Dodged a bullet.
Being trackside at a raceway isn’t always the safest place. Officials, workers, and members of the media do their best to stay out of harm’s way as much as possible and put themselves in the safest position possible. However, sometimes, things get a little too close for comfort.
At Alaska Raceway Park on July 4th, 2017, John Dixon was driving the Trophy Hunter AA/FA on the drag strip. After doing a warm-up burnout and lining up for the race, Dixon gunned it with the hopes of taking home the fastest time. However, the car wasn’t able to handle the pressure and it’s blower motor exploded into a giant ball of flames.
The trackside cameraman was mere feet away when the explosion happened, and caught the entire thing on video (and almost in his face). After reviewing the footage, the cameraman narrowly escaped being hit by some flying metal fragments from the engine, avoiding some serious injury.
Thankfully, Dixon was also unharmed from the explosion.
Just be careful out there if you’re trackside, folks!
Source: alaskaerjs YouTube
How scared would you be to stand trackside after escaping this explosion?
