Several times last night, they had "The Big One" at the Daytona 500. As we know, it means a high speed multi car collision with sparks and fury. It's part of the sport. For many, it's the draw. NBC or FOX will rarely if ever run a promo for an upcoming race without showing a crash. The final "Big One" was one of the most brutal I've ever seen.
That terrible crash. Closing in on the finish line at 190mph. You just knew something bad was about to happen. How Ryan Newman survived that crash is testiment to the advances made in driver safety since we lost Dale. Ironically, it was 19 years ago today, also in the final lap of the great race that Dale Earnhardt lost his life. Watching FOX last night, it had the same post race feel. We, as viewers could tell that something was terribly wrong. I spent the next two hours hitting refresh on my Twitter feed. Along with prayers and well wishes, were some truly inappropriate and ridiculous comments. Forget that it's a father of two little girls who was fighting for his life. Some used the moment to promote or denigrate politicians. Some claimed "insider information". It showed just how awful some people can be in a moment like that.
So very happy to know that at the least, he's with us today. I'm sure his injuries are many and he'll need our continued prayers and support. I had just a couple of hours sleep last night. Woke up to see more ridiculous tweets. Tweeting at ridiculous people is a waste of time. But I did it.
All that matters is that he's survived it. A worldwide famous driver. The Rocketman. But to two little girls, he's just a dad and I pray that his road to recovery is a swift one.