken from what he saw, Van Hamme said he is seriously considering retiring from the sport.

“I was right there when it happened,” he said. “To be honest, I'll probably never trailer race again. Saturday night really put into perspective what could happen while just having stupid fun – it’s not worth dying for and it's not worth having to carry around the thought of killing someone. It's easy enough to get into a car accident on the street; there’s no need to go around a track and do it for fun.”

Van Hamme said that promoters of such events should change the safety rules to make a roll cage mandatory for any vehicle involved.

One driver who says he will compete again – but never in an RV – is Justin Stander. A veteran race car driver (Hobby Stock and now Stock Car divisions), Stander won the Race 'Em Or Wreck 'Em bus race in Vinton a couple years ago, and also competed in the truck and trailer races while pulling a full-sized camper.

“It's not as safe as a race car with a full cage, so it does make you think,” he said. “But I would compete in it again.”

Yet, said Stander, he would only compete in a truck or bus.

“An RV is pretty much structured out of wood and aluminum with very little steel besides the frame, but a bus, street car or truck is much different,”' Stander said. “I do not believe RVs should be allowed in events like that.”

Yet, said Stander, in any motorsports event there is always a risk of injury or death.

“It is a very tragic accident and it makes everyone who competes in motorsports think about that a lot anytime someone loses their life in a racing accident,” he said.