NHRA News: Vandergriff unhurt after first U.S. Nationals blowover (9/6/2003)

Vandergriff unhurt after first U.S. Nationals blowover

By Rob Geiger, NHRA.com
9/6/2003

Chris Vandergriff

Top Fuel driver Chris Vandergriff was shaken but unhurt after a spectacular blowover in Saturday's opening round of Professional qualifying for the 49th annual Mac Tools U.S. Nationals.

Vandergriff never lost consciousness during the accident, which was the first blowover in U.S. Nationals history, but he was transported to Methodist Hospital for a complete evaluation on the recommendation of NHRA Medical Director Dan Brickey, who reported no visible injuries to Vandergriff.

"Chris seems okay," his brother Bob Vandergriff Jr. said from the hospital. "He took a pretty hard hit to the head. The blowover was relatively soft but the hit to the wall was a hard one. I know he's gonna be sore tomorrow. The good thing is that he will be okay."

©Cory Janssen

Competing in just his second race in a Top Fuel dragster, Vandergriff was on a solo pass when his EFans.com dragster began to noticeably lift its front end around the 330-foot timing cone. At that point, the car went into a nearly vertical wheelstand before coming completely off the racing surface near mid-track.

©Cory Janssen

Losing its body panels, the car spiraled once before coming back down on its side. The car then flipped over onto its roof and slid backwards down the track for several hundred feet, contacting the left-side wall. At one point the front portion of the car dangled over the retaining wall before Vandergriff ground to a safe stop in the center of the track just a few hundred feet past the finish line.

The Safety Safari descended on the scene immediately and Vandergriff emerged from the car under his own power, stood up, and began talking with medical personnel.

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