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Accident today in Paso Robles


jarwes

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Driver hasn't been identified yet.. Praying it's not someone we know. it was originally reported by CHP as a gray car, which isn't much to identify them. Apparently they rolled multiple times down an embankment off the highway 46 off ramp and caught fire. Horrible way to go..

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Here is a video of a news report about the accident. If the video ending showing a truck with a bunch of mangled metal under a tarp is a picture of the actual vehicle then there wasn't much left of the vehicle.

 

http://www.ksby.com/story/34371601/chp-investigating-fatal-crash-in-paso-robles

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"CHP says the man was driving a 2015 Shelby and veered off the road down an embankment at an unknown speed."

 

I'm guessing a 2015 GT350 or GT350R as thats the only 2015 Shelby where the VIN will denote the car as a Shelby model.

 

http://www.ksby.com/story/34371601/chp-investigating-fatal-crash-in-paso-robles

 

http://www.ksby.com/clip/13062326/chp-investigating-fatal-crash-in-paso-robles

 

 

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I bet even most of the experienced drivers don't even know the answer to this question, every tire has a maximum speed until it becomes unsafe, do you know what your's is on your car?

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There is a fair amount of information reported incorrectly and some speculation about this accident.

 

 

First of all, law enforcement stated in various articles alcohol/drugs were NOT suspected.

 

Secondly, there was NO mention of speed being a factor

 

 

Yes, there were some earlier reports that it was a 2015 Shelby. What is coming out now is that it was NOT a Shelby but rather a Shelby Replica and more specifically a replica of 60’s Shelby Cobra NOT a Mustang as earlier reported. This would make sense because there was prior mention of a “multiple point harness” which is common in Cobras and Cobra Replicas. Here is an updated video and it includes the witnesses who tried to cut the harness to rescue the guy from the burning car.

 

 

http://www.ksby.com/story/34374494/paso-robles-man-tries-to-save-driver-from-fiery-crash

 

 

ps: there are also reports that the age of the driver was 32 not 55.

 

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There can be a difference between velocity and speed! Sure, the driver may not have been exceeding the speed (velocity) limit, but chances are he either did a downshift without a rev-matching throttle blip, or did a power downshift to accelerate. Either way most likely the rear end broke loose, went into oversteer and the result was loss of control. It is especially easy to do this with cold tires and/or cold pavement.

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Another forum is now listing this accident as involving a 65 Cobra replica.

 

CHP identifies Paso Robles man killed in fiery crash
Posted: Jan 30, 2017 9:08 AM PST
Updated: Jan 30, 2017 9:08 AM PST
By Kathrene Herndon
Connect

The California Highway Patrol has released the name of the driver killed in a fiery crash near Paso Robles over the weekend.
Officers say Anthony Ray Riso, 31, died after his 1965 Shelby replica went off Highway 101 Saturday afternoon near the Highway 46 West offramp, rolling several times before landing on its wheels and becoming engulfed in flames.
Witnesses worked to remove Riso from the vehicle, but were unsuccessful due to the heat and a four-point harness the Paso Robles man was wearing, according to CHP. No other vehicles were involved.*
The cause of the crash remains under investigation. CHP says drugs or alcohol do not appear to be contributing factors.*
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There is a fair amount of information reported incorrectly and some speculation about this accident.

 

 

First of all, law enforcement stated in various articles alcohol/drugs were NOT suspected.

 

Secondly, there was NO mention of speed being a factor

 

 

Yes, there were some earlier reports that it was a 2015 Shelby. What is coming out now is that it was NOT a Shelby but rather a Shelby Replica and more specifically a replica of 60’s Shelby Cobra NOT a Mustang as earlier reported. This would make sense because there was prior mention of a “multiple point harness” which is common in Cobras and Cobra Replicas. Here is an updated video and it includes the witnesses who tried to cut the harness to rescue the guy from the burning car.

 

 

http://www.ksby.com/story/34374494/paso-robles-man-tries-to-save-driver-from-fiery-crash

 

 

ps: there are also reports that the age of the driver was 32 not 55.

 

Without knowing all the facts all one can do is speculate on what happened. Just like the CHP is speculating that drugs/alcohol were not a factor when no blood testing had taken place when the CHP made that statement.

 

Since a witness is describing the car as a Cobra replica perhaps 2015 is when the car was titled/registered which could explain the original description as a 2015 Shelby. There also could be a reasonable explanation for the drivers age difference, what if the owner of the car was 55 and say he let his 32 year old son or neighbor drive the car that day. Or what if someone just purchased the car and hadn't had a chance to update DMV records. If the CHP and/or media are using DMV records to gather info then perhaps they were making an assumption until proven otherwise.

 

All of this doesn't change the outcome one bit, some family is grieving right now.

 

Steve

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I just hope that the Man was already Dead before the car came to a halt for two reasons.......

 

01) Dying by fire would be very horrible

 

02) I can't imagine what those people, who tried to save him must be going thru now, after trying to save him only to have to stop and watch him burn to death. If he was already dead, it wouldn't be so bad on them.

 

 

RIP Mr. Anthony Ray Riso

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I just hope that the Man was already Dead before the car came to a halt for two reasons.......

 

01) Dying by fire would be very horrible

 

02) I can't imagine what those people, who tried to save him must be going thru now, after trying to save him only to have to stop and watch him burn to death. If he was already dead, it wouldn't be so bad on them.

 

 

RIP Mr. Anthony Ray Riso

The video update I posted in post #16 above had the actual guy that tried to cut the harness and get the driver out. He reported that the driver was unconscious, no mention of driver being dead.

 

 

You can also see in the video that the guy who tried to rescue the driver was still shook up from the experience.

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My best friend pulled a guy out of a burning car in SJ (HWY 85 / Cottle). A bunch of people standing there with their phones out recording him screaming every name in the book at them to drop their phones and help. He was halfway in the car, pulling the guy out of his upside down Mercedes when he heard the whoosh of the car bursting into flames catching the weeds, bushes, and trees on fire all around him.

 

For his trouble, my friend received a commendation from the Fire Chief, a nice copper and brass engraved fire extinguisher, and 20k shares of pre-IPO stock in the guy's company Divvy.

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My question is:

What kind of "four-point harness" was this guy using that did not have an easy, quick, obvious release mechanism that a bystander could solve and get the guy out?

 

I'd think someone safety-conscious enough to add a superior system of restraint would have picked one that would operate in just such a circumstance as this guy encountered.

 

Eh?

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My question is:

What kind of "four-point harness" was this guy using that did not have an easy, quick, obvious release mechanism that a bystander could solve and get the guy out?

 

I'd think someone safety-conscious enough to add a superior system of restraint would have picked one that would operate in just such a circumstance as this guy encountered.

 

Eh?

 

The standard Cobra driver's side setup is configured with shoulder harnesses attached to the roll bar with latches that connect into a "duck bill" latch in the lap belt. Depending on the nature and extent of the fire it could be very difficult to extract someone without getting burned. Chances are the driver was unconscious as a result of the rolls.

 

post-12356-0-75010100-1486334328_thumb.jpg

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What you call the duck bill I have heard called the latch but I think we are talking about the same thing. The other is the cam lock which is the newer of the two latches. I had the latch in my 912 Porsche and have the cam lock in my Shelby. I believe the latch to be the easier of the two to work in an emergency, although I am pleased to say I have never had to test either under the circumstances of this tragic accident.

 

What I don't follow is why you say the duck bill/latch would be difficult for a bystander to operate in a tough situation. Not a criticism but, rather, a request for more information because I am at the point where my harnesses have aged out and am thinking I would rather have the duck bill/latch. Thanks for the post and whatever else you can add.

 

Jim

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What I don't follow is why you say the duck bill/latch would be difficult for a bystander to operate in a tough situation. Not a criticism but, rather, a request for more information because I am at the point where my harnesses have aged out and am thinking I would rather have the duck bill/latch. Thanks for the post and whatever else you can add.

 

Jim

 

I'm guessing the foot box area was involved in flames by that time.

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I raced my MGB for a few years with the "duckbill" latch, and the Vega even longer. It was easy to open when you knew what you were looking for, but in both cases I added a three-inch leather grip, attached through the hole in the duck's head. With and without the grip, you could open it without looking, but it "fell (more) easily to hand", with the grip.

 

I haven't any experience with the cam lock, but it seems to me the motions required to open it are more complex, requiring a direction decision that might be less than obvious to someone facing the harness rather than wearing it.

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I raced my MGB for a few years with the "duckbill" latch, and the Vega even longer. It was easy to open when you knew what you were looking for, but in both cases I added a three-inch leather grip, attached through the hole in the duck's head. With and without the grip, you could open it without looking, but it "fell (more) easily to hand", with the grip.

 

I haven't any experience with the cam lock, but it seems to me the motions required to open it are more complex, requiring a direction decision that might be less than obvious to someone facing the harness rather than wearing it.

 

My GT has a 6-pt cam. I don't find one any easier than the other. Mine has a lever that "unsnaps" when activated so it is not necessary to hold it. You just have to remember to deactivate the lever to allow the "points" to latch.

 

However, with either I could see that someone that has not experienced a race harness might have a reaction time to disconnecting it.

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