Memories of a Formula One tragedy
One spectator sport that allows you to experience all the feelings and emotions of speed skiing is Formula One racing. Fast, adrenalin pumping, heart throbbing, nerve wracking and bordering on life threatening.
When I was approached to work with Rothmans Williams Renault Formula One Team (Middle East) on the public relations in 1994 it was a dream come true. I had five months to learn all about the drivers Ayrton Senna and Damon Hill and the ins and outs of Formula One.
My first race was at the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola. I had traveled from Dubai with fifteen journalists, and like my travel companions was eager to enjoy and lap up all the excitement. But our enthusiasm dwindled dramatically when driver Roland Ratzenburger crashed at 200mph in qualifying and died shortly after in hospital. This was the first fatal accident in F1 since 1986. I tried very hard to stay upbeat so that my little band of journalists would move their attention to the actual race day – but it wasn’t easy, not even for me.
Race day arrived. I had met Damon Hill previously at a photoshoot – he had driven my sponsored Alfa Romero through the streets of London with me on top of the car in my bright pink lycra suit. To this day I had no idea what Damon thought of this – but I can imagine he was totally embarrassed by the whole thing. Thankfully when we met at Imola he never mentioned our last encounter. I truly believed I would never see Damon again – but here we were!!
The tone of the group became a great deal more upbeat when we had the opportunity of a thirty-minute session with Ayrton Senna and Damon Hill a few hours before the race started. Both Damon and three times World Champion Ayrton seemed melancholy because of the previous days’ tragedy. I do remember Ayrton saying he was concerned about one part of the track being bumpy. But even with the sadness hanging over them they were both compassionate and sensitive to the questions the journalist asked.
I stood above the pit lanes and listened to the roar of engines on the starting grid. The atmosphere was nothing like I had experienced before – the very ground I stood on seemed to be shaking and vibrating with the noise of the engines. Senna led the way but shortly after a safety car was deployed because of a minor incident. As I could only see part of the race track I watched both the TV monitor and strip of track in front of the pit lanes but then on lap 7 when the safety car had left and the race was back on I saw Senna’s car veer off to the right, the same bit of track that he had said was bumpy – the next minute there was dust and smoke and flying car debris – Senna’s car had hit the concrete retaining wall. I stood frozen to the spot –“this cannot be happening – it’s like a bad dream” I thought. I felt totally numb – I looked over at the journalists – none of us could speak.
Four hours later it was announced that Senna had died at the scene of the crash from a head injury.
It was so hard to believe that we had been casually chatting with him just before the race and now he was gone. In a split second his life had been taken.
Senna’s death almost seemed to stop Formula One it is tracks. A dark cloud rested over the sport. Even more so because at the next race in Monaco there was another major accident – I remember sitting having dinner with the journalists and suddenly I started crying and I couldn’t stop – I rushed into the Ladies toilet and tried to get myself together. This was so out of character for me –was this a delayed reaction from Senna’s accident?
Four weeks on I still carried this heavy sadness that I couldn’t seem to shake off. But there was a light at the end of the tunnel when Damon Hill, Senna’s teammate won the Spanish Grand Prix. From that race it was though a cloud had been lifted. Now with revised F1 safety rules set in place the sport of racing tried to go back to normal – but there was one missing piece – Senna. A man who would be missed, not just because he was a great driver but also a compassionate man who loved humanity.