WATERFORD – We can see it now, the public service announcement launched just in time for next year’s Daytona 500 by the good folks from NASCAR Home Tracks.
Maybe they can even get Kevin Harvick to go into that really deep and introspective “Kevin Harvick mode” to open the commercial, scripted out to say: “Winning races, saving lives, these are the men of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.”
Unfortunately, the NASCAR camera crews weren’t at the Waterford Speedbowl early Sunday morning to catch some footage of the drama and folly that unfolded just outside the Waterford Speedbowl’s front entrance.
Saturday night, before a packed crowd at the Speedbowl, Doug Coby used some dramatic moves in the last two laps to hold off Ryan Preece and win the Mr. Rooter 161 at Waterford, the first Whelen Modified Tour event at shoreline oval since 2006. Coby took the checkered flag just after 10 p.m. for the event.
Four hours later Coby was back involved in another dramatic engagement at Waterford. Around 2 a.m., a driver heading down Route 85 outside the Speedbowl lost control and flipped his subcompact car into small patch of woods just across the street from the track’s entrance.
The commotion of the flipping car sent many of those still milling about in the Speedbowl parking lot to check on the situation, including Coby.
Coby was one of four Whelen Modified Tour drivers and one Whelen All-American Series Waterford Speedbowl regular on the scene just seconds after the accident happened.
Also on scene were Modified Tour regulars Ron Silk, Rowan Pennink and Keith Rocco along with Speedbowl SK Modified division regular – and Saturday night winner – Rob Janovic Jr. The five drivers were just part of a bustling group of about 15 that made their way to start the improvised rescue efforts.
Once the rag-tag emergency group made it to Route 85 that’s when the impromptu crew went barreling into action, albeit with some quality comedic tone thanks to a crash victim that seemed about as aloof as a 13-year old on a date.
“I lean down to see if whoever is in the car is alright and I look inside and there’s this kid playing with the radio and talking on his cell phone while he’s upside down,” Janovic said.
The first responders responsibly made sure from the victim that there were no other passengers in the car to be accounted for and then offered to bust out the windows to let him out.
It seems after finishing his song on the radio and ending his cell phone call the crash victim decided to vacate the vehicle. Safe, and seemingly unharmed, the ragtag emergency crew then went to work in trying to help him secure a ride home, as in, his own ride.
It took about two people in the group to call out , “let’s flip it back” and within seconds there was a line of arms pushing on one side of the mangled ride, bouncing the subcompact easily back onto four wheels, a very damaged four wheels at that, even before professional emergency responders arrived.
As blue lights could be seen down the road, and sirens blared, Silk offered advice to the many possibly inebriated folks hanging out in the road.
“We should probably scatter,” Silk said.
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