AN investment of several thousand dollars in safety equipment paid off big-time for young Masterton Formula First racer Matthew Stubbs at Pukekohe last weekend.
Stubbs was involved in an horrific crash that virtually ripped off the back his car.
The impact landed another driver in hospital, and his competition licence was withdrawn
for three weeks under medical advice.
His car may be written off.
Stubbs was racing again within 25 hours, thanks to his safety gear ? including the optional HANS (head and neck support) device ? and a remarkable overnight rebuild by team engineers.
The crash happened during qualifying on Saturday morning.
"It wasn't his fault," his father, Stuart, said later.
"There were three of them, drafting, with Matt at the back.
"He pulled out and was overtaking when the guy in front of him also pulled out and they tangled at around 180km/h."
The young driver's first question, as the dust settled, was: "Did I get a good time?"
He did, qualifying sixth fastest despite the crash, putting him on the third row of the grid on Sunday.
Repairs were still under way when the first race started, but he was immediately back on the pace for race two until a carburettor problem dropped him to 14th.
Race three was no better, an accelerator pedal bolt stressed by the crash failing while he was running a comfortable sixth in a field of 20-odd cars.
The good news is that Stubbs is still in the top 10, ninth overall despite his problems.
The Stubbs car was carrying a camera, so fans can share the crash with Matt by going to the Formula First site on the internet.
