Throwdowns > Forfeited

NEW NAME said 06/18, 12:42 PM
FFTI Topic: What are the 3 most historically dangerous motor vehicle races still running?

In no particular order

The Dakar Rally - 49 racers have been killed in Dakar's 32-year history. A grueling race once ran in the desolate, lawless deserts of North Africa and since 2009 in the equally bleak, barren wastelands of South America. Drivers not only deal with competing racers, but must make it through desert sands, dangerous mountain passes, and even the occasional daylight robbery and random shooting

The 24hrs of Le Mans - A high speed endurance race started in 1923. There have been 129 deaths here, including a 1955 accident where a driver crashed his car into the stands and killed 83 spectators

The Isle of Man Tourist Trophy - Originally built for bicycles, it's the oldest motorcycle racing circuit still in use, through narrow, twisting streets flanked by stone walls and sometimes buildings. It's claimed 231 lives. In 2011, 3 competitors & 4 non-competitors wer killed, and total of 32 seriously injured in accidents that police describes as resembling a "war zone". Police also called the # of deaths "usual" for the TT period.

GL

NEW NAME said 06/19, 12:37 PM
True, Le Mans has been made safer year by year, but it is still a historical race. It qualifies for this debate

Andre Lagache and Rene Leonard won the first 24 in 1923. Marcel Fassler, Andre Lotterer & Benoit Treluyer won the 2011 race. That is history

The Cannonball Run or Gumball Rally would be examples of historical street races, but you didn't choose one of them, you just threw a big, general blanket over everything

Street racing? Many people have died street racing but millions more have died on the streets merely going about their own business. Does "going about your own business" qualify for this debate? If so, historicallythen, by your criteria, your choice isn't even the most dangerous choice available to you. I would venture to say more people have died driving to Grandma's house than "street racing"

Who won the first street race? Who won the last? Want to look that up on Wikipedia? I'm waiting...

Your race isn't definable. The guy in the Honda next to me on the freeway seemed like he thought he could go faster than me. I beat him to the offramp. Am I a street racer?

My choice is a specific RACE. Yours is nothing but a DMV statistic

NEW NAME said 06/20, 11:04 AM
There were plenty of choices for you to take here, the Macau GP, the Baja 1000, the Indy 500

Instead you chose "Every unsanctioned auto race since the invention of the automobile"

That's like me choosing "Every Stock car race since the formation of NASCAR" or "Every Formula 1 race ever"

Except I could present actual facts, records, and historical data to back up my claim

"Street racing has been around since the invention of the automobile"

Can you prove it? We know it happened, because it must have, but there is no record of the first street race, or the first winner

That makes it part of folklore. History separates actual events from myth and fiction

"people would race their horses down the street for money before cars were invented"

Horse racing is not our topic

"I'm talking about legit street racing"

Legit street racing? A legitimate illegal activity? Oxymoron much?

The 24 Hrs of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car endurance race. Since the winner is who completes the most laps, it rewards high speeds over the savvy of negotiating turns, which invariably has led to many horrific accidents

And it's part of History