NASCAR race team in plane crash horror

[SSbaby]

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (AP) -- A plane owned by the Hendrick Motorsports organization crashed Sunday on its way to a NASCAR race, killing all 10 people aboard, federal officials said.

A spokesman for a funeral home where the bodies were being taken said the dead included the son, brother and two nieces of Rick Hendrick, owner of one of the most successful organizations in NASCAR history.

The Beech 200 took off from Concord, N.C., and crashed in the Bull Mountain area about seven miles west of the Martinsville airport about 12:30 p.m., said Arlene Murray, spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration.

The weather in the area was overcast at the time of the crash, according to Jan Jackson of the National Weather Service in Blacksburg.

NTSB spokesman Keith Holloway said investigators were on their way to the crash site, which was in rough terrain, but could not begin their examination until Monday.

Hendrick owns the teams of Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Terry Labonte and Brian Vickers, who competed in Sunday's Subway 500 in the Nextel Cup Series at Martinsville Speedway.

Read more here... (http://www.nascar.com/2004/news/headlines/cup/10/24/bc.car.nascar.hendrick.ap/index.html)

[Thumper]

This news hit me like a ton of bricks.
Although I did not meet any of these poor people, in NZ, we did have Jeff Gordon race during summer '88-89 for a Sprint Car team we associated with. My wife, daughter and I did get to meet and know Jeff, his step dad John Bickford and mum Carole.
I also met up with him when I was in the US, and he was always a great guy, instantly recognising people he had met.
Why am I saying this? Because I know Jeff will be grieving big time, and because of that, it hits home with me.
I also know that Randy Dorton, also on the plane, was probably the best NASCAR engine builder, so his passing will have a profound affect on the Hendricks team and the development of the Chevrolet NASCAR spec engine.
I will be sending Jeff our condolences somehow.

[SSbaby]

I spent some time in North America and, although their style of motor-racing is not my cup of tea, I knew of the BEST team (Hendrick Motorsport) in NASCAR. With Jeff Gordan at the wheel, the team was unbeatable over the course of the series.

My condolences to the team.