Karl Houghton, 1933-2021 | Racer

It’s hard to understand how one person’s contribution can radically change the sport of IndyCar racing, but that’s exactly what Carl Houghton brought to him on his arrival in the early 1980s.

From Flint, Michigan, who died earlier this month at the age of 87, may be a mysterious name for most NTT IndyCar Series drivers today. But collectively, they have Hortons who appreciate the immense reassurance they feel whenever life is at stake on the racetrack.

The founder of the Horton Safety Team, now known as the AMR Safety Team, revolutionized IndyCar in the CART era by introducing new concepts, vehicles and mobile medical units that did not exist before Horton’s arrival. I did. Houghton’s main business is the manufacture of ambulances, applying his real-world knowledge to the state of emergency and the relatively primitive state of medical response vehicles, transforming the sport forever.

Instead of a tow truck, a fire engine, and a hearse that act as an ambulance, Houghton created the first all-purpose response truck for CART, combined with driver escape tools such as the “Jaws of Life,” and cockpit as needed. I cut out the enclosure. Tanks, hoses, fire extinguishers that can manage small fires, all on board a highly trained and dedicated safety team staff to manage everything from harmless spins to large-scale collisions and trauma.

And if the incident means that the driver or crew needs medical attention, Houghton offers a state-of-the-art solution for the wheel that IndyCar will move to all events for the first time in its history. I guaranteed to have it.

The equipment and skills of the Houghton team have changed the game. Image courtesy of Martyn Thake

“In addition to the emergency response truck, we used his medical vehicle four times,” said Terry Trammel, a renowned IndyCar doctor. “First, there was one of Karl’s first box-type ambulances. Now it’s commonplace, but it was really rare at the time. Then we went beyond that as the crew was expanding. , And Karl recognized it, so he put together a fifth wheel trailer for us. It’s actually one of the first mobile trauma centers, like a mobile emergency room. Yes, there was only one trauma bed behind.

“Then we went to a new coach with two trauma beds behind. And finally we went beyond that and expanded 50 feet not far from what we have today. It became a trailer. It had all sorts of deception. I thought it was the coolest. I had never had such a good one in a hospital operating room. But that was Karl’s whole deal. As soon as he started to feel cramped in the scenario, he would find something bigger and better. He made a trailer and everything else with his own money.

“Karl and I, Dr. Steve Olvey, we all worked a lot together. He gave us pencils and paper and said,” Draw me what you need or want. Please. ” And that’s what we get. He is very enthusiastic about providing trauma service, truck safety service and trucks, ensuring that we have all the latest and greatest. “

In today’s racing world, Martyn Thake is known as a circuit designer and safety consultant, developing both disciplines as a member of the Houghton Safety Team on one of the yellow, orange, and red trucks. increase.

“I joined the team in 1987. (Late) Ron Bromley and I started on the same day,” Sake said. “Karl was probably the most unpretentious guy I’ve ever met, because there was a CART race in Michigan and he saw a crash and didn’t care what he saw in an urgent reaction. Instead of sitting on the sidelines and complaining about it, the man started opening his checkbook and the process of resolving it and fixing it. Carl Houghton and (CART Chief Steward) Wally Darren Without the Bach combination, I always agreed to plan and raise money.

“Karl was really positive about some things. He sat down and moved his head in the way he was always looking for a better way to do this, but it’s always a cheap way. It wasn’t always. Do this. He and his wife Judy were completely devoted to making the race safer. He had the foresight. Wally had some idea. If he had, or if one of us had an idea, Karl had the resources in the store to knock out the prototype and came to the truck with new toys and fittings.

“How he went from making safety trucks, and how they evolved from regular pickups to bespoke GMC Duallys with all the safety devices to deploy when they reach the driver. Karl came up with the idea in the 80’s, virtually the same as everyone uses today. “

The industry-leading AMR IndyCar Safety team, servicing today’s IndyCar Series drivers, is based on technology, tools and skills refined by Houghton’s innovations. Scott LePage / Motorsport Images

Houghton’s tremendous influence was initially brought to CART, but his core contributions to emergency vehicles, mobile medical facilities, and driving safety teams are partly due to all major racing series at national and international levels. Or it is reproduced as a whole.

“One afternoon, I spent about an hour trying to get the driver out of a car wrecked in Toronto,” said Trammel. “And it would have taken 10 minutes today, because I had to go through one of the ports in front of the car and cut off the stem of the pedal to keep my feet clean, but at that time I had to cut it off. There was no way to do it, the chin didn’t fit there, some of the other tools were too big, and the little ones weren’t powerful enough.

“So Karl saw what we experienced to get rid of this poor driver and returned to his store after the race, and he was then small and powerful enough to properly slice the pedals. I came up with a hydraulic cutter It happened so that we could get them out faster and work on them. It was like reaching out, so I’m always laughing. If the tool doesn’t exist, or if it doesn’t exist, Carl can go and create it, and the next time you get into that situation, you’ll get the right tool.

“Through all these crashes and incidents, and everything we’ve learned, Karl continued to come up with all these small or big solutions. Combining them, many of the things we’ve come to. It will be safety standards and equipment. To know what he and his team created in today’s race. It was never a big deal for Karl. It just gets it done. “

The AMR Safety Team’s latest mobile medical safety vehicles continue to be enhanced based on Horton’s legacy.Michael Levitt / Motorsport Images

Thake has a similar reputation for Horton’s selfless approach to saving and saving the lives of countless drivers.

“I’ve worked in several corporate structures, but you always come across people who say,’What is the cost-benefit ratio, and what is the value of life, or the value of limbs?'” He said. “And Karl was’****. We have to stop these guys from getting hurt. We can’t start a fire and we’re ready to put it out. I can’t. I can’t prepare for any situation. I have to stop doing this. “So he changed everything he didn’t like about the safety aspects of the race. I can’t stop it. Karl was a pioneer. “

Houghton is survived by his wife Judy, four children, and many grandchildren.

https://ift.tt/3ENo4gW Karl Houghton, 1933-2021 | Racer

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