Kubica seriously hurt in Rally

[Reg]

Robert Kubica was seriously hurt today participating in a european rally. Reports are fractures to his leg, arm and hand after hitting the barrier hard with possible intrusion of barrier into car. Fingers crossed his is OK and not out too long.

[Noah930]

News > Kubica seriously injured in rally crash - reports - Motorsport.com



This story indicates he crashed while driving to the starting line? Not even racing at the time?

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/06022011/58/multiple-fractures-f1-star-kubica.html

[javadog]

From Autosport:

By Jonathan Noble, David Evans, Michele Lostia Sunday, February 6th 2011, 14:23 GMT


Robert Kubica looks set to miss the start of the new Formula 1 season after suffering multiple fractures to his right arm, leg and hand in a crash on the Ronde di Andora rally on Sunday.

The Polish driver was airlifted to hospital on Sunday morning following a high-speed crash that took place 4.6 kilometres into the opening stage of the event, on a stage near the village of Testico in Italy.

Kubica is understood to have swiped a wall and hit a crash barrier in a Super 2000 Skoda Fabia on the first stage of the rally - which he was competing in shortly after completing the first week of pre-season F1 testing with Renault at Valencia.

According to sources at the event, Kubica was trapped in the car for more than one hour until specialist extraction equipment could get to the scene of the crash.

There are unconfirmed reports that Kubica's injuries were caused by the end of a crash barrier penetrating the footwell of the car - which would explain why his injuries were on his right hand side rather than by the door.

According to a statement issued by Kubica's Renault team, he has been diagnosed with multiple fractures to his right arm, leg and hand.

After being transferred to the Santa Corona Hospital in Pietra Ligure, Kubica underwent surgery on Sunday afternoon for the injuries he suffered - with doctors believed to be focusing their efforts on his injured hand and, in particular, its blood supply.

An update from the hospital in the afternoon said that the operation on Kubica would continue until Sunday evening. And although amputation of the hand had been ruled out, it was too early to give a prognosis on how well the hand would recover from the injuries it suffered.

It was also confirmed that Kubica was out of immediate danger, and there was no threat to his life. His co-driver Jakub Gerber was not hurt.

Kubica's injuries look almost certain to prevent him starting the season for Renault, with the first race of the campaign due to take place in Bahrain on March 13.

Renault will likely call on reserve driver Bruno Senna to fill in in the short term, but the team could opt for a more experienced driver if Kubica faces a more lengthy lay-off.

[herr_oberst]

That sucks. Get well soon, Robert.

[svandamme]

i'm surprised his F1 contract allows him to do rally driving...

[CurtEgerer]

[svandamme]

Originally Posted by Noah930

News > Kubica seriously injured in rally crash - reports - Motorsport.com



This story indicates he crashed while driving to the starting line? Not even racing at the time?

Surgeons fight to save Kubica's hand - Yahoo! Eurosport

If you think rally drivers don't speed in between Timed stages or Special stages, you are sorely mistaken.. Even though they are technically required to obey the national road laws, and even the rally rules dictate they must obide to speed limits outside the stages.. Reality is different, and they will sometimes go to great lenghts to avoid penalty times due to arriving late at the start. Some will make the Gumball crowd look like rank amateurs, which off course most are.

[CurtEgerer]

Originally Posted by svandamme

i'm surprised his F1 contract allows him to do rally driving...

Kubica has insisted that his F1 contracts allow him to drive rally cars. One reason why he isn't in a McLaren, Ferrari, Red Bull or Mercedes.

[svandamme]

then, i'm sure he will have had to accept clauses in the F1 contract, that cut him off the money, right about ... now.
But you gotta admire somebody who gives it up for the passion of things...

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by svandamme

then, i'm sure he will have had to accept clauses in the F1 contract, that cut him off the money, right about ... now.
But you gotta admire somebody who gives it up for the passion of things...

Amen to that. He's a good F1 driver, he's not racing rally because he's hurting for cash.

[oldE]

This from CNN
"Speaking to reporters outside the hospital, Kubica's manager Daniel Morelli said: "Surgeons are trying to restore the functionality of his right hand.

"They have restarted the circulation of blood and repaired the bone structure. Now they have to think about the muscle functionality but Robert has a very strong character, he'll be OK."

Good Luck, Robert.


Les

[Joeaksa]

Hope he gets well and soon...

[CurtEgerer]

Ya gotta love the interweb. Already on YouTube.

[Noah930]

Originally Posted by svandamme

If you think rally drivers don't speed in between Timed stages or Special stages, you are sorely mistaken..

I understand the speeding between stages mentality. But I speed, too, and I've never comprehensively crashed a car, let alone enough to cause pretty significant personal bodily injury despite wearing full race gear in a race-prepped car. And my driving skills can't hold a candle to those of a professional racecar driver. There's a difference between driving really fast and racing. I can understand crashing while racing. I don't exactly understand it while driving really fast.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery for Kubica. Renault's gonna be lost without him.

[paulgtr]

after his montreal crash, he's got 7 lives left. hope he recovers enough to operate all the damn buttons on the steering wheel of an f1 car.

[svandamme]

Originally Posted by Noah930

I understand the speeding between stages mentality. But I speed, too, and I've never comprehensively crashed a car, let alone enough to cause pretty significant personal bodily injury despite wearing full race gear in a race-prepped car. And my driving skills can't hold a candle to those of a professional racecar driver. There's a difference between driving really fast and racing. I can understand crashing while racing. I don't exactly understand it while driving really fast.

You really oughta see it with your own eyes Noah

Keep in mind that a rally attracts big crowds, these crowds are also traveling from stage to stage, so it get's busy on the roads...
Rally drivers have to deal with this traffic as well, and more often then not, if they do not cut a few corners in between stages, figuratively speaking, they can't make it on time for the start.

If they are tied and late to get to the start, they are driving for the position, for some, that's even if it's in between stages...
Maybe not all of them, may be not all of the time, maybe not all of the distance..
But some really do gun it..and they gun it in a Race prepped car.
That's something different from your average speeder like you or me, that's a lot of extra power, grip, torque, adrenaline, ...

I'm not saying Kubica was doing something bad or whatever, he could have had bad luck at legal speeds.
I'm just pointing out that it's not realistic to assume that they drive slow in between stages... quite often in between stages they are on the clock as well.

[javadog]

Originally Posted by Noah930

There's a difference between driving really fast and racing. I can understand crashing while racing. I don't exactly understand it while driving really fast.

Sounds like they were on the first stage:

Kubica's co-driver Jakub Gerber emerged uninjured from the accident, and said he did not know what had caused the Pole to go off the road.

"We were on the first four kilometres of the first special stage. I was looking at the notes and didn't notice that the car was skidding," he told Gazzetta dello Sport. "Only when we crashed I saw Robert holding his arm, and after a few moments he lost consciousness.

I think his injuries resulted from a section of guard rail penetrating the front of the car and passing between the left front wheel and the engine, into the passenger compartment, which is sort of a freak occurence.

JR

[chris 964]

Originally Posted by paulgtr

after his montreal crash, he's got 7 lives left. hope he recovers enough to operate all the damn buttons on the steering wheel of an f1 car.

He's down to 6... He clouted a wall in the Sicilian Rally, Nov 2009.

[911pcars]

I shudder to think about an end piece of Armco penetrating into the cabin. That'd be like a table saw blade, which it was.

S

[CurtEgerer]

Definitely a freak accident, what's the odds? Good to see his F1 team standing behind him:

“Rallying is a very important thing for Robert,” said a team spokeswoman. “Driving a F1 car, a go kart or a rally car is a way of finding his personal balance. He knew the risks and he always insisted that his contract should let him drive other cars than F1.” Team principal Eric Boullier added that Kubica’s extra-curricular activities make him the character that he is. “We didn’t want a robot or a corporate man for a driver,” Boullier said. “It [the clause in his contract] was agreed together.”